Demark

 

We flew from Aberdeen to Esbjerg in Denmark to begin our family summer holiday. After collecting a hire car, we drove for about an hour through countryside very much like Suffolk. Our home for the week was a functional lodge fitted out like a room-set from the IKEA catalogue.

 

We headed straight to Legoland, Billund the next morning. Fenella was unexpectedly sick in the car on the way so we had to stop and buy a new outfit. Legoland was very crowded and there were long queues for the loos, food and rides. We rode on a Lego train, monorail, observation tower, and Viking boat. I got soaked on pirate ships equipped with water pumps and I kept my eyes shut on the roller coaster. The model villages were fantastic so we stayed late and had a picnic supper.

 

The next day we explored the small town of Middelfart and visited the medieval house that was a museum. We sat under a huge umbrella at a street cafe in a heavy cloudburst before going back to the resort to try out the chilly unheated outdoor pool. Later in the evening we walked along the narrow strip of beach at Fanoe Sound where there were hundreds of jellyfish and Freya found an antique ceramic Carlsberg bottle top which was decorated with a pre Nazi version of a swastika. Using shrimp nets, the children caught a few small crabs then let them go. There was a beautiful sunset and we even glimpsed porpoises gliding through the water.

 

On Friday we visited Ribe, the oldest town in Denmark. It was very attractive with many old buildings and large weirs. The cathedral had been decorated with modernist mosaics, stained glass windows and paintings by Carl-Henning Pedersen. I was intrigued to notice that an ancient stone sarcophagus was carved with curved lines similarly to how I had quilted two of the Odin's Trilogy pieces. We sat outside a busy cafe to enjoy ice cream, waffles and coffee. There was a super amber shop and I bought a couple of strings of amber beads that I intend to use on my forthcoming Viking leather project. There was a very good museum of Viking and Medieval Life with plenty of interesting artefacts and we had a go at the quiz by working out the gist of the information in Danish however, there were not any Viking bog bodies. Amazingly, I spotted a small burial mound and dolmen across the road from the ice cream kiosk just outside Middelfart.

 

There was a jazz festival in Middelfart on Saturday and the town was busy with visitors. We managed to book train tickets online at the public library even though it was all in Danish. We stopped at the popular ice cream kiosk and almost felt confident enough to attempt ordering in stilted Danish.  I guessed that it should be something like, "Ein vaffel med to kugle...?"

 

On Sunday we took the bus and train to Copenhagen. The city was much busier and a bit scruffier than the small, quaint Danish towns. There seemed to be a lot of renovations going on.  There were many impressive buildings, several of which had been commissioned by Carlsberg magnate, Carl Jacobsen. We visited the art gallery with an impressive and priceless collection of French paintings and many ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman statues. From the roof terrace we could see some of the adrenalin fuelled rides at the oldest funfair in the world. We took rather a long walk to see the Little Mermaid statue which was far smaller than we expected. There was a more impressive Valkyrie bronze sculpture nearby. We walked back along the historic harbour front where old warehouses has been converted into trendy apartments and had open sandwiches at one of the terrace cafes. One day was not nearly enough to explore Copenhagen: we did not even have time to visit the Carlsberg brewery museum, Tivoli Gardens or The Danish Design Museum. We stopped for drinks at The Hard Rock Cafe then headed back to the station. The train was very comfortable and spacious; it was definitely an easy way to travel to the capital city.

 

On Monday we awoke to torrential rain and Fenella was not feeling well so she and I stayed behind while the others went back to Legoland. The sun came out, she watched Harry Potter with Danish subtitles, followed by The Olympics with a Danish commentary and I picked rhubarb from a patch in the garden to make a crumble.

 

On our final day in Denmark we mooched around Middelfart looking for small souvenirs and Danish pastries. In the evening we had a simple but delicious supper at a family owned roadside cafe where the staff only spoke Danish so there was a bit of guesswork involved with the ordering. Everyone agreed that they had really enjoyed the holiday and would be happy to make a return trip in the future.

Speyfest

I took the Quilted Yurt up to Fochabers for the Speyside Quilters Exhibition in Bellie Church. The Speyfest Folk Festival and Craft Fair was also on at the weekend so the small town was buzzing with visitors and it was even possible to buy freshly cooked noodles or sushi from a food stall on the green. I did not see the Red Hot Chilli Pipers in action but I heard a rousing cover version of "500 Miles" by The Proclaimers. Seeing folk in wellies dodging downpours, a large marquee and the smell of a beer tent is so typical of a summer event in Scotland.

The quilt show happens every two years and a vibrant collection of work was hung beautifully inside the Bellie Church on the main town square. The Yurt was put up quickly in the adjoining Church Hall by the most efficient team that I have ever had and it was admired by many appreciative visitors over 3 busy days. The Hare panel was much admired and reminded me that it should have a companion piece such as a fellow hare or even a stag. It is always a wonderful to see the Yurt fully set up in a good space. It stays packed up in my workshop most of the time and I had not even thought about it since it was at Newcastle Racecourse in March. I am always taken aback at how large it really is! I enjoyed speaking to many different people; some who had been dragged along to a quilt show by quilting enthusiasts somewhat reluctantly were pleasantly surprised and curious about the yurt's structure. I was made most welcome by Speyside Quilters and spent a very pleasant night with Kate and her husband at their house on a nature reserve near the Moray coast.

I managed to put all of the Oz version of Bewitched together so far then fiddled about with different ideas for the borders. I even started a distracting mini project using up some of the scraps. I had to order more of the main feature fabric and will need some more hand dyes to finish it off but it is coming along nicely.

I battled with my computer a bit this week – it seems to be getting rather temperamental about emails. I purchased a saddle stool, wadding and a porter's trolley for Festival of Quilts then nagged the shippers about how long it has taken for them to clear the Irish longarm through customs. This experience has made me worry about getting all of the other machinery here on time as one machine is coming on loan from Germany and yet another from America.

I enjoyed the creative and splendid spectacle of the Olympics Opening Ceremony. The children did not fully understand the significance of references to The Industrial Revolution but they loved the scene when James Bond met the real Queen and parachuted into the stadium. I wonder what gadget was used to make the duvets light up...?

Yee-Hah!!!

Wednesday was a day when the tension mounted as quilters from around the world awaited the news from Houston as to whether their quilts had been juried into the IQA competition or not. Throughout the day news filtered through via Facebook of rejection notices and surprisingly, many were from renowned quilters. By the evening I was hopeful that I may have been successful, applying the adage, "No news is good news". Just after 10.00pm, after obsessively checking my inbox every few minutes, I was thrilled to receive the email from Crystal Battarbee that began, "Congratulations! Your entry, Odin's Trilogy, has been selected as a finalist to be exhibited at the 2012 International Quilt Festival/Houston in the annual IQA fall Judged Show, Quilts: A World of Beauty.  This year's jury selected 54% of the submitted entries for display."

This is a huge honour for me: it has been a long held ambition to see my work exhibited at Houston and even more exciting since this is the first time that I have entered. The quilts have to arrive for judging by mid August so I have already packed them up and arranged for UPS to come and collect them in good time. I think it almost goes without saying that I will now be planning a trip to Texas at the end of October!

It was high time that I sent off "The Ostrych" for Festival of Quilts, Birmingham so they have also been rolled, wrapped and posted so I am relieved that everything has now been dispatched. I am considering leaving "Odin's Trilogy" in the USA as it is so expensive to post it back if I want to enter another show so I may ask one of my American quilting friends to be its custodian.

I finished piecing all of the 25 main blocks for "Oz Bewitched" and I hope to turn it into a top this week. Then I will have to come up with a border plan.

The school holidays have interfered with my normal sewing output. There was a trip to the swimming pool and another outing to the beach, complete with guitars, BBQ, raincoats, wellington boots, wind-break and shrimp net. It was enjoyable, despite the strong breeze that sent the wind-break flying across the beach and the crunchy texture of sand in the burgers. The children always enjoy collecting driftwood for the fire and toasting marshmallows on sticks; if it had been a hot day this would not been such fun.

We had a couple of guys in to clear some of the rampant weeds that have gone wild in our abnormally wet summer. They also brought in a mini digger to clear a corner that was always full of rubble. There is now a new space the size of an average garden on which Freya wants to keep micro pigs. A more economical plan would be to keep normal sized pigs that could be "replaced" with new piglets when they reach the size of porkers. She is not keen on that version of the plan...

I went back to Inverness at the weekend to complete the setup of a new long-armed quilter and despite, my inability to understand technical instructions, it all seemed to be working nicely when I left the new owner practising her loops & swirls.

The plan for the coming week is to get ready for FOQ, take the Yurt to "Speyfest" and to make sure that I have bought enough cat food for our trip to Denmark next week. Perhaps I should clarify that the cat is staying behind – we are not taking cat food with us ;)

 

Green

Because of its wet climate, North East Scotland is always lush and green. After two damp weeks of grey skies during the summer holidays I have to remind myself that we are lucky to have a climate where we are never short of water. It occurred to me that despite being surrounded by all of this green I have very little green fabric in my stash and I rarely use green in quilts. This prompted me to make a list of some of the things that I like or dislike which are green:

LIKE J	DISLIKE L
tartan	candles
peas	peppers
school uniform	bathroom suites
pesto	carpet
Landrovers	gorse bushes
shoes	kitchen appliances
gin bottles	furniture
garden sheds
moss
mint chocolate chip ice cream
cutting mats

 

Obviously, this is not an exhaustive list but it proves that I don't actually dislike green altogether and I even struggled to find green things that I really did not like. Perhaps I will challenge myself to make a predominantly green quilt. I am still struggling to decide which Cherrywood fabrics to choose for my "to-be-made-one-day-not-necessarily-wholecloth quilt". If I wanted to take inspiration the countryside this summer it should be a combination of many greens, greys and the odd splash of magenta or yellow.  I still don't know whether this will comprise regimented traditionally pieced blocks or something more freestyle and contemporary or even when I think I will make it. I think I will keep myself guessing for a while longer.

 

I have made good progress on the "Oz Bewitched" quilt. I was unsure about whether the feature fabric would steal the show and I have not yet decided what borders it needs. There was some fudging going on as I squared them up. They have ended up approximately 12.75" square which seems an odd measurement but as long as they are consistently inconsistent, I don't suppose it matters. In some ways I think that this quilt is taxing me because I want to create something less geometric which I never thought that I would admit. The quilting either has to be wildly Aboriginal or very traditional. I originally intended it to be a show quilt bit now I am less sure about that. Unfinished, it seems to be a bit of an enigma!

 

I quilted and bound a throw for my Mother that she gave me months ago and I made a three kindle covers and a laptop sleeve. I only intended to make one kindle cover but the first oilcloth version ended up a smidge too tight so I made another fabric one then I decided to make a third oilcloth one that matched the laptop sleeve in case the customer wanted a matching set. Any that are spare can be offered for sale at exhibitions I suppose.

 

Another week of the school holidays drifted by with friends visiting, a chilly trip to the beach, some baking, outings to the supermarket, bookshop and dog walking in the rain. 

Guilty Pleasure

My workshop was wonderfully tidy and there was no excuse about lack of time yet I still did not manage to get as much sewing done as I would have liked because I was too busy feeling guilty about READING. It was just like when I was at school and failed to complete my homework because I was devouring books instead. I read the "Shades of Grey" trilogy because I wanted to know what all of the hype was about. Frankly, it could all have been condensed into one novel. There was at least a plausible plot by the third book but I have to be a literary snob and declare that it was mostly uninspiringly written repetitive porn. Obviously, I could have given up during the first book but I do like to finish what I have started reading! By comparison, I found "The Hunger Games" trilogy absolutely thrilling and just could not put it down until I had finished all three books. The calibre of writing, characters and post-modernist plots were stunning. I almost hope that I can't find anything else quite so diverting for a while otherwise I will fail to achieve anything all summer holiday.

Setting aside the fiction periodically, I forced myself to sew sleeves onto the remaining "Ostrych" panel, "Norse Capercaillie" and the tricky continuous sleeve for "Odin's Trilogy". It was a tough job on my fingers as most of these panels have been painted on the reverse and they have been very densely quilted. I was relieved when that chore was over.

I cut out the pieces for the rest of "Australian Bewitched" and decided to enlarge it from a 16 block quilt to a more useful 25 block quilt. It has felt good to continue with an abandoned project at last and I am working on it a couple of blocks at a time. Each Ohio star will have setting triangles to make it larger then I will have to decide on a border design. It is nice to be working with colourful fabrics on this project but the gold lame is being its usual non co-operative self and not all of the points are beautifully matched. At least this time I have made a note of the sizes of pieces that I am working with so that I can write a proper pattern for it. I have even worked out a different sized block using pre-cut charm squares.

I took Freya with me on a day trip to Inverness in the pouring rain to set up a new longarm machine. She was a tremendous help as the instructions for the hydraulic lift system were somewhat confusing. I need step by step photos so I will bear that in mind when I produce my patterns. Frustratingly, there was a crucial small piece missing from the kit so I will have to make another trip to complete the job when the replacement parts arrive from the USA.

According to the BBC, the reason for our continuing bad weather is that the jet stream is unseasonably low. It rained for most of the week so in the end I lit the yurt stove and cooked outside one evening despite the black clouds. Freya went off to Guide Camp at Crathes Castle in waterproofs and wellies and was not really looking forward to pitching an old fashioned canvas tent on the mud. I'm glad I managed to persuade her to take an extra blanket and a box of sweets. I expect she will have fun as long as she stays dry and at least she won't be creating mountains of washing-up making cakes all week ;)

 

School's Out for Summer - despite the rain!

The ground was so waterlogged that Sports Day was cancelled so I used the chance to crack on with the huge bargello quilt so that I could bind it and post it back to the Isle of Skye. I fitted in a DIY customer who wanted to put large spirals onto batik & black quilt and by the time that project was complete, I was itching to do a little piecing for a change. I decided to make a few sample blocks using a new curved cutting ruler. It is a good job that there were Youtube video demonstrations since I could not figure out the written instructions at all. I am sure they were perfectly clear but I was totally lost. I eventually worked out what to do then felt obliged to make some modifications in order to simplify the process. One day I must challenge one of my quilting friends to see if they are less fazed by patterns than I am. I really liked the resulting blocks in the end and they may be contenders for the Not-So Wholecloth that is in my mental list of quilts to do one day.

The week whizzed by with a school prize-giving ceremony, piano exams, end of term Church service and we even managed to book our family holiday at last. We will be going to Middelfart in Denmark at the end of July. The plan is to visit Legoland, eat smorgasbord and visit a Viking museum or two. There is no guarantee that the weather will be sunny but surely it cannot be much wetter than it has been here in Scotland?  

I refolded and reorganised all of the fabric in my workshop in readiness for catching up with one or two projects over the summer. I find that I can't concentrate if my workspace is messy as I can't figure out what I am supposed to be working on. I want to tackle the Australian Bewitched blocks first then use some more of the Aboriginal fabrics to experiment with the curved ruler or possibly freehand cut some curved blocks. I would really like to sort out all of the paints and beads that are hidden in a drawer and rehome them in a vintage kitchen cabinet that I have not yet repainted but if I start on that I won't get anything else done...

Mo gave me a sack full of distressed leather that she had stripped off some old armchairs. It looks perfect for my new Norse project as it has been aged by being sat upon for years and it even has a few holes. I have no idea exactly what I will do with it or even if it will co-operate but weirdly, it reminds me of the preserved Iron-Age bog bodies which is apt as I have been looking for images of Viking burial posts online.

The sun made a brief appearance so I decided to remove cobwebs and mop up in the summerhouse & yurt. I am hopeful that we will use both of these during the holidays even if we have lousy weather. Some of the cushions and rugs in the yurt were damp and mouldy but as soon as I finished the job it started raining yet again. I hope to find a couple of sofas in the junk shop so that the children can at least pretend to be outside in the fresh air. Maybe they will take their guitars outside for a jam or have a go at learning the harmonica and cajon drum that arrived this week. Although we have a 7 week holiday I know that it will go quickly and before I know it, I will be packing up to go to the Festival of Quilts!

Yet Another Wet Midsummer

There has been very little activity in my studio this week apart from making a promising start on a massive bargello quilt for Anne from Skye. I ordered a beautiful deerskin for my newest Norse idea from a tannery near Glasgow and started reading a book on Pictish symbolism so I am at least gathering materials and doing research. I seem to have become such a familiar figure at one of the schools where I have been doing supply teaching that the children think I have become a permanent member of staff. I received many requests to teach during the last week of term but I decided that I could not fit it in with my own kids' end of year school activities.

It was a very busy week for two of my children because of their dance show: after a dress rehearsal and four theatre performances, they were exhausted. All of the classes performed really well and the show was excellent. It offered everything from hip-hop & ballet to jazz and tap dancing.

I had a whole day out with a friend on Friday when we went to view Gray's School of Art Graduate Show. The student collections in all types of media varied enormously. I was intrigued by some, puzzled by others, dismissive of some and impressed by a few. I particularly enjoyed the intricate lino cuts that married the student's African background with his life in Scotland and also a fun blog project where the artist had posted decorated envelopes with cheerful messages to the unknown neighbours in her street. I admit that I was not over impressed with some of the textiles and wondered what it would be like to have the opportunity to study a degree in what has become a passion of mine. I was impressed at the prices the students had put on their work that was for sale. Yet again, I was struck by how little value most quilters receive for their efforts. It reminded me that I must make an effort to produce something saleable for my Open Studio Week in September. Perhaps smaller pieces and patterns would be a good place to start?

The midsummer solstice was even wetter than last year. It hardly stopped raining at all and I wondered if building an ark might be a good idea. The ground is squelching, the yurt is damp and the sky is permanently grey. I just hope the weather improves enough for School Sports Day to go ahead and that it generally improves for the beginning of the summer holidays in a week's time...

Scraps

I only managed to fit in one quilting project after catching up on paperwork, emails and two days in the classroom. This was a simple customer quilt made out of thrifty scraps of velvet, linen, wool, cotton lawn, velour and damask. My machine decided that it did not want to quilt fast through this combination, despite recent challenges with oilcloth and lurex. This type of quilt is true to the original concept of utility patchwork where all sorts of fabrics are recycled into a utility bedcover. After it was all done and bound I was rather pleased with the finished quilt.

The next big thing to get excited about, apart from the ideas that are gathering for a new series, is... that the Quilted Yurt USA has been invited to be exhibited at the International Quilt Association Festival in Houston, Texas 2012 in a special exhibition entitled, "Tactile Architecture." Obviously, there are a few logistics to work out such as packing, shipping, insurance but those are just minor details ;)!!!

There won't be much time to think about any of that in the week ahead as I am teaching in school for 3 days and ferrying the children backwards and forwards to Aboyne for the biannual Dance Centre Show. I should at least try to make some notes and draw a few sketches while I am hanging around. This time next week everyone will be exhausted and there will be another busy week of school to cram in after that!

It was a typically British wet weekend for the Queen's diamond jubilee with various outdoor events going on all over the UK. We went into town to watch a parade of Scouts and Guides who would then light a beacon at the top of Scolty Hill. There was a ceilidh band and bouncy castles in the park creating a party atmosphere despite the cool weather.

I spent Tuesday figuring out how to squeeze my tools, quilts and clothes into a very small suitcase. I also gave the dogs a summer haircut even though we had to wear thick jumpers and light a fire to "enjoy" a June barbecue.

Wednesday was a very wet and blustery day so my flight to Dublin for the first International Quilt Festival of Ireland was delayed for an hour. This meant that I had to catch a later bus for the 3 hour trip to Galway but The Forsters Court Hotel was most welcoming. The weather girl on the local TV news promised that the next day would be wet with a strong possibility of "T'under!"

I spent Thursday with Claudia Pfeil helping to hang the antique quilt collection as she had arrived a day earlier and had already set up the longarm workshop. The volunteers were busily running around fetching battens, hooks and signs. There had been an unfortunate computer crash which meant that some of the crucial last minute preparation time had to be spent retrieving bookings information. Everyone was lending a hand to get things ready.

The Festival was held on the University of Galway campus and an amazing theatrical set had been created to make the front entrance look like a medieval Irish castle. The student union bar became "The Wicked Thimble Pub". There were cleverly staged themed exhibits, such as "The Quilted Garden", "Chocolate" and "3-D Quilts", some of which were enhanced with sounds and smells.

That evening we attended a Gala Dinner to open the Festival. After a champagne reception we enjoyed an excellent dinner that was followed by an inspiring speech by Jinny Beyer. The entertainment was far beyond my expectations. Irish musicians, singers and dancers, some of whom had toured with "Riverdance" and "The Chieftains" gave a world class performance and created a wonderful atmosphere for all of the international visitors.

The show opened on Friday – there were long queues of expectant visitors signing up for last minute places for classes with an impressive teaching faculty. Claudia and I soon found that we worked as a good team, teaching and demonstrating on the longarm machine that APQS had shipped from the USA especially for the show. It was a good thing that we had enjoyed a hearty breakfast – we were so busy that we never really found any time to stop and have lunch. Eventually, I sneaked out to have a proper look around the exhibits and the vendor mall. In the evening I met Ellen and we had a pint of Beamish Irish Stout with fresh local fish and chips in a charming pub called "The Quays" in the old part of Galway City. There were buskers in the streets and Irish music playing live in many of the busy pubs.

On Saturday the sun came out at last and it made everyone smile. We left early for the show but passed a lively produce market just opening. Galway was definitely filling up with people for the weekend. Our students were delighted with Claudia's "Irish Special Class" which was a combination of creating quilting designs and hands-on practice with the longarm machine. We had all sorts of students from hand-quilters and those using domestic machines to experienced longarmers, all of whom thoroughly enjoyed the classes. During one of the classes we had pupils from Ireland, England, Canada, America, Sweden, Italy, Germany and Switzerland!

We went out for supper with a group of friends to the Galway City Bakery where we received excellent service. Afterwards, we wandered through Shop Street, soaking up the lively Saturday night atmosphere.

Sunday was a little quieter as the quilters were all becoming tired after all of their touring and festival activities but the sun continued to shine and there were still plenty of visitors at the show. Claudia and I even ran out of business cards. We packed up the machine and thanked Jim West's stalwart assistants who had been so helpful, especially Nora and Liam.

We decided to have supper in the hotel bar with Judi and Angela from British Patchwork & Quilting Magazine. Ireland was playing football and losing against Croatia on the large TV but the locals remained pragmatic about their team's efforts. We were too tired to explore that evening so we just crossed the road to "Murty Rabbits", the pub across the road, where football supporters mingled happily with tourists and old-timers and a terrific live folk band played traditional Irish music.

I enjoyed the Festival and found the Irish people charming. I hope that it is an event in the quilting calendar that will go from strength to strength, getting bigger and better but retaining its friendly Irish charm!

 

A Difficult Week

An irate school secretary phoned on Monday morning to find out why I had not turned up at school. I was mortified until I checked that it was not on any of my calendars so I suspected that it was most likely not my error since I write teaching commitments down while I am still on the phone! As I felt that my Houston entry was under control, I nipped into town to buy some summer shoes. On the way home the North Sea haar came rolling in and the temperature dropped by 10 degrees.

I stapled a sheet to the summerhouse then pinned the Norse Trilogy up for clear, bright photos:  a flat-shot of the whole piece and also close-up of the quilting detail. Next I printed out the entry forms and read to my horror that the entries MUST be submitted on a CD, accompanied by a printed photo. This contradicted the information elsewhere on the website that stated that pictures could be submitted via email. I soon discovered that overseas courier services are not as efficient as they claim to be if you live in North East Scotland. I was granted a one day extension to get my CD to Houston and UPS promised to deliver it on time. It was nerve-racking tracking the package as it hung around somewhere else in Texas for a while but it looks like it made it eventually. I learned an expensive lesson that I should become more organised with quilt show entries and there is no guarantee that it will even make it into the show.

My pride was injured this week when I studied the judging sheet from the Loch Lomond Show and I noted that I did not achieve "Excellent" for quilting technique, tension and construction.  I honestly wondered how it could have been improved!

After all of that stress, I decided to clear my in-tray of paperwork and discovered that I had forgotten to send in the information on my entry for FOQ so I quickly measured it up, wrote the blurb and rushed to buy first class stamps. This all seems to indicate that I am trying to do too much or that I really do need a personal assistant.

I was surprised to see a man peel the lids off butter in the local supermarket, dip his finger in and check the taste. He saw me watching him then turned around to open up another tub. It was revolting but sometimes I wonder if I will behave like that when I am old?

I made a start on an unusual customer quilt: it was a hand pieced hexagon quilt that is only 32 inches wide but 96 inches long, backed with a jacquard ready-made curtain. Its owner does not actually have a plan for it as she says that it does not match anything in her house. My machine can sew through army canvas, tweed, lame, and oilcloth but it really hated the jacquard so I had to quilt slowly. Several of the seams started opening up so I had to be very careful. Now that it has its glazed chintz binding it looks quite cute so maybe it will get taken on a picnic or laid at the end of a bed if it is lucky ;)

For two days I taught the class that the rest of the teaching staff dreads. It would be an understatement to say that several of the children had issues with behaviour... Frankly, it was a gruelling teaching experience and I was glad when I made it to 3.15pm on Friday.

When I got home I could see that our little black & white cat, Bitzi was not all well. She had been suffering with some sort of digestive problem for a while, not helped by consuming whole rabbits, fur and all. Over the past week she just started looking thin and scruffy so we took her to the vet surgery. They told us that she was very sick and the prognosis did not look good. It was upsetting that she was so weak that they found it difficult to take blood samples and set up a drip. We left her in intensive care and just had to hope that she would improve. Unfortunately, she did not pull through and we were all sad at her funeral in the garden. We remembered when she used to sit on the back of the sofa for family movie nights, the time that she accidentally got taken to work with my husband and how she could open doors by jumping up onto the handle. She was a wonderful, sweet natured family pet and we will really miss her L

Heavy Metal

I was determined to get my Houston entry finished this week so after teaching 9 and 10 year olds how to throw a sponge javelin on Monday I had to devote all of my time to getting the copper piece quilted. The weather was beautiful but I did not venture out much. The silk quilted really well and the bird looked suitably coppery but I was conscious that it was not actually metallic fabric. I painted the back with fabric paint once the quilting was done but the silk soaked it up and gold splodges leached through to the right side of the quilt. This meant that I had to add more paint in rust and green colours to make it look verdigrised. Although it looked very much like antiqued copper, it simply was not the effect that I was looking for. An unexpected bonus is that this bird can be entered into a quilt show in its own right.

I drew out a new Viking shield and started another internet search for dancewear companies supplying copper spandex or tissue lame that could be delivered the next day from the UK. To my relief, the postie delivered the copper lurex from the USA that I had been waiting for in time for me to start yet another piece. Since I was running low on orange and rust thread colours I had to make do with what I had and get on with the job. I decided to quilt ridiculously small pebbles around the bird figures and Celtic knots so that the background would look like hammered copper. I am pleased with results but as usual, I could not just leave the back alone so I sponged on some copper and green paint – some green has leaked through but I am going to keep my fingers crossed that no-one else can see it as I dare not start adding gilding and paints at this late stage in case it also goes pear-shaped!

I have attached the machine sew bindings to all three quilts but still need to add the tiny gold braid before I can take the Houston entry photos and the deadline is looming fast. Anne from Skye called in for help flattening out some fullness in a huge bargello quilt that she made a few years ago. We trimmed up some generous seams to reduce bulk and gave it a serious dose of steam. I will give it an overall version of plumed quilting that will scoop up more of the excess fabric that often appears in multi-seamed quilts and bias joins.

A friend got in touch to enquire whether I would eventually sell any of the Norse pieces. He came for coffee and brought a selection of books on Viking symbolism. It sparked an entirely new idea on how to develop the totem pole idea that I had a while back. I can visualise a series that involves leather, lame and something that looks like amber... I may have to start investigating materials soon ;)

By the weekend the weather here was unusually fabulous so I camped out in the Yurt on Saturday night and had an almost-day-off on Sunday. I will have to have an actual-day-off soon to buy some summer shoes in Aberdeen as I don't think that sheepskin boots or Doc Martens look all that good with my denim skirt: unlike trendy, skinny celebs who may be able to pull it off, I look like I forgot to take my slippers off!

Copper Quest

The next time I plan to make a competition quilt I might just allow a little more time to order the necessary materials. The copper fabrics that arrived in the post were luridly bright orange or dull brown.  It may have been possible to use the existing copper quilt that is part of the Ostrych for my Houston entry BUT if I trim it down to the same size as the gold snakeskin piece it will have no background left. I really should have made everything a uniform size but there would be no fun in that ;) I would like to have ordered more thread but time dictates that I have to make do with the orange or brown ones that have at least 500m left on their spools. I searched the internet fruitlessly for more copper lurex and eventually came across some copper lame from the USA. If it arrives by the middle of the week I will draft out a new Norse helmet design but to be on the safe side I have started another bird on copper coloured silk. I was very impressed with the service that I received from The Silk Route www.thesilkroute.co.uk as they sent samples and a length of dupion the very next day after I phoned. However, while searching for copper fabrics on Etsy, I found a leather manufacturer in Texas that produces hides embossed to look like ostrich or lizard skin in a fabulous range of colours.  I bet a leather quilt would look amazing; although weighty, it would be durable!

I managed to finish off the sunflower quilt and packaged it up ready to post when I go into town. The customer quilt waiting to be done next is a long, thin hand-pieced hexagon project. After prevaricating about the copper fabric for a few hours, I decided to have a side project and ran up a couple of new quilted Ipad covers. The red oilcloth looked unexciting so I added embroidery stitches, ribbon and rickrack. I had to sew everything from the reverse side as the sewing machine foot kept sticking to the plastic fabric. I want Freya to learn how to make these as she could probably sell them to her school friends. While working on these small, easy projects I mulled over a few thoughts on future "wholecloth-with-a-twist" quilts. I have also been thinking about something that involves African masks for some time but I will have to put these ideas into some sort of project queue!

I taught the same class of children for 3 days in a row so I managed to learn all 31 of their names, worked out how to use the interactive whiteboard and I marked all of their work. They studied The Olympics, Jamaica and Decimals and were suitably impressed that I had downloaded topic related poetry and reggae onto my Ipad. Unfortunately, the grass was waterlogged so they did not experience a hockey lesson with me wearing red Doc Martens since the rubber soles of my old trainers have now crumbled to dust.

I toured the Loch Lomond Quilt Show with Ellen which gave us an opportunity to catch up and talk about one or two quilty trips that we would like to do. We thought that the most impressive exhibition was "Remember Me? Quilts Honouring the Women of Scotland" by Lorraine Sullivan and Tina Gravatt. They have made almost 80 different quilts inspired by all sorts of women in history from domestic servants, to explorers and medical pioneers. I think they have created an incredible and diverse body of work and I believe they have been invited to display some of their collection at Houston.

We had afternoon tea at the West Kirk in Dumbarton where the ladies had hung bunting and covered the tables in embroidered tablecloths to attract visitors to their "tearoom". The meringues and homebakes were delicious and we had a chance to catch up with other quilters on tour around the quilt exhibitions in churches. There was much discussion on the merits of the winning quilts and of other shows that quilters were planning to attend throughout the year. I had a chat with award winning quilter, Philippa Naylor who has been working on her Houston entry for 18 months rather than approximately 18 days. She had me worried for an hour or so after informing me that photographs of my entry would have to be put onto a CD and sent by post. I used my Iphone to check the rules and I was mightily relieved that electronic submissions are allowed! So I have around a week to complete my 3 latest Norse pieces - maybe even a fourth if my Ebay purchase arrives promptly!

 

 

Gold Snakeskin and Silver Spandex

On Bank Holiday Monday I informed my children that the next time I take them shopping collectively will be when they are all over 25 years old. Everyone got something in the end but no-one enjoyed browsing in the same shops. I was pleased with my purchase of a set of plastic boxes that had London Underground stations printed onto the lids but I unwisely allowed Fenella to buy a "make your own giraffe kit". When we tackled it later on I found the instructions impossible to follow, it had two leg pieces missing and it moulted fur fabric all over my sewing machine.

I spent a day in school where I had to teach data handling - explaining range, median, mean, mode and histograms. I wish Miss Rudland, who bullied me into passing my O-level maths exam third time lucky could see me now!

I had an interesting invitation to attend the Vintage Festival in Northants in July and take the Yurt as an exhibit. It looks like a really cool event that I could take the children to if I hire a trailer for the Yurt and a load of camping gear. If the logistics all fall into place then we could have fun at the roller disco, pogo to The Damned, and make bunting at one of the "upcycling" craft workshops.

I made the decision to suspend customer quilts and unnecessary side projects until my Houston entries are finished so the background of the sunflower quilt is not finished yet. I have been tempted to run up a few ipad and kindle covers but I am being strong willed and trying to resist the urge to quilt some oilcloth.

I quilted the gold Norse birdman again onto some gold vinyl snakeskin. I don't think the definition is quite as good as it is on the very basic lame as it already has some texture. I now have the choice of painting in some shading or retrimming the already bound original to the uniform size that I have decided on for the Houston entries.

I had a near meltdown when I was told that the copper lurex silk lame was lost in the post and that the supplier had none left. I ordered some more copper pieces of spandex, chiffon and taffeta online and just have to hope that one of them will do the job.

I started confidently on the new version of the silver helmet but to my horror I discovered that the ruler base on the longarm was scuffing off the metallic surface. This is because I quilt these pieces upside down with the metallic fabric as the backing. I decided to start again with a new piece of silver spandex which meant that I had to draw the whole design out yet again and I had to follow all of the lines carefully without using a ruler. In the end, I think the new version of the helmet is actually better than the original. I may even consider pinning the finished one back onto the quilt frame to add more quilting behind the Celtic motifs.