Works in Progress

acrylic

watercolour

It's bluebell time. Surrey is a wooded county and there are some lovely bluebell woods to visit. Usually the bluebells are almost over by now but this year they are late because of the cold weather we have had. I have painted them many times before in watercolour. I recently started one in watercolour and one in acrylic. Neither is finished yet.

Monday Moodboard and EST challenge

The topic for this challenge is wattle or weaving. The basket is a favourite of mine. It is woven with different coloured strips making a kind of harlequin pattern and colour co-ordinates well with this big bunch of lavender. I did this small watercolour today.
It is called Basket of Lavender and measures about 18x12 cm.

It sold at my local gallery.

These colours are reflected in my Monday moodboard.

Lavender Pearl and Glass Bead Cluster Bracelet AMIdesigns N Ireland

Oya necklace. Oya is a kind of lacework. It is characteristic of Turkey. Normal lacework has two dimensions, however, whereas oya can be knitted in three.

Oya Lace Jewellery Turkey

Flower in the woods ear rings fleurfatale Belgium

Eco friendly crotched beads, made with wood and organic bamboo yarn Three Blue Bee Turkey

More europeanstreetteam moodboards here

Est Challenge

This week the theme was 'winding' and I have made a bangle.

It combines pure silk with beads and metallic thread wound round in layers. I dyed the silk fabric and strands of silk rouleau using colours inspired by subtropical seas. Cobalt and teal silk rouleau extend to tie in a bow so that the size can be adjusted if necessary. The bangle is soft and light and so easy to wear. It has a layer of plastic inside to stiffen it, cut from an empty bottle of washing up liquid which is padded with polyester wadding.

Below is another version. The silk for this was upcycled from a hand painted silk scarf. The scarf was painted by a friend, she gave it to me to make jewellery from. I made the bangle for her.

Can You Smell the Sea?

This collection was inspired by the wet felted and embroidered picture Can You Feel the Sea? (second column down and second in from the left) It was viltalakim's entry for the button challenge.

EST Challenge Entry and Monday Moodboard

The theme for this week's challenge is tulips. I have made some greetings cards from a silk painting. It is a lily tulip outlined with clear gutta. The background was done by adding salt to the colours while they were still wet. To get this effect it must be neither too wet nor too dry.
For more details go here

Monday Moodboard

Beadwoven freshwater pearl bracelet from Latvia alatvian

Ribbon embroidered sewing kit from Turkey giftsandstars

Angora shawl from Austria lovelycrotchet

more moodboards at fleurfatale

Mimosa and Cowslips

Both of these are in flower at the moment in my garden.

I bought the Mimosa tree ( Acacia dealbata) at Trebah gardens in Cornwall, about 3 years ago. It was quite small then and this is the first time it has flowered.

The mimosas at Trebah were really large and full of flower. I bought another mimosa (Acacia pravissima) there on the advice of the gardener at Lammoran House Gardens

at St Mawes. This one flowered after 1 year and does not grow so big.

Since walking through the wild mimosa woods in Madeira I had wanted one for my garden.

There they are in flower in January and February and the scent from all those trees together is wonderful. You can buy a bunch of mimosa from the market in Funchal for 1 euro.

Cowslips what a comical name, or in Latin, Primula vera, prefer chalky soil so will grow in my garden. I bought a plant a few years ago and it seeded itself. It is now growing in grass in an area of the garden that I have tried to make into a little bit of wild flower meadow. I have tried to grow ox eye daisies there but they prefer the flowerbed. The flowers smell lovely and are used by herbalists. When I was about 8 or 9 we used to go and pick bunches of them from a steeply sloping field outside the village where I lived. Local people used to fill sacks with the flowers and take them home to make wine.

EST challenge and Monday Moodboard

This is my entry for this week's European Street Team challenge which involved using a button somewhere in the design.



Lavender and cream pendant. corsage or hair ornament.
This is made from vintage lace, lavender broderie anglaise wired ribbon, hand painted silk, a vintage button and a pearl bead. It can be worn as a pendant using the ribbon or could have a brooch clip or barette added. More details



Monday Moodboard

All these pieces from my European team friends have lovely textural effects and are made from natural fibres of wool, cotton and linen with other embellishments added.

Felt slippers aldonasuneviciene Lithuania

Can you feel the sea? wet felted and embroidered wallhanging viltalakim Holland

Doll skirt brooch binkaminka Latvia

Textile necklace birribe Sweden