Taking things Further

At last I can give some thought to the take it further challenge for April .

'How do you see change?'

Change is all around us, all the time. It is impossible to shut ourselves away and ignore it. From birth to death our circumstances change almost daily. Maybe these are imperceptible at the time, but in retrospect they are there. We love to watch babies grow and develop. Each tiny change is a mark of growth and a small step nearer to final independence. The seasons change, and with them the scenery and the way we face the world. How much easier it is to face a day of sunshine than a day full of grey skies and rain. Here in the UK, and I think in other parts of the world too, we have had to face a spring of strange and uncertain weather - climate change has certainly made itself felt.

I think I am going to approach this from the point of view of changing techniques. I haven't fully decided, but I am probably going to use a new technique and combine it with one from my past. Let's see what happens. I could always change my mind ...

Oh, and watch out, I think I have three posts 'coming on' today - and that certainly is a change!

PHEW!

Why is it that as soon as you agree to do something with a deadline you can guarantee circumstances will change and make it impossible without a lot of stress. The following postcard should have been in the post weeks ago, and most of it has been finished for some time, but it needed assembling. I haven't missed the deadline, but this should have been an easy quick task.



Finally it is ready to go into the post. The silly thing is that now I can't find the link to show you where it is going. I'll have to hunt for it and tell you all later. The background is made on the embellisher, from an embellisher roll. I will be loading some of these on the Etsy site shortly (it should have been today, but I've run out of time.)

If you have been following the Take it Further challenge I hope you wil be impressed by the fact that I have made this in blue!

I've got the blues

I never work in blue. I have the greatest difficulty in working in blue, so I have chosen this colour for the Take it Further Challenge.

I have been playing around with paints and printing, and have come up with this design. I'm not sure if it's finished yet, I think it needs a little tweaking, but it is a start.

I'd be interested to have your thoughts.

January Take it Further Challenge

I have rashly decided to take part in Sharon Boggon's Take it Further Challenge. I tried to do the TAST challenge last year, but once a week was just too much to add to other committments. Hopefully a challenge that only has to be finished once a month will be easier to accomplish. The challenge for January has been posted. I have thought long and hard about it, just whom do I look up to and admire? I have come up with two names.

The first is Ann Stone. I am willing to bet that none of you have heard of her. She was a friend and neighbour for nearly 20 years. I first met her when she and her husband moved into the bungalow opposite. For many years she had been a professional dancer, and now she was able to indulge in her passion for art. Her paintings were amazing, but she had many other skills including stitching, and she was the first person I knew who created art from textiles. Her work inspired me to have a go, and Ann encouraged me on every step of the way, always telling me that I could do it, even when I had serious doubts about myself.

The second is someone I met almost by chance about 5 years later. I was now fully seduced by textiles, but needing a new direction. I was introduced to Vicky Lugg by a fellow stitcher, eventually spending a number of years attending her Masterclass in stitched textiles. Vicky was a very supportive mentor and teacher, her support for all her students going far beyond the call of duty, and enabling each of us to call her our friend.

So what was it about these two ladies that is so appealing? What is it that I particularly admire and wish to emulate? I have to say that it was their vulnerabiltiy. Each was willing to push the boundaries and expose parts of themselves in their work. Sadly, they are now no longer with us, but their inspiration lives on.

I'm not sure I can do this in a month. I'm not sure I'm brave enough to expose my vulnerability! However, I have at least admitted that here, and if I keep working away at it I may achieve something by the end of the year. Thanks for the challenge, Sharon. I'm willing to give it a go.