LOVE STITCHING RED

Tag Tuesday

2012-01-10T18:58:00.002Z

the Tag Tuesday blog has been keeping me busy
as we more than doubled numbers in just a week

we now have 75 artists playing along with the weekly themes
and the blog is looking wonderful
with their beautiful and inspiring tags

this week's theme is
"snow sports and games"

for my tag I used a vintage image of a girl on a sled
with silver snowflakes left over from last week
some wintery text and an ice star button

at the bottom I added some ribbon with icicles
which I beaded with Swarovski crystals
~ they glisten beautifully in the light ~

♥

generally ... I'm gradually catching up with many projects
and my December post on the other blog is now done

thank you for visiting me
and for your generous comments and uplifting emails

Carolyn ♥

Tag Tuesday

2012-01-03T11:35:00.001Z

Tag Tuesday

is a brand new challenge which I'm hosting here
to create an art tag each week on a Tuesday
with a different seasonal theme

I am thrilled it has got off to a good start with 36 players
and some very beautiful snowy tags are appearing
for this week's theme of snow

"snow on snow"
"snowy landscape"

these are my tags made from a simple bit of collage
the sparkly silver snowflakes are cut from chiffon
and I've added some text

for the time being I'm displaying my tags
on the fireplace in my bedroom

it's still Christmas in the cottage until Friday
the weather is so appalling here ... rain, gales and darkness
I welcome the cheer of fairy lights and candles a little longer
and still plenty of time to share my Christmas photos before then

have a lovely Tuesday

New year greetings

2011-12-31T17:02:00.004Z

It's time to wish you a very happy new year
a fresh start ... with renewed enthusiasm
for your chosen projects for the year

I'm sharing a mosaic I made a couple of years ago
but one which I still like very much
I hope you like it too

1. A 2. Frozen red berries 3. Vintage christmas card 4. Red berry tree in winter 5. Vintage girl on sled 6. Happy New Year 7. Holly 8. Flower christmas gift tag 9. Red berries 10. Christmas snow 11. Snowflakes on red 12. Frosted cranberries - recipe 13. Happy new year 14. Sleigh bells 15. Auld Lang Syne 16. Sugar frosted cranberries

in an effort to catch up with things and draw a line under 2011 I have been quite busy the last few days posting on the other blog. There is just one more catch up post to do and then I feel I can move on to new projects and tackle some of the outstanding ones from 2011 as I am still intending to complete them all

September
October
November
December
Christmas

I feel a great excitement for the projects I have chosen
but more on that later

new year greetings to you
may it be a good year for us all
♥

Merry Christmas to you

2011-12-24T15:23:00.003Z

Merry Christmas to all of my lovely blog friends
I wish you all a peaceful holiday time

I will be along in a few days with a "proper" Christmas catch up
until then ...

love and blessings
Carolyn
♥

thanks ♥

2011-11-30T18:39:00.012Z

last week we had some pretty sunrises

rosy pink mornings that glittered with stars

now the air has a chill as autumn wanes
and the sun disappears mid afternoon
it's been dark and rainy with a hint of sleet
against the window panes

autumn didn't really happen this year
it slipped by
I didn't really see the leaves fall
they were wet and soggy on the ground before I noticed

but I love autumn colour

so I made this mosaic for TILT
an autumn colour study

Things I love Thursday

warm autumn tones, mellow fruitfulness, pears, pomegranates, seeds, gorgeous autumn leaves by Margie and beautiful autumn stitching by Heike

please click on the links to see the lovely work of my flickr friends and faves:

1. red pears 2. no snow only frost 3. autumn wip 4. pomegranate

♥

autumn walks have been few and precious
just a few snatched moments
on my way to somewhere else

these pink berries were a delicious find
on one of those rare moments recently

on the whole ...
I've been quite happy to stay snuggled up indoors
catching up with the many things on my "to do list"

so many things need my attention right now

my email box is loaded with mail I must respond to
(may I say "sorry ... I will get round to it soon!")

I may owe you a reply or a longer message
(may I say "soon")

and there are many things in blogland that I must attend to

I must say "sorry" to Cat
I won her giveaway ... it was ages ago!
and I will share it with you in the next post!

another thing is to thank Val of Slick Silver Jewellery
who invited me to be interviewed a short while back

Val very kindly featured my hearts

and beads
alongside her own very beautiful and distinctive jewellery

Val likes to work mostly in silver and anodised aluminium
which allows her to explore her love of art and design
with the materials of her choice

her jewellery is very popular and she regularly exhibits her work

and not just beautiful reds like these ...
but all colour combinations
and so many different designs

(these are my favourites)
isn't this bracelet ... so gorgeous!
Val's work can be found here if you would like to see more
(see ... I am helping you out with Christmas ideas!)

Slick Silver Jewellery

thank you Val ♥

and round about the same time
my friend Lesley Ninnes and I were interviewed
for the St. Ives Project by Andrea Hiltbrunner

like most people that visit St. Ives
Andrea fell in love with our beautiful seaside town and has a
longing to return one day and possibly settle hereback in September Andrea ran a series of articles and interviews with people that live and work in St. Ives, showing some beautiful photos of the town and the work of the various artists. It's worth popping over for a seaside treat if you are feeling you could do with some sunshine on a dark chilly day

Andrea Hiltbrunner's St. Ives Project

Lesley's paintings

♥

I still have this really nice blog award to mention
it arrived absolutely ages ago from

Little Dotty Bird

and came as a very lovely surprise
thank you ♥

I haven't had one for a while
and usually I'm pretty rubbish at responding to these
racking my brains to try and think of seven things
about myself that you may find interesting
(mmmmm ... no ... nothing much comes to mind)

here are seven "nerdy" things instead ...

1. I've been enjoying re-runs of "Dad's Army" and "On the Buses"
but I do wish they would bring back "The Grimleys" as I love Noddy Holder, Brian Conley and Jack Dee (they are so funny)

look at the grafitti
2. I was a bit of a tomboy at school

3. ... and weirdly ...
I was very much like Darren Grimley in the seventies!!!!!
Gordon Grimley's brother, Darren, and I
had exactly the same red Liverpool FC schoolbag,
both liked cool heavy metal and had floppy hair (I still do!)

4. I once met Noddy Holder at The Marquee Club in London

5. I can't sing but annoy my family anyway by
"caterwauling" out of tune like Hilda Ogden

6. I drink real ale and bitters
and like to try all the ones with funny Cornish names
but my most favourite ones are
Speckled Hen and Newcastle Brown Ale.
My favourite Cornish ales are Proper Job and Scuttled
(to scuttle a ship is to deliberately sabotage one's own ship
for financial gain as in times of piracy and smuggling)

7. I've always wanted a metal detector

♥

and now the really hard bit!
I'm supposed to link to ten blogs that I enjoy ...
but really there are hundreds of blogs that I love
so how to narrow it down to ten???
so difficult!!!
OK ...
here we go ...

1. Evelyn Flint Photography
2. Sophie Munns - Homage to the Seed
3. La Dolce Vita
4. Fibrefrolics
5. Contemplating the Moon
6. A Bird in the Hand
7. The Song of the Hare, the Dance of the Moon
8. Alice Fox Textiles
9. Gentle Whispering Hues
10. The White Bench

thank you Little Dotty Bird for my award ♥
now for my giveaway ...

I made these Christmas red beads for the winner
to go with the other things I mentioned in the last post
(and I also made a heart which I will have to photo tomorrow
as it got too dark to do it today ... sorry)

thank you all for playing along

thank you so much
for your incredibly supportive comments
I cried buckets writing the last post
and reading all your very kind words
they have helped me to get back
and I am grateful ♥

randomly pulled "out of the hat"
my winner is Martha

I hope to see you all again next time
thank you for visiting me

Carolyn ♥

Pop art, nerdy stuff, tea cakes and a giveaway

2011-11-19T18:09:00.015Z

hello ♥

thank you so much for visiting today

it's been quite a while since I stopped by my blog and much has happened in the last two months that I hardly know where to start writing about it. I haven't blogged meaningfully in all that time so you can imagine there is much to catch up with

the past couple of months have been a real rollercoaster of emotions for me and, indeed, this whole year has been thwarted with frustrations and, at other times, life being almost too busy to enjoy the good things that have happened ... because there have been good times in between the sad things

I still don't feel that I want to say an awful lot about the personal things but in summary my hubby was very ill during our week's holiday in September which involved some scary trips to hospital and a lot of worry. Over the following weeks he improved slowly but surely (and is completely fine now) but just as things were calming down my mum collapsed and was seriously ill in hospital for weeks so I went to Somerset for a few weeks to care for my dad (who is very ill all of the time) as he needed some support and day to day care as well as visiting mum in hospital twice a day and looking after their house

During that time (gosh ... this is so hard!) I lost my beautiful nanny and I simply can't begin to say how much this has upset me. I absolutely loved her to pieces and my heart is broken. She and I bonded when she was present at my birth and throughout my whole life I felt loved by her and very special. I have so many wonderful and happy memories to treasure and both of us loved to reminisce about the times I used to go and stay with her as a little girl and meet her out of work. She taught me the most about life and how to deal with it. She would have been 94 in December and I feel so blessed to have had her in my life for so long

We only had the service a couple of weeks ago (for family reasons) so although it's very hard to cope with at the moment I know it will get easier with time and I will never forget anything that we shared. I want to remember you that way nanny ♥

my gorgeous nanny and me
on my wedding day

such a precious smile

Add to that some other stresses ... some conveyancing, our business accounts and tax returns and an impromptu desire for some order in my life (clearing my attic which has been bugging me for ages followed by a much needed car boot sale to get rid of some of the stuff) as I knew I wasn't ready to blog again but wanted to keep busy

I wasn't sure how I would begin blogging again but my dear friends on facebook helped me so much to take the first step ... which was simply to start writing the words and "it will come" ... so here I am ... back again ... and it's very nice to *see* you

I'd like to catch up a bit with some of the nicer things
it may take more than a couple of posts to catch up
but I must make a start!hubby and I had a lovely holiday in Dartmouth
the weather was very misty and drizzly most of the time
and he wasn't in good health
but we really enjoyed just being together

we managed a bit of walking and some ferry trips across the river to Kingswear, as well as horse racing at Newton Abbot and a visit to Greenway (the beautiful holiday home of Agatha Christie)

the rest of the time he rested and we snuggled up
on the sofa and watched dvds in the lovely apartment
we rented from artist illustrator Paul Barclay

it had a pretty roof terrace
with views of the river Dart and out to seaPaul spent years working at the Dart Marina, Dartmouth as harbour master before becoming a full time artist and during that time he built up a huge collection of reclaimed wood from antique ships and vintage nautical and maritime objects that he used to decorate and furnish the apartment with - it was so stylish and fun to stay there for a week ... it felt like we were in a cabin

it had a cute "galley kitchen"

the widest swashbucklin' bed ever in the cabin bedroomin the style of a ship's bunk (but huge)
with many soft furnishings decorated with Paul's designs
Paul Barclay Designs

some of Paul's vintage finds decorating the apartment
(you know I love anything connected to old fishing boats)

and an old photograph which could easily be St. Ives

we enjoyed our holiday to Dartmouth very much
I think English seasides are so beautiful
and after years of holidaying abroad
we've been enjoying rediscovering places closer to home

while in Dartmouth my love and I celebrated
our wedding anniversary at The Cherub Inn ...
one of the oldest and prettiest medieval inns in Dartmouth
I can recommend the pub grub there ... lovely!

Dartmouth has some lovely shops and galleries
("Clarice" came from The Ainscough Gallery)

and at The Coombe Gallery in Foss Street I was delighted to stumble upon a rare opportunity to see the work of Sir Peter Blake (hero worship) who is an artist I have admired for a very long time and whom I discovered when I was studying mixed media collages and assemblages on my art course as I read somewhere that he was influenced by the work of Kurt Schwitters (more hero worship)
Sir Peter Blake's work instantly resonated with me
I love his distinctive style of British pop art, the way he mixes ecclectic pieces so they really work together in themes and colours and I have a particular affinity with his badge collections

I am about to digress here and show badges

my quite large and "nerdy" collection of badges that
spans my childhood into adolescence
of which I am unable to part with
and strangely proud of
these ones are pretty cool though:
Molly Hatchet, Thin Lizzy, Saxon and Rory Gallagher

I think I started collecting aged 10
when I would mostly pick them up on holidays

until the late seventies/early eighties when I went to see a lot of live
heavy metal bands and got the badges to put on my demin jacket
(like you do)
so they are a great reminder of all the seasides I've been to with my siblings, the holiday clubs (Beesons in Torquay) where I would win a badge for activities such as "how many things can you get in a matchbox"; the freebies I would get as my mum and dad dragged us kids round The Caravan and Camping Exhibition every year and all the different people we saw switch on the Blackpool Lights including Red Rum (the racehorse) and Terry Wogan! LOL :o)

I started off in the early seventies pinning them on a denim sunhat
and then in the mid seventies
I pinned them on my Bay City Rollers hat
once I'd grown out of them (or rather Les)
a tartan cap and red pompom
and then late seventies
head banging and badge collecting

Motorhead, Kiss, Bad Company, Iron Maiden
Boston, Sammy Hagar, Rainbow, Whitesnake
April Wine, MSG, Rush and Postman Pat ???
(those were the day ... remember these?)
so I loved Peter Blake's "badges"
his painting of himself wearing a denim jacket with badges
and his famous LP covers

and his pop art collages

I got to see the famous Mickey Mouse collage for myself!
and "Girlie Door"
Sir Peter Blake - Treasures by Selection
The Coombe Gallery, Foss Street, Dartmouth
10th September 2011

"Wink"
a fantastic chance to see sought after signed silkscreen prints
collages with found objects, pop art and pin up girls
Sir Peter Blake's name was spelt in badges from his collection
that could be purchased ... how could I resist ??????

one of my favourite pieces in the exhibition was a collage
that featured part of a Tunnocks tea cake wrapper
I didn't photograph it ... but now I wish I had

and after that ... I just kept noticing everywhere art featuring Tunnock's tea cakes with their distinctive red and silver foil wrappers

holiday reading ... in the September issue of Country Living there was a collage artist in a fashion feature showing a piece of her collage work using wrappers from Tunnock's tea cakes and in the latest Christmas issue of Country Living ... the idea of mixing the wrappers with other papers to pretty up Christmas presents

in the same September issue of Country Living I found
an advert for this pinny by Gillian Kyle in Scotland
the spiritual home of Tunnock's tea cake goodies
and I discovered this place with lots of
Tunnock's tea cakes inspired artwork

we made this

Mr. Tunnock - my fave
so I was inspired to make some little collages of my own
using Tunnock's wrappers which, of course,
involved helping to eat some of these
it was such a hardship
no wonder I look like Mrs. Tunnock!

in case you are wondering what they are ... they have a very suggestive biscuit base, a huge squidge of very soft, sweet, creamy marshmallow in the middle and then they are covered in milk chocolate ... made by Thomas Tunnock Limited in Glasgow Scotland and loved and enjoyed by a certain blogger in England

this is what I came up with

Finally I'd like to say "hi" to Al

All Tea Towels

Al very kindly gave me the opportunity to review his company's gorgeous cotton and linen tea towels and I promised I would give them a huge mention
so my choice of tea towels (drying up cloths)
featured a Tunnock's tea cake design on one
and some beautiful dark red hearts on the other
excellent first impressions

All Tea Towels have some very beautiful designs to choose from in popular categories such as Christmas, calendars, nostalgia and retro, tea and coffee, food and drink, flowers and nature, humerous, pets, animals, fruit and veg, the garden, seaside and nautical, sport and so many others including a special category for the London 2012 Olympics

delivery was prompt and my tea towels came nicely wrapped. I was extremely pleased with the quality of the printed designs, depth of colour and the fabrics were a dream. Being 100% cotton (hearts) and 100% organic unbleached cotton (tea cake design) they washed and ironed beautifully and I would be very happy to recommend Al's company All Tea Towels. So if you are looking for an online gift or stocking fillers for Christmas I am sure you will see a design you will fall in love with ... I was spoilt for choice!

so would you like to win one?

GIVEAWAY

thank you for catching up with me
I'm offering a giveaway prize of

a tea towel featuring the three dark red hearts made from 100% cotton fabric from All Tea Towels
a copy of Sir Peter Blake's exhibition booklet "Treasures by Selection"
a set of my collaged art cards featuring Tunnock's tea cake wrappers
some of my hand made textile art beads to use in your own projects
one of my textile art hearts with textured fabrics, machine and hand stitching, beads and text
some chocolate treats to enjoy while reading the Peter Blake booklet

TO WIN MY GIVEAWAY

1.
please add yourself as a follower of my blog
or let me know you are already following

2.
please visit All Tea Towels ... then

3.
come back and leave a comment on my blog here
and let me know your favourite tea towel design

I'll pull a name out of "the hat" on Wednesday 30 November
and will show the heart and beads in a few days time

with very best wishes and many thanks for visiting
Carolyn ♥

Back soon ...

2011-10-24T15:58:00.003+01:00

... need just a little more time ♥

2011-09-27T22:34:00.006+01:00

Back "dreckly" my lovers ... and I'll tell you all about it ...

♥

I will be back with a post before too much longer ...
I've just been out so much this month I haven't had time to write
I have a giveaway coming up so I hope
you pop back next time ... bye for now xx

Monday movers and shakers

2011-09-19T13:43:00.005+01:00

some recent flickr favourites

it's dark and rainy in St. Ives this morning
hope YOUR Monday is lovely ♥

1. when night time came 2. les plantes d'eau 3. paper dolly 4. living in a dream 5. . 6. beautiful tags 7. forever is not found here 8. jar no 239 9. relax 10. ribbon key vintage typewriter key bracelet 11. . 12. . 13. Texture Tuesday - dream 14. . 15. spooky halloween house 16. singer 17. fragments no.12 18. studio art wall 19. flea market finds 20. porcelain dishes with lace effect and crackle glaze, handcast pewter spoon 21. balmain day dress 22. paper dress 23. museum of forgotten things 1 24. little houses 25. wickedness

I've been a little bit quiet

I've been away on holiday to Dartmouth
and catching up with a few things at home
hope to write more soon

meanwhile ...
I had a change around on my windowsill in my work room
I like to move things around

... a few movers and shakers this week ...
and I'd like you to meet Clarice

she is a lovely wooden figure made by Lynn Muir
from driftwood found on Cornish beaches
I simply fell in love with her
and she came home with me
(from Dartmouth)

I call her Clarice after that silly joke that goes ...
"what do you call a man with a seagull on his head"

answer ... "Cliff"

but she is a lady with a seagull on her head
so she is called "Clarice Cliff"
(tee hee ... falling about laughing at own joke)

we are the music makers
and we are the dreamers of dreams
wandering by lone sea-breakers
and sitting by desolate streams
world-losers and world-forsakers
on whom the pale moon gleams
yet we are the movers and shakers
of the world for ever, it seems

Ode
Music and Moonlight Collection
Arthur O'Shaughnessy

♥

I found this piece of sea washed pottery
wandering by lone sea breakers
along the beach

mer - sea
have a great week
I will be posting a much longer post * HERE * tomorrow

Carolyn
♥

the shape of sweet little cottages ...

2011-09-01T17:47:00.003+01:00

Home Sweet Home

Things I love Thursday

the shape of sweet little cottages, windows, doors
chimneys, rooftops, dolls houses and thoughts of home

1. under the stars 2. house of dreaming 3. house in progress 4. rose tinted cottages 5. white house 6. "HOUSE" garland detail 7. a little house made of linen 8. forgotten 9. abandoned in the snow 10. our house 11. "HOUSE" garland hanging 12. tiny house dangle cl 13. yoo hoo, anyone home

thank you so much for visiting today

I'd like to tell you about rose tinted cottages ...

whimsical and quirky cottages

these little cottages featured on my quilt that I made
for Festival of Quilts recently

I loved stitching this!

I wanted to stitch something that I would be pleased to hang on my dining room wall so I chose neutrals of white, silver and pale grey tones with touches of red to match my own decor. I also wanted it to have a St. Ives feel and so I chose cottages and cobbles as a theme and used some of my own photographs which I transferred to fabric and quilted

the cottages are appliqued with machine and hand stitching
and I painted and dyed some of the fabrics myself

the white rooftop texture of the red cottage is
a polysatin fabric melted and then ironed flat
oooh ... I loved doing that!

I bet you've never seen such rose tinted cottages "in real life"
but I don't always like "real life"
I prefer my own little world of make believe

I pieced it haphazardly as I don't like measuring
I prefer just to see what happens ...

However, I really admire the work of artists who have a gift for piecing tiny bits of fabric together. I'm afraid I don't have the patience for it ... but I truly love to see it ... there are some amazing quilters who create intricate works of art!

this is a photograph I took of the granite archway in The Digey with a whitewashed cottage behind it. I added a texture to it and transferred it to cotton twice to get the depth of colour I wanted, then it was quilted and I added paint, chiffon and beads. I liked the shape of the windows on this photoI like to add tints and textures to my photos
and sometimes turn them into postcards

and adding a blob of pinky red to a cottage
to pretty it up is good for the soul

underneath each of the cottages I stitched cobbles
on melted distressed sheer fabrics

and sometimes I melted silver plastic from a carrier bag
which I then free motion stitched in a silver thread

I used photos of real cobbles
transferred to cotton and quilted in silver

the photos of the cobbles were taken at
The Wharf and Smeaton's Pier in St. Ives

I think this one is my favourite cottage
with it warm and cosy hand dyed silk velvet roof
and windows that look like little Cornish flags

and finally a harbour scene with cottages
I used a metallic wax crayon on the image which I set
by heating with an iron to add a shimmer to the water
and then I added stitch and beads

I really enjoyed stitching my rose tinted cottages
harbour scenes and cobbles

unfortunately ...

when I got to see my quilt hanging at Festival of Quilts
it was creased and didn't hang right

Festival of Quilts 2011
walking around FOQ I agonised over it for about an hour
discussed it at length with my friend Julie and
made a plan to correct one or two things when I got it home
in particular I plan to shorten the binding to one cm
and to weight it more at the bottom

happy seagulls
and then I think I will truly, truly love it

but it's too big for the space on my dining room wall
so I will be offering it for sale at some point

my hubby had the good idea for me to make a smaller
version ... maybe a section of it
he loves the cottages too ...
and that makes me happy

the seagulls on my quilt
inspired a mosaic for Mosaic Monday

on silver tipped wings
1. gull 2. St. Ives misty winter texture 3. hello
4. 4 peixe-espadas 5. state library seagulls 6. $11.99/lb

inspired by sunlight on silver tipped gulls wings
and the slippery silver scales of mackerel

the last few days have had a slightly more peaceful feel in St. Ives ... the sun has been warm but it's not as strong as usual ... there is a feeling of summer slipping slowly into autumn

back to Festival of Quilts and after seeing my quilt hanging so badly I needed a bit of retail therapy to cheer myself up so I got some lovely felt from Chris Gray's stall "Butterfly Threads" and some silk velvet, scrim, silk throwsters waste and threads from Stef Francis
Ineke Berlyn's book "Sketchbooks and Journal Quilts" from The Quilt Museum's stall as well as a few purchases I shared over on my other blog

such riches for autumn and winter

but the highlight of my day was meeting so many
many of my lovely blog friends
it was wonderful to meet you special ladies ♥

Julie Mackinder ♥ Miriam ♥ Carol McFee ♥ me

Margaret Roberts (Mags) ♥ Jackie Cardy ♥ Gina Ferrari

Chrissie Galley ♥ Viv Sliwka ♥ Margaret ♥ Sue Krekorian

Jackie (Dog Daisy Chains) made this gorgeous pendant
especially for me in delicious rich red
the velvet is so plush and beautifully stitched
and it's heart shaped too ... so me

I love it ... and I wore it on Tuesday
thank you dear Jackie ♥

"just a little something" she said ...

and darling Viv (Hens Teeth) gave me this gorgeous
stitched brooch in her beautiful inimitable primitive style
I so love her sweet whimsical stitched pieces
they are timeless

birdy love from Viv
thank you ♥

"just a little something" she said ...

and from Julie who is such a lovely lady
and always makes me feel very special
I had a bundles of lace which came
from someone she loves very much

thank you my sweet friend ♥

I came away from FOQ feeling very inspired and very upbeat
to have met so many blogging friends that really care
and I'm very much looking forward to going again next year

last week my parents came to St. Ives for the day

it was a real treat for me as Dad can hardly walk these days
and doesn't like driving all that way down to us
so they came on the train

we had a wonderful time together
enjoying the sunshine
and a ride out in the Cornish countryside
a very special day for me ♥

Well ... thoughts have turned to September
and I'm still trying so hard to cling to summer
we've had some lovely sunny days the past two weeks
and it's still very warm in St. Ives

autumn can wait and I will embrace it when it truly arrives ...

but I did make five little beads that look like berries
in my favourite tones of richest red
burgundy, cranberry and raspberry

I am pleased to say my little shop has been keeping me busy
I am going to be listing more beads later this evening
most likely after midnight as I've much to do tonight

I hope you may see some beads that you like ♥

my little shop

thank you for visiting
and thank you for all kind messages
left here and on flickr, facebook and email

creative wishes
Carolyn ♥

a romance with summer

2011-08-20T14:09:00.006+01:00

a cheery hello to my bloggy friends and followers

and anyone who has accidentally stumbled across
my little bit of space on the web :o)

just wanted to say I will be posting here soon
but meanwhile have been posting here:

printing and playing with geospun textiles

Festival of Quilts 2011

a few photos

since I got back from Festival of Quilts it's been hectic the past week working for my hubby and working on my own things, custom orders for beads and hearts, keeping the house looking nice, a Crow Day working on The Brooklyn Sketchbook Project, a day out with a friend, drama in St. Ives and the purchase of a new sewing machine (you wait till you see it!), also had my quilt back which I want to work on a little more and I'm making a curtain too ... in readiness for chillier autumn/winter evening (it's for the cottage door) ...

... so quite a bit going on

I also have some autumn harbinger photos to share
from a lovely walk recently

this weekend I'm painting more beads
and stitching new hearts which I love to do
also sorting out my photos for the post that I've been
carrying around in my head for the past week

meanwhile ... this is the mosaic I made for TILT

♥ a romance with summer ♥

Things I love Thursday

clinging to summer, dreamy days at the beach, hearts and berries, red and pink, a romantic trip to Paris, love and passion, soft light and quiet moments ...

1. "I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon" ~ author unknown 2. Saturday raspberries 3. 4. . 5. SDC10049 6. Victorian romance - 5 of 5 7. dreams&r-detail1 8. I heart you 9. green people 10. a menos 11. stuff on my desk 12. snow 13. berries

with thanks to my flickr friends and faves for sharing their photos

the mosaic is soft and dreamy
as I cling to summer for just a little while longer ...

I hope you like it
have a wonderful weekend
creative blessings
Carolyn ♥

Quilting for Cornwall

2011-08-07T14:26:00.006+01:00

Monday 25 July

outside in the lane
there was a bustle in the hedgerow
and sweet music carried on the breeze

the sound of piped and fiddled music
floated into the cottage

and then I remembered ...

it was the five year anniversary
of the John Knill Ceremony

and the traipsing up the lane to the Steeple
of the 10 little girls dressed in their white frilly frocks
the two widows dressed in black
the Master of Ceremonies
the Trustees of the keys
the fiddler
the piper
the Mayor
Uncle Tom Cobley and all
(everyone else)

... to carry out the ceremonial wishes of John Knill

it's a ceremony that has been taking place
in St. Ives every five years since 1801

The John Knill Ceremony

and I would have traipsed up to the Steeple too
but I forgot what year it was
(I'm in my own little world of fluff and beads)
and anyway ... I was indoors quilting for Cornwall at the time

spreading out with all my favourite shimmery rosy reds

and choosing threads and beads

you can quite see why a girl could be a bit distracted

Wednesday 27 July

I had a Crow Day with my friend Jo
We had planned to work on our sketchbooks
for The Sketchbook Project
but the cottage quilt dominated my week and
I ended up taking the quilt to work on instead

it was a very hot day so we had a picnic lunch on the island

and afterwards visited St. Ives Society of Artists Gallery
and The Crypt Gallery
where the Penwith Printmakers were exhibiting

I particularly loved the work of Lyn Winters and Carol Lander
and was very pleased to meet Carol who generously shared
information on printmaking and talked about her work

I will do a post about this on my textile blog very soon

thank you Carol ♥

Friday 29 July

deadline day for posting the quilt ... thank goodness
and Friday brought an interesting surprise

the grandaughter of a lady who once lived in our cottage in the 1950s and 1960s knocked on our cottage door, out of the blue, and gave to us a copy of a beautiful painting of our cottage and cottage garden. It was painted by none other than St. Ives and Newlyn School artist Winifred Freeman (1866-1961). The painting had belonged to her grandmother, who was a friend of Mary Maud Winifred Freeman

Of course this sent me into a flurry of googling
and I was delighted to find that Winifred was

"cheerfully eccentric, would cycle in knickerbockers with her easel strapped to her back and smoked cigars in public"

good gracious!

Winifred Freeman

Winifred exhibited at The Royal Academy
and more recently, in 2008, there was an
exhibition of her paintings at Falmouth Art Gallery

As we have all the old deeds for the cottage going back to the early 1800s we were able to share some of the documents that related to this lady's grandmother and we were given some old photographs of her grandmother on Porthminster beach. We are hoping there may turn out to be some more old photos of the cottage. It would be so interesting to see what it looked like a few decades ago as already we have restored a lot of the Victorian character

Saturday 30 July

are we on the turn already?

a leisurely walk to the post office and some time to notice
the leaves are beginning to change colour and rosehips are a plenty

I've noticed a few other bloggers are of the same opinion
Penny made a lovely mosaic with her late summer finds
called "summer passing"

I love autumn time but I'm not quite ready for it yet ...
there's plenty of time ...
I'm not done with summer yet

when I got back from the post office I had a nice card from my friend Chris Gray waiting for me along with some of her butterfly geospun textile fabric (a very soft fibretex product) for experimenting with
I've used some of it to make beads with
and painted a sheet of it to use in my hearts
I will share the results here

Chris is going to be at Festival of Quilts
NEC Birmingham next week 11-14 August 2011
selling her beautiful hand dyed threads
and other textile goodies

Chris Gray
Butterfly Threads
STALL E52

August

this past week was another busy one ...
I've been posting regularly on flickr

Love Stitching Red

I had a custom order and made over 300 beads this week
I will be listing beads in my etsy shop over the next few days

and I have just a few skeins of yummy sari silk yarn left

in my shop

the week ahead is an exciting one
I will be at Festival of Quilts on Thursday 11 August
to see my humble effort hanging amongst the proper quilts
spending time with family that I miss very much
and working on custom orders for hearts

♥

this is the mosaic I made for TILT

girly pink

Things I love Thursday

dried roses, pretty dollies dressed in pink, rosy cheeks, pink rose petals, summer bonnets trimmed with roses and pink cotton threads on vintage spools and reels

1. decay 2. a tiny glimpse of a project I have been working on 3. softly flowing 4. manon gignoux dolls 5. pinks 6. buttons in pink 7. Sukienka 8. pink spool 9. fused page with painted bee 10. surprise package from sweet Paula 11. pinky rose 12. work in progress 13. burlap and roses

have a wonderful week ahead
and thank you so much for visiting me

Carolyn ♥

Dreaming of summer ...

2011-08-01T20:23:00.006+01:00

August wishes

pretty petals

garden flowers
summer meadows
leafy trees
a cooling stream
dragonflies
birdsong
bees

a picnic on a clifftop
looking out to sea
a dreamy book
jam sandwiches
homemade lemonade
flip flops

♥

all frills and ruffles

2011-07-24T12:42:00.009+01:00

I walked in a garden yesterday

it was so good to be out in the sunshine again
the first time in two weeks

I still can't smell the flowers yet
it's been a nasty cold after a nasty flu
but a little progress is being made each day ... I feel

hollyhocks take me back to another time

an old fashioned house, an old fashioned garden
an allotment patch, a dusty street, summers so hot
and hollyhocks in every shade of icecream
I stopped to watch a bee getting sticky
up inside the frilly skirts of the hollyhock
(ooo errr missuss!!)

♥

The stately Lady Hollyhock
has graced my garden bed for years
sedately stiffened in a frock
all frills and ruffles to her ears
for at the fashions one may mock
when one is born a Hollyhock

a poem by Sarah J Day
"mayflowers to mistletoe: a year with the flower folk"

well ... back to the sewing machine and another day of quilting
thanks for all your lovely visits and comments
and hello to new followers

have a wonderful week ahead

summer blessings
Carolyn
♥

Pinky but not perky

2011-07-19T20:25:00.009+01:00

Well ... the start of the month saw me taking care of
Mr. Love Stitching Red who came down with flu and so
our family were not able to come down and stay with us after all

Our plans of a round trip on the open top bus and a special
beach side table for dinner at The Porthminster Cafe
were postponed until another time (hopefully later in the year)

(critters keeping me awake at the moment!!)

trying to get back into the swing of things again ...

I was able to spread out in my work room and enjoyed
reviewing the various projects and things I have "on the go"

I sorted out my beachcombing treasures found in June

including this gorgeous piece of vintage rose tinted pottery
found on the harbour beach
(my newest most favouritest piece!)

and made a little seaside display on my windowsill

♥

... when ... each of the little waves came inshore it lifted her up ...

I'm really enjoying pink at the moment

and inspired by a jar of dried hydrangeas on my windowsill
(the red ones given to me by Lesley have faded to a pretty pink)

I had to have these gorgeous silk ribbons
they were too "pretty in pink"to resist!

from Lisa at Mudhound Studio

a little treat, perhaps, for making hundreds of beads for my shop

selling all of them (and getting lovely custom orders too)

so I just got set up in my "studio"
making lots of new beads and hearts and
getting back into routine at my art class at St. Ives Arts Club

... when I came down with flu as well ...

hydrangeas on my walk down to art class

and I've been poorly since last Monday (11th)

it's been one of the nastiest flu bugs I've ever had
with terrible headaches and earaches
that all I could do was sleep for a week

finally, on Sunday I was able to get up
and move about normally, thank goodness,
as there is quite a bit still to do on my quilt entry for FOQ

progress is slow as I'm still full of cold
and my head isn't working properly yet
but I'm confident of getting it finished in time
and I'm enjoying all the subtle "nuances" and layers

thank you so much for your get well wishes left here
and on my other blog, on flickr, twitter and facebook
(gosh ... so many places to be these days!)
I'm so grateful for your kind thoughts

and thank you for visiting me today

sunshine and love
Carolyn
♥

2011-07-14T10:15:00.003+01:00

no updates for a short while as I'm ill in bed with flu
... hope to be back soon with a pretty pink post ...
♥

Summer stuff

2011-07-03T17:52:00.011+01:00

"Foxglove, foxglove, what do you see?"

The cool green woodland, the fat velvet bee;
Hey Mr Bumble, I've honey here for thee!

"Foxglove, foxglove, what see you now?"
The soft summer moonlight on bracken, grass and bough;
And all the fairies dancing as only they know how

Cicely Mary Barker

foxgloves at Morvah

I've never had a lot of luck with foxgloves in my garden
but these quintessentially English summer flowers
grow prolifically in the hedgerows and woodlands around me
so I delight in them there

I love foxgloves almost as much as I love honeysuckle
the hedgerows far more alluring than a cultivated garden
"round whose feet ... a thousand fairies flock with blossoms sweet"

July and summertime bring many sweet pleasures
the strawberries that grow in the wild are by far the sweetest!

of course ... I sampled :o)

and this was on my way to Tescos
which was a rather strange experience for me since
I got half way there and discovered I still had my slippers on
my mind not quite on the job in hand obviously!

in fact there has been too much going on recently
and once again a bit of a catch up is necessary

Friday 10 June

I had a trip on the open top bus to visit a friend
who lives in the stunning countryside near Morvah

I always enjoy sitting out in the fresh air (and I mean fresh!)
it's alright so long as your dressed for the occasion
(and take a plastic carrier bag to sit on)
so would thoroughly recommend it if you get the chance!

the day passed far too quickly with visits to galleries at
Morvah School House and Yew Tree Gallery
as well as lunch at The Cook Book in St. Just

and a trip to Flying Squirrel for the purchase of batting
for my art quilt for Festival of Quilts
(separate post about that later)

and another blustery ride back to St. Ives!

looks can be deceptive!
Wednesday 15th June
Crow Day with Jo

Crow Days with my friend Jo are always loads of fun
really it's just licence to be silly, laugh a lot and have time to stitch
otherwise known as "professional development"

I started this spring landscape piece earlier in the year
but it has since turned into an autumn landscape
with the addition of seedheads, bare trees and autumn leaves

it's still not finished ... there are many more leaves to stitch
but soon ... I hope ... there will be some peaceful time to sew

Jo and I went to see the poignant exhibition of work by Roy Ray
"Observations on a Journey" and
"Where their footsteps left no trace"

Roy Ray with four of the five panels

an incredibly powerful exhibition of his paintings and assemblages
which form part of The Evilution Project
(please do visit)

These five panels each measuring 5ft x 2ft are part of the first phase of the Evilution Project and are memorials to the millions of innocent men, women and children who became victims of conflict by the corrupt use of science and technology: many because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time or from the wrong country or wrong race. Every single one of those people meant something to someone and should not be forgotten

the panels are shortly to be installed at
St Peter's Church, nr. Ground Zero, New York

from 30 July 2011
they will be exhibited there during the 10th anniversary of
the September 11th terror attacks on The World Trade Centre

see press release for more information

Friday 17 June

We had friends arrive to stay with us in the cottage for two weeks

Just before (really bad timing) my washing machine "conveniently" broke down and I waited all week for parts to arrive and then it became apparent it couldn't be fixed and I needed a new one so then a frustrating few days was spent catching up with laundry etc.

The weather was really bad too with rain and cold chilly winds
so I stayed home and made beads whenever I had the chance

Tuesday 21 June

Jo and I went to see the exhibition of mixed media
and fine art textiles at Camborne College

I enjoyed seeing some fabulous and interesting work
from the fine art textile students
my favourite pieces were by Annie Ward

followed by a trip to the Cornwall Scrap Store for stash top ups

and photographing some natural patterns on the wall
of the old building round the back of the Scrap Store

and a treat of hot chocolate drink and
lemon cake at Costa Coffee in Hayle ... yum!

Sunday 26th June

We had our hottest day of the year so far ... swelteringly hot
and on Monday we had a day of fog and Cornish mizzle in St. Ives

we woke to a misty morning

our misty morning inspired this mosaic for Mosaic Monday

with thanks to my friends on flickr for sharing their beautiful photographs

1. Somewhat compulsive 2. Beach
3. Porthmeor beach, St Ives 4. Misty water spotty rocks

it didn't stop us getting out for beachcombing
and it didn't stay misty too long

early evening in St. Ives

Thursday 3oth June

a seaside inspired mosaic for TILT ♥

Things I love Thursday

seaside piers, board walks, shiny shells, white coral
sea fans, sea urchins, mussels, ethereal seascapes
birds, shimmery wet sand and white surf spray

1. Southend on Sea pier new pier extension, c. 1908 2. ATC Seaside traded 3. Shiny 4. White coral 5. Felted vessel 6. Sea fan 7. Shell collection 8. Pieces of the collection 9. Little seascape 10. Grey morning 11. Shell 12. Mussel shell 13. Starling

1st July

better late than never ... my calendar for July

image courtesy - rosewithoutathorn84

July wishes ... sunshine and time to enjoy it

Sorry it was a long one again but I had to catch up because the next month is also going to be another busy one with family coming to stay on Tuesday and the rest of the month spent bent over my sewing machine working on my entry for Festival of Quilts. I will be sharing the progress of my quilt at a later stage ... for the time being I need to make some serious headway with it!!!

I shall be at Festival of Quilts on Thursday 11 August

I don't leave Cornwall to go "up country" very often
so it would be nice to meet as many of you as I can on the day

please do let me know if you will be at FOQ on Thursday
it would be lovely to say "hello"

creative wishes
Carolyn ♥

Hidden Paintings - Alfred Wallis - St. Ives, Cornwall

2011-07-02T19:00:00.006+01:00

Hello dear blog buddies

I will be posting my June updates and
(belatedly) my July calendar in a blog post tomorrow

meanwhile ...

if you have been interested in the BBC series "Hidden Paintings"
I would love to share with you this link to the programme
that was broadcast only in the South West and the Channel Islands

It features stunning scenery and the cobbled streets of St. Ives
and also some otherwise unseen Alfred Wallis paintings

so if you love St. Ives ... put your feet up for 30 minutes and enjoy!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012721l

Curtis Dowling goes on a quest to establish whether
two paintings by the Cornish mariner-turned-artist
Alfred Wallis are fake or the real thing

If genuine they could be worth a fortune,
but fakes of Wallis's works abound.
Curtis meets experts, trawls through
hidden collections of the great St. Ives primitive,
and finally uses scientific tests to get to the truth

With thanks to Chrissie ♥

the air was filled with a dreamy and magical light

2011-06-21T20:58:00.004+01:00

then followed that beautiful season ... Summer ....
filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Happy Summer Solstice!

I've been away too long

(so sorry ... I didn't mean to be)

I've been crazy busy all over the place
but during June I have blogged a few times here

at the end of May we had Cornwall Open Studios and
I visited the studio of textile artist Sandra Hardy
who lives up the lane just a few hundred yards from me!

Sandra's work is exquisite!

I really enjoyed meeting Sandra and seeing her workspace
and her felted and stitched pieces
they were so fine and beautifully embroidered

As my visit to her studio was just a few days before my birthday
I treated myself to a lovely sketchbook with a collaged cover
(more about her work on my other blog)

Sandra Hardy

I enjoyed my birthday this year - with gifts from special friends

beautiful chiffons and felted fabrics from my friend Cathie
thank you bezzy ♥

and this gorgeous woodpecker notebook from
The North Carolina Museum of Art

more beautiful homespun fabrics from my friend Jo
thank you Jo dear ♥

in delicious spicy autumn colours I received
space dyed threads from Cathie and fabrics and buttons from Jo
thank you ♥

and so soft natural fleece from Cathie
thank you Cathie dear ♥

a very lovely wired vintage button heart from Rini
and some other beach treasures which I will share on the other blog
thank you Rini dear ♥

my hubby took me to St. Mawes for a couple of days
we stayed at Idle Rocks and had a totally relaxing time
and (compared to St. Ives) it was very quiet

so peaceful in St. Mawes

there was time enough to wander around in the quaint little harbour
watch the toing and froing of the little fishing boats
and visit a few shops and galleries

our room had a beautiful view out over the harbour and it was so nice
to lay in bed and watch the early morning sun rise over the sea

as mentioned on my other blog I went to the exhibition of work
by members of St. Ives Society of Artists at the beginning of June
including work by Alice Mumford

and I met up with fellow bloggers Lesley and Noelle from St. Ives
and Diane who was on holiday from "up country"
we had morning tea and cake on the harbour front
it was so lovely to do that

I did share some of the girls' beautiful gifts on my textile blog
but wanted to share here this lovely card that Diane made for me
from a left over fruity teabag because the staining is so pretty

a pretty rosy teabag

and this lovely birthday card and pin cushion
also made by Diane for my birthday
thank you Diane ♥

afterwards Diane, Noelle and I did a little beachcombing and
apart from the usual sea glass, pottery and shells I pick up
I found these two leather soles washed up on the beach

I shall enjoy using these in a piece of work when I have time

two lost souls

from my dear friend Cathy Cullis I received her wonderful poetry zine
brimming with her inspirational poetry and artwork
I do love Cathy's work so much - her words resonate with me
they are dreamy and magical and I lose myself in thought

and I was so happy to receive her gift of a poetry bird
I have long hoped to own one

I love the words

shadows and stars
twilight birds
echoing feathers

thank you so much Cathy ♥

now some time ago ...
Sharon sent me these vintage "puffs" and stitched buttons
and for a time I wasn't sure what I would use them for

they are so tiny ... not much bigger than a pin head
Sharon wanted to see just how tiny she could go

and then last week I started making this heart
decorated with flowers cut from vintage lace and embroidered cotton

and after carefully cutting out the vintage lace and cotton flowers
I appliqued them to calico and also used linen and old lace
left over from the ring cushion I made for my own wedding

I found the puffs and stitched buttons to be "just the right thing"

the heart was inspired by one of my favourite childhood books

that I have enjoyed re-reading recently

The Secret Garden

I finished it off with a watering can charm

I am very happy that "The Secret Garden" heart
is on it's way to a loving new owner via

my etsy shop

we have friends staying with us for the next two weeks
so I will try to blog again soon with more stuff I have been up to

thank you for visiting me today
and for all most valued comments on previous posts

creative wishes
Carolyn ♥

Summer sweetness

2011-06-01T21:32:00.024+01:00

a tranquil summer sunset shone upon him
as he approached the end of his walk
and passed through the meadows by the river side

he had that sense of peace
and of being lightened of a weight of care
which country quiet awakens
in the breasts of dwellers in towns
Charles Dickens - Little Dorrit

a summer wish

a leafy lane
a warm summer breeze
a dandelion clock
scattering seeds
a summer hedgerow with wild flowers
new feathered fledglings
in dappled shade
the sweetness of honeysuckle
my favourite flower
honeysuckle flowers in my nan's garden 1962
thank you for stopping by
and for all your fab comments on the Cornish ramble
I'll organise another outing for us all soon ;o)

sweet summer wishes to you
Carolyn
♥

[so sorry I'm a little late with the June calendar
- feel free to download and print if you wish
- oh and there will be another post along soon]

A ramble amongst ancient Cornish stones

2011-05-27T09:28:00.011+01:00

We're getting the map out today ...so dust off your walking boots
go and get your comfy fluffy socks on
I'm going to take you for a walk and
show you another side of Cornwall that I love

In May the Cornish countryside around here is stunning
with yellow gorse and broom dusting the landscape with gold
from St. Ives to St. Just

St. Just Summer by Ginny Harrison
a card I bought at an exhibition in St. Ives Arts Club on May Day

I love this painting by Ginny Harrison
it epitomises the colours of the Penwith countryside

when my sister was down at the beginning of May
I took her out on the coast road between St. Ives and St. Just
She had a new camera to test so I knew she would love that
the whole of this part of Cornwall is littered with bronze age settlements,
disused mines, shafts, engine houses with crumbling chimneys,
ancient stone piles, circles of stones, quoits and medieval churches

Coupled with breathtaking scenery it is a beautiful day out,
especially when the skies are dramatic and heavy with storm

gorse at Morvah

The cows in the field are content to munch daisies
and spend all day admiring their sea views

a moo from Morvah

I wonder if Cornish cows know how lucky they are?

do you like butter?
mmm ... let me see ... hold your chin up

Our first stop was at Yew Tree Gallery
a favourite of mine just outside of Morvah
where we enjoyed seeing the paintings of Rod Walker and
awesome tapestry weavings by Kirsten Glasbrook

Trewidden Spring - Rod Walker

this painting is "so spring"
I had to go and find some textile bits to handle ...

I found inspiring spring colours in threads from Chris Gray
my friend Chris has a stall at this year's Festival of Quilts
you will find her on stand E52

threads from The Textile Butterfly

some textile art beads that I made in spring colours of
lime, moss, green, yellow and gold

with interesting textures

and more gorgeous silk ribbons from Mudhound Studio
in spring greens

back to Morvah

Morvah it is one of the smallest parishes in Cornwall,
with just a handful of cottages, farms, the 13th century church
and the gallery and coffee shop at Morvah Schoolhouse

the cows in the field across the tiny lane
are always interested in who goes in the Schoolhouse
it's the highlight of their day!

we enjoyed tea and crumpets in the cafe downstairs
before viewing the ceramics by members of the
Cornwall Ceramics and Glass Group on display upstairs

Barry Marshall-Johnson

colourful ceramics by Barry Marshall-Johhnson

Vicky Heard

textured ceramics by Vicky Heard that look like textile pieces

and ceramics by Bill Glover which I love for that
complementary mix of rusty orange and blue

the yellow broom in the jar had the fresh scent of lemons

Lemon - Rod Walker

the landscape in this part of Cornwall is scattered with stones
and the skyline broken frequently by the granite remains of many
tin mines and engine houses and on the coast road (B3306)
on the outskirts of Morvah can be seen Carn Galver tin mine
and engine houses with their crumbling chimney stacks

the day we chose to visit these ruins the sky was heavy
dark and moody with threatened rain
which made for a more dramatic atmosphere

eery skies on the road from Morvah to Madron

every now and then you happen upon a pile of stones on the roadside
most probably marking the site of an ancient burial chamber

this small one is marked on the map as
"pile of stones"

it reminds me of the miniature stonehenge in Spinal Tap :o)

but a little further along on the Madron road
you will come upon the real thing

Lanyon Quoit

Lanyon Quoit is a neolithic monument marking a tomb
and the stones were so aligned for ancient ritual purposes

In 1815, Lanyon Quoit was torn down by a storm
Nine years later enough money was raised by local inhabitants
to re-erect the structure. During the storm one of the uprights was broken in half. Thus, there are only three uprights today
and the structure does not stand as high as it once did
Before the storm, the capstone was raised at 7 feet high
and a man on horseback would have been able to ride under it

click here for a virtual tour
and see the landscape with Ding Dong mine in the background

and now we are going to walk the mile or so
(a Cornish half mile) to Men an Tol

don't worry ... that sky is a bit dark and threatening
but you won't get wet stick with me and you'll be fine

it feels like a long way because it's out in the middle of nowhere
but there are interesting things to see along the way

beautiful countryside as far as you can see in all directions
and little fields separated by dry granite stone walls

and always on the horizon are these farm buildings
with this gorgeous bright orange rusty tin roof

you can't miss that shock of orange against the dark, stormy sky

when I see this painting by John Piper
I am reminded of the walk to Men an Tol

the landscape has white grasses just like the painting

... now ... whose that lagging at the back there?
come on ... keep up ...

just over this stile and a few more yards more

and we are nearly at Men an Tol

Men an Tol means ... stone with a hole

it's thought to be a bronze age monument possibly once
the entrance to a burial chamber or part of a stone circle

you can just see Ding Dong mine on the horizon

According to folklore ...
the stone was believed to have ritual healing powers
with the most popular story being that children
were passed through the stone to cure them of ricketts

When you are there it's incredibly beautiful and very peaceful
We heard the sound of a cuckoo for the first time this year

The landscape is an interesting one with these dried grasses
I picked some to weave with ... but haven't got round to it yet

I took the photo below because it reminds me of my childhood with my cousins. We would take old blankets and make dens in the hollowed out ditch at the side of the field. It would have trees overhead that we would tie the blanket to (for a roof) and we had a blanket on the ground for a carpet. We would picnic there with our tea set until it started to get dark

The past two weeks have been busy as usual

I've made a start on my entry for Festival of Quilts and also The Brooklyn Sketchbook Project for 2012. I chose the theme of "in 10 minutes" and I've set up a blog dedicated to my pages to keep it all tidy and together. I've managed seven pages so far

ART IN 10 MINUTES

I've also kept up going to art classes at St. Ives Arts Club on a Monday afternoon. It means a lot to me to have some time to play with new painting techniques and fill up a sketchbook with samples

and I've been busy making more beads for my Etsy shop

yes ... I finally got around to opening my shop and I'm pleased to say that since the weekend I have had 15 lovely sales and been featured in two treasuries, and now I am working on some of my hearts and other textile pieces which will be in the shop soon and more of my beads in different colour combinations

Carolyn Saxby Textiles on Etsy

Today I'm off out photographing some details for my FOQ art quilt to transfer to fabric and then Saturday we have the start of Open Studios Cornwall for a week and I shall be popping in to see Sandra Hardy and Vivien Staunton (both textiles) so that's a good start to the weekend

Hope you have a wonderful weekend too
I think we all deserve a nice cup of tea now!
(hope your feet aren't aching too much with all that walking we did!)

creative wishes
Carolyn ♥

Mosaic Monday

2011-05-16T09:00:00.004+01:00

Good morning Monday
Mosaic Monday - red paint

delicious red paint - all textured and peeling - so wonderful!
1. Arch 2. Red door 3. Red paint 4. Painted bondaweb
5. Nicola 6. Red barn paint

thank you to my flickr friends and faves for sharing their art ♥

because every now and then a girl needs a fix of red!

have a "fabulous" week ♥

A Cornish ramble

2011-05-12T19:50:00.001+01:00

Last week was fabulous!

My sister came down to stay with us for the week and we were
out and about pottering every day as she loves her camera too
so I hope you don't mind if I bore you a bit with my holiday snaps!

On May Day (a bank holiday in England)
we walked down on the coast path to St. Ives
It was such an incredibly windy day
It was so difficult trying to take photos in the harbour
and remain upright at the same time
It took our breath away and was bitingly chilly
despite being a bright, beautiful day
It certainly blew a few cobwebs away I can tell you!

treasures from the harbour beach

I enjoyed some time hunting for beach treasures
on the beach behind the lifeboat house

I found a nice selection of sea glass and pottery pieces
that get washed down from the potteries in the Stennack stream

"more fag packets" as my hubby would say

"no dear ... they are very interesting bottle tops actually"
which I am sure will come in handy for just the right project
... one day ...

and I always enjoy photographing fishing boats in the harbour
whenever I get the chance

this one is a favourite of mine
with lovely peeling paint and abstract patterns

weed and rust on my favourite boat

and a rusty rudder

another favourite boat I tend to photograph a lot is this one
I always like the buoys on this one
especially with that view behind it!and another one!

notice there are no people in my shots?

that's because it was so cold and windy in the harbour
although you wouldn't believe it to look at these photos

readers of my other blog are used to me showing fishing boats and buoys or rambling on about all things seaside, beach finds, sea glass, pottery, flotsam and jetsam, seaweed, ropes, peeling paint and rusty boats in St. Ives harbour ... it's a persistent thread. I do get a bit carried away taking photos of the same things some times ...

after a while we needed to get out of that cold wind so we
enjoyed a most welcome pot of tea in Madeleine's Tea Rooms

and then happened to be in the right place at the right time
to watch the May Day floral procession, brass bands and
the carrying of the maypole through the cobbled streets of St. Ives
(through the window, warm and snug with a nice cuppa)

After that delicious cup of tea we wandered up Fore Street
to The New Craftsman Gallery as these heads and faces
have been beckoning to me for weeks and I finally got to see them

They are fabulous (my latest word!)
sculptures by artist Claire Loder
... so wonderful and witty!

Claire Loder also has a "fabulous" and humerous website

You will enjoy your visit there!

Claire Loder

later
a dramatic end to the day
as the tide rolled back into the harbour
the wind got up even stronger
and lifted the waves right over the pier and harbour walls

It's always spectacular to see this!

♥

Over the week we were down in the harbour several times
the weather was a mixed bag during the week but
by Saturday the weather was gorgeous

flip flops and ice cream weather
(I had a cherry Moomaid)

this has to be my favourite scene in all the world

I couldn't wait to kick off my boots and feel the cold wet sand!

and there was a new boat in the harbour to photograph
(are you yawning yet????)

the beautifully presented
"Celeste"

this boat was immaculate ... not a mark on it
beautiful inside and out ... wow!

and that's it for now...
...the next part of my Cornish ramble will be along soon ...

... when I will share with you another side
of this beautiful part of the Cornish coast

Thank you for reading ... you are lovely
or should I say "fabulous"!
Carolyn ♥

April catch up

2011-05-01T16:49:00.034+01:00

Hope you all had a lovely long easter holiday and are now enjoying a second long weekend for the Royal Wedding celebrations and May Day

I thoroughly enjoyed watching the service and pageantry on the telly on Friday ... comfy on the sofa with my box of hankies ;o)

I thought it was such a beautiful, elegant wedding with the right amount of solemnity, tradition and Englishness about it

... and I loved Catherine's dress ...
... as well as the dress worn by her beautiful sister ...

so glad the weather stayed fine for their special day!

♥

April was such a whirl of delightful distractions ...

On Saturday 2nd April I met up with Julie and her DH (blog buddies that have become very good friends over the last few years). They were down holidaying in St. Ives for two weeks, staying in a flat on The Terrace with the most amazing views across the whole of
St. Ives bay and as you can see we had gorgeous spring weather.
In fact most of April was stunning like this!

We enjoyed a glass of wine
and a delicious lunch of
cheesey crumpets
cooked by Julie's hubby
(yummy thanks ♥)
followed by dessert

and then, as is customary in blog land, we exchanged gifts

Julie spoilt me with a pretty dotee doll which she had stitched with lovely beading, some vintage lace from her stash, tissue papers for collage, a red felt heart brooch and some fabric she had dyed and printed herself. Thank you so very much for a lovely day and for my gifts Julie ♥

We shared the opening of my erosion bundle (which I blogged about before) and then we visited The Porthminster Gallery where we enjoyed seeing the paintings of Matthew Lanyon. Afterwards, we just had time to visit The Millennium Gallery to seethe "Pulse" exhibition of paintings and sculptures by Ken Spooner

If you would like to know more about this exhibition
you can visit The Millennium Gallery's website to view
the online catalogue and video of Ken Spooner's work

Hercules

Zeus

While at The Millennium Gallery I bought a book of Joy Wolfenden Brown's paintings. I am so inspired by the painting below. In particular, I really love the panels which immediately sparked an idea in my head for this year's entry for Festival of Quilts and just before the Friday 29 April deadline I registered my intention to submit an art quilt into the competition ... so I shall get to work on that quite soon

Seeing

Paintings by Joy Wolfenden Brown

On 5 April I had a few days away with my hubby
We went horse racing at Exeter racecourse which was so much fun
We had token bets, of course, and happily we came away
with a small profit of £2.50 up ... woo hoo!!

We followed that with a few days in beautiful Dartmouth where we enjoyed a ferry ride, a boat trip on the river almost to Dittisham, plenty of walking along the promenade and round to Dartmouth Castle, drinks in The Floating Bridge Inn and fish n chips in Rockfish

an evening in Dartmouth

I visited many galleries in Dartmouth including
D'Art Gallery where I was delighted to find original paintings
by one of my most favourite artists - Martin Procter
and discover artists new to me - Nagib Karsan
and beautiful landscapes by Claire Wiltsher

Martin Procter - Slateworks I

This is a photo I took in Dartmouth
looking to the small ferry landing at Kingswear across the river
I played with the colours and textures to create a painterly look ...
inspired by the colours in Martin Procter's painting

A new favourite artist - Nagib Karsan

Nagib Karsan - Getting Dark
There were many beautiful galleries in the Foss Street area
of Dartmouth ... just a few streets back from the water front

I was seduced into The Ainscough Gallery in Foss Street
by this gorgeous painting by Caroline Bailey
It had pride of place in the window. Isn't it fabulous?

Caroline Bailey's paintings are so full of colour
I love that they are glittered with tiny little whitewashed cottages

paintings by Caroline Bailey

and once inside The Ainscough Gallery
I was delighted to find original paintings and exhibition catalogues
by another all time favourite artist of mine Elaine Pamphilon (St. Ives)
I bought some little books of her work (will show another time)

Just across the street there was
a wonderful shop called Home
which was exactly my cup of tea
selling so many lovely things that
I could have bought for my
cream and red china collection

... so hard to choose just one thing ...

but I came away feeling warm and happy
with this quirky shaped mug for my collection

warm and happy
and these lovely patriotic printed union jack postcards by Sarah Hough

I might cut them up to make paper bunting ♥and I made a little inchie because I love England ♥

Next door to The Ainscough Gallery in Foss Street is Baxters
I do love Baxters ... I browsed for a long time

Baxters is full of contemporay art
prints, ceramics, jewellery and textiles
it was probably my most favourite gallery of all

have a look ... it's lovely and inspiring
Baxters

I was immediately drawn to the beautiful vintage style
mixed media work of textile artist Jennifer Collier

Jennifer Collier's work has a recurring theme
as she likes to incorporate pieces of vintage maps
into her collages and stitched pieces

I bought several of her cards and some ceramic buttons

Dartmouth was wonderful and we were blessed with lots of spring sunshine but I didn't get to do everything I wanted during our short visit (a trip on the vintage 1940's bus to Greenway - Agatha Christie's holiday home on the river and to take the ferry over the river to explore Kingswear) so my dear darling hubby is arranging to take us back there for our wedding anniversary later in the year

When I got home I was met with two lovely surprises

the first was from another dear friend called Julie who had made
this brilliant concertina folder decorated with a vintage map!!
It really matches the Jennifer Collier cards I bought!

and Julie lovingly filled the concertina folder
with beautiful hand made and hand painted papers

Thank you so much Julie - I love it all ♥

and the icing on the cake for me was receiving this
beautiful zine from my very dear and lovely friend Cathy Cullis

It is a limited edition zine full of prints of Cathy's work
with personal and limited edition original pieces inside
and a gorgeous postcard too

I have a really nice collection of Cathy's work now
Thank you so much Cathy - I shall treasure your gifts to me ♥

Last week I went to The Tate to see the work of
Turner Prize winning artist Simon Starling

Simon Starling is an artist who is fascinated by the processes involved in transforming one object or substance into another. He makes objects, installations, and pilgrimage-like journeys which draw out an array of ideas about nature, technology and economics. Remember "shed boat shed" where he deconstructed a wooden shed, turned it into a boat, sailed the boat to his exhibition space then reconstructed the boat back into a shed for the exhibition?

It was a guided tour organised by Sally MacCabe for members of St. Ives Arts Club and was a fascinating exhibition that most definitely benefitted from having narrative

The first exhibit was of a piece of Chinese marble Simon Starling found in a quarry which had fascinating natural chips and markings through it and which he perfectly replicated onto a second piece of very fine white Italian marble exactly one quarter of the size of the original piece. Both pieces of marble having the same monetary worth despite one being a quarter of the size and suspended from the ceiling of The Tate. It was an impressive piece of engineering

The largest exhibition piece is of a lifesize reconstruction of The Pier Art Centre containing an original painting of steam boats by Alfred Wallis which proves to be symbolic as we watch a film of a journey Simon Starling makes in a wooden steam boat

Fascinatingly, he cuts the boat up piece by piece to fuel the steam boat until eventually there is nothing left and the boat sinks

We watched a film called Red Rivers - more about that here and a slide show where Simon Starling focuses in on a photograph with a microscope further and further detailing the textures and structures of silver nitrate used in the processing of the photograph until it resembles fine cells

My favourite exhibit was of a fossilised feather Starling found in a piece of limestone in a quarry He photographed the embedded feather and then embedded the photograph into a piece of limestone of relative size, photographed the embedded photograph etc. several times finally embedding the final photograph in a piece of limestone which was exhibited in a glass case, effectively taking the feather back to where it came from

The original fossilised feather is now in the museum in Berlin

I bought a postcard of the feather in limestone

♥

April was a very busy month on the home and work front. I spent two weeks doing an immaculate spring clean in the cottage, working in the garden, cleaning windows, paintwork and carpets etc.

I signed up for The Brooklyn Sketchbook Project 2012 and have already made a good start on that with paintings and collages. I chose the theme of "in 10 minutes" and I'll show my pages later as the project develops a little more. I also signed up for Festival of Quilts 2011 and will enter a quilt into the art quilt section. I'll be making a start on that on Monday 9th May

Throughout April I continued with my art sketchbook workshops at The St. Ives Arts Club on Monday afternoons ... working with mono printing, collages and textured paintings on paper and canvas and will show all of this very soon. My sketchbook is bulging already. I also have more natural dyeing on the go, in the middle of making more textile art beads and stitching hearts ... some will be available in my shop quite soon

Meanwhile, I am currently preparing for a visit from my sister. My work room has been turned back into a bedroom

My sister is staying with me for a week so I may not get a lot of textile work done but we will be out and about pottering in St. Ives and a little further afield, taking photos and gathering. I am looking forward to the week ahead

I hope you have a wonderful week ahead too. I'm sorry my posts seem to be getting longer and longer. My blogging has been very erratic of late so then there is much to catch up with. I'm going to try and keep up from now on and also hope to blog more frequently (!) on my textile blog too

Thank you very kindly for visiting my blog and extra special thanks for following along or for leaving a comment. It's really very kind and lovely of you!

Carolyn ♥

May Fairies

2011-05-01T15:26:00.006+01:00

May greetings

The Song of the May Fairy

My buds, they cluster small and green
the sunshine gaineth heat
soon shall the hawthorn tree be clothed
as with a snowy sheet

O magic sight, the hedge is white
my scent is very sweet
and lo, where I am come indeed
the spring and summer meet

Cicely Mary Barker

March

2011-04-21T11:08:00.018+01:00

... today ...

I'm whisking my blog back in time ... to just over a month ago
to some lovely things that happened in March

starting with 17th March
when I had a lovely day with my blog friend Chris Gray
who came to St. Ives for the day to meet up with me

it was chilly that day, a little light mizzle in the air
so we went straight to Ocean Grill for a warming lunch of
carrot, honey and ginger soup ... which was really delicious

over a long rambling lunch we chatted and exchanged pressies

Chris gave me a white candle

wrapped in a beautiful printed and stitched sleeve

and also this lovely matching crocheted tissue box holder

and for my little cottage she decorated this wooden spoon

in a country style with rafia bow, a stitched skirt and
finished with a primitive tomte santa made from clay

Chris spoilt me with a big jar of beads and
some of her hand dyed threads
(will show those on my other blog as they are pebble colours)

Chris cross stitched a row of red hearts for me
and everything came beautifully wrapped in country style ribbons

I love these tomtes!

Over lunch Chris gave me this piece of cotton that she had hand dyed

in exchange for some I gave her that I'd dyed with red cabbage

We initiated a challenge to work on our fabrics and create something
to "show and tell" when we meet up again later in the year

After lunch we visited the exhibition at St. Ives Society of Artists

admiring the work of Roy Ray (Chris's favourite)
and Peter Wray (mine)

I bought one of Peter Wray's original printed cards
and treated us both to a St. Ives Society of Artists sketchbook
... so that's another challenge ...
to have made a start in our books before we meet up again

I took Chris through some of the old cobbled back streets, showed her the cottage of Alfred Wallis that regularly features on my work and the famous, most photographed, green door in The Digey
which has a whole flickr group dedicated to photos of it - here

It started to drizzle (we had a lot of mist and drizzle in March)
so we had chocolate treats from I Should Coco (award winning honey and thyme choccies - yummy!)

and later we ended up in Hub for a comforting hot chocolate drink and cake ... the end of a lovely day

In March I had another beautiful parcel from Lisa of
Mud Hound Studio

always beautifully and impeccably wrapped

such a special gift from Lisa
vintage pages in Sonnets from the Portuguese
by Elizabeth Barrett Browningand these are the beautiful silk ribbons I bought from Lisa's shop

ballet

watercolour

I've been using the watercolour silk ribbons

on the piece of fabric from Chris (my challenge piece above)

I made a good start on it during my last crow day with Jo

We are having fun stitching the winter trees landscape
from the December issue of
Stitch with the Embroiderers Guild magazine

So far ... I have hand stitched the base layers

the silk ribbons have such a lovely sheen

and beautiful soft earthy tones

running stitches in gold metallic thread

with a chiffon sky in rosy glows

the colours of a Cornish sunrise

the roseate glow over sleepy rooftops

We've had some really stunning sunrises recently
but also some misty mornings too leading to beautiful spring days
spring
lovely, lovely spring

in March I became a member of St. Ives Arts Club and
I've really been enjoying the art sketchbooks workshops
tutored by Sally MacCabe on Monday afternoons

Mondays are now my most favourite day of the week

I enjoy the walk down to St. Ives, stopping to take a few photos or gather interesting finds. I take the time to visit a different gallery each week and buy an inspiring art card and, if the tide is out, I walk on the beach and see what catches my eye ...

then it's time for my sketchbook workshop
time to play with collage and paints
and then afternoon tea and cake

I'm working in two sketchbooks at the moment
St. Ives blues with yellow and green (a Cornish spring theme)
and spring yellow with palest gold

♥

palest gold

for Things I love Thursday

1. Winter white 2. . 3. Escape 4. Studio-121 5. 2:50 pm 6. . 7. Biblioteca rayana open 8. Cold day 9. Sunshine but no buds (tagged) patiently waiting for spring 10. Olson_melville 18 11. Fools gold 12. Shell 13. Flying secrets

and finally some photos of the March Treasure Hunt Paper Swap
organised by Lawendula

we each had to find ...

something blue, something old, something new, a doodle
a paper that is nice to touch
a paper with all colours of the rainbow on it
a paper with words in a strange/foreign language
a lovely package (e.g. from your favorite tea, sweet, perfume)
a page from a magazine or newspaper you love
an ad(vertisment) you love
a piece of handpainted paper
a newspaper page from your country/area
a bus ticket (or train/Underground/metro, tram)
a scented paper, a found paper
a paper with a quote you love
-a shocking paper (why? Color? Theme? Meaning?)
-a paper that means comfort to you (why?)
-a paper that is totally "you" (why?)

my papers are here

My swap partner was Franca Maria
who sent me all these lovely vintage pages

beautiful magazine pages, scented papers and textured papers

and a little birdie that she felted and stitched

art and chocolate - the best combination

some toning squares I cut from a magazine page

because I love this red tree and and the girl in the red coat

found papersrusted and lovely

and more squares I found interesting
loving rose with gold

and best ... a tag made by Franca Maria

such a lovely swap

and a nice end to March

I will be back soon with an April catch up
I need to do this (get up to date) before I can open my shop
which I am excited about and longing to do!

hope you all have a very happy Easter
creative wishes
Carolyn
♥

A fairy tree

2011-04-18T18:12:00.004+01:00

you lovely, lovely thing to see

In April when the woodland ways
are all made glad and sweet
with primroses and violets
new-opened at your feet
look up and see
a fairy tree
with blossoms white
in clusters light
all set on stalks so slender,
with pinky leaves so tender
O Cherry tree, wild Cherry tree!
you lovely, lovely thing to see!

Cicely Mary Barker

♥

Thank you all so very much

for commenting on my erosion bundle in the last post
I am very much looking forward to working with the pieces
and will share with you what happens next ... (soon)

First, though, I'm working on a couple of good ol' rambles
because there has been so much going on
that I've been too busy to blog lately!

I never quite seem to get that balance right
between being creative and sharing it on my blog

creative wishes
Carolyn
♥

a whole lotta rosy ...

2011-04-12T19:41:00.003+01:00

... in my erosion bundle ...

we've had some stunning weather in St. Ives since I last wrote
and I finally opened up the bundle
and carefully peeled back the layers
to leave everything to dry out and "air"

I have a blog friend down in St. Ives at the moment
I expect some of you will know who it is ;o)
(but more on that in a later post)

but just to say I met up with her on Saturday 2nd April
and we shared the opening of my erosion bundle

and as we peeped inside ...
... the very first thing we noticed was that
spring had well and truly "sprung"

with some decaying sycamore seeds sprouting new life

it was most unexpected
as last year this didn't happen in any of my four bundles

spring has sprung oh

on the top of the bundle an ivy seed head was imbedded in a layer of
silk tops and cellophane that had naturally felted together

I wasn't able to totally prise these layers apart
so they will become a piece in their own right
with some hand stitching on at a later stage

there was some nice rosy staining on some embroidered cotton

with colour transfer also onto the leaf

rose tinted embroidered cotton

interesting patterns and textures on a holiday snap
I took at the Temple of Aphaia in Aegina

and some useful rose tinted scrim

I'm sure that some of the colour staining
has come from this piece of Egyptian cotton
that I brought back from Egypt last year
which now has rust and leaf marks on
and the rusty tin heart that I placed inside the bundle
is well and truly stuck to some textured paper
which has rusted and is tinted with red dye
(another piece in it's own right)
there were many tiny fragments that had to be very carefully peeled apart that will probably get used in collages and paintings

more fragments

and a large fragment of rusty vellum
which had crinkled up nicelyI love the way this rusty heart reacted with
dyes and kodak papers revealing an encaustic look

yummy purple and orange rust

and I don't know if you can see this
(it was hard to photograph)
but there is a leaf imprint in the papers
with some pretty mauve tints

all in all ...

I'm head over heels in love with my bundle

... now my thoughts turn to what I can do with some of the pieces ...

I will probably dip some in wax to preserve them, use some in stitched collages and also incorporate some into silk paper

What will you do with yours?
creative wishes
Carolyn
♥

Mothering Sunday

2011-04-03T09:41:00.004+01:00

my beautiful Mum and me

1962
♥

April calendar

2011-04-01T13:52:00.005+01:00

my calendar for April

features a paper heart made for me by Chrissie

shells and beads
poppy seeds
moonlight
♥

Erosion Bundle Project

today is the day for the unveiling of the erosion bundles
but here in St. Ives we are having a very wet and soggy day
and I just don't fancy getting all mucky

... it will keep a few more days ...

I'm no fool ;o)

I'll be back soon with a longer ramble
have a lovely weekend x

Butter gold petals and signs of spring

2011-03-26T16:03:00.003Z

"There is something infinitely healing

in the repeated refrains of nature ...
the assurance that dawn comes after night
and spring after winter"

Rachel Carson

so sorry ... I've been away from my blog for a while

I'm just so glad that spring is finally around the corner

a few warm days with bright sunshine
have been so welcome and much needed

a bit of sunshine revives our spirits, restores enthusiasm
and brings happiness to our hearts

a heart of gold

spring colours burst out in this gold heart I made
for a very special wedding anniversary recently

made from silk and gold lame and decorated with
chiffon fabrics, vintage lace, gold beads and a shell

a row of seeds stitched with gold thread
and a gold ribbon that says
"congratulations"

finished off with a shimmering accent bead

a couple of weeks ago I enjoyed a spring walk

catkins were in great abundance

and pussy willow buds fit to burst

so spring

there were fragile remnants of winter still to be enjoyed

and leaf patterns, textures and lichen tones
which inspired some still life colour studies

leaf patterns on habotai silk dyed with onions and rust

my colour study:

Cornish tree lichen, twiggy branch of patterned leaves
an acorn made by Cathy from hand dyed fabrics
an art card by Zara Devereux and a kettle dyed silk and marino yarn
on tie dyed (onions and rust) silk

fingerless mittens knitted for my lovely blog friend Chris Gray
in the kettle dyed silk and marino yarn by Manos del Uruguay

in the colours of lichen

Cornish lichen and rust patterns

inspiring patterns and my favourite piece of tree lichen

and looking a little closer at the tree lichen - macro

lichen

for Mosaic Monday

I was inspired to create this mosaic
featuring pretty lichen patterns and colours
from my friends and faves on flickr

1. . 2. Cladonia foliacea endiviifolia hot dyeing - results 3. Micro moments 4. Lichen 5. White & cold 6. New brooches 7. Lichen on rock path Merimbula Australia 8. Lichen 9. Lichen on slate (Aug)

My favourite image in the mosaic
is of these little brooches made by Lisa Jordan
lilfishstudios

I love these beautiful earthy colours

they inspired me to create these shimmering beads
in matching tones of lichen grey yellow green gold and turquoise

I love making and painting these beads

I love that each little bead is one of a kind

... not the colours I usually go for ...
but very inspired by spring and nature
lichen, buds, pussy willow, spring flowers and rust

this is lichen and rust on Cornish slate

I've uploaded the large size of this photo
so feel free to click on it for the large size then
right click and save it if you would like to use it
as a photoshop layer for adding colour and texture

I used the layer here on a photo of St. Ives harbour
It was a misty drizzly morning

and the layer just adds a bit of an aged look to the photo

Cornish mizzleI'm sorry I was away so long ... one thing and another

we had a close family bereavement
and I didn't feel like doing much for a while

we still have building work going on in the cottage
and we are so close to finishing but my hubby has flu
so we are having to take our time with it

Cornish mist

I have many new things in the pipeline
many more goodies to share with you
and some news too ... in the next post

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog
I am so grateful for your patience during the last few weeks

Carolyn
♥

Darling flower

2011-03-01T20:36:00.016Z

... I closed my eyes against the day

And called my willing soul away
From earth and air and sky

That I might simply fancy there
One little flower ... a primrose fair
Just opening into sight
As in the days of infancy
An opening primrose seemed to me
A source of strange delight

Sweet Memory! ever smile on me
Nature's chief beauties spring from thee
Oh, still thy tribute bring
Still make the golden crocus shine
Among the flowers the most divine
The glory of the spring.

Still in the wallflower's fragrance dwell
And hover round the slight bluebell
My childhood's darling flower.
Smile on the little daisy still
The buttercup's bright goblet fill
With all thy former power ...

~ Anne Bronte ~

... a sad time for our family ...
... I will be back soon ...

Things I love Thursday

2011-02-24T18:36:00.006Z

Things I love Thursday

fine art, hearts for February and red onion skins for natural dyeing

thank you to my flickr friends and faves:

1. Four red onions 2. Libertines cosy Nov 2010- side detail 3. Red onion 4. A little valentine cloth 5. Bugs and drawings 6. Red onions 7. wip_bowls 8. Sketchbook 9. Rojo texture 10. Red onion skins 11. Design/sketchbook work 12. Red onions 13. Christmas hearts gift box

I was saving some red onion skins

the colours of the skins were so rich and velvety

tactile and fine like silk paper

Oh goodness!

I love these colours ...

after taking a few photos
I finally got down to the nitty gritty of dyeing with the skins
(usual recipe)

I tie dyed some of the fabrics with rusty objects
such as rusty tin hearts, bells and nails
wrapped tightly with elastic bands

above: silk dupioni, silk habotai, embroidered cotton, linen and vintage lace
below: silk habotai tie dyed with rusted bells

the rust acted as an accelerant

you can see the rusted tin hearts imprinted onto the fabric

(note to self)
the browns came immediately

the greens came after soaking in the dye jar for about 4 days

(note to self)
the rusted objects accelerated the green areas
the browns were immediate

I love the depth of colour ... but mostly
I love the randomness ... the surprise element

my walk last week was a lovely one

not so many reds this week ... but interesting textures instead

and just noticing things that catch my eye

holey leaves

delicate beauties

so fragile

a favourite of mine
black ivy berries

and leaves with interesting mould patterns and colours
(great bokeh too)

remnants of autumn
a triffid like autumn rosehip

interesting seedheads

and lovely colours of tree bark

It's been another busy week or so

I was very kindly interviewed by Patti Roberts-Pizzuto of Missouri Bend Studio (Missouri Bend Paperworks) on one of my favourite subjects ... the colour red and what it means to me. I had fun doing that! Patti has been doing a series on the colour red during the month of February. You can see her reds here if you wish: RED

I was away for four days with family in Somerset. Since I got home we started what will, hopefully, be the final phase of our 200 year old cottage renovations. Already there is much upheaval all around me with the entire contents of my sitting room in the dining room (two rooms out of action) while a new floor is laid and the firplace hearth lifted to bring it all in line with the rest of the cottage

Today I went and chose new carpets for the sitting room and stairs. The current stair carpet has been there since time immemorial and I dread to think what the stairs are like underneath. I rather think it's the carpet holding it all together (eek!)

While chaos abounds I think I might hole up in my work room for a couple of weeks!

Have a wonderful weekend coming up ♥

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T16:55:00.014Z

to laugh often and love much ... to appreciate beauty ...

to find the best in others ... to give of one's self ...
this is to have succeeded

- Ralph Waldo Emerson -

happy valentine's day

♥

thank you so much
for your amazing response to my giveaway

this week I went in search of colour
and signs of spring
and found winter offering some promise

some gestures of beauty

and autumn clinging on still

on my way out through the gate I noticed my bundle
and couldn't resist a peep at it

six weeks into the erosion project and there are signs of life

the silk tops have wet felted in the rain
the leaf is showing it's bare bones
colours and dyes are running and
the calico fabric underneath is eroding

lovely!

all week my thoughts have been on valentine's day

I baked

little heart shaped ginger cookies
for a very dear friend

(hope they travel well)

I played with textures and compositions
for valentine's day

and made a mosaic of beautiful hearts

1. Secret love letters 2. a heart's affection 3. Happy V Day everyone!! 4. Hearts I ♥

thank you to my flickr friends and faves for their beautiful hearts

I made a heart for my hubby
in red and silver
still in love with you
(from a Thin Lizzy song)
and finished the heart for the giveaway

with black stitching and red beads and a heart dangly
it's wrapped in tissue paper with a tag, charm and button
ready to send to the winner

the briefest kiss
and the winner is ...

Andi's English Attic

Thank you everyone for entering and for your wonderful comments

I enjoyed reading them all and thank you for following along ...

I'm afraid there's only one prize this time ... but ...
I will be having another giveaway in April
and so perhaps you will win the next one, you never know!

Have a great valentine's day sweeties

Carolyn ♥

a rather romantic giveaway

2011-02-05T18:28:00.008Z

I always underestimate just how long these blog posts take to prepare. I've been trying to bring you this post for several days but I have been busy creating and I have blogged here and here and kept flickr going ... so I guess it's no wonder

and I've been grateful to be busy

unfurling

lately I have felt like things have been unravelling around me
affecting people I love and care about the most
the hardest part is that I can't do much to help
just stand back, let things unfurl and watch
I feel sad, but everything has a time
I can't say any more

unfurl
evolve
progress

we had a few weeks of bitter cold
I knitted fingerless mitts for my Mum

they cheered her up - she loves the colour
they cheered me up - that I could make something nice for her

I had a fun crow day with my friend Jo
we always have fun on our ~~crafting~~ professional development days ;o)

we stitched egg cosies from the pattern in Poppy Treffry's book

I made a couple in Poppy Treffry style with hearts and free motion stitching
then I made four in my style with calico and vintage lace

We were rolling about with laughter because after stitching six of them we discovered that we didn't scale up the pattern to the right size so they are only big enough for quails' eggs :o)

how do you like your eggs in the morning?
quail's egg anyone?

So I had to have another go and get the pattern right
I made two more for a dear blog friend and
I'm pleased to say that Missy K loves them ... and ... they fit!

January was so dark and cold
I missed the twinkle lights in my cottage ...
so I enjoyed lots of little candles for cheer
baked and made comforting mosaics for TILT (flickr)

Things I love Thursday

warm and cosy home comforts, baking, Christmas cookies,
iced biscuits, gingerbread men, tea time and twinkle lights

1. 1 2. Christmas cookies 3. .gingerbread snowflakes
4. Day Three Hundred and Fifty One

I have recently had a thing about starlings

Things I love Thursday

fine art, abstract, paintings, dolls, faces, dresses, snow, snowmen and starlings

1. Unyojsona-9 2. Lace books 3. Chubby fluffy 4. Sketchbook 5. Between two seasons 6. Se voir 7. Starling on the scrounge 8. Snowman and starling such close friends 9. Baby doll #3 10. Grange Park, less focus 11. Sorrow 12. 20091220-MG0673 13. Vintage little girl fairy

Things I Love Thursday

dreamy thoughts, favourite things, fine art, textiles, berries, snow, winter scenes
birdies, trees, Cathy's dolls, paper chains, stars and heartwarming treats

1. Standing books 2. Eruption 3. Dans l attente des vendanges tardives 4. The pink dress 5. Christmas altered silver cup ornament 6. Paper dolls 7. Winterscape 8. Starling in the snow 9. 220.365 10. Breathe 11. Alone 12. Decorating for advent 13. Still waters 14. ~ details 15. Tis the season to hold certain things dear 16. DSC_0359

I love Cathy's work

I was delighted to receive a lavender sachet and card at Christmas
I forgot to show them before in my Christmas post

More goodness came from Lisa at Mudhound Studio
I won her giveaway of sari silk ribbons and
they are so beautiful, such lovely deep rich colours

and came beautifully wrapped in gold silk

rich earthy colours of winter skies, bare trees and berries
my photos do not do these ribbons justice

winter leaves and fragility

and sunshine after the rain

I wanted to make a heart for Lisa to show my appreciation
at the time I was going through a rain drop phase
(see flickr photostream)

I used some of the beautiful hand dyed rose tinted silk ribbons
with layers of my fabrics and heat distressed chiffons

drops of rain

it features a St. Ives cottage and a shell from the beach
with french knots, daisy stitches and beads for rain drops

I do hope Lisa likes it

The early part of January saw me busy with my sketchbook
for the The Brooklyn Sketchbook Project 2011

my rosy palette

My theme was "below the surface" and based on blood cells

a messy desk

I spread out quite a bit and got messy
and threw myself into meeting the 18th January deadline

making twice the work for myself as I
produced two identical moleskine sketchbooks of work

fortuitous finds at Cornwall Scrap Store of
bandages, blood collecting tubes and plasters

piles of painted papers, fabrics, painted tyvek, magazine cuttings
cellophane, old photographs and medical paraphernalia

my favourite palette of rose madder, copper and burnt umber

on the front cover
a collage of gesso, paints, metallic bronze powder, painted tyvek
shellac and blood collecting tubes with collaged lettering

front cover

BELOW THE SURFACE

I have now posted lots of photos of my sketchbook
on a separate page for anyone who may be interested in seeing it.
You can click on any of these photos or the link above if you wish

With Valentine's Day fast approaching
I thought it would be nice to have another giveaway

... in progress ...

I am offering one of my textured textile art hearts

with lots of fabric and chiffon layers, stitching and beading

I'm showing it in progress at the moment as our
electrical power in the cottage has been on and off all day
we have a problem with our wiring ... so no sewing machine!

"rather romantic"

The giveaway is open to followers ...

... so for a chance of winning the heart just add yourself as a follower (if you haven't already done so) and leave a comment here telling me you are now following or if you have been following my blog for a while just drop me a line in the comments box

the winner will be announced on Valentine's Day

♥ best wishes to you all ♥

2011-02-01T18:34:00.013Z

Here is my calendar for February
doesn't time fly ...

I'm sorry I haven't been blogging much the last few weeks
I have several big things tugging at my heart right now
things that are out of my hands that are upsetting me so much

I haven't felt like blogging at all but instead felt the need to throw myself into my art. I was busy working on my Brooklyn Sketchbook in the early part of January and got my book off by the deadline. Since then I have been creating new hearts and working on textured photography and mosaics on flickr. I've almost finished uploading lots of photos of my sketchbook to share with anyone who may be interested in seeing my pages and hope to have that ready by Saturday

If you would like to pop back on Saturday
I will be having a giveaway for Valentine's Day

Carolyn ♥

mixed media textile art

New year new bundle

2011-01-08T12:25:00.012Z

I put a new erosion bundle in the ground
Sunday 2nd January 2011

While gathering all the bits and pieces together

I had time to reflect on what I want to achieve this year

Starting with a blank canvas

a fresh new start!

Textured papers

handmade paper, vintage sheet music, vintage sewing pattern papers, khadi paper, tissue paper, card, glossy photo papers and vellums

Images
vintage sewing pattern pieces, old photographs, printed vellums, cards, magazine images, printed napkins, vintage postcards and tags

lovely images, vintage tags and skeleton leaves

Interesting things

rusty tin ornaments, hearts and gingerbread men
waxed fabrics,vintage laces, silk rods and tussah silk tops
acetate and cellophane sweetie wrappers and
scrim with safety pins (hoping these will go rusty)

Organic matter
wet and decaying organic matter from my December garden

damp leaves, seeds, sycamore seed pods and a hydrangea head

Fabrics
cotton, silk, scrim, old linens, vintage lace, natural dyed fabrics

layering favourite things inside the bundle

sheet music, old cotton and lace, silk rods
decaying sycamore seed pods and winter text

Then a coal slipped, the fire crackled and sent
up a spurt of flame, and he woke with a start

I put some lovely things inside my bundle

I'm hoping that the more I put into it the more I will get out of it!

I will open the bundle in April 2011
and while doing so will try to remember to reflect on this January post
and review how my plans for the year are going

New Year's Resolutions
One thing at a time!
Just do it!

My plan

Finish projects already in progress
be honest with myself!
if it isn't gonna happen ... recycle the project!

Try not to be seduced by too many exciting blog challenges this year!
there are some wonderful projects out there ...
very inspiring indeed ... but I can't do them all!
In 2010 I had several big projects going at the same time - rather stressful at times
It's lovely fun to join in projects with others ... but ...
one at a time from now on!

Work more on my own design projects and sketchbooks
for personal reflection and fulfillment

Projects

Brooklyn sketchbook project - almost completed
Kim Klassen Photo Workshop - not started yet
3 handmade books (Carole Brungar workshop) incorporating
the 2010 erosion bundle contents - almost completed
Alphabet letters Y and Z - almost completed
Festival of Quilts 2011 - a new art quilt
Erosion Bundle Project 2011 - finished pieces
Stitching the Textured Surface Workshop
started in 2009 - put on hold when my Dad was very ill
The Sketchbook Challenge - ongoing
My own work and sketchbooks - ongoing

So ... there we are ... these are my plans and
writing this has helped me to focus on the order of things

Whatever you are doing ... I hope you have a great weekend
full of creativity and enjoyable fun moments

♥ Carolyn ♥

*************************************************************

Update - 9th January 2011

The Erosion Bundle Project 2011
Are you interested in making a bundle to be buried in the ground
placed in a compost heap, placed on top of soil
perhaps at the foot of a tree or hung from a branch or hedge, etc?

Include a variety of fabrics, papers, objects, organic matter, etc
and see what happens as these items react with nature!!

Leave a comment on the Erosion Bundle Project blog
(with a link to where your bundle can be viewed)
Kris will post photos of your bundles
the reveals and your finished projects

*************************************************************

Christmas blessings

2011-01-04T09:20:00.009Z

We had a very lovely Christmas

an economical and unpretentious Christmas
enjoying simple pleasures

we played monopoly and cluedo
had a few foodie treats and watched silly telly

♥

I enjoyed making my own decorations

crystal snowflakes with touches of red

white twinkle lights
sprigs of holly and berry garlands
fir cones painted white and sprinkled with white glitter

a new year wish for you
I found some quiet time to play with photoshop
textures, layers and new backgrounds
d j pettitt

and got along to "Take Four" at the Crypt Gallery
to see the work of Mary Allen, Rachael Mia Allen
Doris Lindemann and Sally MacCabe (shown below)
(or click on the photo to go to the Crypt Gallery)

I loved making as many cards and gifts as time permitted

textile hearts with gold snowflakes

gold stitching, shells and beads

a little St. Ives cottage

the first flakes of snow

Merry Christmas snowflakes hearts

snow?
of course it was going to snow
my hearts were inspired by the little snow we had
in St. Ives at the beginning of December
but we didn't get the second lot of snow
at Christmas that the rest of the country had
so I stitched my own ♥
I also finished the heart I was stitching
from the papers out of the collage box swap #2
organised by Lawendula

This was a learning curve!

I used waxed papers and fabrics which then proved very difficult to turn
but I did manage it with careful manipulation

I am pleased with the colours and textures on this one
it's very tactile and was lovely to stitch

waiting for the winter sun
I made a mosaic inspired by the magic of winter light

Please click on the links to see the work of these amazing photographers and artists:
1. Early morning 2. Dry 3. Willow trees in early frost #1 (South Oxford 2006 )
4. After the rain 5. soluppgång genom äppleträdet 6. Winter goes on

I enjoyed every card that plopped through the letterbox
and sometimes there were gorgeous gifts too

This beautiful textile heart was stitched by Gill
and I was very lucky to win it in her giveaway

(Gill also made me a beautiful needlecase and card but I can't show them
at the moment as I'm having a few photo upload problems)

A delightful parcel arrived from Sweden

from Ewa Christine

vintage and hand made papers
beautiful white fabric inchies

hand dyed fabric paper incorporating vintage papers, maps and stamps
so beautiful

a tag for the Christmas tag with an inchie swap

but I'm not sure who made this pretty tag
as there was no name/details on the back
does anyone recognise it?

a beautiful tag made by Joanna

for the Christmas tag with an inchie swap

a lovely cutwork card from friend Melanie

Another lovely parcel from Sweden

from Gunnel - see also here

adorable stamp from Sweden

Such a gorgeous card from my lovely friend Karen

I love robins and sparkly things

fa la la la la

lovely red goodies

a beautiful stitched card and heart ornament
from my lovely friend Penny

lovely handmade card from Fiona

a tree tag for the Christmas tag with an inchie swap

but I'm not sure who made this pretty tag
as there was no name/details on the back
does anyone recognise it?really in love with this wrapping paper (from Gill)

I was thoroughly spoilt by my lovely friend Chris Gray
I was overwhelmed by the lovely red goodies she made for me

a beautiful textile doll brooch
and one of her printed hearts

a little journal with Chris's design on the front
love little books

a lovely red printed design on her card to me

a fabulous stitched french style house
you can see why I love this!

and a pretty new birdie friend

choccie from Russia
thank you Diane

and lastly but by no means least

a card stitched for me by Mano in Germany

Mano has used some of the distressed chiffons and
metallic papers that I sent to her in the giveaway
with a vintage image and stitch - so lovely!

Thanks for reading down this far!

You are lovely!

... and if you can't get enough - I also posted here ...

I'm not looking back
but I will be looking forward in the next post
with my thoughts on projects for the coming year

I hope the new year brings you fresh optimism
and enthusiasm for whatever you wish to achieve in 2011

sparkly new year wishes to you

Carolyn
♥

Happy new year

2011-01-01T15:29:00.004Z

rosy blessings

I would like to wish you all a very happy new year
I hope 2011 brings us all ...

good health
rosy blessings
creative inspiration
and a happy outlook on life

Carolyn ♥

Merry Kissmas from Love Stitching Red

2010-12-23T09:29:00.005Z

Happily ... the time has come to wish you all
a very happy Christmas

Thank you so much for reading my rosy ramblings
following my blogs and for all your thoughtful comments

I'll be back in a few days ... with the red goodies I promised

♥ lots of love ♥
Carolyn

Snow magical

2010-12-19T10:24:00.012Z

St. Ives had a very snowy start to the month

It was unusual for us to have so much snow and it stayed for five days
enough snow for blackbird prints

birdie prints

the snow inspired a mosaic

1. Vintage rhinestone snowflake 2. Keiko's works - mino shino 3. Crystal snowflake
4. Snowing bokeh 5. paris, 6. An 'ordinary extraordinaries' giveaway
7. Bokeh hearts on bench 8. Triple suns

and lots of crystal snowflakes for friends

including one for my hubby to hang on our tree

with little or no gritting in our part of St. Ives
the pavements were icy

a frosty leaf on an icy pavement at the bus stop

barely there winter beauty

1. Morning frost 2. Viscera - detail 3. Frosty leaves 4. Thinking along the same lines
5. a winter child 6. Milkweed in Winter

We woke to several cold and frosty mornings
I used textures by Kim Klassen and irisb477

the Cornish Arms

and then we had a most beautiful white hoar frost

more snow is forecast for us
we've had a few snow showers but it hasn't settled

While it was snowy I was in a dreamy mood to decorate our tree
very early this year ... on Monday 29th November

winter dreams

white twinkle lights and fairies

sparkly snowflakes and the angels I made last year

and snowmen with frosty baubles

:o) did you know snowmen have frosty baubles?

December was a busy month for me

As well as making my pressies, cards and lots of snowflakes
I took part in the collage box swap #2 organised by Lawendula
and the box of goodies arrived at the beginning of the month

I chose 12 little bits n bobs from the box
... mainly collage papers, a paint chart, a snippet of fabric, a photo negative strip, a badge and a magazine image

I'm making a collaged art heart with some of the pieces

I dipped the fabric and papers in wax before stitching to a calico base

it's a work in progress that I'll finish over Christmas

I also took part in the Christmas tag with an inch swap
... to make 9 Christmas tags. My tags all had a snowy snowflake theme and I had some gorgeous tags back. I'll show those on my other blog when I get a moment

Last weekend my friend and I visited the exhibition of art by members of St. Ives Society of Artists. I loved this painting and also the reflections in the glass. I'm also looking forward to seeing "Take 4" in The Crypt Gallery and in particular the beautiful artwork of Sally MacCabe. I've already had a peep at Sally's gorgeous work incorporating vintage pocket watches, rusty tin photos and vintage ephemera in her artwork and installations ... can't wait!

Winter Wishes

Things I love Thursday

winter through cottage windows, white, trees, bare branches, frosty seedheads, touches of red, berries and birdies

Thank you to my flickr friends and faves whose work is featured here:
1. Winter apparition 2. A winter wish 3. Vines 4. Snow Through Window 5. As a star in the night 6. Silhouette 7. The mean reds 8. Suffolk country lane 9. November 10. . 11. Window of memories 12. Red berry vintage tag 13. 14:00 and border by dubtastic

... busy continues ...

I have a few more pressies in progress for the post on Monday
and some more textile hearts with a white and gold snowflake theme

finally all that remains is to announce the winner of
the red Swarovski crystal snowflake in my giveaway

and the name out of the santa hat is ...

ShabbyChicShaz

Thank you to everyone for entering and for all lovely, lovely comments
I am overwhelmed by your kind words

I hope you all enjoy the week leading up to Christmas
and keep safe and warm in the snowy weather
and I wish sunshine Christmas greetings to all of you
in Australia and New Zealand

back soon ... with lots of red goodies
Carolyn ♥

Magical Monday

2010-12-06T13:57:00.006Z

Magic for Mosaic Monday

1. Winter berries 2. and the snow came...
3. Tenderly in the snow 4. They won't get lost in the snow

I'm really busy at the moment ... working on my Brooklyn sketchbook
as well as making my Christmas pressies and cards

... meanwhile ...

if you would like to win a red crystal snowflake made by me
just pop your name in the Santa hat by leaving a comment here
and I'll announce the winner on Saturday 18th December

winter greetings
have fun!
Carolyn ♥

A flurry of snow for December

2010-12-01T12:03:00.008Z

an unusually snowy start to the month

my wish for December
tranquility