New Camera

 

 

Print came 3rd in competition

 

This last week or ten days seems to have been dominated by all things photographical .   Just after my last post, my camera club took part in a ‘print battle’ with four other local clubs.   I do love hearing the judges comments at these competitions and seeing which images do best – it’s a great way to learn.  In the event, although our club came joint third with 2 other clubs, one of my prints came 3^rd overall. 

 

Last Tuesday, both Liz and I treated ourselves to new cameras.   We both bought Panasonic FZ200’s – this model is much lighter  than the Canon and has a brilliant Leica lens with a huge range.   It won’t replace the Canon but it will be much handier for taking on holiday and fell walking.   It had its first outing on Saturday when we went to see the new hotel '30 James Street'.   This iconic building was originally owned by the White Star Line which was the owner of the Titanic and has always been one of my favourite Liverpool buildings.   Inside, photographically, it was a bit disappointing but I’m sure, when it’s finished, it will be most impressive.   It was a beautiful day so we stayed in Liverpool for an hour or so photographing the Liver, Cunard, Mersey Docks and Harbour Board building and Albert Dock before the cold really got to us.

The photography group we belong to had a very interesting talk with photos, last week, from a mountaineer.   It was really fascinating but it  didn’t explain to  me why on earth anyone would want to put themselves through such hardships and danger in the name of fun!

Underwater

leaves

 Last Friday’s felters meeting was a little challenge.   The idea was to create a piece of felt from a small bag of ‘bits’ – wool tops, fibres, fabric scraps etc. which everyone was given.  It’s amazing what ideas people came up with – my offering was a fairly tame underwater scene which, in the fullness of time, will, with some stitching,  become a picture – I’d made one with leaves on a couple of days previously and that too will require some stitching.

On Thursday, we went, with his parents, to Manchester to see our grandson play his own marimba composition in a lunchtime concert – what a proud moment.   A marimba requires the instrumentalist to use  4 ‘hammers’ at the same time – I would have difficulty just holding on to them, never mind playing a melody with them.

In the meantime, I have been fairly productive – a cotton tote bag, a little quilted needlecase, a tweed purse, a silk cushion and a book cover!   I’ve also, at last, finished constructing the silk and satin evening purse from the sampler I made weeks ago.  Added to all this, and with lots of huffing and puffing and even a few curses, I have finally warped my loom again and I’m well into another project in mostly shades of red.

This weekend has been entirely taken up with printing and mounting 18 prints to be entered for the Club's Annual Competition.   Wish me luck!

Stitch and hobby exhibition

We had a lovely day in Manchester at the Creative Stitches and Hobbycraft Event on 7^th February, and really enjoyed it.      I didn’t spend too much – just some odd balls of yarn and a new lamp for my sewing machine.    There were an awful lot of card making and beading stalls which really didn’t interest me too much and not enough textiles!   However, we did attend a few talks – one by Jenny Rayment who, as usual, was very entertaining and one by Wendy Dolan who makes beautiful stitched landscapes.  We also met Ruth Brown from Stone Creek Textiles (www.stonecreeksilk.co.uk) and Kim Thittichai who was so busy we didn’t get chance to speak to  her– I wanted to tell her how much I enjoy her blog (www.kimthittichai.com)   next time perhaps. 

On 8^th February we went to a brilliant concert by Maghull Wind Orchestra (www.maghullwindorchestra.co.uk) in Southport which raised over £3,000   for a local hospice.   What a lovely evening.  

The last 10 days has been a bit of a blur – my Operatic Society put on its annual Gilbert and Sullivan Opera for 5 nights and, as I’m wardrobe mistress as well as in the chorus, I was kept pretty busy.   My spinning wheel was used in the opening scene and so I had to make do without it for a whole week – strangely, I missed it but it’s home now and, after a few tweaks, has settled in and is working again – it doesn’t really like being moved.

The week’s performance went very well indeed and, apart from the vagaries of Merseyrail trains and the terrible gales on the Wednesday, everything went as planned.   All the costumes were collected on the last night and packed up ready to be collected, the scenery dismantled and carted away and then off to the party!   It’s taken me two days to straighten out the house, put everything away and bring order to the chaos I’d created whilst sorting out costumes.

Sample to be made into bag

collage to be mounted on canvas?

I have not been very creative since the last post but I have photographed the silk and satin pieces – one is going to be mounted on a canvas, I think, and the other one will be made into an evening bag.

Today, I went to Cedar Farm, Mawdesley to have lunch and catch up with a few friends from City and Guilds days which was lovely.

February Already!

The evenings are getting lighter – have you noticed ?   Last week, on one of our daily walks we came across a couple of snowdrops and some violets, then, believe it or not, we saw some marigolds and some spray carnations – Spring is definitely on its way.   

Since I last posted, I’ve made loads more marmalade, I really have run out of even borrowed jars now but the stock should keep us going until next year.     I’ve been busy too getting things together for the production of Yeomen of the Guard which my operatic society www.crosbygs.org.uk is producing in a few weeks in Liverpool.   I have made a felt mask to be used in the production as well as other odds and ends.

Unframed picture

The strip picture is finished now and as a dark green, wooden frame – it looks great.  

I’ve been doing a bit of experimenting with different techniques as well – I’ve made a little purse out of the offcuts of a felt book cover which I made a while ago – I needle-felted it and then stitched it and wet felted it again – it’s quite pretty.     I’ve been trying my hand at quilting and made a sample using metallic thread and free machine embroidery on a piece of hand dyed cotton lawn.   It turned out so well that I decided to make that into a purse as well.   My next couple of experimental pieces are both made from silk and satin fabrics with lots of machine embroidery but neither of them are finished yet so I’ll be hoping to complete them for next time.

 

On Wednesday afternoon, I decided to use a scarf which I’d bought in a charity shop (not sure what the fabric is) to do some nuno felting.   It took a very long time to persuade the wool to migrate through the fabric but, eventually, it did and the textures are really lovely.     I also made some nuno prefelts to experiment with when I get time.

I’m not sure how  much progress I’ll make in the next week, it will be quite busy.   However, on Friday Liz, her neighbour and a couple of my friends from the City and Guilds course will be going to the Stitch and Hobby Exhibition in Manchester.   I’m really looking forward to it – of course I won’t be spending any money!!!

Marmalade Time

About time I posted something – it’s 10 days or so since the last one – I’d like to say 10 productive days but I thought I hadn’t much to write about.   Now that I really come to think of it, I’ve done lots of little bits and pieces and it all adds up!

As it’s January, and the Seville oranges have just reached our shores, I’ve been making batches of marmalade.   There is absolutely no comparison between the taste of what you buy in the supermarket and a homemade marmalade.   Mine, without wishing to boast, is

delicious.   I’ve almost run out of jars now so I’ll have to slow down a bit.

In between batches I’ve been making Christmas cards!   I try to recycle as many cards as I can and, rather than having a mad panic in November, I try to get them all made and put away in the loft with all the Christmas decorations – last year it took till mid February but I finished this year’s yesterday and have just climbed the ladder and put them away.  Hooray!

Waistcoat nearing its final stages

Over the course of the last couple of weeks, Liz and I have made a felt waistcoat for her – I’m hoping she’ll let me take a photo of her wearing it for next time.   We made it in two parts – one piece for the back and one piece to cut out the two fronts.   I used an old paper pattern to adapt to make a ‘prototype’ from some old upholstery fabric and we cut it out from that!    I think we’re both quite pleased with it but it did shrink a bit more than we’d hoped in the final stages so, next time (if there is a next time), we’ll be a bit more generous – and we might felt it onto some fabric for extra strength – watch this space.

The woven scarf is now finished and will become a ‘shrug’ – a bit like the turquoise waistcoat I made a few months ago.    The embroidered strip picture is still not finished – I stitched it more densely than I’d originally planned and the one bit that needs further stitching is proving a bit difficult to put the final touches to.   

  Another project finished was the recycled jeans tote bag as in Ineke Beryln’s https://www.facebook.com/ineke.berlyn?fref=ts book the Patchwork Object – I think I misread the instructions somewhere along the line and it turned out to be a monster.    It was a beast to quilt, heavy and  unwieldy, and it is so huge that it will actually hold everything including the kitchen sink!     Having said that, it was the first time I’ve attended Friday Felters carrying only one bag!   

There is a different picture on each of the four sides

At the meeting of Friday Felters, this month, we had a workshop, run by Helen Melvin https://www.facebook.com/helen.melvin.31?fref=ts  who is a great teacher and good fun.   We made asymmetrical bags – very unusual and all so different.   She brought some kits for those who needed them, the colours of the wool, which she’d dyed using natural dyes, were wonderful.   Unfortunately,  I didn’t finish mine, but it is a work in progress.

On Saturday last, we went to Manchester to see our grandson play in a brass and percussion concert.   At one stage, there were five xylophonists playing together and he was one of them – amazing - there’s nothing like a group of young, enthusiastic, talented young people making music together!  

Happy 2014

I can’t believe that we’re already over a week into 2014 and I haven’t posted since Christmas Eve – I suppose it has been a rather busy time though but I did have time to photograph some of the things I mentioned in the last blog.

Turquoise, woven scarf

These are the magnetic scarf fasteners I mentioned as well - two made of felt and one of silk fabric - I hope they'll prove popular.

 

 

 

 

Christmas was the usual happy blend of family, overeating and general indolence and there didn’t seem any point hurrying the getting down to work again as we were going away for New Year.    So, until then, I read the craft book which I’d been given as a present, spent many happy hours on craft websites and Pinterest and generally indulged myself. 

New Year was spent in Llandudno, which, apart from it being rather wet and cold, was lovely.  In fact we did have a nice day on New Year’s Eve and spent most of it outside walking.    We stayed until 2^nd January and, on the way home, as a final treat we went to Abakhan at Mostyn – it doesn’t take much to please me!     I spent a couple of hours there, browsing through the craft, yarns and fabrics and then, after a pleasant lunch we came home.   Needless to say I couldn’t leave without spending some money although most of it was on mundane stuff like interfacing, elastic, felt,  and wadding. However, I did treat myself to some plain white cotton so that I can experiment with dyeing and some craft cotton for patchwork.    I also bought 3 balls of novelty yarn in shades of red so that I can start weaving the scarf/shrug which, after several false starts,  Liz and I set up on the loom  - we will get better!!! 

Since we got home I’ve almost completed a strip patchwork/embroidered picture – it isn’t quite what I set out to make – it’s far more densely stitched that I first envisaged – and just needs a bit more hand embroidery and mounting or framing, or both.

 I’ve actually nearly finished weaving the scarf/shrug now – I find it almost addictive and it’s easy to complete about a foot or so each evening.    I’ve so enjoyed it that I’m planning my next project already!