I do like pigeons!

I like pigeons a lot. We sometimes hand feed the ones near the RSPB reserve here in Weymouth. Look at those feathers. That sheen. Could I make one? 

So I gathered together an old (clean) sock, toy filling, string and wool, duct tape and pipe cleaners, and cobbled together this maquette. It’s a bit of a mess. But my daughter Mary adopted it after I’d finished using it to make patterns. 

Made my first pigeon using felted woollens cut without a seam allowance and oversewed with wool thread. Wings are added after the body is complete. The legs are wire covered in small pink woollen pieces and over stitched. I used beads from my stash for the eyes. 

Pigeon number 2 is made using dyed wool cloth, and embroidered thread to hint at those shimmers of magenta and green. 

I feel like their shape is better than the maquette form, and also surprisingly slightly larger. I was really pleased with them. 

This lead to a commission, to make Angus. A bit of a character by all accounts …

The wing markings were created using small fabric shapes and needle felting them. Needle Felting is like magic. 

And just so you know, here is the real Angus. 

Prayer flags at the Music festival

Prayers for our time, a lockdown project, are having a surprise outing. As I snuggled down on the sofa on Friday night with a book and my iPad I had a quick look at social media. I was glad I did. Stuart Semple posted that his sister was urgently in need of artwork, after some local artists had to pull out. 

So I emailed right away, just really felt lead to. After finding out it was in the Priory itself, and not say, a church hall, I knew I had to show her my lockdown project. 

We arranged to meet and hubby was only too keen to help out. At the priory, it was he who suggested we use the window bars to hang the pieces using our twine and fishing line. 

Here are the remaining 18 pieces from the full set of 20. And me! 

And my blurb, printed before 8am on a Saturday morning and stitched to a pretty piece of paper! Lastly, here is the leaflet if you fancy some culture this weekend.  Art will be on display on Sunday too. 

I would like to do some more assembled pieces. Looking for inspiration. And time! 

Prayers for our time ....

As lockdown life continues, I keep making the prayer flags ...

Love is something we all need and may miss forms of, the love of hugging or holding someone, the face of someone we love. So we do acts of love, phoning a friend or delivering practical help. Love has arms and legs ... 

We can be thankful for our lives and pray for the lives of those we love. We mourn for others. We stay at home to preserve more lives. 

In all the doubt we seek truth. This prayer flag will be aired on Sunday. But for now hangs in my hallway.

I’ve got a sweet little collection going. And a collection of driftwood and laces. Call me a gypsy ...

Prayers for our time, lockdown life ...

I’ve been working on a series of small textiles using scraps and what I have available. I have thought about them as an exhibition or event for quite sometime, but it wasn’t until now when we all took to our homes that working on them became important. I wanted them to be made from things I already have and to feature single words, perhaps something that could be prayed or spoken over something, a series of things to be thankful for. 

After running my idea past Nick The Vic each of them will be shared during the online Sunday church, and the first appeared last Sunday ... 

With no work available apart from house work and cooking it’s nice to have a little project on slow burn, and perhaps beyond lockdown too. It’s also very satisfying to hit that stash and create something that might reach further than I can. Feel free to comment with any single word prayers or blessings or words for things we should be grateful for during these crazy times. Practising thankfulness is very powerful indeed. Love you xxx 

Heads and tails ....

More barn owl making, as one will be on display at the library from the 24th of February ....

I love it when the recognisable parts start to appear ...

Spirit of the Sea again!

I am getting ready to exhibit with Artwey this weekend at  Dorset Sea Food Festival

I have been given an enormous pair of waders ... so long i have to turn the tops down to pull them up!

And I have been busy altering them, too - what could i be doing with these then? Any ideas?

More Picasso!

This is fun ... !