Made by hand

Another trip to England...to mind my grandchildren. We've always made things together - puppets and theatres, cardboard box houses, books, dolls....this time it was small boxes. Well, I made some - my grandson was completely underwhelmed, preferring to play video games...my granddaughter was polite/kind enough to join in. Hers is the rainbow one.

Yes, the eyes are the wrong way up...











She does like sewing, so we also made a quilted pencil case - most of which she did herself...

I wonder if she likes rainbow colours...

A trip to the charity shops brought in a good haul of fabrics for the bird rug.

They're still not quite the dark teal I want, but as close as I could find.
                     The colours of my photos are sometimes nowhere near true to life - as in this one - no matter which setting I use. I think I'll have to bite the bullet and read the manual.

So now I have nine bundles of different strips to work with. I pull out one or two from each bundle and hook them almost at random...

And the good news is .... the patchwork is finally finished, with 28 feet of hand-sewn binding completed.

In 1970 I visited the American Museum at Bath and saw 19th century patchwork quilts for the first time.

They are displayed in these suspended glass cases so you can get right up close, and what I loved most about them was that some of the stitching wasn't that great...and I remember clearly experiencing a deep awareness that these had been made by hand, by real women. I suddenly felt a sense of connection with those unknown women who had cut and sewn the fabrics more than a lifetime ago.
The very first patchwork I made, six years later, was a Log Cabin cot cover for the baby I was expecting and I hand-stitched it all. 
(As I sat sewing by the window to get the most of the winter daylight, I did feel rather like a queen in some fairy tale.)

So maybe it would be faster to finish the binding on the machine, but I much prefer to do it by hand...with stitches that are not perfectly even.

 Front...(the colours are not true in this photo)

...and back... Because I'd sewn the blue binding to the front before working out the back, (plan ahead???)  I had to put some of the blue into the design, but there was only a very small piece of it left. There was a fair bit of redrawing and muttering..."if that one is six inches wide and that one is four, then...."

Not making it...

By the time I realised the foundry wouldn't be able to cast my pieces for the upcoming 'FORM' exhibition it was getting a little late to come up with something else and make it in time...it does take time for ideas to form properly; to get past the 'first thoughts' stage. Plus, I discovered that the old, slightly broken chair I was going to use has a bit of woodworm...and so far no-one I've asked has anything suitable. Work on the ship piece is slow - I'm not seeing it clearly at all yet and don't want to rush it just for the sake of having something even if I'm not happy with it.

It's funny what sometimes makes decisions for us..the size of the ship was in the end determined by the size of the biggest box I had...

I sort of, very vaguely know what I want for the figures...could do with more images but don't remember to whom I lent the book I need...and I guess I haven't found the right key words for an internet search to be all that useful...

This gradually grows into this...and they are making themselves...I'm just listening.

So, I've decided to opt out of this year's exhibition and make these pieces anyway, in my own time, without pressure...and if they end up in next year's show, all well and good but it doesn't matter if they don't.

I was asked to make some aprons for the local shop/gallery that has recently opened a cafe...and those I did make in time for an event they hosted last night.

Yes, it does occur to me that doing these 'little jobs' for people takes away time from other work, but it does feel good to get a few oohs and aahs...and it does also occur to me that it might be good to reflect on what I most want to use my time doing...

Speaking of which, the patchwork is nearly, nearly done.

 It's on the ironing board - when time and inclination coincide I stand there sewing the binding...

About two feet done, only another 26 to go....


And now for something else I did not make...

The hen workshop I was teaching at the Ennis Creative Arts Centre last weekend...

and the finished hens...

     

Making room

The week before Easter was spent making a duty visit. I was so glad that I'd made room in the suitcase for wools and hooks - making this little bag for my sister was one of the few pleasures of the time away.

Front...

I've left the flowers for her to sew on...or not.

And back...

Since getting home I've made some progress on her rug, having found  more pink and more teal fabrics in charity shops while away.

Front...the legs aren't showing well, I might have to redo them in a brighter blue.

 

and back...which do I like more???

Bleaching a T-shirt to get a speckled effect in the beak and the bit the bird is standing on..a hummock?

Could it be that my sister likes pink and turquoise?

A little progress has also been made on the patchwork this week. Having drawn out a plan, I tried out my block pattern for size, just to make sure....

...and in those in-between moments (waiting for the kettle to boil, on the way to bed) have started cutting out the pieces.

Now I just need to re-find the website on which there were the perfect plain black and red fabrics (yes, of course I made a note of it ...I wish!)

Over the course of the past few weeks I've been moving my work space out of the kitchen to the room my son built upstairs...it's still not fully sorted and arranged but I started work in there the other day. I see amazing, custom-built studio spaces on Pinterest (always unbelievably tidy) - mine is plasterboard and plywood, gaps around the windows are plugged with paper towel - but corny as it may sound, it is a dream realised.

There are of course pros and cons. I'm used to having everything in easy reach - tools, tape, glue etc. and I now need to duplicate some things so I'm not needing to run upstairs twenty times a day...but that's no big thing. Working away from the living space means I'm more focused, and having a much bigger room is already resulting in my thinking in terms of bigger pieces. The move has also meant that I went through everything (well overdue) and have thrown away a lot of stuff....but some has been just too difficult to let go of, even though I KNOW it won't be used again.

At the end of May I'm to take part in another 'FORM' exhibition and because this year there will be an indoor room, the plan is to submit some work in paper.
I've found that ideas come in layers, so to speak..what I call 'First Thoughts/ Second Thoughts etc. The first thoughts are often obvious and superficial, but a necessary part of the process...rarely shared with anyone. At this point they are like butterflies not fully emerged - fragile and vulnerable.

I'm reading a book by Emma O'Toole, in which she puts forward the idea that being a woman is mostly about performance...that we learn to 'act' our gender (isn't that also true for men?) and one of the ideas I'm working on is based on this....so these are the maquettes of the first thoughts...

The body works for me, but the theatre is too obvious..

Not sure about this either...

Too obscure? although I like the shape.... and what is it saying?

It may change drastically...or may not be made at all as a finished piece.

The other idea started a while ago as a moon-shaped boat with figures in it, so I began playing...it started as male figures...

 ...but by the next morning it had changed, and become "The Forgotten; Remembered"...the idea of the women who had been there too - at all the battles, the voyages, the migrations - but whose part is rarely mentioned in history books.

I may decide it's been done before, especially after looking up the work of John Behan. Maybe there isn't room for more figures in ships...

Making money (or art?)

It seems that in some people's minds, money and artists don't go together. Some years ago, in conversation with a young woman I said that what I was making was not financially viable. She was horrified that I would see my work in that way because "it's art''....and it wasn't until later that I thought of a smart (ish) comeback ( don't you hate when that happens?) ...I don't pay any less than anyone else for gas or food because what I do is 'art'. I'll admit that like many creative people I do give away my time and then grumble about people expecting something for nothing.
So - this time I didn't say "it's ok, it took only an hour". I've never yet met a solicitor or plumber who said that, which could be why I've never seen one driving a 15-yr old car either.
It possibly took a little longer than an hour...

Covered in cling-film (saran wrap in the USA, I think) and covered with alternate layers of newspaper and white paper...

....and some extra shape added with paper towel and masking tape...

more layers .... this is working at my lowest level of skill...

...and so is this...

I cut up sacking and glued it on...it was like a cross between putting sprinkles on a cake and sprinkling on glitter ....at this point I'm thinking they look like buns covered in bits of shredded coconut, which isn't that far off the mark...

...because it's a coconut bra.
I didn't enquire too closely at the time - I think it's for a man who is playing a mermaid in a stage performance...and a real coconut was too small.

Is it "Art"? If it is, then I didn't charge nearly enough for it.

Making decisions

On March 6th there was a phone call from a local school - would I be interested in doing something with the whole school for a morning on the 16th? Whole school = 18 pupils aged from 5-12. The age spread sounds a little tricky, but I say yes.
I come up with a plan, spend some hours doing research, gather materials and images for reference..the evening before have a little panic, wonder if  what I've planned is possible...

...but load the car anyway...

It was a full-on morning...and as usual when I'm running workshops, I'm too busy to remember to take many pictures. We made shadow puppets, masks and big puppets for a performance of the story of St. Patrick (what else do you do the day before St. P's Day?)

These are the sheep he minded while he was a slave..

and here is the High King of Ireland being constructed..

and this is Pope Celestine...
There were a LOT of shadow puppet pirates, and an amazing ship...

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

I've started a rug for my sister, who wants these colours. This one could take a while; it's proving hard to get enough of the right pink (there are about five different ones in there so far) and what looks like blue on the photo is actually a dark teal, which is even harder to find in suitable fabrics, so it may be a stop-start job.
Today I received via email, images of her latest rug from Lin, an American rug hooker whom I met on Pinterest.  I wish I could hide under the table...her website is on - www.iloverughooking.com
It's good to have something to aspire to, even if you know you're unlikely to ever get there.

Also today I finally finished the front of the patchwork. After dithering for a couple of days whether to add a border of 4 inches or 6 inches, the 4 inch won. Muttering to myself as I made notes on scraps of paper...19x4=76, add 4 each side...9 strips=396/ 10 strips=440 - I worked out that I did have just enough fabric. Having pinned nearly all of one side I realised I'd made a mistake, so it's unpin and repin. Then I decided I wanted a triangle on the corners..unpin again. (Seriously, it can't be only me in the whole world who does this sort of thing - can it?)
Now- do I want all four triangles the same? Making decisions takes longer sometimes than the actual making.

I wanted it bright...
And I've done what I always do - make the front and then puzzle over how to do the back...and I hardly ever have a big enough piece of fabric. Do I piece this backing, or have a plain one?
Decisions, decisions....

Making over

Making over, transfer possession of (thing to person) ...Concise Oxford Dictionary

Wrapped in clingfilm and bubble-wrap, securely padded with sofa cushions, the ram was made over today..

Made it...

Having asked yet another favour from Seamus and Adam, transport is arranged for the ram tomorrow...so I had to finish it by today or be very embarrassed.
Last week layers of paper went on - alternating newspaper with white, with extra layering (some of it as muslin soaked in PVA) on the added bits like hooves and knees...and a lot of waiting while it dried thoroughly.

5th March...only three days left...the final layer is on.

7th March...legs and face painted with 'not-black' (raw umber+ultramarine+cadmium red), starting to sponge the darkest shade...covering first one bit then another with cling-film and/or paper towels...Lying on the floor to paint the underneath.
Have to stop when daylight goes. Not happy with how it's looking.

Today, 5pm...some 'technical advice' (as he called it) from Adam, whose eye for colour is amazing ...he mixed a colour that looks much, much better... and the base coat is repainted, then two more coats of sponging, progressively lighter...more lying on the floor, pressing a sponge into rear-end crevices.

6.00 pm...and more covering of various bits as the horns are painted with a very dilute wash of raw umber, then it's into the dark/light roundabout...touch up the dark edges, accidentally touch off the light part...touch up the light area...see a bit you missed. At this point I'm almost standing on my head while trying to see around all angles of the horns. NB - if I should ever make anything like this again, I'd paint the horns before joining head to body...having the ears/horns/neck so close to close to each other on this side has made it very tricky to paint...although I did know it would.

6.30 pm... now to tie my hands behind my back, so I'll stop fiddling..it's finished.

I just wish I could have a better picture of it....