Bird Mobile

I have finally found a photo of my bird mobile made using a kit from Gillian Travis, a quilter who visits India for inspiration.

Anyway, here it is.  I have hung it in the hall and scented it with lavender oil.

I intend to do another one and I've added to the long list .............

Have a good weekend,
Bye for now
Margaret

The Colours of India

I don't normally buy any kits, preferring to use my own imagination to produce work, but following an article in Stitch Magazine, I was tempted to buy Gillian Travis's kit featuring her Indian ladies when I visited the Festival of Quilts in August.  Sometimes, it nice just to sew and not have to think too much.  I thoroughly enjoyed doing it and thought you may like to see it.

I have put the embroidery onto a painted canvas and have used the same stamp block (which came with the kit) to link it altogether.

I also bought a bird mobile kit from Gillian, but can't find a photo of the finished work, so I will keep looking and post it when I find it.

Thanks for visiting
Margaret

Sorry it's been a while

I thought I would update my page with a few pictures.  No particular order, just thought you may find them interesting.

These sweet little daffs are planted in a large cup, which was a Christmas present from my brother-in-law and it has made the perfect display pot in our front garden.

These little beauties are nestled in a sheltered part of our garden.  Lovely to see signs of what's to come as the weather warms.

This is one of the pieces I've recently made for an exhibition I am involved with which will be showing at the end of April in Market Drayton.

close ups

Two of my pieces from a series of work I am doing based on recycled fabric and found objects.  They are mounted on 6" deep edge canvases.  I have called this series "Small Works".

Thanks for visiting, have a lovely weekend, the weather forecast is good.

Margaret

Wonderful News

Yesterday, when I got back home, checked my emails as you do, only to have received one from Christine Allen, the owner of 'Raw Sienna' a  contemporary art gallery in Knutsford, to say she had sold two of my framed art works. 

One of the reasons for my excitement, apart from the obvious, is that these were textile pieces competing for sale and admiration in a gallery whose main focus is painting.  Although, I must add that she sells some lovely 3D pottery items as well.  I thank Christine for accepting my textile pieces, as all galleries won't take them. 

This is one of the pieces, entitled 'The Teasel and the Dragonfly'

 A little bit of detail

The background is monoprinted, using thickened procion dyes, a really lovely method to transfer colour to fabric as it is absorbed by the material, rather than lying on the top of it.

This one is called 'Weedy' and is similar to the other one, once again using monoprinting for the background which is densely machine quilted and has added paint and beads.

A bit of 'Weedy' detail.

I believe they have gone to one home, as they could be classed as a duo and I certainly hope that the owner has as much pleasure out of them as I did in their creation.

Onwards and upwards all you textile artists.

Hope to see you again soon,
Margaret

It's been a good week

At the beginning of last week, I worked on my 15x15 quilt.  For this quilt, the theme is 'Rhythm' and I am the one responsible for this particular title.  I hope they won't give me this job again!

Anyway, the piece was just not working out, not enough contrast and I just didn't like it.

It looks like a see-through guitar to me, and even after putting the binding on, just in case it helped, I still didn't like it, so on to Quilt No. 2.

I've made a start, see below, and I am quite pleased - for now.  At least I have some contrast.

Also, last week I worked on my journal quilt, which I have very much enjoyed doing.  I have used the crackle fabric I made, the screen prints and bleach prints, bits of which show in the quilt, which was the 'lesson' for this journal.

The size I have chosen to do throughout the 12 month course is 11" x 7.5", so it's a lovely little piece to work on.  Hand quilting, beads and binding etc. to add, so I'll show you the finished quilt, once finished.

And just for fun I did a sketchbook cover with bits and pieces.  This is my favourite piece of work this week.

Hope your week is a happy and creative one.

Bye for now
Margaret

Print and Crackle

Hello,

At the end of the year, I started an online quilt journal course with Ineke Berlyn, www.inekeberlyn.com.  It's well worth thinking about if you need a little 'encouragement' to get motivated.

For my third quilt we had to use flour paste to make a crackle effect (this is a first for me) and I am really pleased with the results.  Thought I'd show you my efforts:-

screen print with screen inks onto dyed fabric

screen print onto crackle fabric
 

 

I wasn't able to put descriptions under all the photos, don't know why, but I think you will get the idea that I had great fun doing these, which are just a selection.  The problem now is that I have to cut them up to make my small quilt to photograph and send to Ineke.

Why is it that I hate to cut up my fabrics, whether they are dyed, printed, screened or otherwise, especially when I have so many?

Bye for now,
Margaret

Catching Up

Well, it's been some time since I added to my blog, sorry, and I haven't a good excuse really, except that I couldn't completely make my mind up if it was the right thing for me to do.

Anyhow, I'm going to give it another go. 

My last post showed a photo of a newly acquired, purpose built shed.  'Shed' isn't really a good enough word to describe this wonderful structure but 'studio' seems a little pretentious, but here are some photos of how the 'shed' progressed on the inside.

In these last two photos you will notice our two west highland white terriers.  Because of their size they couldn't see out of the windows, so Peter built them a platform, which I'll show you another time.

Thanks for dropping by.
Margaret