White Wedding

I've found the answer to a smaller waist and a flat tum - no dieting or exercise required.  Gina, Pam and I went to an exhibition of corsets at Hitchin Museum yesterday, and they had some that you could try on.  With some assistance I got mine done up (it fitted marginally better once I realised I'd had it on back to front to start with.  Apart from the trimmer figure, I think it would make you stand and walk straighter, and probably move more gracefully.

There were some pretty wild claims for the health benefits of corset-wearing in the old adverts displayed.  Apparently they cured rheumatism, gout, brain fag(?!?) lethargy and digestion.  Obviously Advertising Standards weren't around then.

There were some pretty ones too, I particularly liked these

Maybe I'll make one.

Changing the subject just a bit, I don't know whether you'll have heard or not, but there's going to be a wedding today.

  

Incidentally, do you know how to work out your 'Royal' name.  It's the name of your Nan or Grandad, with the name of your first pet, and then the street you grew up on.  So mine is Gladys Bunty-St Leonard.  And my sister is Violet Snowball-St Leonard.  Let me know what yours is (oh come ON, don't pretend you haven't just worked it out!)

I'm neither pro- or anti-Royalist.  They are just there, and I don't mind.  They provide a little entertainment from time to time, some of them work hard, some of them wear or say odd things, but generally they don't interfere with me and I don't interfere with them.  And I'm not sure that getting rid of them, to replace them with someone else, would necessarily be an improvement.

So, although I didn't feel the need to throw a street party, or hang out bunting, or camp out in Parliament Square for a week - which would probably entail all the bad points of Glastonbury, but with none of the good -  I will watch it on the box, and I'll be interested in the frock, and I really hope it doesn't rain - as much for the bride's sake, as for the fact I've just hung some washing out.

This evening though, I will be going to see a Sex Pistols tribute band.  It's all about balance.

White Wedding - Billy Idol

Come On Down

Just a quick one.
If you are in or around Hertford tomorrow - do try and come along to the all-new Arts and Craft Market in the Corn Exchange (in Fore Street).  It's going to be a monthly event and I'm really looking forward to it.  I've not got a stall or anything, but maybe in the future....

Hope to see you there.

Come on Down - The Kooks

Get Happy!

I rang my little sis (Patchwork Linda) this morning who told me off for my miserable post on Friday night and said I hadn't mentioned all the nice things I'd done.  And it's true, I had intended to, I just needed to get my theatre trip off my chest, and then I ran out of time.  Anyway, it's now time to redress the balance.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a relaxing few days in Norfolk at my parents - with proper dinners (thanks Mum!) some lovely  walks in the sunshine

and with the added bonus of a surprise present from my sister (I can't think WHY she thought of me when she saw this)

Then the following weekend I met up with Linda again, and her Norfolk based patchwork group The Flying Geese for their annual "Go It Alone" weekend at Belstead House near Ipswich.

Yeah, I know, I'm not a patchworker, I'm not a member of her group, and I don't even live in Norfolk, which just proves that it's not WHAT you know. Belstead House is one of the rapidly diminishing number of Adult Training Centres, and it runs a wide variety of courses throughout the year, including lots of arty-textile-y weekends.  If you fancy going, you'd better get in quick because it's due to close in 2012  which will be a real shame.  It's a lovely venue, with excellent tutors and the food is great.  So great that you feel compelled to go for a walk before breakfast just to burn off a few of the previous day's calories. That's the house in the background.

As I don't really do patchwork, I took the opportunity to finish off some projects that have been hanging around for a while - I sewed up a jacket knitted in denim yarn, I tacked together a dress that I found in the depths of my fabric cupboard, that I'd obviously cut out years ago and forgotten about.  I'm not big on tacking but I thought I'd better check it was going to fit - which it does, so I will now finish it, oh  and I made a bag.  Linda, who is a prolific patchworker, cut out and put together a quilt of her own design 

and, not only that, finished loads more of the Liberty fabric hearts that she's making into a double bed quilt.

It's going to look beautiful.

And finally, on Saturday I went to Berkshire to visit my friend Lynn for the weekend, and to start her off with some machine embroidery tuition.  We had a lovely time stitching and chatting - we had a lot to catch up on, as we've not seen one another for a couple of years.  Lynn was showing me her new bedroom, and when she opened her new wardrobe doors, I just had to get my camera and take a picture.  I thought you only saw wardrobes like this in style magazines

So much colour!  Although I have to say, mine is colour coordinated too - everything's black.  

So, that's more or less it, apart from the odd stint at Leyton Orient, a few days at work, and a brilliant gig at KoKo in Camden - Jim Jones Revue   No, I didn't know much about them either.   They describe themselves as Punk Rock Blues, and I'd say it's a bit 'Jerry-Lee-Lewis-on-speed'.  A really good night, and my ears are nearly better now.

Get Happy - Rufus Wainwright (as Judy Garland)

Never Again!

I have just wasted three hours of my life.  I talked my poor friend Jill into coming to see a production of "The Birthday Party" by Harold Pinter at a local theatre.  

The evening didn't start well - we had deliberately arrived in good time so we could have a look at an art exhibition displayed there.  It had apparently been massively over-subscribed with entries and consequently, we were told that everything was of a very high standard.  Now, I accept that everyone has different tastes, and you can't expect to like all the pieces in an exhibition - but to be honest I'd have been hard pushed to find anything that I'd want as a gift.  Of particular note were two cheap 9" canvases liberally smeared with thick nasty green and mustard paint.  It wasn't even skillfully smeared. I can only think that whoever judged the entries sees things differently to me.

When I say I wasted three hours, I suppose that's a slight exaggeration. After all, I enjoyed the walk down into town and back, and the lemonade I had during the interval was very, er,  lemony.

But I'm afraid to say the play was absolutely dire - I had no idea what it was about;  before, during or after the performance (and neither had Jill - and she's got a degree and everything!) so I came back and read up about it on t'interweb, and I'm still none the wiser. 

The best bit was when two women in the audience, who had clearly been partaking of something considerably stronger than lemonade, decided they've had enough of the play, and stumbled up out of the auditorium, tripping and giggling, and then you could hear the click-clack of their heels as they clattered all the way along one aisle and back, and then all the way down another aisle, in an attempt to make good their escape.

  

No, that's definitely enough of the highbrow stuff for me, I'm sticking to loud rock'n' roll from now on.

I'd intended to report about the other stuff I've been doing, with pictures of things I've made, but to be honest, after tonight, I feel completely underwhelmed.

"NEVER AGAIN" - yeah, I know it's Nickleback, but after tonight, even THEY don't seem so bad.

ON THE (Right) ROAD AGAIN!

Ooh dear, been a while again hasn't it?  I hope you haven't all gone away to be friends with someone more  prolific and reliable.  

Had a lovely day out with Gina yesterday at the Fashion, Embroidery and Stitch Show at the NEC.  (Look, don't say anything to Gina, but a quick word of advice -  if she ever offers to navigate for you, just get yourself a SatNav)  I'm just joking really - we only went very slightly wrong, and it was definitely a team effort.

Besides, her job of navigator was really just a secondary role.  Her primary task for the day was to act as 'Purse Police' so that I didn't spend too much, as is usually the case.  And it worked- I was very restrained by my standards and I only bought this little selection

Four little bits of gorgeous silk fabric from here, three bags of sequins, a roll of batik-y type fabric, some cobwebby synthetic stuff (not sure what I wanted that for but it was only 1.50 a metre, so it'll be cheap to experiment with/forget-about&lose) and a Vintage Vogue pattern (although that came free with a trial subscription for two issues of a magazine, so was a bargain)  There was one other thing but that's going to be a present so I'm not telling you about that, although I'll try to remember to show you when it's made some time in the future.  

My sister says she's very impressed and Gina is obviously a very good influence on me.

We spent quite a lot of time looking at the exhibititors' work - we had a long chat to Lynda Monk who was demonstrating some brilliant techniques on her stand - really want to do another workshop with her soon, and also to Laura and Linda Kemshall - I wish my sketchbooks looked like theirs.

We were both taken with this outfit which was made by a fashion student.  

I'd love to tell you her name and which college she was from but I'm afraid she wasn't on the stand and I don't know.  Anyway, we spoke to her tutor (I think it was Warwickshire College but I'm not certain) and the outfit was apparently made from a pair of old curtains - the coat was cream coloured jacquard fabric that had been machine couched with pink thread, and was lined with the curtain lining. The neckline of the dress was edged with free machine lace.  Really lovely - and certainly doesn't look like upcycled curtains.  

A really lovely show - although not sure how the NEC can justify £1.80p for a cup of tea, without milk or sugar.  Maybe I should take my own teabags next time.

And what else have I been doing?  Well I made a couple of these

one of which I gave to my friend Val for her birthday, and I made this (poorly photographed) bracelet at our post-C&G embroidery group, using Aquabond, machine-made braids and free machining.

The Embroidery Group With No Name now DOES have a name - we are going to be called SPECTRUM (See, this is why I don't get anything done, I'm too busy 'colouring in' on here) Some time ago we had initially come up with 'Tension' for want of any other inspiration,  but none of us liked that, and in fact some of us positively hated it - I couldn't bring myself to write 'Tension Group' in my diary for fear that anyone seeing it would think I belonged to a self-help group for stressed women of a certain age.  Anyway, we're SPECTRUM now.  Sorted.

On The Road Again - Canned Heat

Pretty in Pink

In the last week I have been for a walk along the towpath beside the canal, just as the sun was going down

to a beautiful sunset

I've made a little box with free machining on metal,

And I've made another flower brooch, but this time, instead of using paper, I used some recycled plastic-y metallic ribbon, which I had saved from my Christmas presents, (much to some of my family's amusement.)

So, slightly less subtle that last weeks, but if you think the brooch is a bit lurid - you should see the pink cakes I made!
Oops, too late.
Pretty in Pink - The Psychedelic Furs

Personality Crisis.

I've had a great (and quite productive) week.  I think it must be because it seems as if Spring is on it's way.

Wednesday was the meeting of our embroidery group, and Gina showed us how to make handmade books, and I finished two - the colours are a bit naff, but it was just a practice.  

The bigger of the two is a hardback cover, and the small one has lots of little folded pockets.  As I say, the choice of colours leaves a bit to be desired, and the folded cover of the little book should really be in card rather than paper, but you get the general idea.

Then on Thursday, it was beading - at the moment I'm beading around sparkly rivolis with a view to connecting them together with other round elements and making them up into a necklace.  

On Friday I met my sister at Textiles in Focus where we had a lovely day.  We did a workshop called Mini Textile Masterpieces run by Bonnie Osbourne.  I came home and finished mine.

On Saturday it was another workshop - this time with the Embroiderers' Guild, tutored by Jill Flower.  It was brilliant - I've wanted to do a workshop with Jill since I first saw her work at the Knitting and Stitching Show a couple of years ago.  And, believe it or not, I finished one brooch while I was there -

and another was well on it's way and I finished it when I got home.  

There are lots more pictures of the brooches that everyone else made on Gina's blog.

The only slight problem, is that whenever I go on a workshop and make something new or learn a new technique, I want to spend the rest of my life devoted to doing whatever we learnt that day.  So, I've had a bit of a crisis of personality this week - one minute I'm a bookbinder, then I'm a jewellery maker, then I'm a minature artist.

Just so long as I don't become a cook.

Personality Crisis - New York Dolls