Jack of Hearts MQ 2012

Clue No 4 complete

Jack of Hearts MQ, clue no 3 completed

Jack of Hearts MQ, clue no 2 completed

So now I have some hearts!

Going back to the K&S, another exhibition that I enjoyed was Cas Holmes - Urban Nature
http://www.casholmestextiles.co.uk/ I loved her delicate patched and pieced wall hangings using found fabrics, flower outlines and subtle colouring.

The last exhibition that I want to talk about is Color Improvisations, curated by Nancy Crow.
http://www.color-improvisations.com/home-english.html
This was an interesting collection of quilts in wonderful colours - I have in my notes that they were aprox. 6'x6'. They were very heavily quilted - some used large swathes of coloured fabric, others were intricately pieced. Have a look at the pictures via their web site.

Enjoyed my day out and came home with plenty of shopping to keep me going over the next few months!

Thank you for reading this

Lin

The Knitting & Stitching Show 2012

Had a great day out at the K&S last Friday - my annual treat of all things stitch. As always the best time to visit to avoid log jams in the aisles is the first hour and after about 3pm! I spent the morning wandering round the various exhibitions - collections of very different techniques and styles.
Here are a few notes of things that particularly appealed to me. No photographs - I don't take may camera as so many people do not allow photographs.
Reveal: unfolding stories
http://www.revealmixedmediatextileartists.co.uk/
A lovely collection of work but I especially loved Jennie Merriman's mobile made from perspex and clear plastic clips.

Ann Small and Sue Walton - Jaberwocky
A very surreal exhibition based on the works of Lewis Carroll. Ann's Queen of Hearts costume was magnificent but close up you see her use of bones as 'beads' which I find disturbing and also her small figures using bones.
Sue's tea party where cutlery is decorated to form dolls was more to my taste and I loved her chandelier made from decorated upturned small wine glasses hanging from a wrought iron frame.

4 x 4
Margaret Talbot http://www.easttextile.co.uk/Margaretpage1.html exhibited a peice of work aprox 2' x 3'. Very heavily stitched and then appeared to have been painted with pearlescent pigments in greens purples blue rust and deep pink.
A very large Gilda Barron - typically Gilda - but with a very heavy, dark sky.http://www.gildabaron.com/
Some beautiful pieces by Delia Pusey http://www.easttextile.co.uk/Deliapage1.html
But I particularly loved a piece by Christine Rollitt called Threads of Time which consisted of 4 small panels in neutral fabrics incorporating snippets of childrens hair, cards, notes, tickets etc which were trapped behind sheer fabrics. http://www.christine-rollitt.com/image.php?id=74

Anglia Textile Works: Theme and Variations  http://www.angliatextileworks.co.uk/
A super collection of work - I especially liked Annette Morgans pieces based on seed and flower heads, Sara Impeys words and Janice Gunners piece 'Kumo' - indigo and deep red dyed fabric with quilted cobwebs.

02 Textiles: Curiouser and Curiouser .... and Curiouser
I loved Zoe Cox's work based on butterfly wings

These pieces of embroidery are aproximately 1 1/2" square and amazingly detailed.

http://www.02textiles.co.uk/Images/KnitStitch2012/index.htm Elizabeth Taylor's - Was it the Mushrooms we ate for Dinner was another favourite piece.

More tomorrow as I am running out of battery!

Thank you for visiting

Lin

Jack of Hearts Mystery - clue No 1

When I signed up for this online Mystery Quilt I had no idea what to expect. My experience of MQ's was limited to the ones I had followed in the Quilter.
So I paid my dollars and within minutes I had a personal email of welcome from the organiser with a list of fabric requirements. I also received a link to a facebook page which I joined.
There are some very dedicated facebook posters out there! Lots of posts of fabric choices and a few people asking questions.
The first 'clue' was sent out on Friday - evening for me - mid day Pacific Standard Time. There were a lot of eager ladies waiting for the clue and when I switched on the computer on Saturday morning there was a stream of posts from MQers who had completed clue no 1 and were showing photographs of their work.
So here is my photograph of Clue No ! - completed!

The next clue arrives next Friday - but I will be in UK enjoying the Knitting & Stitching show! So will have to catch up on my return.

The last I heard 297 people had signed up for the MQ which is wonderful for the little boy and his family who we are supporting. Also MQers from 12 different countries.

Have a good week and happy stitching

Lin

Jack of Hearts Mystery Quilt

Went out this afternoon and bought my fabric for the quilt - the first 'clues' arrive tomorrow so I am looking forward to getting started!

These are the fabrics I chose - not my usual colours but I loved the turquoise and the other two just seemed to be naturals to go with it.

Thanks for visiting

Lin

Lampshades & Hockney!

Covering a lampshade is not something that I had ever thought that I would tackle but there I was this afternoon with the rest of my textile group doing just that. Our excellent teacher Faith guided us patiently through the different steps and hey presto! a lampshade was made.

Here it is in place and ready for use when I go to bed! The fabric I bought years ago for a Quilters Guild challenge, but I never felt inspired to use it,  so it has languished in the cupboard. However, the design seemed to echo the geometric print on the lampbase and it proved to be just perfect.

When the group last met in the summer we set ourselves the challenge of producing a piece of work in the style of David Hockney and today we revealed our pieces of work.

I decided that I would make a journal quilt and this is the result.

Obviously it is A4 in size. I collaged together various photographs of sunsets taken from our terrace 

'a la Hockney' and then printed the result on to Evolon. At the time I was thinking about using a fleece to back my Rainbow Log Cabin and so to trial the fleece I used it to back the Evolon. I then free machine quilted the sky with a variegated thread and the trees and hedge with a black thread.

 The fleece works well and gives a lovely soft backing but it did not glide through the machine quite as well as I had expected. However, I am very pleased with the result.

Next challenge - Monet!

Thank you for visiting and happy stitching.

Lin

Unknown flower

Evening Primrose flowers are large, yellow and stunning. Having seen them around here growing wild in hedgerows I have wanted to get some growing in the garden. But it was not until last autumn that I was in a position to collect some seeds which I carefully put away in an envelope. Come spring I sowed them in a tray in my 'greenhouse' and surprisingly they all came up! I transplanted them into a couple of troughs and have been tending them on my terrace all summer. As there was no sign of flowers I looked them up - and of course they are bi-annual! So I just carried on watering them with the intention of planting them out in the autumn ready for next summer. However, suddenly, and from now where this flower appeared!
Isn't it stunning? Definitely not Evening Primrose and nothing like anything else we have in the garden so I have no idea where it has come from. However, I shall just enjoy, and collect the seeds for next year!