Ancient and modern

I’ve been sewing on the Singer Featherweight.  

Years of sewing on a flatbed,curtesy of a Horn cabinet, have made me value how less physically taxing it is to sew for extended periods on a machine inserted in to a flatbed. Much domestic discussion led to the purchase of 

a SewEzi table.  After a full weekend of sewing on it, I am full of praise.  Sturdy legs, smooth table surface, easy to put up and down, truly portable, worth every penny.  It helped me get to the borders stage with the splash and triangles quilt top.

I’m still making design decisions on the plain parts of the borders and am swaying between appliqué of some of the splash shapes, and leaving them blank for some dramatic machine quilting.  To be considered further.

College collage

A superb day today, using the papers generated here to make a collage of the lotus seed pod.

First arranging the papers in order of tonal value

then tearing,  cutting and temporary gluing - great fun.

Still needs some work, but I am really pleased with this - and not a pencil in sight!

After the class, two exhibitions.  First of all the October Gallery to see the welded steel sculptures of Sokari Douglas Camp.  Epic in scale and in the themes explored.  Then to Tate Modern to see the work of Mona Hatoum.  Some really interesting work - why do I find any work using human hair so disturbing? Good to see the sketchbooks on display as well.  I loved he black marbles and the ever-changing circle of sand.  Really worth a visit.

Bank Holiday design decisions

On the design wall - or ,more accurately, the design floor, auditioning half square triangles with some appliqué blocks ( I think based on a block from  Piece O Cake) that i worked on in Australia, nearly two years ago. 

Stitching on the sturdy featherweight.

I can see now that the middle block in the bottom row is missing a piece!

Auditioning in black and white shows a misplaced square in the topmost right, and insufficient contrast in a few of the sashing squares.

Auditioning a border of strips, which I think is too busy.  It needs some plain fabric between the squares and the strip border.

Still discovering functions on my camera - black and white with a hint of red.

May day colours

Blossom

Cowslips

Preparing collage papers - colours a little more sombre