Inspired and unfocused

Inspired and unfocused - that just about describes how I felt last Saturday after my visit to the textiles exhibition. I want to do it all and to start now. That's very typical of my way of doing things. Part of my personal process at the moment - and with this course specially is to get the discipline to do one thing (or 3 - but no more!) at the time, and most importantly: to finish what I start.

A while ago I started a project: the Beltane top. A simple pattern for a top made out of  lovely deep green silk with colourful embroidery. I decided to complete this top now I'm working on the stitching section of the course.

Here are two pictures of the Beltaine top:

First I draw the design, then I embroider the flowers with a combination of mirrors, beads and chain stitch.

Because chain and cross stitch are something I've experimented with a fair amount in the past I'm now working with different stitches. I produced a little sample to try some of the stiches from the manual.

I discovered what my old sewing machine can do by playing around with different settings and combinations - this time I have written underneath each row of stitches how they were achieved so I have a useful record for when I need to get a specific effect, instead of spending my life 'reinventing the wheel' as I tend to do.

After being relatively disciplined I 'treated' myself to a bit of crazy stitching to see the pictorial qualities I could achieve with only one colour on a 'free' stitching spree. Then I went back to the manual to see what to do in the next stage: working from images. (I feel I still could do with more experimenting with the machine and will do more next weekend, as part of this next stage.)

For this stage I've been looking through my books on different artists (Monet, The Impressionists, The Surrealists, Klimt, Sorolla, Dali, and even architects like Gaudí) - I've decided to concentrate in two pieces of work by well known artists (one by Van Gogh and another one of Picasso's sketches) - I chose those two because of their very different styles - one all curves and colour and the other more geometrical and black and white - this work will lend itself to my experimenting with different stitches on the sewing machine.

I have chosen to work with the sewing machine over natural calico with black cotton for the Picasso sketch and in hessian with yarns, by hand, for the Van Gogh interpretation. I'm looking forward to getting started on this work.

As usual I keep having ideas to do other things, so to keep my hyperactive imagination happy (use it or lose it!) I carry a little notebook in my handbag where I write notes of my ideas.

I did order a few materials and now they're all arriving - the post is getting very exciting delivering fabrics, threads, felting wool, dyes, paints... I love arriving home from work to open the parcels. I feel a bit frustrated that I cannot give more time to designing and making textile pieces, however, I've got some days booked around Easter and I might have a go at felting this weekend.

The BBC programme about weaving was also very inspiring and look forward to that section of the course.

I am NOT getting a weaving loom... just yet ;-)

Another confession: I've just ordered a natural dyeing kit... those yards of natural calico are shouting to be 'enriched' with colour...

Some pictures of my course work coming soon.