debsmuddle

The Barefoot Goddess Festival

2011-09-04T23:15:00.000-07:00

Another image from Barefoot

Summer Holidays

2011-09-04T11:46:00.000-07:00

Seems a million years ago since the beginning of the summer holidays and also seems like 5 minutes.
First week went by in a whizz getting ready for Barefoot Camp.
My first time and I was really looking forward to it.
I was not disappointed.
I picked my friend Ruth up and with all our camping stuff piled in my little polo we set off to Wendy's to meet up with our fellow festival goers.
We managed the journey in convoy pretty well but due to traffic issues we took longer than planned and missed the first workshop I had earmarked to go to.
Car park was a bit of a way from camp-site so I hired a wheelbarrow to transfer all of our stuff.
After some negotiation we did manage to set up all together. Our Friday night meal was to be a veggie curry with all of us contributing different dishes. My dish was bombay potato. This worked really well. I think we fed a few extras too.
Friday night was freezing. Nobody slept well. But the two days that followed were truly magical.
I enjoyed the Bollywood/Bangra class the most .
I loved getting a henna tattoo.
The cabaret on Saturday night was awesome.
Everything was so relaxed and the people were all friendly and fantastic.
There were all sorts there all enjoying themselves and getting on.
I can't wait for next year.
PS
The shopping was good too

Part of our camp with my little tepee

The other side of camp with bottom of flagpole

Was going to post some more pictures but blogger seems to be playing up

The Barefoot Goddess Festival

2011-07-26T14:07:00.000-07:00

Some friends came over for lunch today to make some plans for the weekend as we are all going to The Barefoot Goddess Festival. Some have been before but it is the first time for me. I need to get my head round what I need to get ready but I am really starting to look forward to it.
I have bought a flag pole and a pirate flag to fly at our camp as there will be a few of us and I think that a flag is vital. I shall probably forget other important stuff like a kettle etc.
There are so many activities to choose from and I am not sure that I have the stamina for all those I have planned but I will try. I also plan on taking loads of photos but will probably be so involved in stuff that I will forget.
Have been a bit distracted over the last couple of days as we are having a few 'traveller' issues locally.

And finally a new Tattoo

2011-07-25T15:11:00.000-07:00

After manning a stall selling Tattoos Only magazine at the Essex Tattoo Expo in March Marc promised me a tattoo. Finally Tanya, his gorgeous wife , booked me in. So I had to make a decision about what to have done. I knew that I wanted something with Celtic links as I have a Celtic dog on my right arm and I do find myself drawn to all things Celtic. After a lot of research I decided on a Triskele .
One of my tribal dance teachers, Deana,has one on the back of her neck and mine is based on hers with a little added by Marc.

It represents the three ages of women maiden, mother and crone.
I know which phase I am in !!

Linda Miller

2011-07-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

Went on an Embroiderers Guild workshop with Linda Miller.
It was on machine embroidery and while I am a fairly confident beginner I struggled a bit on this one. Some people had obviously done a lot more than I had.
I wanted to do a bee as a gift for a work colleague as her name is Mrs Bee
Lots more practise needed I think.I am always frustrated if I don't pick up a technique quickly and also make the mistake of comparing my work with the tutor who is of course an expert .

Old Friends

2011-07-25T14:40:00.000-07:00

After seeing Keith at Brands we met up with him and some of his family for a drink. Old school chum Dawn and her partner Mark came too, Keith and Dawn had not seem each other since school .Thats a long time ago!

Dawn is far right and Keith is between her and I

Bikes

2011-07-25T14:30:00.000-07:00

Been to a couple of bike meetings recently. Hubby was in need ! Have started to look for the next bike purchase but it won't be easy. The bike that hubby wants is not common and some are going for silly money.
Went to Cadwell to watch British Historic Racing (VMCC) a long drive but probably our favourite track so worth the drive
Met up with Gary from the IOM. Sadly no Manx Nortons with For Sale signs on them
Couple of weeks later went to Brands for CRMC meeting. I knew that my old schoolmate Keith Higgs was over from Australia and was racing. He was actually the first person we bumped into on arrival. Also saw Dave Frost another old friend.Some glorious bikes including the Dunnell bikes .Our Triton is a Tony Dunnell bike.

Us at Cadwell

Dunnell Matchless

Dunnell Manx


Had a laugh over the fact that Keith had been banned on the Saturday of the meeting for using tyre warmers. What is he like ?

Anniversary

2011-07-25T10:19:00.000-07:00

Son and daughter in law had their first wedding anniversary and as they were going away to Bath for a couple of days we went out for a meal. Just so happened that the Harvester that we went to was where hubby and I had our wedding reception 36 years before almost to the day. It's changed a bit since then.

Son and DIL him in his amusing T shirt. Something to do with The Only Way Is Essex

Daughter and SIL

Hubby and I

.

Holidays

2011-07-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

Bad me no posts since before half term.
Have had Ofsted at work. Boo

Camping trip went well even if the campsite was more populous than an African refugee camp
Think we gave Jen a good birthday!

Time flies

2011-05-15T13:10:00.000-07:00

My how time flies!

After a couple of short weeks at work it was hard to go back to a full 5 days. But now only another 2 till half term, There is a camping trip being planned for the last weekend of half term and camping equipment has been purchased by DD and SIL.
Finding him a sleeping bag was interesting. He's a big guy.
This Saturday I went to a Tribal Belly Dance evening organised by http://karmicevents.co.uk/ The evening started with a performance by Deana and Helen of http://www.tribalunity.co.uk/ I go to Deana's class on Thursdays.
This was followed by a master-class with Deana. Great fun! After this we had some amazing food.
Sunday saw us at Hadleigh Country Park at the The Pagan Lion & Ancient Mother Circle Beltane Picnic. Watching Tribal Unity dance and of course joining in at the first opportunity. Also some great Morris dancing. Good food good company what more could you ask for?
Happy to report that courtesy of OH's new phone we were able to watch a bit of MotoGP and confirm the result which saw the great Valentino Rossi on the podium for the first time this season. Thought Simoncelli was a trifle harshly dealt with getting a ride through penalty. The governing powers are not being very consistant with their punishments this season.
So another weekend disappears in a few minutes and a weeks work beckons.
Heigh ho such is life

TT3D Closer to the Edge

2011-04-29T09:37:00.000-07:00

Back to work with a bang on Tuesday. Hit the ground running and busy busy. Nice to start with 2 short weeks. First one 3 days and then 4 days.Had our first Tuesday night dancing club which was good. Wednesday night pub quiz didn't go so well but I got minor tiddly and was good entertainment according to hubby.
Thursday night is Tribal night. Few more there this week which is great. More shimmy practise and turning with shimmy. Went straight from there to cinema to see TT3D. Boys went Tuesday to Lakeside to see it and all enjoyed it. I was going on my own but DD got her shift covered and came with me. Wasn't sure that she would enjoy it but the film is actually more about the characters than the race itself. Some wonderfully funny and some very poignant moments. Guy Martin has been a hero for some time and although not perfect (who is ?) I still think he is great and just the kind of character that you need in the sport. Few bits of stomach churning action. Conor Cummins accident being one. Don't know how he survived that one. Makes it all the more amazing to see him back on a bike again at Brands last weekend. Also didn't realise that Hutchinson had been so badly injured just a short while after being the first man to win 5 TT's in a week. Made me all the more determined to get over to the island. Not for the TT as work prevents that but could go for the Manx this year as dates line up. Phil is seeing if he can get the time off and if he can I may be booking the flight and grovelling to Gary for a bed.
Extra day off as it appears that there is a wedding on. Not that interested but happy to take the day.
Planning breakfast out over the weekend and hopefully a new computer courtesy of DS. Phils help may be required as SIL has taking up remote control car banger racing and since DS was a world champion remote control car racer a few years back (not bangers) he does have a little expertise in this area.

Brands Hatch Weekend

2011-04-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

Our friend from the Isle of Man, Gary, had got us free passes for the BSB at Brands this weekend. We had decided to only go for Sunday and Monday. Yesterday we parked ourselves near the exit to Clearways but got so hot that we moved round to the entry side which had some shade. Today we got there early to be able to park our chairs on the fence for the best view. Certainly got that but the breeze didn't let up all day and we were actually quite cold. However the racing was excellent with wins in the BSB class to Shane Byrne and Tommy Hill. We were very pleased to have a local winner with Danny Buchan taking a hard fought win in the Superstock 1000. He was listed as living in Basildon but the commentator said he was from Maldon. He is only 17 and beat the likes of John McGuinness and Connor Cummins, both road race legends.
Face is feeling a little tight so may have got a bit burned or could just be wind damage!
Queued for about an hour to get out of the car park today so not too bad.Waved Gary on his way.
Must seriously do something about going over to visit him. Maybe when the Manx GP is on ??

Thursday Making Bras

2011-04-21T13:23:00.000-07:00

So today was Tribal bra making day. Three dancing friends Wendy Ruth and Mel plus baby Emily came round and we all made a really good start on our bra's.Tribal bras are heavily embellished with coins, shells and various trimmings. I bought a large piece of jewellery, to put in the middle of mine, when the kids took me to Camden for mothers day. Everyone bought something yummy to eat so a good day all round.
Beginners tribal tonight with the lovely Deana and we did a fair bit of shimmy work so my legs are aching now.
Have started to look at cameras to replace my broken one. Find it hard to know what I am looking at.

Tollesbury

2011-04-20T15:19:00.000-07:00

Have been meaning for some time to take a trip down to Tollesbury. Ever since it featured on the TV Restoration programme. Since one of our current favourite things to do is to have breakfast out we decided to call in at the Heybridge Basin for breakfast at the Lock.

Went there recently with the kids and breakfast was good. Well they say that it is waitress service which would have been good if we had got it but people were coming in from outside and ordering at the counter and we got ignored ,so we left.

Tootled on down to Tollesbury and parked near the industrial estate. You have to go through the estate to get to the Marina. There was a little cafe there and by this time we were ravenous. Those of you that know my husband will realise that this is a dangerous state to be in. He had a full English I just had toast. He said the breakfast was one of the best he had ever had and it was all excellent value for money. We were watching the chef there and he was taking great care over everything. So we recommend this little cafe if ever in Tollesbury.There is also a cracking little bakery in the village too.

After a little light food shopping we ( we meaning mainly Phil) tackled weeding the patio. Then pub quiz time. Didn't do very well this week. Looking forward to tomorrow as I have some friends coming over to make tribal bras.

I think I lead a healthily varied life

So Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb March and some of April

2011-04-19T07:14:00.000-07:00

Big event in October was daughters wedding. Had a great time from the party bus til the end. She looked amazing he looked amazing the bridesmaids looked amazing. Was a great day.And what about that cake. Spectacular and so them I loved it.
Sadly Phil's Mum was taken ill during the day and have to thank Laura and Donna for all their help

Sad news was that just a few weeks later our old neighbour Gary (pictured above with his partner Sue) passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly.

Jen and Jake flew off on their Egyptian honeymoon and 2 days later Peter and Jess flew back from their (delayed) honeymoon in the Maldives.

So to November, went to see Armstrong and Miller at Southend. Had my birthday. Our gift from Jen and Jake at their wedding was tickets to see UB40 at Southend and was a pure coincidence that this happened on my birthday. Fantastic night!!!!!!

Should have had my long awaited op but it didn't happen. 12hours wait to be told 'no bed'

Did Richard box workshop.

End of month and Snow!!!

Operation happened on Dec 1st heavy snow outside but all went well. Went back to school for just a couple of days before Christmas break.

Went to see The Blockheads at Colchester. Another stonkingly good night.

January we popped down to Brighton for a spot of shopping and the Brighton Tattoo convention

February

Went to see Fairport Convention at Colchester. They were a bit subdued I thought but still good and they did the entire Babbacome Lee album which I had not heard them do before.

Went to Textiles in Focus at Cottenham and for the first time did a workshop. Margaret taught one as well.

March

Went to see an amazing dance show at Rochford. The ATS belly dancing that I am learning was formulated by American Carolena Nericcio. She came over here to do some training and an evening of dance was arranged so us mere mortals could watch the creator at work. I have to say although she was totally breathtaking I most enjoyed the sister studios dancing together. For me this was Tribal as it should be.

March also had the Essex Tattoo Expo at the Brentwood centre and I worked on the Tattoos Only mag stall with my daughter. This is always a great day and I bumped into a few old friends and made a few new ones.

Towards the end of the month Tribal Unity organised a charity hafla for the people of Egypt. Always a bit nerve wracking dancing in front of those that can really do it but a great night nevertheless. And I won a record amount of raffle prizes which was a first for me.

Phil went off to Jerez to watch MotoGP and it rained!

Meanwhile in the sunshine of Camden market I had the best mothers day ever with my two children and their respective partners.

Camden probably not the place it used to be but good fun anyway and I managed to spend a bit.

On to April.

Phoenix hafla and the last of Wendy teaching us. :{

When we go back it will be a dance club. I hope people support it.

Did only my second ever workshop at Hylands House 'Inspired by Kantha' and have completed my elephant piece.

Met some colleagues old and new for coffee and a catch up and now looking forward to a day out with hubby . Tollesbury I think. Then some of my dancing buds coming over to have a Tribal bra making day which should be fun

Phew ! That's all caught up then

OK so it's not that then

2011-04-19T07:05:00.000-07:00

So it is obviously not the pics that stops me from blogging it must just be me.
Anyhoo I broke my camera so even if I wanted to take pics I couldn't

Why don't I blog more often?

2011-01-29T03:37:00.000-08:00

I often sit down at the computer with every intention of blogging, but don't.
Why is this?
Been thinking about this lately and have struggled to come to any conclusion.
Is it because I have nothing to say?
Anyone that knows me or has met me will know that this cannot be true as I always have something to say.
Too much on many occasions.
I certainly have the time, in fact I spend far too much time on the computer.
Rephrased that says I waste far too much time on the computer when I should be doing other things.
The only thing I can think of is that I find uploading and editing photos such a pain that I am avoiding blogging because of it.
So from now on I will be blogging more and posting pics less.
Makes the blog a bit boring but it might just get me going more.

September

2010-12-05T03:32:00.000-08:00

Back to work hitting the ground running with lots of changes afoot.
Don't take easily to change but sometimes its just so necessary.
September saw us picking up the altered wedding dress and it was just perfect. Much relief all round.
Popped down to Maldon to see Fen Edge Textiles exhibition at the Mauldene centre.Not an easy space to exhibit and they had done really well. As usual I thought my friends pieces were the best.
Saturday 11th was SIL's stag do. Amazingly hubby didn't get too drunk as he spent a fair bit of time on the dance floor. Now this tells me that he had already taken in a fair amount of alchohol as he never normally dances at all. Few sore heads the next day.
That day I went to a Ferrers Quilters workshop with Barbara Chainey on hand quilting.
I found her technique really hard as I think I am too set in my ways but it was good to give it a go and was a lovely relaxing day.
I went straight from this workshop to Southend and met up with some girls from work to see a performance of The Rocky Horror Show. Sadly as it was a matinee the theatre was not full. Fairly empty actually and this did effect the atmosphere somewhat.But what a laugh, would definately go again and yes probably dress up.
We stayed and had a quick drink afterwards and watched the audience arrive for the evening performance. Nearly everyone was dressed up!

Sharon and Anne

Kimberly Sharon Karen Sue and Anne

This group had been very organised and had just about covered the entire cast

MEGA catch up

2010-12-05T03:11:00.000-08:00

Quite a bit has happened since my last posting so I will be catching up in chunks.
First we had Natz baby shower. Natz is my daughter's bestie and Jenny and her friends made great efforts to make it a great occasion.
Baby showers are a new thing to me and although not entirely sure its a very British thing to do it seems a nice idea to get all your friends together to wish the expectant Mum well.Trying to find some pics to put up but can't atm.
Same evening we went to see The Beagles at Plazma in Wickford. Always a good night out such a great band and of course they did all our favourites

Oh I had forgotten what happened when Jenny and Jake came to pick us up to go to see The Beagles

How funny was that. I thought it would be good to go like this but Jenny made me go and change. Like Mother like daughter eh?

Last few days

2010-08-25T05:34:00.000-07:00

Last few days of the school holidays and I seem to be mega busy and really wondering where the weeks have gone.
Monday was Bluewater and the wedding dress. Yes we had a few tears. I think they were relief!
Tuesday was final meeting at the wedding venue.I was just moral support for this one. These people know what they are doing so any questions Jenny and Jake had there was an instant answer.
Wednesday Dengie craft group for the last time this summer as when I am working I can't make it. Then rushed back home as we had guys in mending the roof and hubby had to leave for work.
I have a quilt spread out in the front room to mark and tack up ready for quilting. After discussion with Margaret this morning I think I know what I am doing with the quilting design.(simple!)
I have another on my sewing table which I thought was ready for layering up but after looking at it again it needs borders.
I have decided to do major finishing off, from now on, before I start anything new. I know this has been said many times before but I think I mean it this time.
Margaret and I had a bit more discussion about entering a quilt show maybe this will be the year ,well next year really
Tomorrow is lunch with girls from work. 2 birthdays. Then on to Barleylands for coffee with some South Green ex colleagues. Must remember to pick up some pink quilting thread while I am there.
Saturday is cooking and prep for Natz baby shower Sunday is the Baby shower and then Plazma bar for The Beagles in the evening.

I need a quiet day!

Festival of Quilts NEC

2010-08-20T05:24:00.000-07:00

Margaret and I went to Birmingham yesterday to the Festival of Quilts which is the biggest quilt show in the country. Drive went OK so that was a good start.
Lots of wonderful work to look at and as always lots of wonderful trade stands to spend money on.
I wish it was easy and cheap to go for 2 days as to try and do it all in one is too much. I get to the glazed over stage at about 3.00pm
And there is always that moment at the end of the day when you want to go back and get something but can't quite remember which stall you saw it on and indeed where that stall is! Thank goodness for Margaret's excellent recall and sense of direction or I would still be wandering round aimlessly looking for Ormaline.
Saw Nickie's two pieces that both looked splendid. One got a highly commended which is high praise I thought as I considered that the standard was very high this year.
Only took one photo. Despite all the brilliant work around, the best thing there was this lady

This is Kirsty one of my etsy friends. I have met Kirsty for the last 2 years at the UK etsy retreat in York which sadly did not happen this year.

So I have a few new bits to play with and an entry form for next year. Every time we go Margaret and I say that we really should enter something. Problem is I never finish anything and seem to have run out of inspiration,talent etc etc etc.

Wedding Prep Take 2

2010-08-20T05:11:00.000-07:00

More wedding preparation for daughter's big day. Obviously can't say too much or show too many pics or it will spoil things.
We had the bridesmaids over for dress try on and discussions about hair and make up. I must say they were all very amenable and cooperative.
I did some food and we had cocktails.
Considering I don't really drink I managed 4 quite easily and didn't feel too awful the next day

Family Tree

2010-08-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

Been visiting my cousin Donna for her to help me get started on my family tree. She has done sterling work on Mum's side and with the collaboration of others has got back to some ridiculously early date like 480 or something. Lots of royalty linked up both here and in France.All very interesting stuff.
I am going to start on the Pickard line. A second cousin has apparently got some way so will be contacting him.
We spent some hours today getting started and I left with more questions than answers. I have a feeling that this is par for the course in this hobby.
I have been warned that it could take over my life
Well we will see

Tuesday 10th August

2010-08-10T12:54:00.000-07:00

2 months to the next wedding and today has been spent making hair and beauty appointments and preparing favors for the day.
No photos so it's all a surprise for the guests.
I now need a massage as I have been hunched over the kitchen table wrapping and tying.

Yorkshire

2010-08-09T09:19:00.000-07:00

Have just got back from a couple of days in Yorkshire with Phil's brother and his wife.
Main purpose of visit was to reconnect with a cousin of Phil's that we haven't seen for nearly thirty or so years.
Had a very pleasent evening catching up with a nice meal and all agreed that we shouldn't leave it that long til the next time.
Managed a quick whip round the Castle Museum. Also a visit to the Railway Museum. (= a happy Phil) and on the way home detoured via Birmingham and visited the Motorbike Museum (= a happy Tony and Phil, and me actually)
Phil and I agreed that we need another trip up to have our ride on the North York Moors steam railway and to visit the Quilt Museum
No photos taken in York but here is one of the lovely flowers that Phils cousin and wife sent us.

RRC

2010-08-09T09:06:00.000-07:00

Most recent stage of the RRC was to make the piece of fabric into a vessel.
Found this stage the hardest so far.
Inspiration out of the window.
The fabric I had to work with is the piece that is based on Europe and was originally Nickie's (I think)

Have now passed this on to Margaret for embellishing.
I haven't recieved my piece for the next stage. Think it should be the one based on the Americas

RRC

2010-06-22T09:20:00.000-07:00

Oh kay where were we on this?
I was quilting Diane's piece based on Australia/Oceania
I had promised more pics.

Fabric with her inspiration pic

Quilting thread

Background fabric

Better pic of quilting

After handing this one on I received the piece based on India which was Margaret's originally. I think Nickie had quilted this piece and I was dreading getting this one as I loved it and really did not want to cut it up. I decided not to mess around with it too much. I backed it with a rich purple and cut wedge shapes.I did this from the back so that I was not distracted by the patterns.

This has now been passed on to Diane who has to form it into a vessel.
I now have the piece based on Europe to form into a vessel.
Think this stage may have a bit of an extension on time as Nickie is having a difficult time at the moment.
My thoughts are with her.

Catching up

2010-06-19T11:44:00.000-07:00

So much has been happening it is difficult to remember things in the correct chronological order so I shall just list stuff in a stream of consciousness and hope it works out OK.
So to recap.
I went to a hen-night.

My son's fiance's . We did belly dancing with my teacher Wendy and it was great fun.

This last pic is Jessica the bride to be.

Two weeks later we had the wedding. Brentwood registry office and then back to a marquee in our back garden. Phil and lodger Nigel had been working tremendously hard to get the house and garden ready for this. Lots of tidying up outside. Lights put up and the kitchen painted to list just a few of the jobs they got done. It was all so worth the effort as the day was absolutely fantastic. Huge credit to Jessica and her organisational skills.

Look at my boy!

Happy bride and groom with just the

corner of Nan Con

Love the way he is looking at her here

Me attempting to pour a beer under Rob's tuition

Cutting the cake

All in all a fantastic day which we thoroughly enjoyed and hope everyone that attended did too

Absence

2010-06-13T04:01:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have been completely absent from my blog. My son got married on Friday and as the reception was in our garden we have had a fair amount to do. Now this has happened maybe normal service will be resumed. Actually not quite true as normally I have been blogging very infrequently and I will try to be a bit more diligent from now on

RRC Part 2

2010-04-20T09:47:00.000-07:00

I have started working on the fabric that I have received from Diane. Her fabric is based on the continent of Australia/Oceania and her inspiration is this image

It is an image of a piece of rock art.
This is the piece of fabric I received.

I have decided to take the criss cross pattern on the legs as my quilting design and have marked it by hand with a bone marker not being too fussy as to wether the lines were straight and even as I thought that this would reflect the original image better. I purchased a variegated thread to do the quilting with.Details of thread and more pictures to follow.

Essex tattoo expo

2010-04-16T13:31:00.000-07:00

We recently attended the very first Essex Tattoo expo organised in association with The Skin Sorcerer from Maldon. What a fantastic day. The sun shone and the crowds came. Car parking was a bit of an issue due to the unexpectedly large amount of people attending. There was some fantastic work being done and also on display . The best place ever for people watching. Hubby has been inspired to have his first tattoo done and it is in homage to our motorcycling hero Valentino Rossi. Photos to follow. Rossi obliged by winning the first round of this years MotoGP championship.
I am now planning tattoo number 3!

A very happy hubby

A very happy hubby and Nigel with some friends

Me with a new friend

Round Robin

2010-03-23T14:08:00.000-07:00

I have done a bit more than think about this now. But not a lot more. Some fabric has been dyed.
It may need overdyeing. It may be touch and go as to whether it will be ready on time.
I will do my best.
My source of inspiration is Africa.
I have to post it by the weekend
Like I said I will do my best

Africa

2010-03-09T11:53:00.001-08:00

I am thinking about it, honest Sharne.

Round Robin Challenge

2010-03-02T08:16:00.000-08:00

Have now received the instructions for a Round Robin Challenge that I have agreed to take part in.

The Round Robin starts today.

This month:-

1. you have to make a piece of fabric, a fat 1/4 in size. You can stamp, dye, print etc. You all have a theme to work to, and you can use architecture, culture, clothes etc as your design source.

2. Your fabric must to be passed onto the next person BY the 31st March, with your design source/image to show that person where your ideas are coming from.

Using the random number generator this is what you have got-

1) Nickie-Europe

2) Margaret-Asia

3) Di-Australasia

4) Deb-Africa

5) Sharne-America's

I will email you all on March 22nd with info on who to pass your fabric onto.

Please post photo's on your blog of what you are doing with the challenge.

So now I seriously need to get my thinking hat on. It's been a while since I did any design work of any description and I felt that I should challenge myself again.

Also have the Chairmans challenge at Ferrers Quilters to think about. This is to make a miniature quilt any style any technique. A miniature is not something that I have attempted before so again a challenge for me.

Also have a stall at a Tattoo convention at the end of the month and need to produce some stock for that.

Phew!

On top of all this I have a new role at work and this is another new challenge.

I am still enjoying the belly dancing immensely and have (hopefully) booked tickets for an all day event which will include me doing 3 workshops. Very scary as I am a complete beginner.One of them is on American Tribal Style which is a form of belly dancing that I really like and may want to continue with.Although the event is in Andover the tutor for this ATS is local so it would not be too hard to get to classes.

So, for me, quite enough on my plate at the moment

Whats Occuring

2010-02-15T12:48:00.000-08:00

Half term is whats occuring at the moment. Hoorah
In the run up to half term I had a fab night out with SIL and her daughter( and their friend Jenny). We went to Wembly to see the Strictly Come Dancing show. Got up there nice and early so we could have a relaxed meal in the Indian restuarant just outside of the car park then just a gentle stroll over to the Arena. Our seats were fantastic being almost on the dance floor and close enough to feel the heat from the dancers when they had finished their dance and were waiting for the judges comments. Judges were the original four so included Arlene Phillips.Celebs included my personal favourite Mark Ramprakash dancing with Kristina Rihanoff. Their Samba routine (choreographed by Karen Harding) was spectacular, as was her costume. Like a giant fringed red hot poker!. I voted for him and that night he won. I am sure a lot of the banter etc was scripted but it was tremendously enjoyable all the same.
More recently had our work Christmas do. A bit late maybe but circumstances prevented us from having it before Christmas. Fish and chip supper , disco and Karaoke. A good laugh. Great crowd of people.
Even more recently ie. today, a new tattoo. A long time coming as my first was some years ago but worth the wait. Done by the Skin Sorcerer in Maldon aka Mark. Chosen online as I didn't have time to get to Maldon and choose.I chose a Sun and Moon motive as I have always liked these images and also because my hero Valentino Rossi has always used them ( in some different ways) either on his crash hat, leathers or other merchandise. I am really happy with the outcome even if I am a little sore at the moment.

Family Tree

2010-01-27T11:53:00.000-08:00

Hot news from the genealogy expert of the family.Thats Cousin Donna by the way.
With some help from some fellow history seekers she has now traced one line of our family tree back to the year 970.How amazing is that!
The year 970 sees us in France with the Jocelyn line coming over the water to England in the 1100's. They settled in two main areas Devon and Essex. So I can truly call myself an Essex girl. Not that there was any doubt in that.
I would love to be able to spend some time with her working on this and starting up some research of my own on my Dads family and also the Sargeant line but circumstances are against us at the moment. Small children, work etc. Since she has printer issues atm she is hand copying the tree and is a bit bogged down in the 15th and 16th century where everyone seems to have at least 10 children.

Weekend Wish List

2010-01-23T03:03:00.000-08:00

Prompted by the wonderful Maisy I have written a weekend wish list. It remains in the lap of the gods whether any,some or all of it gets achieved. Since the last couple of weekends we seemed to have done nothing but eat out we will not be doing any of that hopefully as it is not good for the attempt at healthy eating (to try and lose weight)

So this weekend I hope to

Keep up with my 'at least 30 minutes a day exercises.Since Christmas I have been pretty good at this only missing a couple of days.
Practise a bit of belly dancing. Had my second lesson this week and now have some music to practise to.I am not sure that I will ever be any good at it but I intend to have good fun trying.
Make sure ironing and housework are up to date so when I go back to work on Monday I can forget about it.(Not my favourite thing in the world to do)
Help my son and his fiancee move some of their stuff
Cut out at least one Clothkit skirt (I bought two)

On the subject of Clothkits. What a blast from the past. I remember wonderful jackets and dresses when the kids were small. Always such interesting fabrics and excellent quality. Recently purchased and completed a skirt so thought I would order it in another colour. Also added a skirt which was on sale. Very excited when parcel arrived.They are always packaged beautifully too. Very disapointed when there was only one skirt in the parcel. Going on recent experience with other companies my heart sank as I thought I was going to be on to a row with Clothkits. I was so pleasantly surprised when I phoned and immediately spoke to a real person who was so friendly and helpful . My skirt was sitting on the side and they had all been wondering whose it was. It was posted on immediately and I have recieved it safely. Full marks to Clothkits for customer service

Happy New Year

2010-01-16T06:11:00.000-08:00

A bit late I know but finally got round to a blog post. Christmas came and went. Phil worked on Christmas day and then on Boxing day we went to the Plum Pudding meeting at Mallory park.Having had some snow before Christmas we were not sure whether the meeting would go ahead but most of the snow cleared and the weather was not too bad. The sidecar outfit of the Westons was the most interesting thing there and although we enjoyed it there were just not enough classic machinery to hold our interest so next year, unless we get info to the contrary , we will probably give it a miss. Another down point is the food available at the track which leaves an awful lot to be desired.Enough said.

The person sitting in the background looking a bit sick is Weston jnr. If you had seen this outfit race you would appreciate his concern. The most entertaining thing to watch.

And then it snowed, and snowed and snowed. Hard to remember when we had so much snow and it stayed around for so long. Had a couple of half days off work but school stayed open as much as possible.

Phils birthday was on the 13th and after having his swine flu jab Peter and Jessica joined us for a meal at Hoyzen which is always a real treat. As it is only at the other end of the village we decided to walk.Lots of laying snow and it continued to snow fairly heavily while we were in there. On the way home we stopped at the pub and there we stayed for another couple of hours.

The next day we were back here to meet up with our daughter and her fiancee Jake. Haven't seen Jen for a long time and had never met Jake before. Another very pleasant few hours and then back home for a bit before heading out for an Indian meal with them. Finished off what Phil described as one of his best birthday's ever.

Half Term

2009-10-26T02:22:00.000-07:00

Yes it's that time already. Bit scary as this is the last break before Christmas. I suppose I should be thinking about getting started on the christmas shopping. Few things lined up for the week. Car in for service this morning. Bank account says ouch.
Tomorrow we are hoping to have a day in London but don't hold your breath. So often we plan these days out and then don't get there. All seems too much aggravation somehow. Maybe we will make it this time. Planning on Camden Market as everyone says I would love it and I have never been.
Later in the week meeting up with Arty and then have a workshop on Saturday which is the second of three with Janet Goddard where we are making a Japanese style quilt. Have some homework on that to catch up with so some time will be spent on that this week. Also have to sort and tidy my sewing room as I am soon moving into my son's old bedroom. This job could take me til past Christmas it's in such a mess.

Sunday Sunday

2009-10-18T10:25:00.000-07:00

Busy day out in the garden getting on with jobs that need doing before son's wedding next June.
Evening reception is in a marquee in our garden so we need to get the outside all sorted.
Got loads done as son and fiancee came over to help. Fuel was bacon rolls and then later beef stew and dumplings.All I want to do now is sleep but hubby has gone to see his mum and we haven't watched the MotoGP yet although I do know the result.Alas not a win for Rossi he was second but the good news , for Rossi and his fans, is that Lorenzo didn't finish.
Work tomorrow but next week is half term and hopefully have a few things planned

Knitting and Stitching

2009-10-14T07:34:00.000-07:00

Had a very relaxing day out at the Knitting and Stitching show at Ally Pally on Saturday.
Good coach journey up and there, nice and early so parked really close to the building.
Nice slow wander round with good company (thanks to Anne for that) Bit of retail therapy but not so much that I felt guilty. No research to do so no stress there.Bumped into my City and Guilds tutor Julie on the EAST stand.Some really interesting work there.
Also bumped into an old friend and her daughter who I haven't seen for a while so that was good.
All in all a good day.

Sprinting

2009-10-09T09:44:00.000-07:00

Those that know me or have read any of my blog will know that motorbikes play a huge part in our lives. We enjoy riding them and watching them race. We have a Ducati 996 which I adore. Ducati's have been my dream bike for many years and I finally got my wish when we bought one.
Had to wait a bit til the marque we wanted was cheap enough for us to afford. Was a bit peeved when hubby highsided it earlier this year but it's all mended now. Missed some riding time but never mind.
But that is not the only bike we own.We also have a 60's Triton racer. A beautiful machine well developed and appointed. Hubby did some parading on it a few years back but what with moving house and then Mum being ill and passing away it went on the back burner. Although we have a load of work to do on the house and garden before Peter's wedding next year it is time to pay the old girl some attention and hubby is going to rebuild her and make her all beautiful again.
He may race her but is more interested in trying out Sprinting and in particular Twisty Sprints.
In the interest of research we went along to a VMCC sprint nr Aldershot. It was a much smaller event than I had anticpated and I was very glad that I packed a picnic.

One of hubby's favourite bikes was there. This bike is a thing of beauty,
Also this great car turned up.I think they were racing them nearby as we could hear the noise.

On the creative front nothing much happening. No great ideas and actually that's not bothering me at the moment. I am having one of my paranoid spells where I don't feel that I fit in anywhere,am being left behind and excluded by everyone. But as I said that's just my paranoia. I am still planning on moving my sewing room into what was my son's bedroom which will give me much more space.Well surface area anyway. Maybe this will spark something off.
I am going to man a stall at a Handmade fair in Leigh on Sea on 21st November and will be promoting handmade and etsy and hopefully selling some of my own and other peoples wares.
Tomorrow I am going to the knitting and stitching show at Ally Pally so a bit of retail therapy there.
Next weekend we are hoping to have a day in Brighton with our son and his fiancee. Always good fun and she is great to shop with.

Challenging times

2009-09-13T12:43:00.000-07:00

Friends and family having treatment for cancer.
Mother in law in and out of hospital with no diagnosis.
Staying with us in between.
Starting a new job
New school
New people
Out of comfort zone big time.
Nothing creative going on
Challenging times

Southwold and Walberswick

2009-08-27T08:33:00.000-07:00

Two of our favourite places to visit. Hubby had some time off and we could not seem to get ourselves organised to have some days out so took a last minute decision to visit Southwold.Journey there took ages as we got stuck behind a large static caravan being transported.
I always feel that it is a bit like stepping back in time when we go here. Although it is now a bit 'touristy' and sanitised. Also crowded. Parking is a bit of a nightmare.But still we had a pleasant lunch and walk round.There are some nice shops and galleries and of course the Amber shop is always worth a look. There is an interesting craft gallery/shop that I like to take a look round but sadly was shut . We did discover the charming little cinema down a back street.

Then we walked down to take a look at the ferry.Again something we had not done before.This ferry has been in the same family for about 5 generations and the present owner has written a book on its history.We happened to have Phil's brothers copy with us so we got it signed while we were there.As a little bonus there was a seal bobbing around as we crossed over from the Southwold side to Walberswick.Coffee and scones at the tea rooms were scoffed and then I held of the wasps so hubby could eat his sandwich.Again rather busy but we find the charm of this place is that there simply isn't much there.Didn't go down to the beach on this occasion

Nice to see some traditional crafts being used.

An amazing day out

2009-08-06T14:01:00.001-07:00

We were recently very privileged to be allowed to view the private Ducati collection of Tony O'Neil. He is a friend of a friend, lucky for us. The collection is truely amazing with many iconic bikes. Heaven for us as we are great Ducati lovers and follow bike racing. The bike pictured above is the very famous Troy Bayliss Imola 2002 bike.This race is Superbike legend. Colin Edwards and Troy battled for the whole race literally bashing fairings throughout. Tony says that the bike had Colin's tyre marks up the fairing when he got it. We could not believe that we were standing inches away from it. There were also bikes that were raced by Carl Fogarty,Carlos Checa,James Toseland,Ruben Xaus,Loris Capirossi and so many more that I can't remember them all. It was such a rare treat and we are very grateful to our friend John for organising it and to Tony and Leslie for making us so welcome.

Rust Dyeing with Myfanwy Hart

2009-07-29T09:38:00.001-07:00

My local Embroiderers Guild is a very lively and vibrant group.We seem to be bucking the trend and attracting new members all the time. They organise excellent speakers once a month and I am very disapointed that due to the hours I have been working I am not able to get to many monthly meetings any more. But I am able to get to the workshops as they are on a Saturday. The latest one was Rust Dyeing with Myfanwy Hart.
Myfanwy is one of the lovely ladies in the Boomers group over on etsy and we had met briefly at the Cottenham show.
I had extracted a few pieces of rusting metal from hubby and his garage.Not that easy to find as he is all about making sure that things don't rust.
After cleaning up the rusty items they were wrapped up in fabric and we added either salt water or vinegar water to accelerate the process. Some parcels had a tea bag or strong tea added as the tannin also has an effect on the cloth when combined with the rusting process.
These were then left overnight before being dried off and washed and ironed.
So another interesting washing line.Bit smelly though.
Myfanwy also bought hubby and shop along so there was time for a few purchases of delicious threads.
The picture shows the resulting pieces of fabric.Not quite sure what will become of them but a few ideas are bubbling under.
Thanks for a fun and interesting day Myfanwy.

Sutton Hoo

2009-07-17T11:51:00.000-07:00

Recently visited Sutton Hoo. Have been meaning to get there for some time but as it happens Fen Edge Textiles were exhibiting there and my friends Nickie and Sharne are members of this group.
Hubby wanted to go to so it was a nice trip out together.
Sutton Hoo itself was interesting, in parts. There really is little to see there apart from a few humps where the burials were.The exhibition was very interesting but there are virtually none of the original artefacts there as they are all in the British Museum (I think)
Anyway we decided to test ourselves and did the long walk round the whole of the site.
Much further than I have walked in some time but the weather was glorious so it was most enjoyable.

I can't believe I didn't blog about this

2009-06-12T11:27:00.000-07:00

How could I be so remiss as to not blog about going to one of the best gigs ever.
I am referrring to the soon to be superstar (if there is any justice in the world) that is Imelda May.
Hubby picked her up first from a Jools Holland programme and from that we watched everything that we could find on U tube. Then we managed to find her album in HMV and what a little gem that turned out to be.
So from then on we were on the lookout to see if she was gigging locally. Low and behold she had a booking at the Colchester Arts Theatre. 4 tickets purchased for us and some friends.
On the night it turned out to be a standing only gig,which we had thought that it would be but I had forgotten and not put on the most sensible shoes. Also only being 4ft 11in I tend to get lost in a crowd.
Support band was Tim Allalone and the 78's who started the evening off in a lively rocking style.
Then on to the main event.
Imelda May was magnificent. Her voice is amazing and I believe she could do any style but what we got was a blend of rockabilly ,blues ,jazz and ballads. The band behind her were one of the tightest I have ever heard .The main guitarist is her husband and apparently is way up there in the rockabilly world. We bopped and sang along and totally wore ourselves out. As hubby put it
" I felt like a teenager again til I woke up in the morning then I felt about 101"
A stonkingly good night!!

Janet Bolton Workshop

2009-05-21T03:17:00.000-07:00

Had a wonderful time on Saturday at a workshop, organised by Embroiderers Guild, with Janet Bolton. I am an admirer of her work and have been for many years. She was very generous with her knowledge and techniques and although some of us didn't get very far I am sure we were all inspired. Unusually for me I came away with more ideas for development.
On Monday night it was our EG branch meeting and we were very entertained by the wonderful Kim Thittichai. Margaret and I went down to Hove earlier this year to do a workshop with Kim and had a great time. Very talented lady.

Mum and babies

2009-05-11T10:30:00.001-07:00

Mum and babies
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

These just appeared in our back garden the other day. Don't know where they came from. It put us in a bit of a flap as she couldn't get out of the back garden and the road is in the front. Eventually we guided her and babies out of the front and down the road. She seemed quite purposeful as if she knew where she was going so in the end we just let her.I do hope they are all ok. Someone commented on flickr that there have been reports of large broods this year. I think 11 is enough!

Childhood Memories

2009-04-28T02:52:00.001-07:00

Childhood Memories 001
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

April entry for Uk Challenge 'Childhood Memories'
You may recognise the pic from my avatar.
It is a shot taken by my father of my cousin David and myself.David lived with his family on a farm in Devon and most years we would go down on holiday.I loved David and followed him everywhere.We even had a pretend wedding at one stage.I think I used to drive him round the bend.David still lives on a farm with his Dad.Uncle Mervyn is entirely responsible for me not being a fussy eater.You didn't dare NOT eat anything down there as it was almost all grown on the farm.Meat included.My Auntie Hilda(Dad's sister) was amazing.She worked so hard. I have seen her turn out huge quantities of food for various functions ie 250 pasties etc
So this childhood memory is of happy family holidays.Sadly many of the family now gone.
Sewn on neutral fabric with neutral thread as I thought it would look nostalgic.Size is 7 by 5 inch.A nod here to my friend Nickie Kimber for the technique

SPT 160409

2009-04-16T04:45:00.001-07:00

SPT 160409
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

Another Thursday another self portrait.
I bought a microwave silk dyeing kit when I went to Denman WI college with Ferrers Quilters oh some years ago.We had a great time there having a day with Katherine Guerrier and one with Mary Day(if I have remembered that correctly) I remember a foreign lorry driver nearly killed Sharon and I on the way there by pulling out into my lane whilst I was overtaking him.He did actually make contact with my car but fortunately it did not spin or we would have been in real trouble.
Anyway Denman was great, terrific food etc.
The kit was languishing in the back of a cupboard so I thought it was about time to give it a go.Worked out reasonably well but the scarf is not really long enough.
My skin looks awful in this maybe I need more fresh air or to start looking after it better.

Easter Decorations

2009-04-12T06:41:00.001-07:00

Flowers 005
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

Don't really do Easter as we are not religious but these felt decorations were really cheap in Tesco and I liked them so I bought them.I know this is not in the spirit of buying handmade and I am sorry for that.

Flowers

2009-04-11T08:13:00.001-07:00

Flowers 003
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

I am not renowned for doing a lot of gardening but I do like to have a few pots around for a bit of colour.Our local garden centre has an annual Pansy and Viola festival and we are always seduced into buying some.
The challenge then is to remember to water the pots.

SPT 090409

2009-04-09T14:29:00.001-07:00

SPT 090409
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

Self Portrait Thursday is a group on Flickr. As mentioned in an earlier blog post I don't get one done every week.I haven't got great photography skills or photoshopping for that matter. I am not artistic. I have double chins.I really should challenge myself more to think of some ideas to get round all these problems.This week I think I managed it.

Fairy shoes

2009-04-09T02:47:00.001-07:00

Fairy shoes 2
Originally uploaded by debsmuddle

Recently had a go at something that I have been meaning to do for some time. These are a pair of miniature shoes made from hand dyed fabric that has been attatched to felt with some FMS then made into the shoes by hand. I have then added bead and sequin embellishment. Really fun to do and I will definately be doing some more.

ACEO swap etsy boomers group

2009-03-09T06:05:00.000-07:00

I have recently joined the etsy group for baby boomers ie over 45's. It is a popular group so I had to wait a little while to get membership. They are a very friendly, supportive group , in the most part American but with a healthy sprinkling of UK'ers. A condition of membership is to post on their chat thread. Well no problem for me that one. Also to take part in monthly activities. I find that I work better to a deadline so again no problem.
The first monthly activity that I am joining in with is an ACEO swap. Theme Spring. I have never made an ACEO before and had lots of ideas as usual the problem was deciding which idea to go with.I tried out a few but eventually decided on the one above. I may list the others I have made in my etsy shop.
This ACEO is made by layering various hand dyed fabrics on to a background using the embellisher.Some commercial yarn was then added. I hand embroidered using both commercial and hand dyed yarn and then added the leaf beads.
I feel that spring means growth, green and fresh starts.

March already

2009-03-01T05:19:00.000-08:00

Can't believe it's March already. Where did Jan and Feb go?
Friday night went to a lovely birthday party at Hylands House in Chelmsford.
Apart from the host and hostess (it was her birthday) we only knew one couple there and we last met them about 30 years ago. He used to race motorbikes and my hubby used to watch him.He was good!! We also had a few mutual acquaintances that it was fun to remember. It also turns out that he has a very similar road bike to ours.His is slightly higher spec and a single seater which I don't allow here as it prevents me from riding.
Yesterday I taught a class down at School House Arts.It was Pet Portraits.Smallish class of 5 .Some familiar faces and a couple of new friends which was really nice.
Today we are having a day at home with a little gardening (thats him of course) and a little tidying up (thats me) Have sold and old cupboard that will be collected later making a small hole in the garage to give himself a bit of room for manoeuvre. Bike is due for oil change and belt service which is a big job but we don't want the bike off the road for too long or else the better weather will be here and we will be itching to get out on it.
Meal out tonight at Ask with out quiz team to spend some of our winnings.

SPT It's that day again

2009-02-26T09:29:00.001-08:00

Self portrait Thursday again.Since I don't like the way I look I have decided that one option open to me is to learn something about Photoshopping and apply this to my self portraits.So what you see above is the original. Below is where I have had a little play around.

I am very interested to have a go at introducing some of this into my textile work.The picture above for example would translate well into fabric. The one below could be an idea for some bleaching or discharge work. Nothing earth shatteringly new about either idea, but new for me.
On the home front hubby and I are attempting to spring clean our lives. This involves sorting out paperwork,getting rid of unwanted stuff like clothes,some furniture and for some reason several items of recording equipment that we have accumulated and don't use. I am not that keen on Ebay or boot sales but some of this stuff is just too good to give away. It is the paperwork that is threatening to engulf us though.Whatever happened to the promise of a paper free world.It just seems to get worse. And then there is the decision of what to keep and how long to keep things for. I don't really like all this grown up stuff!

Pet Potraits

2009-02-11T11:12:00.000-08:00

Finally got round to doing a portrait of my cat Tamlin.Named after a favourite folk song of mine.
Sadly after taking the photo, and trying to clean it up in Photoshop, I caught the USB lead and sent the camera across the floor. I think I have killed it.
I am teaching a class on this technique at the end of the month.See my earlier blog post with pictures of the chaffinch piece that I did.

With a little help from my friends

2009-02-10T04:32:00.000-08:00

I am much in need of photography and Photoshop help, as my photographs will show you. Help is at hand in the shape of the lovely ArtyAllsorts. She very kindly spent the best part of a day in my instruction. I think more sessions will be needed as things seem to take longer to get in my brain these days but some of it has stuck.

SPT

2009-02-06T11:54:00.000-08:00

SPT stands for self portrait Thursday.It is a group on flickr which for those who don't know is a free photo hosting and sharing site.For SPT you simply take a portrait and post it in the group. I have only a simple camera and few photographic skills.I am also not skilled in the art of Photoshopping. All this added to the fact that I don't like how I look at the moment means that I don't always post a photo every week.But this week I did.

Trees and Snow

2009-02-03T11:52:00.000-08:00

Having purchased a couple of new saws we have tackled the major task that is cutting back our willow tree.We have decided that it has to be done over 2 years as you are not supposed to take any more than 25% of the tree at any one time.The actual cutting went really well and only took a couple of sessions.At this point I would point out that my main job was footing the ladder and jumping out of the way when the big branches dropped. Now comes the more major task of getting rid of it all. The larger stuff is to go to a friend with a wood burning fire. The small stuff has to be chopped up and dumped. Our kindly neighbours ( and next door but one neighbours ) have kindly lent us their green bins,which are actually brown, so we can get quite a lot taken away by the nice men that collect them once a fortnight.

Having got to this stage we then had a fair amount of snow so we were glad to have got the job done

Chinese New Year

2009-01-25T11:01:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year
We have a favourite little cafe in Moulsham Mill.Lily turns out great food at an extremely reasonably price.Her coffee is second to none! At Christmas she does a meal for some of her more regular customers and this year we were invited along.It was fantastic. Last week when we were in there she invited us to her New Year Meal.What a treat.Started with a chicken and sweetcorn soup followed by a buffet style meal with green tea (or wine) then a choice of pudding. She is a real star

Kim Thittichai Hot Textiles

2009-01-25T10:53:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Margaret and I tootled off to Hove to do a workshop with Kim Thittichai.
I offered to drive as Margaret seems to do more than her share.I worry when I am going anywhere different but hubby kindly bought me a Sat Nav for Christmas and Margaret had a good idea where it was as her vet lives in Hove.Don't ask but the culprit is Libby her dog.
I fancied a different voice for my sat nav so went on the website and downloaded (for free!) the sultry tones of Joanna Lumley.Imagine her gentle instructions and announcing 'You have reached your destination Darling' Yeah well great idea but as it turned out there was no satellite signal all the way down there.Just shows that you cannot entirely rely on modern technology.All was well though and we found it OK (well done Margaret)We had a fun day playing with Tyvek,Lutrador,Bondaweb , foils etc.

Food,food,food!

2009-01-25T10:25:00.000-08:00

Crab and Mango Parcels

Bit of a catch up for me again.Firstly we finally got round to trying out the restaurant at the other end of the village.When we moved here there were just the two pubs.Not an awful lot else really which suits us.A village hall ,a small shop and a church (have used the first two but not the third) Now one pub is about 100yds away so obviously this is the one we go to.Nothing wrong with the other pub but anyway it closed down and reopened as an Oriental seafood restaurant. Our pub landlord owns this one too.

We have heard good reports about the food and as it is not the cheapest we have been saving up our £2 coins and finally went.
Not very good at being a restaurant critic but the food was fantastic ,service excellent and although it was a bit empty in there, good atmosphere. It has been very nicely done out and I would have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone.It is called Hoyzen and it is in East Hanningfield.
They didn't even laugh too much when we tipped out our coins to pay!

Thursday 8th January

2009-01-08T13:48:00.001-08:00

Things I love and can't live without
Trivial I know but I love my coffee machine.Well both of them really.This is my filter coffee maker.Yes I am addicted to coffee, sad but true.This is my self portrait for Self Portrait Thursday which is a group on flickr.I don't do one every week as I don't like the way I look at the moment and I am not very good at photography or photoshopping although I did make my nasty mole disappear on this photo.
Picked up tiles for the utility room today.Hubby is threatening to do tiling at the weekend. I did spend some time in my sewing room today and started planning a piece for the UK etsy monthly challenge topic Japan.Just waiting for hubby to get home after work.

Tuesday 6th January

2009-01-06T11:24:00.000-08:00

Snowdrops in the Snow

These were chosen and planted by my Mum.She loved them.The always make me think of her when they come up. Our local church has a large bank of them and she used to really enjoy walking down the Tye and looking at them.
Very cold here again today. I had a job interview in Rochford. Should get a decision on it tomorrow.Had lunch at Lily's. Still haven't got into my sewing room.

Monday 5th January

2009-01-05T05:03:00.000-08:00

Very cold today and a bit of snow around.Went in to school where I volunteer and had a couple of near things with my brakes not working on the sheet ice.Bit scary.
Will spend some time today preparing for my job interview tomorrow.Must also get into my sewing room and do something creative.The old juices seem to have dried up recently and I need to get going again.

Sunday 4th January

2009-01-04T07:03:00.000-08:00

Been quite a productive day so far.
I have done a dry run to where I have an interview on Tuesday to test my sat nav.
I have cleaned out my fridge
I have sorted cupboards and thrown away out of date stuff (not much)
I have packed the Christmas decorations away
I have filled up the bird feeders and put stuff out for the ground feeders
This is good going for me!

Friday 2nd January

2009-01-02T12:01:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to all.
Right first problem this year is to prune our willow tree.Can't afford to get someone in to do it so we have to tackle it ourselves. Some research has led us to believe that previous pruning had been done incorrectly so we are on a sticky wicket to start off with.We will have to cut back in a manner that is not recommended and we may lose the tree. I would not be too sorry to see it go but hubby likes it and as he rightly points out we have nothing else in the back garden so would have to replace it anyway. It is going to be quite a task.

Tuesday 30th December

2008-12-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

Not a good day today.My 'get up and go' 'got up and went'
Achieved nowt, feeling fed up about that.

Monday 29th December

2008-12-29T12:24:00.000-08:00

Very pleasant night out last night,cheese and wine round work colleague of hubby.
Today lunch at the King's Head with Sarah C and Terry.Lots of chat and catching up.
Tonight trying to do a little sewing.Made myself a crochet hook roll.Now working on
'Abigails quilt' Hubby is back to work tomorrow.

Sunday 28th December

2008-12-28T10:27:00.000-08:00

Meal last night was very good.Never sure with pub grub what the quality is going to be like.It was just at our local,very local about 100 yds away. Everyone seemed to have a good time and son's girlfriend's Dad was on fine form.He is a very funny guy.
Today we did a bit of retail therapy.Got up late (after the Archers) then hit a garden centre for some half price Christmas stuff. Set of lights etc. Then to our favourite designer outlet Matalan. I really needed some clothes! Sadly all my weight has gone back on again so I think I will have to do something about that in the new year.
Back home and a lovely lamb curry and then we are off out to a work colleague of hubby.

Saturday 27th December

2008-12-27T03:45:00.000-08:00

Well that's Christmas done and dusted.Meal out tonight with MIL ,son and girlfriend and her parents looking forward to that,nice not to have to cook.

Christmas was an odd one this year as hubby was on nights.In 20 years of shift work this has never occurred before.Meant that for the most of Christmas day and all of Christmas night I was on my own.Thought I would be fine but wasn't really so won't do that again.Wasn't helped by the fact that just before Christmas I went down with a really heavy cold which laid me out for about 3 days so last minute preparations just did not happen.
Always think about people that I can't be with anymore like my mum and especially my granddaughter.
Did just about manage to get a few bits made for decorations and presents

Little mouse for Jessica

Table runner for Claire and Carlos

Snowman and Penguin for me

New Things

2008-11-09T07:02:00.000-08:00

Been fiddling around trying a few new little things that will probably end up in my etsy or folksy shops .Really like this little blue bird.I have done a sort of robin version as well.May list later

Bad bad blogger

2008-11-07T01:11:00.000-08:00

I know I know every time I say I am going to blog more regularly it just doesn't happen.
Anyway I have made a little banner for my table at Wemake London. Reverse applique and satin stitch.Not perfect maybe ,need a bit more practise but it looks OK. Also starting to try some new things out for my etsy and folksy shops.More of that later.

East Exhibition

2008-10-09T12:25:00.000-07:00

By June Carroll

By Carol Dixon

Went to Braintree today ,with Margaret to go to the O2 and E.a.s.t exhibitions. Both very interesting. More pieces appealed in the East exhibition.
A couple of beautiful,what I am going to call,memory dresses by Libby Smith incorporating text embroidered on net and newspaper snippets.
Some really interesting work, as usual, by Jeanette Bright on foundlings and Mercy. One piece by Julie Topsfield that I really liked.
Some terrific textured pieces by Carol Dixon and some clever work on maps and journies by June Carroll.Annoyed with myself that I didn't take notes or enough pictures. Did give Margaret and myself time for a good chat and some ideas have been sparked off I think.
Nice lunch in the cafe attached to the museum. Weather was great ! All in all a good day.

Etsy September Challenge

2008-10-05T03:44:00.000-07:00

Our challenge for September was to create something on the theme of 'Birds'
I had seen an article in Quilting Arts magazine on pet and animal portraits so I thought I would give it a go.I chose to do a Chaffinch as they have a fair bit of colour on them and we do get a lot of them in our garden.I adapted the method a little but started with creating a background of hand dyed fabrics by strip piecing in green including a few bits of blue to represent the sky.I then enlarged a picture of a male chaffinch and turned it into black and white using this final image to make a tracing.I used the tracing to machine the shape of the chaffinch from the back of the fabric tearing the paper away when completed. Then from the front and using the original image as reference I added fabric pieces and some machine embroidery to recreate the bird. I also used my embellishing machine to create his legs and to 'knock back'some of the background and the fabric on the bird. To finish off I added a few buttons and some hand stiching and then made a quilt sandwich using a light wadding and some calico.

To my great surprise I won the challenge this month.Thank you if you voted for me.

September

2008-09-30T12:43:00.000-07:00

Lets see if I can cover all my September events in one blog posting.
Patchwork classes have started at School House Arts. Despite people telling us that they wanted basic classes the uptake has been slow. But numbers are increasing which is promising.
My car has had its first MOT.Nice boys round at Hanningfield Motors looked after that for me.Highly reccommend these chaps very fair on price and their workshop has got to be the tidiest I have ever seen!

I have applied for and received my very first passport. This is momentus for me. I don't really like travelling or holidays so have avoided getting a passport. Why now then? Well it's motorbikes of course.Brother in law and a small group of chaps have been going to Jerez MotoGP for a few years now. His daughter and son in law have a house a few miles away from the racetrack so it makes it a very reasonable trip. So my love of bikes and more especially Valentino Rossi have pushed me into this. All happened fast as well. Less than a fortnight from sending off my application.And that included having to go for an interview to prove I was who I said I was!

Concert crowds

Finally on Saturday last we had a family trip down to Brighton.Son has been before but couldn't remember and his girlfriend had never been. So we made a reasonably early start and drove down. It was only when we got close that we realised that we had picked the day of the Fat Boy Slim concert on the beach and the place was jammed.Still we had no problem getting to the park and ride and getting in to town. The shops in the Laines were wonderful as always and we had a great time wandering around.Lunch at the Gourmet Burger Company was yummy.

Jess and Peter
I managed not to spend too much money but could easily have spent loads more. The weather was fantastic and I am sure all those crowds had a great time at the concert.

Mr on beach

ArtyAllsorts

2008-09-30T12:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday 30th August
The wonderful ArtyAllsorts very kindly came down to School House Arts and spent the day helping us to learn more about using our cameras and taking better photos. I don't think I will ever be terribly good at it,I haven't got the 'eye'. But I certainly learnt loads .Thanks Arty!

I am a bad blogger

2008-09-30T12:24:00.000-07:00

Yes I am. It is so long between posts that I have to look at my calender to see what I have done since. So this is me catching up (again)
The day after my epic charity bike ride Hubby and I went on a day sail on a Thames sailing barge out of Maldon.Hubby has had a couple of trips away on one of these as team building exercises from work and has really enjoyed them.So much better that paintballing!
Very early start was needed to catch the tide and it was a bit nippy and windy to start off with but later on the sun came out and it warmed up a bit. Got some sail up and headed out. Now obviously you don't go very far just sail for a bit, anchor for lunch and sail back. Nevertheless it was a very pleasent way to spend a day. The real highlight though was the food which was excellent.
On the way back they did manage to get it into full sail for a while but it was the wrong kind of wind so we were not travelling fast enough to get us back in time so sails had to come down and engine started.

Charity Bike Ride 24/08/08

2008-09-02T08:13:00.000-07:00

Still catching up! Went on a charity motorcycle ride with EAMG. Riding pillion with Rob who's daughter is going out with my son.Alledgedly it was to be 160miles or thereabouts. It turned out to be nearer 250. It is over 30 years since I spent that long on the back of a bike. That was OK though. Weather was most unpromising to start off with but it did brighten up later and I only got slightly damp and soon dried off.
Riding on the back of the Fazar was a very different experience to the Ducati! Much more comfortable for distance riding of course. I think I did OK as a pillion passenger although Rob has had to replace his back tyre!

Nec Festival of Quilts

2008-08-29T02:49:00.000-07:00

Gradually catching up with my blog! Sunday 17th August saw me catching a coach with the ladies from Ferrers Quilters to go to Birmingham. An early start but that was OK. Gave us plenty of time for a really good look round. Lots of wonderful work,too much to list here. Trends seemed to be many more art quilts also lots of painting,bleaching /discharge etc. The Kemshalls have been real trend setters there.It was interesting to watch them working using various different methods to transfer portraits on to fabric in a quilt they are making featuring the women in their family.
My favourite pieces were in the 3D and wearable section with some interesting use of computer parts, just quirky enough to appeal to me
I was most interested in watching people working with new techniques. Committed to Cloth is always worth watching as was Kim Thittichai and Maggie Grey. A few new ideas I might even get round to trying.
All in all a good day with only one downside. The button up quilts that had been made by so many groups in the UK and abroad were poorly displayed. Ferrers Quilters entry had very little showing but the one I was, in a very small way, involved with from Springfield Quilters was almost completely invisible. In fact most of Region 8 and 9 were very restricted

Etsy Retreat

2008-08-20T10:36:00.000-07:00

Can't believe it's been a week and a half since I set of to York and the Uk etsy retreat. Overcoming my fear/dislike of travelling was the first hurdle so I was much relieved to find my way to Kings X and met up with reform aka Tricia, charlottenarunsky aka Charlotte and Dichotomy aka Bronwyn . Collected Gillian on the way somehow. Collected at York station by the wonderful Debbie
who was responsible for us all being there.There ensued a wonderful weekend of crafting ,chat,laughing etc. The facilities at the school were superb.Lucky girls that go there! I really hope it happens next year as now I know what is there I have ideas of what I would like to do. Tried a few new things although my screen printing on Sunday morning was hampered by me feeing decidedly unwell.

Getting Ready

2008-08-06T11:11:00.000-07:00

On Friday I am off to the etsy retreat in York. Really excited about this but don't really know what I am going to do. I am not in the slightest worried about being with so many strangers for the weekend because they are not , strangers that is. I have met a few of them, the rest I feel I already know and I am certain that we will all get on fine. I haven't done much to prepare for this trip but I have bought my first 2 bars of Green and Black's chocolate which I understand is an essential ingredient for this weekend.
I have also signed up for flickr's 888 event so I will have to take my picture and post it before I leave for the train on Friday morning.

New Week New Start

2008-07-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

Haven't blogged for a while(again) no excuse really but have been feeling a bit low.
Went to a retirement do at the school I used to work at and it was nice to see lots of people I used to work with from years back.No job yet but a few interesting possibilities. Have also been neglecting my day2day so I will just briefly tell you about the last series I did,
They were all flowers from a local butterfly house. We have lived here 3 years now and only recently visited Tropical Wings down at South Woodham Ferrers. It's not huge but has a good variety of animals to see including otters which I love. Haven' t yet managed to catch sight of the Red Squirrels that they have there.

Friday 4th July

2008-07-04T03:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Independance Day to all our US friends.
day2day this week I have bored everyone with pictures of our bike. Ducati 996. Red,Italian,fast and loud. I know I am obsessed with bikes which for a 5o year old woman is a bit sad. In my defence (not that I really think I need to defend myself) bikes have always been a part of my life.
My late father used to race bikes and had bikes on the road.Mum and him went on their honeymoon on a bike. It wasn't planned that way ,Dad had hired/borrowed a car from a mate but on the morning of the wedding he was pulling out of Mum's road and someone ploughed into him and although he was fine the car was totalled. So plans for the Isle of Wight were cancelled and they went down to his sister's farm in Devon on the only transport available to them which was Dad's motorbike. Now this in itself would not have been so bad but it was not even a proper road bike but a Dot 3 speed scrambler. Then they hit a swarm of something on the way down(greenfly or something) It was nearly a very short marriage! They continued to have road bikes until I was on the way.If we still had all of my Dad's old bikes we would be very rich!!
I met my husband because of a motorbike. At the time he was working with my Dad and had bought a racing sidecar outfit. He didn't have anywhere to work on it so Dad offered him our garage, bought him home to show him where it was and the rest is history.
Hubby used to work with bikes and race them before I met him. Although we never got to race that outfit we had road bikes and he briefly raced a Bantam. Mortgage and kids put paid to our biking for nearly 25 years but then the yearning returned. So we bought a classic racer a Tony Dunnell Triton beautiful machine.He paraded it for a couple of years but then moving and Mums illness halted this temporarily. To get more miles in he decided to get another road bike. First we had a 600 Hornet then came the Ducati. I have always wanted one it is my dream bike.
We are never going to do loads of miles on it touring and such so it suits us.
Gosh sorry about that didn't realise this day2day business was going to make me all nostalgic.

Monday June 30th

2008-06-30T04:39:00.001-07:00

June nearly over and done with.
Have joined a new flickr group called day2day Take Five Ordinary Beauty
Take a 5 pictures of ordinary things.Try to see beauty everywhere and improve your photography skills.My first series of photos(Only 4 of them) is of clocks.
The cat clock was our Christmas present to each other.Hubby spotted it and took me to see it thinking that I would not like it but I did so we bought it.Hopeless for telling the time but a bit of fun nevertheless. The old clock was my Greatgrandmother's and family legend says that her first husband bought it for her out of his wages on his first harvest.My family were all either farm labourers or in service.All really poor.Great Gran was born in Maldon workhouse as her mother was not married.She did manage to keep the baby. However when Great Gran found out she was illegitimate she tore up her birth certificate so we never knew who her mother was. My cousin has been researching the family tree and after much searching ,tearing of hair and knashing of teeth has tracked her down.There were other children also born 'out of wedlock'
She was a great character my Great Gran and lived to 98. I often ponder on the tremendous changes she saw in her lifetime coming from an age where the poor did not have electricity or running water,no cars or free health care.We live in a very priviledged age

Saturday 28th June

2008-06-28T03:30:00.000-07:00

Allthosethrees,myaphrodite,artyallsorts and Charlottenarunsky
Yumtatious,abibansaldesign,charlotte and arty
Abi,myaphrodite,pinkangel and allthosethrees
Clothcat and Angharad

Again a big gap in my blogging.Smacked wrist for me.So whats been going on.Much research into washing machines and tumble dryers as we need to buy them for the utility room. This research now includes dish washers as ours decide to break.
Went to the Wemake craft fair in London,with Artyallsorts. So wonderful to see so many etsians together. Some I had met before, Clothcat,Angharad,Daintyprettythings, and Lovealittle. But also so many that I had not met like Greygoat,Madebycara,Momentsbymartha,Stitchywoowoo,millimoomi (and baby)Lazygiraffe,Thebirch tree, and Creamrose to name some(but not all) also loads of non stall holders that came to support including abibansaldesign who should have had a prize for travelling the furtherest as she had come up from Devon for the day. Much chat and laughing! Decmamped to a pub in Covent Garden for Pimms and more chat with arty,Allthosethrees,myaphrdite,yumtatious,kankalin,and pinkangel.Got home in one piece though!

Friday 13th June

2008-06-13T08:16:00.000-07:00

Passport Cover

Hairbands soon to be listed

Uneasy day on UK etsy thread.I'll say no more.
Had a brief run out on the bike to get petrol. ( while we still could)As hubby works in a power station he should always be OK to get it but you never know.Last time there was a strike/blockade he had a letter to present at petrol stations saying he was an essential worker or something.
Have just got round to taking some photos of things I have had made for a while and just haven't got round to listing on etsy
My resolution for next week is to start applying for jobs.I have had a nice break and its been great but really must get back into the swing.
Confidence not at it's highest though especially since trawling through loads of jobs on the web and honestly not seeing one that I thought I could apply for.My qualifications ,such as they are,probably need updating and I am up for that. I do pick things up pretty quickly but feel that my age is now against me.

Dengie Craft Group

2008-06-11T12:31:00.000-07:00

Learnt how to do Broomstick crochet today.Not sure what you would use it for but it would make good scarves.Had a good laugh anyway.Still battling to get my swap items finished for the etsy May Swap.

Monday June 9th

2008-06-09T14:00:00.000-07:00

Glorious day today, bit too hot for me though.Haven't managed to set foot in my sewing room today.Hubby is off tomorrow so we may go out somewhere as it looks like the weather is set fair.
Probably will spend half the morning debating where to go and then deciding its too late to go out anyway. Decisions are not something I am very good at.

Been Nagged Again

2008-06-07T13:38:00.000-07:00

Grungie Granny

Space The Final Frontier

Nagged again that I have not posted on my blog recently.Yes you know who you are!
So what have I been up to.
Went to the dentist with toothache.Said it was my gums not my teeth.
Written my CV which means I am slowly getting round to looking for a new job.
Managed an entry to the etsy uk challenge for May which was space.(finished third)
Pieced a small scrap quilt (Will I ever finish it?)
Attended a super workshop and made a grungie granny.

Rainy Bank Holiday

2008-05-26T03:31:00.000-07:00

Yes true to form the British weather has delivered us a horrid ,wet and windy Bank Holiday.Not too bothered myself as I had not got anything planned.Keep getting told off because I don't blog often enough but I do lead a boring life so what's to write about.
What have I been doing lately.

Trying to look after hubby while he tackles tiling the utility room.Copious cups of tea required there.
Looking after my boy after minor op.
Missing my cat much more than I thought I would.
Making some hairbands.
Trying to get to grips with zipped pouches.Still can't get the zip right.

Decided that I could blog about an etsy shop that I have recently discovered.
margrietje.etsy.com
A true treasure trove of little charmers.Definitely on my wish list and in my favourites.This little bird in particular
So adorable.And her shop is full of these.As soon as paypal manages to credit my account with the money it is hanging on to this is going straight in my shopping cart.It makes me so wish that I had some artistic ability.

Tuesday

2008-05-13T07:39:00.000-07:00

Theoretically since I am currently unemployed I should blog more often.Doesn't always work like that though.I am coming to think that I am one of those people that get more done if they are busy anyway.Only taken me 50 years to realise this.Sometimes a day goes past and I think 'what have I done today' and I can't really think of anything apart from the washing cooking etc that I do everyday.
So what have I done today.
Mowed the lawn,front and back.Bit of weeding.Food shopping.Made lunch.Hung out washing.
Thats so far. Now I would really like to make a bit of an effort for Tuesday Rawks as it's punk/emo/goth today. I loved punk and goth still do actually.Emo was a bit after my time.

Sadness and Joy

2008-05-12T01:47:00.000-07:00

Been a mixture of these over the past few days.I find the rollercoaster of emotions, that life can be sometimes, very difficult. I am a rut person really, change does not suit me.I have also been in quite a reflective mood which is never good for me.
Our eldest cat ,Eric,died on Saturday.It wasn't completely unexpected as we had noticed his decline over recent weeks.We think he could have had a stroke.Came back from shopping and noticed that he was not right and within a few hours he had gone.I love my cats but I am not overly sentimental about them.It has just made me think a lot about loss.Big things and small things.Sometimes I find the small things affect me more than the big.
I am missing my Mum and my granddaughter.
I miss my youth.
I miss having energy

Sunday we went to the resheduled BSB meeting at Brands Hatch.Glorious weather in fact to hot for me.Great racing.Good fun.

Bakey cakeyness

2008-05-05T12:23:00.001-07:00

Can you believe it the weather has actually been great this weekend and although we did not go far we have enjoyed a couple of little trips out on the bike.Just does so much for my spirits to get out on that thing it is just so much fun.
In the true spirit of the UK etsy thread I baked a cake.Little story behind it.Mr S and I were chatting and he said he fancied a coconut cake.I reminded him of the coconut cake that I used to cook years ago.So while he was at work on Sunday I whizzed to Asdas and got the ingredients to make it.He was chuffed to bits.Here's the recipe for those interested

Wholemeal Coconut Cake

8oz wholemeal self raising flour
4oz butter or marge
3oz soft brown or caster sugar
4oz coconut
1 beaten egg
5fl oz milk

Heat the oven to gas mark 4 180deg
Line a 7inch round cake tin
Rub together the flour and butter(or marge) stir in the sugar and coconut
Mix the egg with the milk
Add this to the dry mix
Bake approx 1 hour

Its quite a dry cake but we like it.

May Bank Holiday Weekend

2008-05-04T06:17:00.000-07:00

Although its a bank holiday weekend MrS is at work.Well you all need electricity.He has got quite a lot of time off soon so we are hoping to make great strides in the utility room.But then if the weather is good there is a Ducati to be ridden.
What have I been doing this week.Joined Gardening 365 on flickr.I resisited at first because my gardening efforts usually fizzle out with my waning enthusiasm but I figured that if I took part it may spur me on.For those that don't know the 365 groups involve taken a picture every day for a year(365 days)In this case of your garden or gardening efforts.Since MrS has become more involved in the cooking at home he is quite keen.We are concentrating on herbs and salad leaf as we can grow these in pots and we don't want to open up any beds at the moment.
Still trying to get brooches made of Kala's cats but its proving harder than you might think.
Was going to go to an exhibition this weekend but looking at the map it was about an hours drive away and I would be going on my own so decided against it.
I am however going to a craft fair tomorrow as my friend libertybelle is doing her first one at Runwell village hall.
I am having major sort out in sewing room as I have decided that my chaos is not helping the creative juices.Well we shall see.

Stitch to Paint with Nickie Kimber 27th April 2008

2008-04-27T11:52:00.000-07:00

The very first workshop to be offered by School House Arts. And what a cracker.
Nickie, very ably assissted by Sharne, presented her workshop on Stitch to Paint.
11 students started the morning with experiments with discharge paste using freezer paper and masking tape resists and and also bleaching some fabric that had been stitched into.
Next we machine quilted a sampler piece with four different patterns and used a different medium on each to colour it.These included markal,emulsion paint, a rub on gold medium and lumiere paint.
Next was lunch!
We then moved onto what was to be the main focus of the workshop which was a Celtic tree piece.First we ironed on the leaf motif down the side then discharged the leaves and either painted or used markals to further inhance these.Using a freezer paper pattern we machined round the tree and then machine quilted the background to give texture which would later be either discharged painted or decorated in any of the ways that we had been shown.
At intervals Nickie stopped us to show more techniques ideas and wrinkles.
At this point I feel I should mention something that I feel will become a feature of School House Arts workshops
THE LEMON TIMER
Maybe I should explain.As this was the first workshop Nickie and Sharne had a run through and noted the time that things should take.Nickie had then written herself a timed running order and the timer was set accordingly.Needless to say we did't always keep exactly to time but it caused much mirth and various offers of what we could do with this timer.
Everybody was really pleased with the results of their day and I know many of the students were stretched to attempt new things.
A great day and a great start of School House Arts