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Sunday 27 March 2016

Blanket. Cards....

27th March 2016

Hope you are all enjoying your Easter Weekend......

.....weather here has been very mixed, sunshine and showers so I have been creating....

....finished my baby blanket, a lovely pattern but I have had to really concentrate, i.e. no watching or listening or I make a mistake!!!


I started a fabric baby book using fabrics I had left from the play mat I made a couple of years ago....

...the front cover...



....back cover...


.....inside...



..have quite a few pages left to make but am enjoying the process!

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Also made a couple of embroidered cards....




....have a few special cards to make this week.....

Sunday 20 March 2016

Cable Stitch and Cards....

20th March 2016

A creative, experimental weekend....

.....I prepared these fabrics on the course using transfer paints...


....layered wadding, cotton and TP sheer....



.....after free machining....


....I printed 2 tea towels using wooden blocks and fabric paints as a gift for a friend...



...a technique from the course using KKglue powder and scraps of green fabrics....


....this is for my sketchbook to remind me but I like this as a background to flowers, or cut out in leaf shapes and stitched..


.....another experiment using 5 layers of fabric, stitched in straight lines...


....cut between the stitching...


....after using a heat gun, rather like this effect!


Cable stitching using free machining...


....the thick thread is wound round the bobbin and the design is stitched on the back of the fabric, the result is a surprise when you turn the fabric over, lovely for texturing!



I was asked to make a 50th anniversary card, hand embroidered french knots in a variegated embroidery silk thread on silk noil decorated with a free machined flower on organza.


Made some more cards with pieces of my hand made silk....


.....free machined flower with a bead centre....


....flower free machined using gold metallic thread mounted on hand made paper.


Have to make the dinner now but I have had a lovely weekend!

Friday 18 March 2016

Twin Needle, Free Machining, Eco Dyeing and Rusting....

18th March 2016

Been playing the last couple of days.....

....on the course Anne demonstrated the use of twin needles....

....I had used a twin needle but not with the automatic stitches on my machine.....

....the numbers are the stitch numbers and this is now in my sketchbook....

....I am sure I will be using some of these for decorative stitching....



......placed organza in a hoop and free machined flowers...


....the flower on the left was made using zigzag stitch, the other in straight stitch....

.....I prefer the straight stitch flower!



>>>>>>>>

I collected some bark and eucalyptus leaves from my sister's garden...


.....laid out on fine cotton soaked in a solution of white vinegar/water/copper pipe...

....after a little wire wool was added the fabric was folded, rolled and tied with string.


RD is sorting out the garage and I rescued these rusty pieces.....


.....wrapped and in the steamer....


.....results, can you guess the pieces that made these rusty shapes?






...these are begging to be stitched!


This was a HUGE surprise, the leaves produced this amazing violet/blue colour!


Conclusion, different species of eucalyptus give different colours.

Think I will leave out the wire wool next time!



Thursday 17 March 2016

Quick Catchup....

17th March 2016

I spent a lovely weekend in London on the way home from Cornwall, catching up with my family....

.....met my daughter in the Westfield Shopping Centre......

.....we had coffee beside this living wall...


.....to the sound of running water....


....more like being in the country than a shopping complex in London!!

My sisters garden....


.....beautiful Magnolia.



>>>>>

Left Richmond on Monday, a very odd journey to Euston as the signals were down on the district line,  spent half an hour going round on the circle line until I reached Victoria, then Euston. Took 2 hours and missed my usual train!! Arrived at Preston and the train to Blackpool had been cancelled, eventually arrived home 5 hours after I left Richmond. 

Next couple of days spent cleaning, food shopping, washing and ironing!!! However RD and son made a great lasagne for our meal on Monday evening which was delicious.

I have been stitching with a Wing Needle on fine cotton using my automatic stitches and the effect is stunning.....


.....also used some of my dried flowers from the garden to decorate the front cover of my Garden Sketch Book....


....first page of my book, the poppy stencil is all hand stitched....


......used some of my dried autumn leaves for back cover...

....will coat with acrylic wax to preserve.



Park committee meeting last night where I heard the beautiful willow structure had been pulled down  a number of times by mindless vandals, so we have now bought wire fencing to protect it until the roots have become strong!

Off to Pilates this morning, bet I will be aching tomorrow!!!



Friday 11 March 2016

Last Two Days of the Course......

11th March 2016

Sadly leaving this beautiful place today, it has been a great course with lovely like minded people who have shared supplies and ideas and most have booked up for next year!!

I have not produced that much work but I have learnt so much......

.....wet cotton fabric and lace....


....sprinkled with Brusho powder


....fabric, lace ready for fabric stitching. This method can be used with transfer paints by placing the lace on paper and using a stencil brush to apply the paint, great for backgrounds.


Fantasy flowers using soluble fabric and organza...



....transfer paints on a Gelli plate...


....tissue paper, this gives a very delicate background when ironed on fabric and the tissue paper can also be stitched onto the fabric....


....using a flower resist....



....printing on the Gelli with a wooden block.



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Yesterday morning this was the view from my bed....




.....will miss this....

.....walked down to the beach at 8am, primroses on the banks....


.....lichen and ivy covered boulder....


.....looking up the hill...


....the Bodrugan Beach...




...view from the headland...


...looking down on Port Mellon...




.....wonderful walls...


....sheep having breakfast, what a view!!!



Many lambs, the wool from these sheep goes to make Axminster carpets.


Birthday cake for Lesley...


....so much work produced which can be seen on Pocketmouse ...

...Clare made these wonderful birds using found objects, luxury fabrics and stitch...


.....crab claw beak, bone legs, love them...


...transfer printed, hand stitched wip..



....transfer leaf prints...




....a fabric book nearly completed by Sandy using all the techniques we have learned this week....




....Lesley's beautiful silk strawberry.


I have also been working on a secret project, all will be revealed at a later date.

http://www.pocketmouse.co.uk

Work produced this week can be seen on Anne's site, enjoy.....