Another giant leap for a textile artist!

Hello all,
I'm still here, just busy.
Did domestic crises last week.... leaking roof, broken washing machine, broken car etc
most are resolved...ish
My boy started full time school today, aaaahhhhh. He had a good day and got two stickers, one for a good picture and one for smiling.
So I now have to do domestic goddess and do school uniforms and pack lunches. humpf.
We got so wet on the way to school today I had to come home and change.
On the textile front, I've booked my tickets for the Knitting and stitching show at the NEC. hoorah, and I'm takin Emi with me....
I visited Bev at Knitting4fun last week and spent a fab time buying yarns I didnt need

These are Bev's fab pure wool for felting








This was some louisa harding and debbie bliss










And I couldnt leave this delicious Noro yarn









I knitted my little girl a bag, cos I couldnt get my green one off her, and Bev gave her some lovely flower buttons to go on it.









And on the Good Kharma Bunny total domination front, I have booked a room to run some courses in Oct and Nov to teach Kumihimo and I'm teaching a Quilting group how to braid in Sept. Got to write the courses now!!!
I've also drafted out the layout for the website.
so much fun and no time .....
al x

a little less conversation a little more felting!

Hmmm these musical quote things have got to stop.
I've been busy again!
I dont think I showed you the bag I made at the knitting and weaving workshop,



I went from.... couldn't figure out circular needles to .....knitting a bottom up seamless bag with two circular needles. The bag was made of pure knitting wool with sari silk threaded through. Then it was washed in the machine, it came out like an egg cup so had to be stretched alot.
I was so proud of myself.

I also went to the Leicestershire Weavers spinners and dyers felting day on saturday and made these. I'm afraid you might have to turn your head a bit, I haven't got the patience with blog tonight to try to turn them around. I was very please with the red and yellow bag, although it came out a bit hairy.




The blue and pink were going to be flowers but ended up as purses, it was fun, just messing about.


more soon
off to do some more braiding
al x

just a little more banana! and alot of other stuff

I thought you might like to see my latest bracelet. I'm really excited by it!
It's made of banana yarn and ply split braided.
I've worn it everywhere this week.
I've even bought some more banana yarn to do another one.
I've had a really busy week this week, as I've helped man the embroiderers guild exhibition in Lutterworth, good fun, but exhausting. They put on a wonderful show and they sold alot to!
I've also done a workshop on monday,
been to work and stormed out of my job in pure rage on wednesday!
almost resigned on thursday
and am now having to think where I want to go next to earn some money,
got any jobs?
I also got my first course booked. I'm going to teach a course!!! in Kumihimo!
only slightly scarey.
SO you might see alot of kumihimo samples over the next few weeks.
oh and mum sold another bag today, thats two in a week, she's really doing well, she's exhibiting in two galleries at the mo, very clever bunny.

I need a lie down!!
al x

great fields of hemp!

I've been meaning to show this for a week or so.
It was taken at the silk paper workshop, the field is owned by a lady who owns the farm where we were, madam chairperson of the Lutterworth emboiderers guild.
She farms Hemp, industrial hemp, I think it's for cattle fodder. Because of it being industrial, it has no intoxicating properties, but when I took this it was after a heavy rain storm and it was steaming away to itself, I could't help thinking you aught to take a deep breath in case it was.
Hemp is such an under used resource you can get so much from it, the yarn especially is fab.
It looked so beautiful, a bit like the tops of a forest.

I've also included a picture of the card I made for mum and dad's card for their jade wedding anniversary.
I took an image and cut it up, stuck it down on another sheet and added to the picture with coloured pencil.
It's supposed to be a good technique if you want to look at colours instead of the image. I was pleased with it and mum loved it. hoorah.
al x

felted pots! more vessels

Here is another thing I started and finished last weekend.
It started with a lovely ball of NORO kureyon wool,

Bought for me by my mum for mothers day.

I was going to knit it and felt it into a bag using circular needles.
I tried the circular needles and failed as I wanted a small bag and my needles were too long so I decided to crochet it.
I ended up crocheting two small vessels

and felted one by hand

and the other in the washing machine.
I then blocked them with a pop bottle filled with water.

This is how they turned out.

I'm really pleased with them
al x

A 3D Ply split Vessel

So this is my very exciting finished project of the weekend.
I have finally finished my first ply split vessel, it was starting to become a thorn, but I needed to finish something for the exhibition. I couldn't decide which photo to put in cos it's different from every angle, so I put them all in.
It was made using hand dyed linen and uses both POT and SCOT ply split techniques.
I'm very pleased with it.
I blocked it, when finished, to make it stand up a bit more, and the only thing that fit was a can of WD40, My boy thinks it's a tree, but I think it make a great WD40 holder.
hope you like it ( maybe it's an octopus)
Oh by the way I'm on the Online Weavers spinners and dyers this month with some of my free form crochet ( link on right hand side of page) and we now have a blog page thanks to Leigh, in the links page.
al x

silk paper workshop

So much has happened in the last few days, more to follow, but this workshop and the fact that I have to exhibit in the Lutterworth feast/art week next week pushed me to get a move on and finish a few projects and start a few as well.
The workshop was run by Lutterworth Embroiderers guild, it was their day workshop/BBQ.
I didn't do much but I did produce one piece.
It was good fun, not very yarny, I'll definitely have another go.
I'm at two workshops this weekend. One called knit and weave and one called knitty and proddy. Run by living threads( dont think there is a website) but its being taught in part by Bev Beattie from Knitting4fun. And she is bring her yarns with her, oh dear!

al x