Cleaning up but not clearing out....

In preparation for the New Year I have been bringing in the new and getting rid of the old.

The New Year ahead will bring many changes for me, milestones to chalk up and challenges to face....

Looking forward to the road ahead...............

My London dayout WORDLE

My day out in London yesterday

Feeling a little frustrated......

I feel like my hands are tied at the moment. I have a room full of works in progress, no work surface and no proper light, I know that things have to happen slowly but this is just a bit too slowly.

On the otherhand I have to look to what I have a chieved:
I have managed to get most of our posessions unpacked,
I have accomplished the disposal of all the unwanted packaging,
I have managed to do some sightseeing,
I have made contact with my best friends daughter and even had the time to show her how to crochet,
I have registered with several employment agencies,
Today I opened a banking account,
I have ventured to neighbouring villages and ventured on trains and busses alone,
I have explored my village and surrounding areas looking for walks to take our dog on,

So looking at this list I have managed quite a lot, but not my real passion.....embroidery....well it will come in time hopefully this weekend.

It is raining again....... Oh Rain rain go away come again another day.....

The Fog is beginning to clear

At last we have moved inot our new home and have our internet connection. The study cubby hole is a dumping ground at the moment (will I ever get it the way I want it?). Patience is the keyword this week. Everything is on hold until after the weekend as we are off to Somerset to see our dog. This will be our second visit to her since we arrived in the UK. Fortunately she has been visited every weekend by MDB's brother and sister-in-law.

Here are a few pictures of her ......poor baby.....I don't think she looks too unhappy...

In Limbo at the moment.....

I have been absent due to a move from one continent to another.....living out of suitcases is not fun at all....no sewing has been done.....things are just a tad upsidedown right now.....looking forward to new beginnings in a new home.......a new country.......more when I am settled and I can think straight.......

Packing, Lunches and a travel kennel

The last couple of weeks have been so hectic......what with packing, farewell lunches and arranging a dog kennel for our baby. The packing is a little testing as MDB is finding it very hard to part with items that clearly he has not used since his arrival here four years ago. I on the otherhand have been there and done that so the precious few items I have left I am holding on to. All in all it has not been too bad, some heated moments have been smoothed over with a glass or two of red wine, much discussion and compromises galore.

In and amongst the packing there have been the lunches, absolutely wonderful to be with friends making memories that will be visited often in the months to come. Sadly though the waistline is really suffering.....

The most stressful thing has been locating and getting an IATA kennel for our Greatdane cross ridgeback. After much nail biting and stern telephone converstions our freight agent came to the rescue and located a perfect match for our girl. Now the stress levels are rising even higher as we are not able to get her to go in the kennel. Last night MDB and I took turns sitting (that is how big the kennel is) in the kennel with her while she tentativley ate her dinner stretched full length with back paws placed firmly at the door of the kennel. In addition to this the question to tranquilise or not......??

It will all come to pass and in a couple of days she will be in the UK in a snug Quarantine kennel dreaming of her next meal.....

May TIF

What do I call what I do and why…….

I really don’t know how to answer this one come to think of it I can’t recall ever having been asked. Well the question is posed now and I’m stumped.

Having visited many of the embroidery sites, I consider that what I see is art; comparing what I do with these sites, I would have to say that what I do is art, yet I am very uncomfortable using this label for myself. I prefer to think that I am creative and am developing towards being artistic…..

MDB says that what I am doing is not art because fundamentally art is not functional but he considers what I do is functional with creative decoration.

I have chosen to use the palette colours for my piece this month, I also tried to use different stitches, not very successfully though. The colour palette was quite a challenge and at times I found that I was having to unpick work as I had not varied the colours enough.

May TIF - What do I call what I do and why

Sharon B's challenge for May

"I hate that what do you do question as I have often wondered how to describe my various creative activities.
How do you describe yourself as an artist? One moment I am doing one thing that could be described easily as Art and the next I am doing something else that is craft! One moment my curiosity has lead me to to look at something quite strange as beautiful like the mould that grows on food in the fridge and the next I am looking at something most people would find familiar and boring and finding it fascinating like the bubbles in the washing up water.
Have you noticed that the term maker is being used to describe the activity of various people who may in the past be referred to as crafts person, or applied artist? For instance the British Crafts Council provides some interesting and thoughtful reading but in the Makers in Focus which looks at the working environment of West Midlands people producing crafts, the term ‘maker’ is used to encompass practitioners who variously describe themselves as craftspeople, or applied artists.
One of the ways I try and make sense of what I do is by defining what ever it is, as clearly as I possibly can. I think most people do that. The way I see it is if you can’t talk about what you do, or haven’t taken care in how you think about what you do, how do you expect others to respect the way you spend your time? Or how do expect people to respect what you make?
OK there is a few questions in the passage above but this month the challenge question is what do you call yourself and why?
Hopefully this will have everyone scratching their head but if you don’t like the challenge question you can elect to use the colour scheme instead. "

April TIF

Change – I really don’t have a problem with change, in fact I look forward to change for me it is an opportunity to reinvent myself. My mother once said to me that I am like a chameleon because I adapt to change very easily almost blending in with my surroundings, hence the chameleon in this piece.

There are three parts to this piece, the changing of the seasons, the chameleon and the change from day to night.

The changing seasons - Having lived most of my life in a coastal town the changes of the seasons were always so subtle that one season melted into the next barely noticeable. A few years ago I moved inland where the changes of the seasons were so outstanding. In spring I noticed blossoms on trees everywhere, the grass started to turn from brown to green, summer with long hot days clear skies, then autumn when the leaves on the trees turned to yellow, then red suddenly it was winter with crisp chilly mornings, fires, hot bowls of soup.

The chameleon – blending in with surroundings, for protection, for me a chance to do different things meet new people see new places.

The change from day to night – every new day brings with it new beginnings, new adventures changes and challenges making like interesting.

What's happening in the studio.....

I was inspired by a picture I saw in a frinds house, the picture in her house was in colour and the pots were filled with flowers.

This piece I started some time ago, I pick it up when I have nothing better to do.

This piece was finished (at least the embroidery was completed) some time ago. I thought I might make a bag but unfortunately I did not measure carefully, so now it is just a piece of denim with embroidery on it. Perhaps some day I will find a use for it.......

April TIF - Change

Change and what it means to me.....I love change........ someone once said to me that the only constant is change. How true this is; my life has been one big change; I have with every change grown and been able to reinvent myself. My mother once referred to me as being like a chameleon, because I have always managed to blend into the surroundings I find myself in.

I am about to experience yet another change in my life, in July I will be moving to the UK with MDB, starting from scratch with a clean canvas. We have just purchased a flat, I will be looking for work in a new country, I will be shopping in different stores, I will brave weather I am not accustomed to. Commuting will be a new an adventure (or misadventure, as I have been told taking the train into London at peak times is a nightmare!). Well what ever it will be new and exciting.

My April TIF is not finished yet but soon will be......