Tag Tuesday - books

Trying to decide which book to feature on my tag was hard.  I was an avid reader as a child, and one of my favourite times of my working day is reading stories to the children at work.  All though I think I must have read every Enid Blyton book, I chose Milly Molly Mandy.
I had intended first of all to colour the image, but on reflection, decided that as my books had always been in black and white my tag would also remain that way too.

Y.E.

Yesterday had the girls creating hearts at our Young Embroiderers' meeting.  Fabrics were laid down onto a base fabric and then tacked in place before stitching the front and back together.

Once the hearts were stuffed it was time to embellish with stitch, beads and buttons. Some very lovely hearts!

Little bird.

Last Thursday I worked a shift at holiday club.  I took in felt and sewing equipment so that the nine year old could make this bird. As  I left before she had completed it, so she bought it in to show me today.  I think she did really well. This Saturday, I am helping at YE.

Tag Tuesday-poetry.

Tuesday again!!! 
The title for the tag this week was poetry.  I have been looking at birds for the last couple of weeks and came across these words:-
'A Robin Redbreast in a cage,
Puts all of Heaven in a rage.'
It is from Auguries of Innocence by William Blake.
To make my angry sky/heaven I coloured my tag with Prussian blue  and purple Brusho inks, which I then sprinkled with dishwasher salt.  The metal bird cage and the bird was cut with a Tim Holtz die on my Big Shot.  I coloured the robin in with Inktense pencils.  Embellished with stamped vellum tags and brads.

Annette Morgan.

A lovely talk from Annette Morgan last night.  Her photos were very  good and she bought along some of her work, some as yet unseen. Annette was very generous with information on how she got her inspiration for each piece as well as the techniques. At the end of her talk we were allowed to examine and touch her work.  Annette is back next month to do a workshop for us making 'Jazzy Books'

TIF

 A lovely day spent in Cottenham at TIF.  I was demonstrating using paper napkins and tissues in art/textile work.  Here is my table set up ready for when the doors opened.  Well I dont know where the  three and a half hours went to, they just flew by. 

This machine embroidered picture is by another demonstrator there today, Nodeen Salmon (pictured below).  She is teaching at AVG 20th April, if you want to learn how to her techniques and make a picture like this.

There were traders to tempt our purses and two exhibitions to view.  Some really lovely work, such a shame that we couldn't take any photos.

 When I got home, Kezzy had been busy baking cakes again.  She has been asked to make a birthday cake for her boyfriend's sister, so thought she ought to have a practise.  She also made the fondant rose on the top.

She made me a small cake to have with my cup of coffee, just what I needed after all that talking!!

Cutomising.

 I have needed a new sturdy camera case for some time.  Today when out shopping, I found  this one, but it was a bit drab.

So, when I got home, I got out my Crayola Fabric pens and did some therapeutic colouring in.  A few blobs of puffy paint to finish off!
My bag is packed ready to set off early for TIF  with Nickie.  I am demonstrating book making and Nickie is giving a workshop.  Two days left of the show.

Number 4.

I found this drawing hard, black on black made my eyes ache last night.

 I think his legs are wrong too thin/short and his beak is too big, all part of the learning curve.

Number 3.

For this picture, I used a combination of Koh I Noor dye based paints and my Inktense pencils.

My next attempt......

Was a peacock.

Birds!!

I got my paints and pencils out last night and had fun trying to paint a few birds.

Tag Tuesday-Valentines Day.

 My tag for this weeks title is a mini book. It is 8" x 3" so a little bit longer than my other tags.  This challange is giving me the chance to use up all the embellishments I have been collecting over the last couple of years, just waiting for the 'right' thing to put them on.

More goodies.

Toady, the postman bought me some faces( and some embellishments) that Lottie had made for me. She has left them plian so that I cam colour them with whatever colour/medium I want when the time comes.   I haven't got a project in mind for them yet.  Thank you Lottie!!

On a grey wet Monday........

 A lovely surprise arrived on my doorstep today from Lorna aka Artymess.  She had a giveaway and I was lucky enough to win a piece of her artwork-this stunning brooch.

I have done a close up for you to see it better.  I have pinned it to my inspiration board and shall be wearing it to T.I.F. on Saturday.  Thank you so much Lorna!

Weekend away.

Went down to stay with my mother this weekend.  The temperature on the drive down went to -12, never been out in such cold weather before!!  Saturday morning, I could see the hoare frost on the trees, so I just had to go for a walk round mums garden.  As I stepped out of the copse, I was stunned by the magical scene before me. 
I didn't have any stitching to take with me, but spent the time doing some research and thinking so hopefully I will be starting to do something creative very soon.

Tag Tuesday-Hearts.

This weeks title gave me the chance to complete a UFO.  Last summer I had been thinking about basing some work on the poet Shelley, who drowned in a lake in Italy.  I had started making a milagros (an Italian charm that would have been bought to ask for a special blessing for the person represented on the milagros)

To make my milagros:_
I cut and embossed a metal heart and then soaked it in vinegar to rust it. The background heart was cut from 2 pieces of felt, that I then stitched layers of lace and pearls ( to represent tears) around. The words on the heart are taken from Shelley's headstone on his grave in Rome, which I typed up on the computer and printed onto vellum. This was then machine stitched to a tea dyed piece of tape. Metal heart and words were attached to the felt heart with 2 brads. Dangles at the bottom include another bit of my Grandmothers jet as well as some beads I had had in my box for ages and yet more pearls. This was then stitched to a card tag covered with part of the poem Adonais, he wrote when his friend Keats died.( these words are also on a memorial to him in the Old Priory Church, Christchurch, Dorset)

Bluewater.

I went to the Creative Stitches and Hobby Crafts show at Bluewater yesterday, the first time it has been held here.  I am so glad that we went yesterday as we would never have got there today because of the heavy snowfall.

 Last year I entered the Maderia/Stitch Competition and was awarded Highly Commended, so had to have the obligatory photo by my piece of work.  It is nearly 7' long.

 I enjoyed making it and must admit to feeling a bit chuffed to see it hanging on display.  There was a small quilt exhibition but no photos were allowed to be taken.

 This is a very small piece of a knitted project to raise funds for the R.N.L.I. The children who were in the tunnel the same time as I was, loved going through the undersea tunnel spotting all the different creatures

I had to take this photo for my grandson Josh who is doing a project on pirates at the moment.

There were some of the wonderful costumes from Downtown Abby, would love the red dress below.

The Embroiderers' Guild stall was very busy, lots of hearts being stitched for Valentines.
 

Popping over the water.

Not to France, but going over the QE2 Bridge into Kent to go to the new Creative Stitches/Hobbycrafts Show being held at Bluewater for the first time.  Hope to go to John Lewis as well while I am there.

Love is in the air.

 January completed.

I went out of my comfort zone for February.  I like nice white squares for my journalling, but as this month is all about romance, I am going to try and work with the heats cut from an old music book.  The background was white acrylic paint which when dry, I coloured with walnut ink, the white was too stark against the aged music pages.  Flowers were made with a couple of heart punches.  The words love and February were cut on my cricut .  To see more journals hop along to Kates blog here.