Mr Seal

ok, so it might not LOOK like a seal, but it is! I went walking along the river the other evening and there he was.....lounging around on the dock

of course, had debated whether to bring my camera with me or not......not - so this is from my phone

am getting ready to pack up the studio for a few weeks

tomorrow is Date Night with husband in Norwich, next day; a swim in the North Sea and visit with in-laws

Sunday, another Date Night in London

Monday (early) flight to the States!

complicated travel.......complicated bag usage and storage options

as usual

not sure how much stitching stuff I'll be doing - I am bringing the goldfinch to work on

and am quite keen to try a new idea (with wax!!)

will show you what I come up with.......if I come up with anything

a bit early, but have a great weekend

see you across the pond!

and thank you to everyone who comes by to see what I am doing

it is a great advantage

this is the piece that I worked on while doing the "rook"......always work on more than one thing so I can go back and forth when things aren’t quite going right on one.......then switch back after a little time away

I also have some new backgrounds drying and ready to start tomorrow too

I only have until this Thursday to get everything done

Friday, I am off to Suffolk to visit the in-laws and then Monday morning, I fly off to the States to see my parents again

you can’t really see, but the background are sheets of music........hopefully the notes and things will show up a bit better when it is dry

and this is a.......what is this?? one of those sets of embroidered linens people used to put onto their dressing tables - there are usually two end pieces and a larger one for the centre.......think this is the centre part, altho it isn’t that large

ANYWHO........am thinking a little goldfinch might look sweet on here

my Dad, if his platelets are strong enough, will have his last super-strong chemo today and next week when I am there, will be his last chemo........he has been doing amazingly well and hope it continues (I feel a bit strange writing about it..so think I’ll stop)

oh! I went for a walk along the river last evening.......and saw a seal!! sitting on a little dock - I have heard about him.......he comes up the river every now and again

if I figure out where I put the cord to get the photos off my phone - will post!

such an odd sight

hope everyone is having a good week so far

and thank you, thank you for stopping by!

__a

preview party

last night was the preview for the Artists United show I was involved in

was a great turnout and really well put together

Sonia did a great job coordinating all the different works to show them cohesively

the show goes on until Sunday afternoon

it is sweltering here today.......

hope everyone keeps cool and has a lovely weekend

__a

thanks for being here

is it finished??

I think it might be!

wow...who-da thunk I'd pull it out of the bag! well, actually, I thought perhaps eventually I would - with invaluable insight and suggestions (and a few small "discussions") from husband (thank you!!)

I added more stitching in the background and a "river" of threads to pull it all together

think I will also keep the threads hanging off the background

was hoping to finish and go up to London tomorrow, but might need to be here again - Simon, the framer said he'd help me adhere it to a white backing and put it into my frame

whew!

the show!

this is the show I have been so kindly included

today I worked on my rook - got pretty far along......and then realised I have a picture of two halves

I like one side, but not the other! am toying with the idea of cutting it in half, altho I already gave the show the dimensions.......or use the frame I had selected but am not sure if there would be too much space around

one dilemma after another! haha.......well, at least I like part of it now

the weather just keeps going on and on......incredible (for a British summer)

we got up early and went for a walk in our local garden - the flowers were just exploding everywhere

this past Sunday, as I am sure you know, was a holiday in the US - I opened my door Sunday morning to see a group of people walking by all dresses in Colonial clothes! bit of a shock

then I realised, they were erecting a statue to Thomas Paine in front of our local library

he lived in Lewes for a while before moving (actually, escaping) to America and starting all that Revolution business

hope everyone else ahd a nice weekend

and as always.......thank you So much for your comments - and come back soon!

__a

a studio full of rooks

I got a studio full of rooks!

I started yet another one the past couple of days and this is the one I am going to go with, I think........

a painter friend of mine, Marco, who was the one to invite me into this show, came by and took a quick look and seemed to like what I was doing. So now I have a bit more confidence (woulda been nice if I could do that for myself, but there you go.....) have also had some very nice and encouraging words from Susanna, who is an amazing blogger/artist/photographer

(check out her blog!)

anywho......

have been working away - haha.......ok, have been finding all sorts of other things to do and then squeezing in rook-work - I even managed to start on another piece, just to keep away for a bit longer!

need to add more to this, just not sure what yet

yet another day of sunshine here in the southeast........what a British summer!

thanks for stopping by!!

__a

oh.......sigh

well, cannot say this has been a very good day - in so many ways.......

it started pretty well with my camera finally working (guess those 99p batteries from the flea market weren’t such a good idea) and it also is yet another sunny, hot day - which is always a surprise and a big plus

then.......am in the studio and it is really not going well

the show is still a week away so I still have time to figure this all out - but am not happy with anything I have done so far.......probably because I am actually trying for a change - maybe too hard

I usually do things more spontaneously.......or without much direction.......or I usually at least have a vague idea what I want it to look like, or the feeling - but this one is really........uh.........vague

anyway - am now second-guessing my rook idea......my backgrounds are not coming out quite right so I keep making more.......the background I like, the rook looked funny, etc

panic is seeping in

*yet more backgrounds*

*close up of a rook......on a crummy background.....and just made a hole in it!*

won’t even mention the part about how it looked in focus on my camera and then turns out like this......

*more fuzzy rook*

*ok, this fuzzy photo is just being artistic* ha

both of the offenders.......but on a good note; I got a little bag full of bits of lace and silk for £1 on the way to work yesterday......perfect dingy brownish oldy-worldy colours

bought samphire and sardine fillets from the fishmongers for tonight.......maybe that will cheer me up a bit

and tomorrow.......start again.......or start over...or continue on.........??

hope everyone else is having better creative times and a lovely weekend

it’s supposed to be really hot here!