Making art cards in the studio

In the Studio

I finally attacked a big job that had been waiting for me to get on with it for quite some time. Tacking a large quilt is never an easy task but I had run out of excuses not to do it so on Tuesday I put out 3 plastering tables in one of the old cottage rooms, spread out my backing fabric, followed by the wadding (batting in US speak) and finally the finished quilt top and proceeded to tack them all together with safety pins. In the end it only took the morning although my back certainly knew I had done it!

From there the whole lot was carried into my studio and I proceeded to quilt it, using the unconventional method of satin stitching to do so. This proved to be serious hard work. People tend to think that quilting is a gentle art but manipulating a large (77" square) quilt beneath a domestic sewing machine takes muscle and perseverance. However I put the pedal to the metal and for the rest of Tuesday, the whole of Wednesday and today the continuous sound of machine stitching could be heard coming from my studio.

To my constant studio companion this acts as a soothing lullaby and he snoozes away while I stitch. I recently bought him a luxurious bed to lounge on under my desk and he's very pleased with it. However, as soon as the noise of the machine stops he pops up from beneath the desk with an inquisitive face to see if that means a walk is on the agenda!

There is lots more to be done on the quilt but at least it's now completely stabilized and held together with the bare bones of the quilting and from now on free machining is on the agenda. That will be done in more gentle stages and I'm looking forward to that part of the proceedings as I'm sure, is Rueben.

In the Studio

In the past few days I have spend more time than is strictly good for me in the studio. I don't know if I'm suffering from SAD (Seasonal Affected Depression) or if I'm just sad in general but my creative mojo has taken leave of absence. The weather has been unrelentingly grey, wet, windy and dismal and taking the dogs for walks means spending ages getting kitted out (that's me and the greyhound!) and coming back requires just as much time taking off all those layers again, this time dripping with rain. There is no opportunity to stand still and look around for photo opportunities (and I don't want to expose my camera to the weather in any case). And today there was so much water on the old railway line that it was almost lapping over the top of my knee high pink wellies. Maybe I'm suffering from cabin fever!

Strangely I have made massive progress work wise but even that hasn't been enough to cheer me up. All I can do is sit it out as I'm by now old and wise enough to realize that these moods will eventually pass of their own accord and the best thing I can do is get out of my own way and wait for more positive feelings to flood in. I can sometimes speed up the process by going somewhere but in this weather that's really not an option and I have vouched to not go on online spending sprees which is in any case a short time solution.

I'm hickupping against sitting down behind my computer screen and making a start on the 52 Journals Blurb book and that has a lot to do with that bad mood. I would much rather be doing than writing about the done work but I also know writing that book is a worthwhile project that I should get on with rather than putting it at the top of my To Do list each and every week since the start of this year.

Blipping has also been difficult and today I'm yet again featuring a blip that is in my own idea an "easy" option in that I'm featuring a detail from my studio as seen above. I castigate myself for not searching out something a bit more interesting and fascinating from a photography point of view which I know will make my bad mood worse! A kick up the backside is what I need to give myself! Tomorrow will be a new and hopefully better day! I wasn't going to write such a negative blog post but such days are just as much part of my artist's life as other better, happier times and in fairness to you, who are reading this (THANKS!) I decided to be honest with you.

Happy Halloween

When we were in Lidl some weeks back I caught sight of these fabulous skulls. As John was with me I decided I couldn't possible behave like a small child and buy one but the call of the skull was strong. So I must admit I made my way back (in quite a panic in case they had all been sold!) and bought one. I then discovered that it could be hung from a hook, you could press a button and the eyeballs would start flashing and bulging and there would be a voice with suitable Halloween curses. What more could anyone want?! It reminded me very much of the Corpse Bride (if you havent' seen this film, go and do so, it's great fun),

So glad I bought one. He (or she) will now take up permanent residence in my studio, hanging from my ceiling as you can see. Didn't manage a picture of the action, as the flashing interfered with my focus as did the fact it started to turn around, but I reckon this is scary enough!!

It's a good thing no-one else walks past this window as I managed to scare myself while feeding the birds and looking back!

Beading the Spring quilt

There is not much going on to blog about as I'm keeping my head down both literally and figuratively speaking, and am frantically (not something you would normally associate with beading) adding beads to my Spring quilt. I do enjoy this Zen activity in ordinary circumstances, but I would really like (want, need!!!) this quilt to be finished so that I can concentrate on other activities to do with my exhibition next year, in the relaxed knowledge that I do at least have enough quilts to show, whatever else happens.

Working while putting that kind of pressure on yourself is not a good idea and I keep muttering I'm never going down this road again even though I know full well that I will, if the occasion should come up in the future. I'm giving myself a carrot as a reward though, by promising myself (and John, who gets most of the flak) a long, and restful summer off next year! Only the small matter of trying to straighten out my studio is on the agenda!! Just looking around it at the moment is enough to make a shudder pass down my spine. And as I usually thrive on and in chaos, that should give you some idea of it's dismal state.