Beautiful Coat

Today when I was in town searching for components of my dad's birthday present I popped into a charity shop and spotted this beautiful blue woollen coat for just £12. It's got shiny gold buttons down the front and it's so cosy! It's quite shapeless and 1980s and I love it!

Artefacts Exhibition

Here's a couple of images from the little private view of the Creative Arts 'Artefacts' exhibition.

My Grandmother's recipe book

I've been playing with the ideas of using my Grandmother Jessie's recipe book in my textiles work this year. It's one of the beautiful objects i've even owned, the thing is, I don't technically own it. It makes me sad that I've got to give it back to my uncle robert soon.

But while I've got it I'm going to make the most of it. I'm playing with translating the handwritten recipes into stitch.

I think at the moment they look pretty naive, I like this, but its a fine line between sensitively naive and just plain rubbish.

I'll have another go.

Here's the first one.

Knit Knit Knit.

Knitting for winter has begun. These cosies are for Christmas craft fairs and stalls, I've not even started my knitting for Christmas yet!!

A Love Hat.

Well i've been doing a lot of knitting recently for various craft fairs and christmas events but I've knitted a love gift for my Auntie Annie who's not having an amazing time of it at the moment.

I hope she loves it as much as i do!

It's lace knitted in a camel coloured mix wool. The bow is made from the beautiful old lace i found at a flea market in Paris in February 2009. I've been looking for something special to use it on. The bow is topped with a pretty little mother of pearl button.

Artefacts

This is the flyer for our Creative Arts exhibition ' Artefacts' which is showing the work we produced for the textiles festival in Stroud in the spring.

My spoons feature in the image on the flyer!!

Hopefully it will be lovely!

Stitch impressions

Here's a quick update of what I've been up to over the last couple of days.

As part of my ceramics project 'The Ward Project' I've been simplifying the faces of the family I never knew and learning the shapes and features of their faces by tracing them with stitch.

I've impressed these into clay and am quite pleased with the results.

I'm not sure where this is going yet, but it's early days, I'm just pleased I've finally got my hands back in the clay for the first time this year!

I'm feeling good about this project.

Trip to Trowbridge

This year I've been given the opportunity to take part in another live project. This time it's working with Trowbridge Museum so today we got on the train and went to Trowbridge to see the museum and it's collections and to see if it could spark some inspiration for the project.

I've seen some things that could be a lovely basis for a project but i'm going to wait until i've seen all the archived collections before i make my final project decision.

Here are some of the photos I took today and a link to the museum.

The Ward Project

I've decided to set up a blog which tracks my progress, thoughts and ideas about this year's Ceramics project.

It's looking currently like it might be a complete nightmare, and possibly an emotional rollercoaster. But we'll see. I'm quite excited, but equally terrified.

Here it is, The Ward Project.

Here's a picture of my lovely family.

My Residency at Lyndon

Following my work placement at Lyndon School in Solihull I was fortunate enough to be Invited back filling a new position as Artist in Residence.The idea was to promote the work of practicing ( or in my case student) artists work and working processes.

I worked within the space in the POD Gallery of the Art Department and throughout the week I worked with small groups of yr9 and yr10 students. The projects we worked on were aimed to equip them with a basic knowledge of textile processes. Together we did a workshop in creative and experimental drawing, hand embroidery and an introduction to machine embroidery.

I found the week really interesting, I was pleased with how enthusiastic some of the students were and how keen they were to ask questions about me and my work. ( I think this was largely because one of the art teachers had told the students that my Latex covered tea set was in fact made of human skin though!)

What I was unprepared for was how the ability levels of the students would differ. I realise that it was naive of me to expect any particular level of textile ability, although i didn't expect to have to explain the principles of threading a needle.

I feel a real sense of achievement after the week, I really enjo

yed my time at Lyndon, and I hope to go back in a month or so's time.

Here are some of the examples of the work that the Students and i worked on over the week.

Now it's October

Sorry it's been such I while since I last wrote anything!

It's been a fairly unemployed but creative summer. I went back home to Birmingham which is always lovely ( it's my favourite place). I saw friends, drank tea, made cakes, went camping and did LOTS and LOTS of knitting!I decided that as i have a christmas craft fair (potentially 2) this winter i should probably get creating early. I've made headpieces and Hats, and Beret's. I also Knitted a pair of hand warmers for my best friend Jenny's birthday that I'm particularly proud of. Although I do find that the disadvantage of homemade gifts is that its usually quite upsetting to give them away!

A Conclusion to the Stroud Project

Having submitted my spoons to The Museum In the Park in Stroud i felt that i needed a change of direction. the 8 month project based around the same simple form had left me completely drained of ideas.

I had managed to get my hands on a copy of 'The Subversive Stitch' a book by Rozsika Parker which looks at the oppression of women in society through needlework.

This is a subject I had touched on briefly in my project through the ideas of division of labour and some domestic objects being associated with women and 'Women's Work'.

So i carried on down the path of domestic objects .

These are old royal dalton 'mosaic collection' teacups and saucers. I've covered them in Latex, old crochet, lace and family photographs. I think they have quite a nice organic quality, like they've been overgrown.

Work Experience

I was on work experience at Lyndon School in Solihull a couple of weeks ago. i was terrified before i went but everyone was so lovely and i had a fab week!The kids were (on the most part) inspired and willing to try new things and ideas.

Although i came to the conclusion that if i'm going in for this whole teaching thing, i'm going to have to work on not being quite so frustrated with Key Stage 3!

This was a piece of year 9 work, i liked it because it was expressive and she was unafraid to make bold marks in her work.

'The Secret Garden' Exhibition

Just a few images from our exhibition.

Due to the exhibition Chapel being much bigger and having much more floor space than we'd expected we put in another couple of pieces of free standing work. I made some more embroidered teabags as well and exhibiting my ceramic work.

After a lots of setting up, painting, cleaning and preparing the Private View was busy and bustling. Thanks to Lindors Country House Hotel who provided copious amounts of free wine!

We had over 500 visitors over the week and over all it was a huge success.

Recent Tea Bowls

Just a few more of my recent tea bowls, these are simply reduction glazes on stoneware clay.

I like the wide rimmed ones best.

Spoons for Stroud

So i'm nearing a conclusion on the spoons for Stroud. after a fairly massive change of direction, i decided i would have to forget the idea of embedding my lace in resin for a while because of the short amount of time until the pieces have to be submitted for the exhibition (and also because the casting workshop at uni is shut AGAIN because the technician is stranded in Portugal)

These spoons are constructed on top of the wooden tea spoons "borrowed" from the canteen at uni, with lace, reclaimed teabags, old pattern paper and lots and lots of PVA glue. all mounted on " Jesse Elizabeth's Tea Tray".

Women of Studio Pottery - Lucie Rie

Lucie Rie was born in Vienna in 1902 and moved to england in her early career where she met Hanz Coper. Together they became two of the most renowned studio potters in recent history.

I think i'm particularly interested in Lucie Rie's work because of the fact that she is a woman and there is a very obvious lack of women in the ceramics and studio pottery industries.

Her work with the form of the bowl is very relevant to my tea bowl project at the moment.

Here are some of her works!