Polyfiller pages cont.....

So I am keeping a side book which is far less formal along side the sketchbook. This way I am not without anything after it goes. I have been trying to gather like a visual alphabet on stone inscription and rock art. There were some sketches I did last night.

The poly filler pages are now getting painted, for those who have worried I painted the card with gesso first so it had soething to lock onto. It is very durable so far - I am hardly delicate :)
Painted with yellow and gold mixed
Painted with copper mixed with a brick red emulsion tester pot, and rubbed back with a damp piece of kitchen paper.

More layers of colour to come

What I've been up to

Not the most interesting pieces of work at this stage but here are the grounds of a spread and a cover from my sketchbook. I used polyfiller and a water bottle lid, credit card and a piece of card with "teeth" cut into it. I used this to score lines in the polyfiller (spackle for our american friends) I am going to paint these up now and se how they look, so far I am pleased.

Have been doing some observational drawings in my notebook too, which I will photocopy to use in my sketchbook. These will follow

Sketchbook pages 3 and 4 - ink and found tools ala Gina

I was chatting away with Gina the other day as she has been working on a sketchbook. She was drawing with found tools, particularly spaghetti. So I thought I would give it a go. The first page I did was with a feather, gosh it was harder than I thought. Here's what I did.

I then tried spaghetti, not quite as bad as the feather but I like how they have turned out. I added some metallic green pen and copper metallic pen to the page too.

I am going to revisit these pages with some ink as Gina has done in her post today.

Now or my dilemma - this sketchbook paper is pants!!!!! to say the least. I have to decide what to do - do I take the book apart and change the paper? or continue to glue into the book and save the hassle of rebinding???????????????????

WHAT WOULD YOU DO???????

new layout

had to add a new background as my old one was deleted. Never mind like this one too :)

Strip ease part 2

Here is the stitched piece i did for strip ease crusade. A lady I really like and admire retired from school at the end of this year and another colleague made her a memory book and o i thought this would be the perfect thing to put in there for her. I did it in our national colours "white" (ish), green and red. I hand dyed with tea and coffee some fabrics and tore them into strips. I then hand stitched in tea dyed crochet cotton and bleached back the red cotton velvet for the heart so it didn't look so stark. Here's a detail.....

I then added some free machining, I wanted welsh words - she was the Head of Welsh you see. I wrote -"Curiad calon ein cymuned"which means Heart beat of our community.Here's the finished piece I think she liked it
notice the circular stitching, based on the cup and ring markings in my sketchbook

Sketchbook project and Big thanks to those who sponsored me

Well I dirtied my sketchbook :) I did a big smudgy blob of black on the inside front cover and shut the book :) Had to get over the newness some how. I have chosen below the surface for my theme and have decided to look at stone inscriptions. So after a mega net trawl this is what I have started with. I intend to visit the Margam stones (local display of inscribed stones) but haven't done that yet. I used Michelle's "Strip ease" challenge as the basis of these 2 pages. So I set forth to make some stoney backgrounds, I used acrylics and a piece of clear film packaging from a toy to do some mono printing, fast and loose as I think I needed freeing up. I tore this and added it to my splodgy page. I used an old cotton reel to print in copper the border. I then set forth with the biro - LOVES A BIRO :)

Oh and I deliberately left the inside front cover quite sparse as they intend to stick a pocket on there so was futile to do more.

Next page, I layered my torn pages, taking care to follow Michelle's advice on tearing with and against the grain. I added some old dictionary page - with the word permanent on one bit - and then as a lucky find in the dictionary colour plates I found a picture of radar, well I thought it looked like my cup and ring markings so commandeered it for this page.

This was how the page stood, but knew the black square was too "stuck" on so I set out with the trusty biro and colour pencils to tie things together. I love how this turned out, has the subtlety and wearing of the rings just like in some pics I have found and the mono prints have been given their rightful centre stage.

Love the way this is going but craving colour now, so have to work away from the literal soon and start playing.

Now then a HUGE thanks to those who have sponsored me, a great cause Cancer research. I did my 5 K in 46 min which is a mega achievement for the 20 stone girl of a year ago, here's me my work colleagues, the stunning Bindy and Kay( Far right - mother and daughter magic) they have got me through the last few months, and the gorgeous girls from my gym. Nicky in the centre came 5th the little demon :) and of course my little Ellie who plans to run next year. I really enjoyed it, was not easy but feel so empowered :)

Prom and other things

I had a fab time at the prom this year, ots fitter so danced till my sides ache like mad today. Anyway other things first, Here is this years crop of my daughters dahlia, "ELLIE TAYLOR"

So I did some tea and coffee dyeing for my sacred stones work, going to do some sampling for the sketchbook as I think this is important for me right now to have cloth in hand (keep me sane)

So here are the girlies, don't they look stunning. I have taught all of these and most were in my upper school classes. Just gorgeous

Here are our Prom King and Queen - However, there were 2 sets as one of our total delights won too. Mair - the stunner is my TOP star of this year and made this dress herself :) Clever cloggs. So bright and talented and will go very far. Cameron (they did not come together but are both wearing Welsh tartan as it happens) is the biggest gentleman you could come accross, He looked after the other young man who won the joint Prom king prize with a grace and maturity way beyond his years.
Here's me in my il- fitting dress, unfortunatley I have lost loads off the chest area and so this didn't fit well. I am very disappointed and will be ripping the top off soon and making a strapless top for it I will say.

a cracking prom and a lovely night.

Prom is upon us again

and as per I have left it late and have nothing to wear. So I "found" some fabric that was at the back of a cupboard and it was bright burnt orange. Wasn't sure if I could carry it but in the end I thought sod it go for it. None of my previous outfits FIT so needs must. (Have a back up dress from the charity shop at £4 - which will appear soon as it is missing something and I might ask advice :)

So this was my inspiration...

It is caled the Slinky dress by Jansmin Di Milo. So I couldn't handle how deep the V was so took that up, didn't think the frill on the midrif was a good plan as much as I loved it as it would draw the eye to a "problem zone" :) so set to work on this......

I changed the "straps" as they looked very broad and old womany, so gathered them up and made a band from a scrap and now it looks very Grecian :)

It is very long at the mo, but will be shortened to heel length, managed to squeek out a little train/fish tail thingy :) Just the zip to go in and I have a dress. Photo's on Saturdayafter the prom :)

Here it is!!

My sketchbook arrived today and what a dinky little thing it is :) Less frightening than I expected.

My feet are for size reference, plus elevating due to tendonitis :(

I wanted to write down as much as I can abut my process and thinking for this project. So here I go, if I bore you shout up!!!

Q.What do I want out of doing this project?

A. I want to try to sort out in my head what my work is a about? I want to find my voice/my subject/my style and know what I am about. I want to be like all those people who have found something they adore, so much so no matter your feeling on the subject you can't help but admire their passion for it,when I grow up (Ps running out of time at 34)

Q. what are my thoughts on the subject - Below the surface

A. Initially I wanted to do something on self esteem, self image - thinking of how we all hide behind a mask, wanted to look at insecurity and make up to camouflage what's beneath. However is this the way I want my work to go? Is this something that will be my body of work? Simple answer - NO. I hate drawing people and am not good at it. I am not a conceptual artist is something I have to realise.

So then I had to think about what i am about, well I think I am about Pattern and I think I am about colour. So now I have to re think. I want something I can study as a starting point, I want something to be below what ever that is and so I started to think about what was in my local museums and area. I thought about Welshness and thought of love spoons and their hidden messages. and thought that this is far too commercialised and sappy a theme but liked the idea of the messages - messages from the past, that some of us understand but mainly walk past and don't get - now I am on to something. So off I virtually toddled to the Welsh national museum site to check out this sort of archaeological thing, thinking abut cup and ring marks to start, but got side tracked by standing stones and medieval inscribed stones and stone sculptures (ps I will do the for real visit to the museum when holidays commence). So I am there I have patternation and a blank canvas for colour and find out that we have a collection of standing stones in Margam which is very near by, so a family outing will ensue as there is a great park next to it :) pray for the rain to clear up for the weekend :)

Now did I ramble too much? Do I make sense? Is it worth writing this nonsense down? Sorry for poor grammar and punctuation :)

New and improved phone case

I worked on my design for the case for my phone. I used denim again, as I really liked the chenilling I did. I cleaned up the sewing keeping it to a zig zag. I used the seam again too. This time I took Jackie's advice and tried stiffening it, I used pelmet vilene.

I used the bleach out on the back.

Much more happy with the zig zagging this time and the whole thing is a major improvement. I am hoping to make a few more of these now as I have masses of small off cuts of denim from school :)

Iphone disaster

I had a major Iphone disaster last week, having dropped my phone and smashed the screen. Costing me £50 in excess, but thank goodness I had insurance. So I saw Jackie's lovely Iphone covers and thought I'd have a go. Here is one I did AKA Jackie...

Recycling some denim from my FAT clothes :) But I don't love it - it is Jackie, not me. But I did enjoy playing with her technique, maybe when pennies are less tight I will invest as hers are sooooo neat and so lush.

So I went back to the drawing board and thought about what I wanted. I wanted more me, so I remembered a chenilling technique I had played with on city and guilds and set to cutting bias strips and stitching them. I played with the zig zag width to get the pattern nd then scuffed the edges with a suede brush. I wanted to highlight the double stitching and used Velcro for ease o opening. Lessons learnt - much more me BUT not happy with the finish, not loving the zig zagging, everyone else's seem so neat and mine never do, any suggestions?

As promised

I stuck a little more to the brief that Michelle set this time. This was the stuff I found with fresh eyes in my magazine. I am rather pleased with it.

Grid Lock

So I LOVE Michele Ward's blog, it is so colourful and inspiring, and while lurking in the mist as I have been for a while now I have started reading blogs again. I saw Michelle's post on a new challenge here, and thought it might be a spur as was so easy and inviting - just the confidence boost I needed. So Michelle suggested that you find things from your stash, and I have been working on some wedding invites for the SIL and this red was the basis along with the flower cut out from vintage dictionary. But then I was found wanting - little stash to hand being that I am in the mist, so grabbed a magazine and found a few bits.

So this is what I did. I thought I didn't have much in the magazine, but with fresh eyes I found more this evening.

Detail

Detail

I also found a whole new set of things in my fav turquoise and so am setting to a collage as per Michelle's instructions too. All this is to dip my toe in as I have signed up for this :

http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject

Judy Scott - such a good friend, backed up Deb's fab advice to go to the sketchbook - sounds like that Mafia quote - "Go to the mattresses" and so I have with a big brave step :)

Hello neglected blog

Hia all, and my sadly neglected blog. I have been very remiss in not posting of late. Hubby has a new job starting tomorrow and I hope he does really well, and am sure he will.

I am in the middle of a huge slump. I don't know how to get back into making, making anything. I can doodle, and am fiddling with wedding invites for my sister inlaw but am at a real solid impass for my own work. I don't know how to begin, so am going to ask, what do you do??? How do you get over things? Any help appreciated.

good and bad

nothing much to show you at the mo. Good things and bad things in life. I have just 4 LB to go till I have lost 5 stone. So am smiley, and have committed to doing the race for life if you feel like giving there is a link in my side bar and every penny will help fight cancer.

The bad news, hubby is up for redundancy - again :( am calmer and more collected this time, seems like we need to envoke the disability discrimination act again, but the new boss is not as daft as the last one and will surely have it al sewn up.

Never mind we'll live and in the mean time a new doodle, above.

new piece

I went on a workshop with Melissa Warren yesterday. She is a lovely lady and a very generous tutor and lives and works where I am from in the Rhondda. We were making textile jewellery. I was determined to make a bib style necklace to wear out last night as I went out with hubby for dinner and drinks (had far too many of the later :) I had a new red clutch bag and no red jewellery. So I worked like the clapper and made this :) so pleased with it. Is rolled roses, organza manipulation and beading. There is also a piece of pleated chiffon in there. I made a couple of other pieces I will show you when I get 5. Bye all

Dydd Santes Dwynwen Hapus pawb

Happy St. Dwynwen's day all.

(Wales patron saint of lovers)

help needed - I'm a bit stuck

I have been thinking about this piece for the longest time. I started it the summer before last when we went to Zante. I dyed the fabric and painted on the gantry shapes. I then block printed on a grid. I then bunched the whole up and painted it with copper too look like rust. I have running stitch quilted the grid and done a back stitch round the gantry pieces.

I have seeded in the gaps and will continue this as and when...

My question is this piece is totally without focal point in my opinion and I don't know where to go next. I was thinking of this for Dijanne Cheval's 2 colour quilt challenge. There has been a lot of talk about slow cloth for a while and I have to admit apart from the fact it evolves slowly I don't know if there are any other rules, this has been a truely slow cloth for me :) I thought about adding pieces of scrim or muslin - hand dyed or painted to the grid? Or maybe it needs something else? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated - cause I am totally stuck? Thanks all

January workshop - book making

Chris and I shared the teaching of a book workshop in January for our little group. I was showing one book technique and Chris showed about 3 :) she sure works fast :) This was my class sample - you know the one I prepared earlier.

This is the surface I created as a demo on the day - haven't got round to finishing it yet. Is mistyfuse and transfoil with a layer of nappy liner that I used to mop up with and clean brushes on the day. A layer of turquoise net was put over and the whole lot zapped carefully after I sewed using the fancy-dan machine. It was a great recycling workshop cause we used every scrap of paper, mop up paper and even the nappy liners or babywipes we used to clean up.

Chris taught how to make a gorgeous and clever star book - for which I used my acrylic scraped pages.

and this amazing coffee filter book, again I used acrylic scraped papers. I used the off cuts to make paper beads.

The coffee filters have papers glued to them and each makes a really nice pocket.

It was a lovely day and the group are so much fun they make teaching easy :)