Work in Progress.

This is as far as I have got with the book I started making on Frances Pickering's workshop at the beginning of the month.  Our theme was the 1920s.   Front cover above and back cover below.

There is still quite a lot of tweaking and finishing to be done.

I am a slow worker on workshops so cheated and traced these first few designs, especially as I am way out of my comfort zone drawing the human figure - as you can see below!   

Some made a book full of shoe or hat designs, others concentrated on architecture, but I decided to go for a bit of everything.  I came across this rubber stamp and thought she was perfect for 'Poor Little Rich Girl'.   I tried to transfer the photocopy of Noel Coward directly onto fabric but it was not a success, so I just used another photocopy and bonded it to the page.

These are pictures from the General Strike of 1926.  My mother worked in London then and travelled to and from by train.   She remembered the volunteer train drivers regularly overshooting the platform and having to reverse so the passengers could get on and off the train.

A little 'flapper' dress.  I have tried to suggest a 1920s bedroom wallpaper with my chosen fabrics and may add a couple more elements to finish the page off.   The dress folds either way and you see the back of it when it is folded to the left.

I still have a lot more drawing to do as well as finishing off the pages I have already started.  I now wish I had tea dyed the fabric first - I'm sure it will be very grubby by the time I have finished, especially the cover.

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I looked up from washing up the lunch things the other day and saw no less than 7 longtailed tits on the fatball feeder.   Needless to say, by the time I had fetched the camera most of them had gone and as you see here, a bluetit has joined in.   There must have been 10 or 12 long tailed tits altogether as several were just hopping about in the honeysuckle above them.   The bluetits are adorable but slightly bossy and when a crowd of them arrived the longtailed tits all went.

Too Many Photos!

I have just enjoyed a wonderful weekend Masterclass with Frances Pickering at Hawkwood College, just outside Stroud, Gloucestershire.  It has an atmosphere of faded grandeur and tranquility so the visitor can't help but relax.  The rooms are very comfortable and the food is excellent.  I think most of it is grown or produced on site and the chef(s) really know their business.  We were all talking of dieting this week!

The views from the house are stunning - my photos were taken on my pre-breakfast walk on Sunday morning.

It was a perfect morning. . . . .

. . . . and someone else was up even earlier than I.

I think some of the sheep wanted a lie-in.

The cows were up,

but one lazy pig was still in bed.

In spite of the warm sun there was definitely a feeling of autumn just around the corner.

This lovely lace cap hydrangea was beside the path.

There were twenty of us in the studio which is a perfect place to work in - so light, airy and spacious. Hanging in one window was this delightful piece of stained glass work.  Unfortunately I didn't think to find out who had made it.

Frances gave me permission to take photos of her own work.  Our theme for this workshop was Art Deco or the Roaring Twenties.

Then I went on to photograph some of my fellow students work.

It was fascinating to see the variations in interpretation of our given theme.  I was so busy myself I only had time to photograph about half a dozen student's work and haven't photographed my own yet.  They will have to wait for another post.   This was my third visit and I have signed up for next year and hope that the friends I made this year will be there next September.

What has happened to summer?

These photos were all taken last week when it still seemed to be summer.  I took them during a break from gardening and was hoping to catch the sparrows having a drink or a bath in our mock waterfall, but no such luck.

The garden seemed to be full of young blackbirds for days.  Great big fledglings, larger than the parent birds, and chirruping loudly as they urged Mum and Dad to keep feeding them.   They also enjoyed sunbathing and made the most of it.

I am always trying to get a good shot of bees gathering nectar.  Not a good photo here but you can just about see one on the marjoram.

No such luck on the lavender.  They either moved round to the other side of the flowers or flew off. I must learn to focus more quickly!

I did catch this tiny moth on a clematis leaf.  It's colours are bleached out here but they were wonderful.

 This peacock butterfly obliged me, but they too are so busy and can't keep still long enough for a good picture and just as I am about to press the shutter, they so often close their wings.

This is my next task - there is a path through there somewhere and I must find it again.

Our little friend here has had a few problems lately.   I posted about her having her right eye removed owing to glaucoma and a new lens put into the left eye.  Last week she had to have several teeth removed and was very wobbly for a day after the extractions.  She is very resilient and seems to have bounced back to her normal happy self and we can't call her Dog Breath any more!

Since I took these photos the weather has been more autumnal than summery with a distinct smell of autumn in the air.  We have had strong wind, heavy rain and quite cool temperatures, interspersed with muggy humid conditions.  Maybe next week I shall be able to sit outside again.

Hello!

I couldn't resist taking photos of these zinnias which are just coming into bloom.

I have grown them from seed and love their bright but chalky colours.  They have lots of buds so I hope to have many more flowers to enjoy.

 These cosmos are more of my 'babies' and are starting to fill out nicely.  I collected a number of packets of free seeds of annuals last autumn and winter so had a busy time potting them up and planting out earlier in the year.   Most of them have already done their stuff and others have been spoiled by all the strong winds we have had but the rest are brightening up the garden nicely.

This clump of verbena is one of last years babies and looking quite grown up now.  I love it and have some in the front garden too.  If they all set seed we shall have to rename the house - Verbena something or other.  Jungle comes to mind especially if I get engrossed in a textile project!

I  have been waiting for the plant in the centre above, to grow enough to identify it.  Goody goody, I'm sure it is a foxglove, but I didn't plant it and it is too close to the lawn but I will get the blame!

There is another one to the left of that nice little clump of hardy geranium - they are all self sets and will all have to be moved further back.  I'll wait until the ground is nice and wet and dig nice big holes for them so they won't know they've been moved.

I wish these were eating apples instead of crab apples, but they are very decorative.  I was a bit dismayed to notice a definite scent of autumn in the air this afternoon.   I am still hoping for a bit more summer.  Maybe tomorrow will be just that, though the weather for the rest of the week doesn't sound too good for our area.

I see that the weeds are doing well with all the warmth and rain we have had.  I have been catching up indoors for a couple of days and reorganised my workroom today.  I always say I can't work when it's messy but when it looks neat and tidy I am reluctant to muck it up again!   I have too many ideas buzzing round my head to settle on any particular one.  Probably just as well, as there is still a lot to do outside and I am determined to get the garden 'put to bed' properly this winter.