I’ve been choosen to go on a desert Island!
Well, not me but my crochet!
Shaz, on her blog thesockgarden which has fantastic photography of her witty creations in situ, (I mean, whats not to love!)
does interviews with fellow craftspeople and this week spoke to amyorangejuice. I really enjoy reading how other people got started doing what they love and where their inspiration comes from.
One of the questions was:
If you were stuck on a desert island and were allowed to take one new crafting project with you based on something you admire in another shop, what would it be?
Amyorangejuice replied that she would love to master crochet and would like to take something from my shop as inspiration! Talk about chuffed! So thank you Shaz and amyorangejuice, you’ve made my day!
My inspiration
A rather grand title really!
I was browsing the internet last night (couldn’t sleep), going from link to link when I realised how much I ‘take’ from it and from peoples sites and blogs, looking at their links and so on and seeing all these wonderful ideas and objects that I wouldn’t have found otherwise, when I thought that actually, I should share some of mine.
The only connection will be that I like it, they maybe from shops, blogs, museums, old and new, but occasionally I will share, and not just talk about myself!
So, first up – but how can I choose, when you start to think about it there is so much – I never really did get back to sleep last night, once I got the idea my mind was full of images.
Finally I settled on Alison Watt, one of my absolute favourite artists. I saw her work in the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, in an exhibition called Shift in 2000. It was purely by chance, we were there with my parents, a last break before our first was born.
I was blown away, these huge paintings of folds and drapes in fabric with minimal colour. So deep and tactile, so strangly moving. There is something about almost bare images, focusing on small details that we miss, particually within textiles that always draw me in, especially when explored in huge scale.
For more information, and to see more pictures like these 3 go to Ingley Gallery, or just google Alison Watt, trust me, you’ll be browsing for hours!
Presents!
Not for me mind!
Do you know, I love being a mum, It really is the best feeling in the world – to say it is all encompassing doesn’t seem to be enough. Nothing at all can beat the feelings of pride, joy and love, nothing. But with every ying there has to be a yang, and boy, has this been a week of yangs!
However, I’ve deleted this post several times now and will not inflict on you my rantings, musings and then platitudes that we all fall back on, what I will do is show you a picture of a few little pressies I’ve made the lovely women folk in my life. Its a rubbish photo, I’m showing it more as a reminder for me, but Aunty Irene, Aunty Marg, Nan and Mum – love you lots!
Must stop experimenting…
I didn’t realise how much of a short attention span I must have, there’s me, complaining about my boys and their severely short attention spans and it turns out they must take after me. This keeping a blog thing has made me realise that I’m great at getting ideas, often turning them into reality (either by mistake or design) but what I am incapable of doing is following them through with further progression – its always onto the next idea.
So no more! I have ‘experimented’ with my last new idea, I am only going to explore ideas I have already set in motion, like this one I started yesterday…
Its made from scraps of Amy Butler fabric I’ve had for a while, a bit of an old dress, an old shirt and a favourite but broken necklace, and of course a bit of crochet, a double shell trim that I extended to fit the flap.
I boxed the corners and lined it with interlining to give it some stiffness so it retains its shape. I’m now envisaging a whole range of them, all the same shape but with different fabrics and crochet bits SO I’M NOT GOING TO LOOK IN OR WRITE IN MY IDEAS BOOK. I’m going to work on this for a while, and my curtain ring jewellery, I think that can go a lot further too.
So it is written down I am only going to work on those two ideas, although its half term next week so If I manage to do anything it will be a miracle!
On a last note, the latest issue of that fab magazine Beads and Beyond has a tutorial for my Miyuki earrings. Those flowers are what I made that evening necklace and my beautiful green bracelet from as well – ooh – another idea I need to pursue…
A cushion fit for a pin
I do think its nice to have nice objects around you, they inspire you, make you smile, remind you of those special moments. I have too many of these objects, I’m a complete hoarder of shells, stones, photos, bits of glass, old cotton reels,prints and of course various crocheted objects! Fortunately for me my boys appear to have inherited this too, much to my husbands annoyance – so not only do we have my special bits, all right, everywhere, so to do we have their equally special objects (though theirs do seam to feature lots of elastic bands…)
I have a range of beautiful crochet hooks, threads and scissors, but looking at my pincushion I realised that it is functional, definately not beautiful.
The perfect excuse to make a new one, though I got a bit carried away with ideas
So these will be going into my folksy shop!
Clicking and clicking
With hooks and mouse! First off today a bit of experimenting – with cassette tape, (an old Prodigy one from my long distant carefree youth…) I’ve had this idea to make oversized chains for a while but hadn’t come up with what material to use. While doing a bit of cleaning (we’ve got visitors coming) I saw a plant pot cover I’d crocheted in video tape a while ago, it was going to be a bag but it was too noisy – but perfect as a glamerous pot cover! One thing lead to another and they need a bit of fine tuning, but what do you think? And do you think The Prodigy would approve?
Next up, I’m going out! I know, can you hear the fanfare too? Anyhow, I got this gorgeous dress in the sales, bright emerald green, quite 50’s in style. I thought perfect occasion to wear my new glamerous necklace I made, the one with the wire flowers… but it doesn’t go.
So I made a bracelet that does!
Finally, I’ve also been spending, but not too much, honest! Thanks to the Craft Neutral Challange I’ve only bought some jump rings this year, eveything I’ve made has been from my stash, and that includes several necklaces, bracelets, earrings, scarflettes and gloves! And after all, we have to support the wonderful craftspeople we have!
So, after browsing through researching some of my favourites shops on Folksy I saw these gorgeous brooches by the amazing artist Amy McCarthy
They are recyled beer bottle tops filled with various found objects like shells, bits of old jewellery, shards of glass and set in resin. I think this one is my favourite
or maybe this one
Check out Amys other fabulous glass products in her folksy shop!
Vintage Lace
No ramblings today, I’m busy making jewellery – new ideas – will post more when I have something to show!
So a nice piccie
Crocheted flowers waiting to go onto hairslides
and a bit of shameless promotion
I’ve put my Vintage Lace bracelet that I made for February’s issue of Beads and Beyond in my folksy shop – its a good Valentines day present!
