• If I were to boil this situation down to two choices, what would they be?
• What kind of openings for opportunities can I see in my life?
• There is always another way. What other options can I see?
• Am I prepared to move into a new light? See from a new perspective?
• Am I ready to cross over from one phase into another in my life?

ps. Sorry about the formatting. It's all wrong I know, but looks fine in the template and I can't fix it. Grr!

Well I survived hanging my first Open Studio (or indeed show of any kind - I don't think holding the screws when we hung the quilts at FOQ last year counts!)



And I have to report, dear reader, that those two days were two of the most exhausting I have ever had.

And I also have to report that, despite there being three of us, we need to oomph and organisation of my good friends, Rob and Andy, who came up to help us hang.  Without them I honestly do not know how we would have done it.

And it did not help my state of mind that my dear Dad - he of the artistic genes - died the day before we started to hang (but that is another story - let's just stick with the open studio for now).

So we three at Mix3d Stitch were like rabbits in the headlights - somewhat paralysed by the enormity of the task. But 2 men with step ladders and a hammer and a tape measure and we were rocking and rolling.

The space divided neatly into three areas (no forward planning there! ) so Yvonne took the 'living area', I took the 'dining area' and Jane took the 'Kitchen area'.  And that works so brilliantly with our individual styles - Yvonne is more traditional I would say, my pieces and then Jane's more quirky 'folk' pieces.  The work looks stunning hung and it all works so well with the other work.



So then we had the private viewing on the Friday evening - with no clear idea how many people were going to turn up.  Honestly?  I anticipated about 6-10. Well, dear reader, we ran out of booze (and we were watering it down with peach juice to make Bellinis - posh!)


And, to top it all off, we sold stuff on the Friday evening - that was completely unexpected I can tell you.

Then on Saturday we were open properly for our first OS.

Again, we had no idea how many to expect.  Yes there is signage all over the place, yes I have been tweeting and Facebooking like mad (as have the main Open Studios organisers) and yes, my good friend Annabel of 'Through our Hands' did a lovely piece about us, but even so we still had no idea how it would go.

Well - what can I say? We had a steady stream of people all day, most of whom stayed at least 3/4 of an hour, studied the work, asked us lots of lovely questions, drank tea, ate Rhubarb and Date cake (Jane, we all need that recipe!) and generally were just lovely.  And we sold more work - now that is a great endorsement.

And most special of all, our second visitor had travelled all the way from north London (we gave her husband tea and sat him in the garden) just to see us!  She had read about us from Through our Hands. Now that is a heavy responsibility - but she was just lovely and, though a professional artist herself, was extremely complementary.

And we did it all again the following day!

And we are doing it all again this weekend too - and if the weather holds we might get the indigo vat out.

So if you are in the North Bucks area do pop in. We are open 11-5 both Saturday and Sunday.  I cannot promise the Rhubarb and Date cake - we ate it all - but there will be tea and I am sure we can rustle up another cake!

Sorry everyone - time has been so tight that there was not room for sewing and blogging and with the Horizons deadline sewing won!

But I can report that Horizons is finished - the quilt that I feel I have been working on for months and months for the Festival of Quilts Contemporary Quilt gallery.

And here is the finished quilt (hanging over the back of a door).



Here is the little 20 cm 'sample' for handling.

I need a time machine!

Failing that a sewing machine will just have to do (though if Pfaff or Juki could combine the two I'd be at the front of the queue for one!)

Meanwhile - the hearts picture (which does need a name!) has gone to the framers!  Hooray!  I have a good framer in Gosport (my home - not my home from home!) who is used to my pieces with things hanging over the edge!   It's in good hands.

Meanwhile - on horizons.   Yes, this quilting is OK.  Feeling chuffed.


But whoops - tension issues!  But we'll just have to live with it!


Placing the big arch and the left hand side is trimmed.


The wording is placed (trust me - that was hard! )


The end is in sight! Yay!

But I have the week from hell!  Hoping to grab minutes when I can!

Writing my last post made me realise just how much I've got to complete in June, so this weekend I cracked on with it.

First up is a 'Why Falling in love is like Owning a Dog'.

I am doing a reading of this poem by Taylor Mali in July, and decided that it would be lovely to give a version of the poem printed out to the couple in question as a present.

I started to research calligraphers, but felt the style wasn't quite right, and then I found a company that would print and mount a poem for you.  But it was a very bland presentation, and not right for me to give as a gift (if you see what I mean).

So and very last minute because it normally takes me months and months to plan any new work, I decided to do it myself.

First up the background.

I am using khadi paper with a lovely flecked texture.

Your can just about make out the hearts cut from freezer paper, which I stuck on and then I sprayed the paper with a brusho ink solution.



Then, using the 'waste' from the freezer paper I had used to cut the hearts, I added additional hearts with oil sticks and a stencil brush.


The next dilemma was the words.

I did consider using a thermofax screen and if I had had time this is what i would have done.  I would have made several background papers, and then done several print runs before deciding on the right one.  But I need to get this finished and to the framer, so in the end I discounted that (which in honesty would have been my preferred solution) and decided to print the poem on using a copier instead.

But my copier only takes A4 so I decided to scan the background paper I had made and then print an A4 sheet over the top.

This was tricky and there were several attempts at this, including which colour to print the actual poem (in the end I opted for dark green).


Now all I had to do was to decorate the whole and disguise the line of the paper with the poem (in the end I actually did not use paper but a printable synthetic fabric from Crafty Computer Paper.  It has a texture more akin to the khadi paper.)

More khadi paper and more brusho inks, then more stenciling with oil sticks and I had a batch of hearts to play with (these I had to leave overnight to 'dry' - the oil takes some time to loose it's stickiness.)


In addition, some of them I painted with a cheap glitter glue.  Gives just enough added sparkle.  Cut out, I had a little stash of paper hearts.

Then I stitched.

This is a design as you progress project, you understand.  Time is of the essence (it would be fine if it weren't for the Day Job - but bills have to be paid, dogs have to be fed etc.) so, no chance of a good play first.

Using a metalic thread, and a metalic needle though I still had problems (don't look at the back) I stitched the hearts down the middle and then folded them gently to give a 3D effect.


And here we are - not a great photo as you cannot see how some of the hearts overlap the edge of the paper.  You can also still see some of the lines of the second piece of paper with the poem on but I intend to add some beads to distract the eye away from that.  And in the flesh this is not so noticeable.

So nearly finished.

By way of a post script, I should add that the poem describes how being in love is like owning a dog.  I did consider dog imagery on the backgound paper, but thought it would be too hectic.  In the end I decided to keep it simple with the hearts.

I am pleased, but wish I had come up with the idea sooner.  Being on such a tight time table meant I had to make some decisions particularly with the printing of the poem, that with more time I might have done differently.  But I did not have that luxury.  Maybe that was good for me.  Not too much prevarication.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the studio:-

Book wrap fabric quilted...


Then blasted with the heat gun (so satisfying!)


And Horizons is mounted onto 'The Beast'.



 And, yay, quilting has begun!


Deadline is that it has to be 'in' by 1st July.  Which means finished a week before!  All ready to hang etc.


The question, dear reader, is will I make the deadline?

Do you remember the Horizon?



I told you all about it here.

These designs got some very supportive comments, but despite considerable effort on my part I could not fine anyone who could scan the size that I had created (foolscap X 2).

So, I've given up!

Not with Horizon altogether - no, just with this technique (I was going to scan it and have it digitally printed onto fabric).

I have been working on Horizons re-worked.

And here we are so far.


Now, as you can see, the scale has changed. I'm not sure if it quite works but it is 1.5m X 0.5m.

And this is tissue paper 'backed' onto calico with pva glue and coloured with brusho inks.

The bottom section is printed.


This is using acrylic paint and a trusty print block (made with foam sheet glued onto card) which I have used time and again.  Plus a new print block with which I added gold ink (made with the same foam sheet).

The front arches are cut from this.


This is inked rag paper, scrunched and ironed to 'age' it and then rubbed with a brown ink pad.

And I'm playing with the following text:-

Madinat Al-Zahra - The "Shining City"

Abd ar-Rhaman III surveyed the rich, fertile land of the Guadalquivir valley.  He had just left the Great Mosque founded by his ancestor, Abd ar-Rahman I, having given thanks to God for blessing him and his subjects with this land and what they had achieved here.  Here, they had founded the Mosque, which he was even now extending further, they had established the University - a seat of great learning - and built beautiful houses and palaces with shady patios against the summer heat.Even so, he was not satisfied.  This is a great city, he thought, and it suited my ancestors well as Emirs of al-Andalus but now I have made myself Caliph of all Islam I need something finer still.  As he gazed across the valley, his eyes strayed to the hills opposite. There would be the place, in the foothills, protected from the north by the hills and giving fine views over the river and valley back towards Córdoba, which would give an early warning of any enemy attack.