What a beautiful week!

We've had sunshine with showers, I got laundry dry in between them ;) sunshine with hail, with stunning rainbows & sunshine in a cloud free sky. No more swallows to be seen, it's still Baltic! Where do they go while they wait?

Spent some more time in the garden which is why I didn't get as far as I'd hoped with my collage

I was inspired to do a couple of these to replace the last 2 similar ones (scroll a 3rd of the way down) which have gone off to the Elgol Shop along with a small card order. Elgol is at the beautiful end of another peninsula on Skye. I'll add some beads & possibly some hand stitching after work tomorrow. Strips of recycled fabric, velvet heart & a tiny piece of matching  painted paper. I wish I'd printed that fabric, too. (I miss that dress!)

While looking for the golden orange velvet for the heart above I came aross a piece of velvet about 2' square covered in beautiful flowers & I thought perfect. So I stitched round the petals, cut it out & applied it to the 2nd background of strips. I'll add a bit more to the bottom along with some beads. They're only about 4" x 7" but I like the approachable size.

I've had a better week in the studio, nice when customers appreciate your work enough to take it away with them. I also sold a little purse so got as far as making some fabric along the above collage lines while I was about it.

Hopefully I'll be able to make a button out of the trimmed bits & maybe a brooch & an earing out of the corners when I  cut them off;) Hope you're all well, I haven't managed to get around as much as I'd hoped ....but I will be back!

A lovely night out

Just been to see 'Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (for the elderly & beautiful ) That's what I'm going to be from now on, old & beautiful! It was a fabulous film, my textile arty buddy Jo suggested it - she's actualy been to Jaipur but I felt as tho I had been tonight. See it if you can ;)

Finished my collage, hope my customer likes it! Thanks for the 'love' word suggestions.

A 'beige' (!) brooch to match, a corner left from the heart. The origonal collages from early last year were inspired by Ruth Rae if you remember.

I wanted to start on a hanging based on a flower, no surprise there, inspired by a flower I made in a class given by Diedre Nelson a few moons ago. But due to the upheaval of moving things around to make a second B&B room I couldn't find it. I'll let you know if I do ;) The link is an old blog post on flowers in a hosital....probably similar to her class then. This is a quick sketch I made last year (it would have been quick as it's on receipt paper....from work  shhh ;)

It's going to be quite big, 3 or so feet long, anyway.....I think. I want to make the elements in parts & bring them all together as one, just like she who inspires me Beryl Taylor who wrote Mixed Media Explorations. Wish I'd been to Egypt! I've got a way to go, I think, this is all I managed!

I've decided I need to make 6 or 7 petaled flowers from now on, Clematis, say. It looks like a starfish with barnacles!!! The pre dyed cloth came from an inspiration pack I think & the cerise colored silky feel fabric, good old charity shop stuff. So I still like the color combination. A sample for sure ;)

I've got a few hours gardening time in this week (oops, given away my secret!) I heard my first Skylark, unmistakable & even saw my first swallow this year. Unbelievable, but all so promising ;) Nothing like a little sun on your face.

Much better now!

Thank you for all your kind wishes helping me on my way to recovery ;) It's been the usual kind of week which flies by in 5 minutes. I had a last minute craft fair in Dornie Hall overlooking Eilean Donan Castle (scroll down half way to the castle pic) on Friday , a wonderful setting. I covered my costs plus a bit - it's early in the season, yet. I was on a cancellation list & got the call the evening before. Quite tricky to not strip the studio  & have enough for a reasonable stall. It's thanks to 'smalls' that I can do it ;)

I sat there working away cutting pieces for cards using a sliding cutting machine that my arty buddy Janet lent me - good for doing on your lap! Then I ran out of glue ;( I was using that fabulous dry glue on a roll thing, doesn't last long! Then I did some hand stitching on this.....well I promised you a sneak peak, didn't I?!

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I hadn't realised there were so many last minute things to check & refer to when writing but I finally got there & my Workshop on the Web article was sent off today, phew! Lot's of help from the DH proof reading etc...he's learnt a lot! So exciting, exhilarating, fantastic to have been invited to do this. You'll have to subscribe to WoW to see the rest of the above pic, it's only £15 pa for what must add up to about 32 plus articles, well worth it (aren't I naughty ;)

When I wasn't running around like a blue arsed fly making words fit pics I started to work on a collage like this -

I got a commission for one similar for a wedding present at my exhibition last year ( oh my, the next exhibition is less than 2 months away!!!) I've been thinking about loving words; loved, to be loved, to love, one love, much love,  lovely one....hmm Any ideas I could borrow? So I've been laying down fabrics , pulling out lovely bits of forgotten lace, stitching away. I'll show you when I'm finished.

Said goodbye to my Middlest today, he's gone to sea! Had him home for the Easter holidays tho - so it was good to see him before he went off on his next phase. He'll be in Norway for a few weeks, just off the Arctic Circle! Went for a brisk walk along the shore after they drove off this evening to dry the tears (which nobody saw! ;) aren't I good keeping them to myself! Sweet rainbow, crystal clear on the hills, slanting evening sunshine & I think I heard my first cuckoo.

A lingering lurgy

or too much on my plate? I don't know but the result is not a lot to show for my week ;(  I guess we did have our first two room B&B - lots of prep ( tidying away stuff that should have been done earlier) & I did have a craft fair to get ready for, it was only a small one but it's got to look good still. It went ok, well, 3 cards, miserable weather & lots of families out for the egg hunt. But you've got to try.  I didn't do any demonstrating as my buddies dog had been up all night ill.  Wonderful setting on the green outside Rag Tag tho, so I didn't feel despondent, I felt I'd done my bit, i love the atmosphere. I do what I do & I enjoy it & I guess it's a question of getting it to the right market. I was asked by a customer would I take a workshop in Uist, the Outer Hebredies, so that was good....would I ?!

welcome to my new follower by the way, if you comment I'll visit but I can't see a link ;)

 my little treat -  £4 from Rag Tags 'second chance rail' How could I not? These are the color of my bridesmade dress from nearly 25 yrs ago, still love it, along with the turquoise that i also had in very small doses. To avoid the veiny look I lay on the floor & took this, very good for the abs, too;) My family think I'm completely mad but there's a certain freedom in that...

One of the stalls was lovely knits & tweed & tartan by Alison (sorry, don't know her last name!) who I regularly meet at craft fairs & I was picking her brain. I've been asked to make some tartan cards to add to the range I supply to Isle of Skye Candles, wonderful smelling shop & they've just won  best new Scottish company at the Scottish Variety Awards, brilliant ;) I think this kind of tartan  is what they're thinking of, traditional, classic. But how to interpret  it in my style?   Then I found this what I would call  creative tartan (scroll down a bit in the link).  Wonderful!

It's got me thinking, I love Maryanne Pollock's work, from what I can find it's her old work - we all move on I guess. I also saw somewhere quite thick paint laid down, lots of colors & then scored thru with a comb & then again at right angles - I think it's in the above link. I'll do some of that, but given the time I had I tried this above. With the idea of cropping to this below. Or something....

It needs a lot of work. The colors were a bit shocking but they're growing on me, hah! One of the books I borrowed from Lesley was Jan Beany & Jean Littlejons exploring color books - purple & yellow...(it worked for them!) So I went for it & added orange...

the Middlest was horrified & told me to go back to my blues & greens!

 

for example

 

I had fun....! & I will work out some traditional ideas too ;)

Happy Easter!