tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81054586332819917382024-03-12T20:11:23.166-07:00Blackwork BlogThis blog is dedicated to my Grandma, Connie Wisely.
It is a story about a personal journey with Blackwork, complete with characters, places and mental battles....Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-72904902282318569892009-11-06T08:09:00.000-08:002009-11-06T08:51:43.345-08:00A Tribute to Laughton's Dry Stane Dykes<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Shetland is an inspiring place, and you can't go far - in fact anywhere - without seeing a dry stane dyke, a type of wall building which uses the shapes and careful placing of stones to build a wall with no mortar.<br /><br />My father-in-law Laughton is a dab hand at this ancient craft, and has just completed a large wall around his croft in Sandness. Building these types of walls takes a lot of time, involves lifting a huge number of stones and I imagine satisfying and laborious in equal measure. The results are stunning, and the patterns and pictures that the stones make in the walls can be mesmorising.<br /></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLJePuBmwTvlHKcZHpA0KsfuBiAJG03cErLH34JvN_LeRCqnqRxnUlj8IQ-bAVPWKvGIE6ZinS1DCcAkjYwJOPaQD1UIdbeYx0bXSEdnObp6VJZl3hpqKUR27wfhr3meyY5ni0UyJ2sVRT/s1600-h/IMG_4874.jpg"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLJePuBmwTvlHKcZHpA0KsfuBiAJG03cErLH34JvN_LeRCqnqRxnUlj8IQ-bAVPWKvGIE6ZinS1DCcAkjYwJOPaQD1UIdbeYx0bXSEdnObp6VJZl3hpqKUR27wfhr3meyY5ni0UyJ2sVRT/s320/IMG_4874.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><br />They use this technique to build little shelters for the sheep, which are also about as common a feature on the Shetland landscape as the stones which surround them.<br /><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgws8u8QZPAF0nZcM7HLYXAjGJju4d3oTz8z2siKHJJRuG39UO_NjZS2rKTDlAQ2KGnnXAXAagOcNHpRwWxRoxQePCzcYc5dk_eEn2I10qlB-3MoGskTx2LD1XrUqCdrbB8wr2bKxL7O___/s1600-h/IMG_4879.jpg"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgws8u8QZPAF0nZcM7HLYXAjGJju4d3oTz8z2siKHJJRuG39UO_NjZS2rKTDlAQ2KGnnXAXAagOcNHpRwWxRoxQePCzcYc5dk_eEn2I10qlB-3MoGskTx2LD1XrUqCdrbB8wr2bKxL7O___/s320/IMG_4879.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaUnv7kFQoDVJGhPYtUoT3JqNmh57bCw8swPBa-FT0MoMRMtNHQJci0owQbs50s55XaOQqlCgKYh1qeRMRzslzkTpRX3yXN4TeCg0Kwey6W2qryROKutYmbrOPuo29_YjmstgPDG-uCFGh/s1600-h/IMG_4880.jpg"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaUnv7kFQoDVJGhPYtUoT3JqNmh57bCw8swPBa-FT0MoMRMtNHQJci0owQbs50s55XaOQqlCgKYh1qeRMRzslzkTpRX3yXN4TeCg0Kwey6W2qryROKutYmbrOPuo29_YjmstgPDG-uCFGh/s320/IMG_4880.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: left;">I've never actually seen the sheep go inside, but it's nice to think that they can when the weather gets really bad, all warm and snuggled in a small space.<br /><br />Having little arm muscles and even less spacial awareness I have not offered my services to the dry stane cause - my husband Jamie has always been keen to learn and during a recent visit Laughton set him loose on his first dry stane project - raising the height of the wall around the septic tank. Meanwhile Laughton worked on his wall going around the croft.<br /><br />But unknown to Laughton (unless he peeked) I was completing my own little wall which I reckoned took about the same amount of patience and careful choices to produce the desired effect. This can't be called Blackwork, in fact it's the first time I've used colour. If you look carefully the stones are all different colours - there are greens, browns, blues, greys, pinks and whites. I got a range of threads that I thought might do the trick and used coloured pencil to shade in a photocopy of the sheep shelter picture to use as a guide.<br /><br />Each stone was a different colour which made for quite a laborious sewing project but I think it was worth it, I made sure I did it on a small scale so I wouldn't lose my mojo half way through:<br /><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-XHg3SOpdlwqA1EO8UBhcu8pIivWqcAIYGgaDv0Gs4u5Fr8r9T_8SC3SrIu-kI7n2mgl6JmE5XQ6YDcGl1VnCAeZw_mWeEEPn2yCul0lSjbBi0uWby0ArKOINnjHqssvyXV0iyRtC1n_d/s1600-h/IMG_8543.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-XHg3SOpdlwqA1EO8UBhcu8pIivWqcAIYGgaDv0Gs4u5Fr8r9T_8SC3SrIu-kI7n2mgl6JmE5XQ6YDcGl1VnCAeZw_mWeEEPn2yCul0lSjbBi0uWby0ArKOINnjHqssvyXV0iyRtC1n_d/s320/IMG_8543.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><br />It took quite a while - I had a target of so many stones per day, gradually it built up to the complete wall, while they were building so was I:<br /><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqXbRRpJFezR6gDUBzaK4Kerdz4_oFLhK4djS4kgOkc3-aeWAO5Hu3SaKFEy35yv3fWV2JSAqvA5R__0w6zNBq0nyEs83WTQzgjP1NtJhHC8a1XjoKg94v69U1tdo6NAzM9a-VTWKBPFOH/s1600-h/IMG_8631.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqXbRRpJFezR6gDUBzaK4Kerdz4_oFLhK4djS4kgOkc3-aeWAO5Hu3SaKFEy35yv3fWV2JSAqvA5R__0w6zNBq0nyEs83WTQzgjP1NtJhHC8a1XjoKg94v69U1tdo6NAzM9a-VTWKBPFOH/s320/IMG_8631.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div>It wasn't quite even at the top and the bottom, and I considered putting in some grass to cover up the wobbly lines, but I was more afraid of it being too 'chocolate box' so kept it simple. Then I cut a piece of felt for the roof and pinned it down with some stitching on either side - the following should be the finished article...... unfortunately Jamie hoovered it up by mistake - if trying this at home please skip this step!<br /><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBW1qzLgr5DSAFQa7or06-BnK4HQDKFI0Tonr2bpCGjRpC7ccYgXUtanwwTrIhgJMuN-lSlFad-tTFcY7_flbxwkdpPZ6lozV4eh19-M8A3CZcRQaDiAkNDbqGtCY9BLQJdEcYPl8y7qiN/s1600-h/IMG_9008.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBW1qzLgr5DSAFQa7or06-BnK4HQDKFI0Tonr2bpCGjRpC7ccYgXUtanwwTrIhgJMuN-lSlFad-tTFcY7_flbxwkdpPZ6lozV4eh19-M8A3CZcRQaDiAkNDbqGtCY9BLQJdEcYPl8y7qiN/s320/IMG_9008.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">I couldn't look, but luckily the stitching wasn't affected only the felt, so I'll be able to flatten it out and re-do the roof.....watch this space for the finished article...<br /></div> </div><br /></div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-89960962744110041122008-03-29T17:42:00.001-07:002009-05-17T10:52:10.133-07:00My Dad, my great-great Grandfather, & Blackworked Harper Finials<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF-CIDM3MiT9U4a69CMUWv7sWzDVSbe1ZmCUrfJRRW9DIevZfETMHLhSWW9j0ndcQgYFG12vlhQ5oFqE13PKjl2hYIiz3vwfgV-t5hSVKQFvy4d6G4WaQLbvOwWvCWDbYfxbLkxDEWdFHb/s1600-h/IMG_8165.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF-CIDM3MiT9U4a69CMUWv7sWzDVSbe1ZmCUrfJRRW9DIevZfETMHLhSWW9j0ndcQgYFG12vlhQ5oFqE13PKjl2hYIiz3vwfgV-t5hSVKQFvy4d6G4WaQLbvOwWvCWDbYfxbLkxDEWdFHb/s320/IMG_8165.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336851881651757890" border="0" /></a><br />This project is for my Dad, so I he's banned from looking at my blog until it's finished! Dad has, over the last few years, been researching my great-great and great grandfather's inventions and designs, starting from wire tensioning systems and ending in <a href="http://www.harperbridges.com/">fantastic suspension bridges,</a> which are scattered over the UK and former colonies. The first example below is the Monymusk bridge in Aberdeenshire, unfortunately no longer there.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBDr2bcrkWVM2GlJXKuien7-MQVkEyz-b_IE7__t-5u4BFkrl79dn4rk1wy-UGZBYL61eG_vm_p4-WKpD9U_cESiBrpRsd7vshlFtwCgq57v-WH7Taloy-pu-QPmMVavJJTlDSZUTNz9z/s1600-h/Harper.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxBDr2bcrkWVM2GlJXKuien7-MQVkEyz-b_IE7__t-5u4BFkrl79dn4rk1wy-UGZBYL61eG_vm_p4-WKpD9U_cESiBrpRsd7vshlFtwCgq57v-WH7Taloy-pu-QPmMVavJJTlDSZUTNz9z/s320/Harper.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183332309914245090" border="0" /></a>Here's another example still standing: the Newquay bridge (1900)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4j_EUBFfxjMJkznenSmiC_PKFapvPu3zkvyfPW-uo_8QqRAdFzmT01a40WB-ThfvoFNNE501cykx-oWrdmtRC2vSrdVBdbw5TGA4TImQrOv1ZaibWyTKjLHcwU3Vq2y4CtsVhLhav4amc/s1600-h/harper_bridge5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4j_EUBFfxjMJkznenSmiC_PKFapvPu3zkvyfPW-uo_8QqRAdFzmT01a40WB-ThfvoFNNE501cykx-oWrdmtRC2vSrdVBdbw5TGA4TImQrOv1ZaibWyTKjLHcwU3Vq2y4CtsVhLhav4amc/s320/harper_bridge5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183337661443496050" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Dad's dedication to researching their history and locations, together with unfailing support and enthusiasm of my stepmother, has led them into battles with undergrowth, and journeys to far corners of the earth, to trace where the bridges were and the stories of the communities they served. In fact, bridges aren't unlike embroidery projects in that way, there are numerous stories of characters, communities and exotic locations to produce a book on the subject, which eventually my Dad hopes to do.<br />He's well on the way to producing a book on the actual engineering, a tad<br />complex for my artsy heid, but I'm getting there.<br />I decided long ago to try and turn the suspension bridge into a project, their flowing beautiful shapes are very inviting, but attempts to reproduce the actual shape of the bridge on counted thread fabric was a bit too challenging for me.<br />So I decided that a better idea would be to take a detail of the bridge, the thing (to the untrained eye) which defines them as 'Harper Bridges' and turn that into the project instead.<br />Luckily, my Dad (with the help of a dedicated local friend) gave me a helping hand by retrieving an original finial from the Monymusk bridge and putting it his garden.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1EMY1i8D9K2_a2uUZHvZFqf_qFG-FJ2zoTFAbe4Cj7d9TlVoNWC4Tii4i7D7NEISXr48d0XsUuC_SG5moAYSywSF1NbAtFyARvcsfEHSN7B5X5-Vzl-6exmiz3zzL2LOBrPr5TTzHSNc3/s1600-h/083.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1EMY1i8D9K2_a2uUZHvZFqf_qFG-FJ2zoTFAbe4Cj7d9TlVoNWC4Tii4i7D7NEISXr48d0XsUuC_SG5moAYSywSF1NbAtFyARvcsfEHSN7B5X5-Vzl-6exmiz3zzL2LOBrPr5TTzHSNc3/s320/083.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183332314209212402" border="0" /></a>The issue that was occupying most of my thinking time on this project was The Sphere Problem. I wasn't convinced of my skills to be able to create a round 3D image. I concentrated on playing with patterns that would make this easier, consulted my favourite blackwork books for guidance, and this was my first failed attempt:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR90l-HTz_zTwWxDhVj6zxDa0bZkQaWGPjxtwkwbsyJDDCgrxxnEi41ptg3j0nY57RQMV-OWS-Lk62HksZ8z6JiVBcK-AWdvgBlHSRxmXrDbpsqvGwdvl3r0WhDAYb9EjBKITGd5Xy8YDI/s1600-h/first_finial.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR90l-HTz_zTwWxDhVj6zxDa0bZkQaWGPjxtwkwbsyJDDCgrxxnEi41ptg3j0nY57RQMV-OWS-Lk62HksZ8z6JiVBcK-AWdvgBlHSRxmXrDbpsqvGwdvl3r0WhDAYb9EjBKITGd5Xy8YDI/s320/first_finial.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183334891189590082" border="0" /></a><br />Then a trip home saved the day. I realised that another distinctive, but less obvious feature of the bridges is the tensioning box, used to tension the cables. An example of which Dad had managed to perloin.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMZKlNxl6-rAUwihvGWEURrOiNLMN93p1KWBvdfPr1hkNd2crXNRxXd3LqRna4iQhh9LtlicaVCpv7cVWOyHnaQpLOOe5RpBQr60d3I1i3zqeY2rRteKmRNi6dZKYEp7ZvGme36G9JPGMI/s1600-h/091.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMZKlNxl6-rAUwihvGWEURrOiNLMN93p1KWBvdfPr1hkNd2crXNRxXd3LqRna4iQhh9LtlicaVCpv7cVWOyHnaQpLOOe5RpBQr60d3I1i3zqeY2rRteKmRNi6dZKYEp7ZvGme36G9JPGMI/s320/091.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183332318504179714" border="0" /></a>I thought that as far as patterns and shapes went, there would surely be enough to work with, and set about trying to see how I could create a pattern from the box, to use in and around the finial as a fill or border pattern. The<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7qq6pmC5Ek884S7bgIdLJ9jfu7p8luVPGuqr1-wjs_OEphdt1ipOT0EJty16lHGnCOMDQPi4mlmK-vv4FUGKhZ2hKjSfApO0VeBrQsYjlK9ROAziHuztz81Lo3cWm-1eCn75dZuhEXJE/s1600-h/IMG_5721.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7qq6pmC5Ek884S7bgIdLJ9jfu7p8luVPGuqr1-wjs_OEphdt1ipOT0EJty16lHGnCOMDQPi4mlmK-vv4FUGKhZ2hKjSfApO0VeBrQsYjlK9ROAziHuztz81Lo3cWm-1eCn75dZuhEXJE/s320/IMG_5721.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183333615584303154" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQAuAUQd8SnckTp2kLtnmHnu5_FReV8WfCQPLiehBVQmT-llXIzRH0n5spAjUgjOdPili8T7qk186yo63kb2hJ6Igfs0CFNgKKy-UlKQF8sso5Ame0MsqQlP2JKu0ToNAwOS62TwYV6J1y/s1600-h/pattern_workings_finial.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQAuAUQd8SnckTp2kLtnmHnu5_FReV8WfCQPLiehBVQmT-llXIzRH0n5spAjUgjOdPili8T7qk186yo63kb2hJ6Igfs0CFNgKKy-UlKQF8sso5Ame0MsqQlP2JKu0ToNAwOS62TwYV6J1y/s320/pattern_workings_finial.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183333611289335826" border="0" /></a><br />This became quite tricky, recreating the actual circle inside the tension box was becoming a bit complex, and although I still think it could work as a one off feature, the bottom right pattern of the image above, which layers a pattern of the basic outline of the tension box works better. Particularly, as it would be easy (I thought anyway!) to increase and decrease the density of the pattern to help with The Sphere Problem.<br /><br />Next challenge, getting the image onto the fabric, and with a lot of patient scanning and cropping by Jamie, I had a card-board cut out of the finial:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirkaY4SMPodB_yNFH3IDl1iy6Vb-qSo5pYCSmfzt2vUWnEg-fY_vxmhDpbqcskSpNAVTJNOatmiBWV5IU8Fc3KR3Q8HS1_IS73ckneIJQTxs2JzY1c9OH5bAdSDgmmc0ZJg7o2R_BgzrzW/s1600-h/cardboard_finial.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirkaY4SMPodB_yNFH3IDl1iy6Vb-qSo5pYCSmfzt2vUWnEg-fY_vxmhDpbqcskSpNAVTJNOatmiBWV5IU8Fc3KR3Q8HS1_IS73ckneIJQTxs2JzY1c9OH5bAdSDgmmc0ZJg7o2R_BgzrzW/s320/cardboard_finial.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183333615584303138" border="0" /></a>This is cheating I know, but I used a sewing pencil to trace the outline of the finial, and then started to fill with what turned out to be an unbelievably complex pattern which has made me totally cross eyed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhweQCIYCZ6vcA_lT45QIKpl9pFyruFoup8L7V6AAdlqiiwyqOlxA79J9lP3shqeaX3-F85_rHU_E906RJY71DSChJyx0hzQJAmpE_GJUmpHaodUsl3EdQhXkypBbiPi5Boh8_toK_btKvg/s1600-h/IMG_5704.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhweQCIYCZ6vcA_lT45QIKpl9pFyruFoup8L7V6AAdlqiiwyqOlxA79J9lP3shqeaX3-F85_rHU_E906RJY71DSChJyx0hzQJAmpE_GJUmpHaodUsl3EdQhXkypBbiPi5Boh8_toK_btKvg/s320/IMG_5704.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183336312823765090" border="0" /></a>Unfortunately, I got a bit carried away and wasn't confident enough to reduce the pattern before I started, and the bottom quadrant of the sphere is filled to the max, it should be fading out towards the centre. That was quite annoying. However, the stem works a bit better:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtLBly85dXGFtSZnEvSm-Hoyv6iFjEDIPK882zK_lafSxmDlnfUEoq268VA8ty488twmzIb2D6C1lf_zaRIz0Ihl4OoB2YGnJNdHeChKCwROf7iE_WIW1kQDRZR3pAbbu5ernkyFdhfavZ/s1600-h/current_finial.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtLBly85dXGFtSZnEvSm-Hoyv6iFjEDIPK882zK_lafSxmDlnfUEoq268VA8ty488twmzIb2D6C1lf_zaRIz0Ihl4OoB2YGnJNdHeChKCwROf7iE_WIW1kQDRZR3pAbbu5ernkyFdhfavZ/s320/current_finial.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5183336308528797778" border="0" /></a>Excuse the see-through scan! This piece works better if you half close your eyes, then you can't see the mess, but you can see that it's starting to look a bit more 3d.<br />Watch this space for the next installment - this has been so far a very challenging project, but I've never questioned it, as I hope in some small way it will reflect and pay tribute to the dedication and effort my Dad has put into generating for his - children and future generations, our family history.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzIgSZTEGYFmV_7LWHJBtZtLJJcph9LAREA0h_Nv3DhfHFq9CAVlJNSvFI5iMMnkHkBbblFbGGYSpmCHeJ3aTaZ_loJQCW_5woeRTgpMHHfbVaVjKooxnvd7gdLVWE9VvFvsRg3lwJDKvZ/s1600-h/IMG_7572.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzIgSZTEGYFmV_7LWHJBtZtLJJcph9LAREA0h_Nv3DhfHFq9CAVlJNSvFI5iMMnkHkBbblFbGGYSpmCHeJ3aTaZ_loJQCW_5woeRTgpMHHfbVaVjKooxnvd7gdLVWE9VvFvsRg3lwJDKvZ/s400/IMG_7572.JPG" border="0" /></a>Here is a close up of the stupidly complex pattern (note to self) made from interlocking shapes which echo the tension box.<br /><br />Crikey. This might break all records for the longest time taken to complete a project!! A few more traumas before I got to this stage. I have moved countries since the picture above - from New Zealand back to Scotland, and there's been a bit of wear and tear on the fabric in the process.<br /><br />I was concentrating so much on getting the shape and shading right, that I neglected to think about the overall design. I played around with possible border patterns etc., but as usual ended up going back to the horses mouth - i.e. what this would actually look like in all its glory, perched atop its Victorian gothic pillar.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9xQ-5DEaGNTsdVcA18ikz6arLAojoRJM2h_dRdhb7pOuIaW0VWij3eQ86ediQwlTpzHHh-s2vQ-XWFjGq-93qnxpyVqr_GEwmeYArbQXSi49n9JC6P_SqdCJH-EXYVsI6KivNWzlmUtDW/s1600-h/IMG_7568.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9xQ-5DEaGNTsdVcA18ikz6arLAojoRJM2h_dRdhb7pOuIaW0VWij3eQ86ediQwlTpzHHh-s2vQ-XWFjGq-93qnxpyVqr_GEwmeYArbQXSi49n9JC6P_SqdCJH-EXYVsI6KivNWzlmUtDW/s400/IMG_7568.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I've attempted to get the perspective of being at eye level with the "decorative cap piece" as my Dad has described it, with clouds floating by and the odd wee bird. Then it was floating, so I gave it a base to give the impression of being grounded on the structure. It looks better from a distance I think, and whatever you do Dad......don't look at the back!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF-CIDM3MiT9U4a69CMUWv7sWzDVSbe1ZmCUrfJRRW9DIevZfETMHLhSWW9j0ndcQgYFG12vlhQ5oFqE13PKjl2hYIiz3vwfgV-t5hSVKQFvy4d6G4WaQLbvOwWvCWDbYfxbLkxDEWdFHb/s1600-h/IMG_8165.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF-CIDM3MiT9U4a69CMUWv7sWzDVSbe1ZmCUrfJRRW9DIevZfETMHLhSWW9j0ndcQgYFG12vlhQ5oFqE13PKjl2hYIiz3vwfgV-t5hSVKQFvy4d6G4WaQLbvOwWvCWDbYfxbLkxDEWdFHb/s320/IMG_8165.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336851881651757890" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLPZr_byYcbjNuQEKsIsXRn7F-OLxyKqcwDgI421LgM5ezwu-rxZatMFunft3JpWEGLdlinHzxHKN3wyLq5Q7rxkkOzZCzZ5i5M34t2gvk1jUuAcwoXjP_VH2T3UFZ31M_hBX0OREq_pZM/s1600-h/IMG_7578.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLPZr_byYcbjNuQEKsIsXRn7F-OLxyKqcwDgI421LgM5ezwu-rxZatMFunft3JpWEGLdlinHzxHKN3wyLq5Q7rxkkOzZCzZ5i5M34t2gvk1jUuAcwoXjP_VH2T3UFZ31M_hBX0OREq_pZM/s400/IMG_7578.JPG" border="0" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-42359763155064717822008-03-29T16:35:00.000-07:002008-03-29T16:57:43.061-07:00Parental love and the sewing frameWhen I started doing blackwork in Thailand I didn't use a frame, but when I got to New Zealand it was the first thing I bought - a plastic hoop frame. But I saw a photo of Lesley Wilkins' lap frame.... internet searches ensued, but despite needlework being probably one of the most popular crafty pursuits, there is a real lack of wee designed frames.<br /><br />Enter my Mum. After explaining to her my dilemma, Mum spotted an advert for a sewing lap frame with a beanie tray (another one of my favourite things!) as a base. My Mum has an uncanny knack of spotting useful things advertised in catalogues, and as a fellow craftsperson she fully understood the value of good equipment.<br /><object height="355" width="425"><br />The hoops fix onto the frame by way of a doweling piece, and my Dad carefully measured these, traced the circumference of other hoops, and came up with some more - so now I have a complete set which fixes on. Not only that but he sent me clamps, a tiny drill bit and some screws all the way to New Zealand so I could repair some which came apart.<br /><br />So this laptray, along with a zillion other things they do for me and have done, is a great little symbol for me of their love.<br /><br />On the Blackwork yahoo forum (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Blackwork) recently there has been a discussion about good frame designs. Below is a demonstration of my beanie tray frame.<br /><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/i9P3AuXAoVQ&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/i9P3AuXAoVQ&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-12698579128295141872008-02-16T19:42:00.000-08:002008-02-16T20:31:33.787-08:00Making my siblings into a door sign<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHdhRKnOQTtwqpvHPv8qOuPXRzFbkaqIoGR-40SnB-R3PXceclFUXVmhoiTT3_uX8dO0FRzm2H8i5etfewI38h1naXKxVoBWNfDhPk4StxjQDlwpnH4_U6fWdr3CwYJLNrQMeqZimk5Gnx/s1600-h/DSCN1099.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHdhRKnOQTtwqpvHPv8qOuPXRzFbkaqIoGR-40SnB-R3PXceclFUXVmhoiTT3_uX8dO0FRzm2H8i5etfewI38h1naXKxVoBWNfDhPk4StxjQDlwpnH4_U6fWdr3CwYJLNrQMeqZimk5Gnx/s320/DSCN1099.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5167798324814281698" border="0" /></a>We bought our house just in the nick of time for Mum's visit to Wellington, she travelled half the globe, was delayed in Auckland and somehow still managed to skip up the 43 steps to our front door. We weren't particularly organised for her visit, I had planned to put together an itinerary for her stay, but I got waylaid by an idea for a project which I hoped would make her feel at home.<br />I decided to make a door sign for her room. I had planned on block capitals of 'mum's room' with different fill patterns in each letter. I thought I might play around with shading from dark to light vertically through the letters.<br />I thought about it a lot in my head - which is actually where the majority of my sewing has been done so far - and started to play around with some ideas.<br />I was constricted by time, house moving and a job had squeezed the letter sizes down a bit, and the patterns weren't behaving themselves - the fill patterns I'd thought of were far now far too big.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMgr-apIyZaAec_wYx9neWUuR90yETm33HnuL46RO1McwlO8My5mY5TMzssQbo2S6MPjrEbx7yUbcqJokiyPJiy8wEkoU7LFCkths5uiGq4ZWDWM8kvGT_msNS4TRG0QpX9HperY8jHjD8/s1600-h/IMG_5710.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMgr-apIyZaAec_wYx9neWUuR90yETm33HnuL46RO1McwlO8My5mY5TMzssQbo2S6MPjrEbx7yUbcqJokiyPJiy8wEkoU7LFCkths5uiGq4ZWDWM8kvGT_msNS4TRG0QpX9HperY8jHjD8/s320/IMG_5710.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5167798728541207586" border="0" /></a>Then I stumbled upon an idea - to make the fill patterns a bit more meaningful - I thought I could use the first letter of each of my siblings names (Caroline, Lorraine and Ross) to make up different letters.<br />Making this idea work drove me mad. I wasn't sure that the world needed someone who could make a 'U' out of C's, or a M out of L's, but that still didn't stop me feeling immense satisfaction once I'd worked it out.<br />The issue was the size of each letter, which had to be roughly equal. No graph paper was used, largely down to the time factor, I just counted out the length of each letter to make sure they weren't going to look odd side by side. As you can see in the sign this didn't work the S just had to be bigger. If I'd had more time I would have scrapped it and started again.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZNxoW-u0_bLJoBUJHprc0J0-wsATxEsxczbgb4u4OR9BX6228wwwt74D5rlQlZ-heeyAKeTck0fGebErTmrKmYmLO4Y_0pQNn5VSsv61YI2byOxF6g5wpfEHxR4BXdbxXBSGTPszepQzk/s1600-h/IMG_5713.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZNxoW-u0_bLJoBUJHprc0J0-wsATxEsxczbgb4u4OR9BX6228wwwt74D5rlQlZ-heeyAKeTck0fGebErTmrKmYmLO4Y_0pQNn5VSsv61YI2byOxF6g5wpfEHxR4BXdbxXBSGTPszepQzk/s320/IMG_5713.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5167798337699183634" border="0" /></a><br />Laying them diagonally also helped the density of the patter, which had to be roughly the same in each letter. The U for example, and S were quite bare once I'd figured out how to place the Cs, so I went back over and filled in some more Cs to give it a bit more oomph.<br />My favourite letter is the U and I really liked how the R's worked out to make the O. They were like spinning wheels before I joined up the circle - I did consider leaving them as spinning wheels but it would have looked unfinished, I thought giving the O's a boundary would be a bit of an anchor in the design. I'm not sure about that now I see it again, but the important thing is they looked like the letters. I considered 'outlining' the others as well, but I think it probably would have made the whole thing too busy. The other idea for the R's which you can see here would have made a good O, but were too big.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXcpFemytYB9FblCtRcpchUm4LvpNgDHd4JRx7iFPgttczckCgn0Zp8B3cD7wcC00EjNAPMyXjqasGl2CgnfV5df3Yy8aZE4X3FFRi4JhEFlJ-BB8ckY8mzhXsB6bxFK7UPEApZM-6Zovx/s1600-h/DSCN1101.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXcpFemytYB9FblCtRcpchUm4LvpNgDHd4JRx7iFPgttczckCgn0Zp8B3cD7wcC00EjNAPMyXjqasGl2CgnfV5df3Yy8aZE4X3FFRi4JhEFlJ-BB8ckY8mzhXsB6bxFK7UPEApZM-6Zovx/s320/DSCN1101.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5167798337699183618" border="0" /></a>The angle of the middle of the M was tricky, creating the diagonal from the vertical using the same pattern but trying to make sure it didn't look like a completely different size - laying the L's diagonally through the letter helped.<br /><br />The L's made the M and either end - which gave it the same beginning and end - like writing a essays we wrote at school, the C made the U and the S and H's for the other M and the R. The backwards R made a wee apostrophe.<br />I made Jamie guess the letter after I'd done it, to make sure they were recognisable to someone else.<br />This project was really satisfying because I did worked out one letter each night, and sewing the first letter of Lorraine, or Caroline or Ross over and over again meant I was thinking constantly about each of them as I did it. I'm not sure that there is another hobby that holds your mind in concentration on the person you are creating for, or drawing from to create, and I do think that the rhythm of stitching is a bit like breathing - the thread going back and forth from front to back, like inhaling and exhaling - and together with the focus on a person or place, it can be quite a meditative practice. When I did the 'H' I thought about when I first wrote an 'H' in nursery school, we were supposed to be doing patterns: | - | - | and I joined them up. The nursery teacher told me not to - she'd be shocked if she could see what I'd done now.<br />It seemed very fitting to make a Mum's Room sign out of her children's letters, she brought Jamie and I an incredible quilt which will keep us warm in the winter, this sign wasn't quite on the same scale, but I do like to think the same amount of love went into the making of each.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-2576433834981745192008-02-12T22:22:00.000-08:002009-11-06T08:46:10.745-08:00Shetland Sampler of Pattern InspirationsThis collection is from Sandness, Shetland Isles, Scotland.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5SZ5HjIBZbOCZBqDENDxyKGT31GZED6KRAvB92E1EJOpEDhBGGIMNNDCQ52an-5k3zbz_oSrcQGOgGEq6s9YRcpBbbQR6eGiRbfycjB7j6U-rPkA3jiK6S5yvcBQvhuXrZDVvr3R3mNbM/s1600-h/IMG_4874.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; 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display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYaU6MEyAfr-Sv6inXqqMRYIC-mZElC8iiTVJszvlSpXnlrDH6tcHdole10HntgQ5SNI8CI3BK7JRmVqPaVY86TI32QwEUAI6UzR3OjftG1UDAZqTpL-jBOwZEnq1IXwwOxfF74W4MTt3C/s320/IMG_4877.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166346935105878802" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvFkOdAbu-24c5_pj0nDBEXoUHj4eSBxQJ5mxPOZsGUjMR68REX0mZDiYtThvFmFTZoN6ELsOYdqnfZ-XwPQwGv-N7P5wF8dATMYx5EmMRaTv6hONE6dHyumdTdYN_KK6HQ9ofB-gNdjcV/s1600-h/IMG_4878.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvFkOdAbu-24c5_pj0nDBEXoUHj4eSBxQJ5mxPOZsGUjMR68REX0mZDiYtThvFmFTZoN6ELsOYdqnfZ-XwPQwGv-N7P5wF8dATMYx5EmMRaTv6hONE6dHyumdTdYN_KK6HQ9ofB-gNdjcV/s320/IMG_4878.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166346939400846114" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS9DI885J50OcnXmwm_G0Ytd-M_WKLKJe48EEgUiRXrfLbWm2v3U_tFTIxyVq03F6gUmmDdeoHhzFWhGXMTWsbESMkpfqCpJLAYp3Szb1ka81918FCOuUPK6zG4mux84h6zJpBL0EZuKSB/s1600-h/IMG_8510.JPG"><img alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS9DI885J50OcnXmwm_G0Ytd-M_WKLKJe48EEgUiRXrfLbWm2v3U_tFTIxyVq03F6gUmmDdeoHhzFWhGXMTWsbESMkpfqCpJLAYp3Szb1ka81918FCOuUPK6zG4mux84h6zJpBL0EZuKSB/s320/IMG_8510.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-67643426892261726932008-02-12T21:19:00.000-08:002008-02-12T21:40:50.445-08:00Indian Sampler of Pattern InspirationsWe spent a month in India during our travels, no sewing on this trip, only collecting. Which wasn't hard.<br /><br />This is taken from the Baby Taj, precurser to the Taj Mahal both in Agra, India. Both buildings were clad head to toe in patterns, made with precious stones inlaid into the marble. A backbreaking and laborious technique, which produces incredible results - hang on, what does that remind me of?!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFW6qXKWHt9aFZMFQglimLvq1k5Epg912el2DAhMP4mGrWoxABqVkHpdlHBeyQPigONDAUtMudpqxaQ33jR0ajBkt_f1CBj0DkpBTqjf6CYMKQtOfHYaX-jYm6OkcEp72z15rplfAB20Hy/s1600-h/Agra+%2856%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFW6qXKWHt9aFZMFQglimLvq1k5Epg912el2DAhMP4mGrWoxABqVkHpdlHBeyQPigONDAUtMudpqxaQ33jR0ajBkt_f1CBj0DkpBTqjf6CYMKQtOfHYaX-jYm6OkcEp72z15rplfAB20Hy/s320/Agra+%2856%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331593482697186" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEFIlN7zGQJsh9vUnr5AgD6BATvuDU_hYhR4LgqugexhE2EUnkpKy8EGDxC25S5T2iRvoqjsFCOCZu-osuZ3Df86sVn4KxTlT6MwyDbp4Vhl4R2inIJzMk9jp7GyvMayIgmHNofhlUZDG-/s1600-h/Agra+%2862%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEFIlN7zGQJsh9vUnr5AgD6BATvuDU_hYhR4LgqugexhE2EUnkpKy8EGDxC25S5T2iRvoqjsFCOCZu-osuZ3Df86sVn4KxTlT6MwyDbp4Vhl4R2inIJzMk9jp7GyvMayIgmHNofhlUZDG-/s320/Agra+%2862%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331597777664498" border="0" /></a>This was a pattern on the roof which I loved, slightly worn, but somehow that adds to it...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZieb52k5_Tff4B08Q1mPHkcRKlyhghnhk2LGhfZH4gncgSSYzUjn8SaqzSqUGzq1MMMIt6ruWp5W12PJXE7IM4QfQ2zXJLqhtu-1q9aF9kVEjCwVazJFqK9zjlXt7Ct6GAr7qUJZp1XSU/s1600-h/Agra+%2877%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZieb52k5_Tff4B08Q1mPHkcRKlyhghnhk2LGhfZH4gncgSSYzUjn8SaqzSqUGzq1MMMIt6ruWp5W12PJXE7IM4QfQ2zXJLqhtu-1q9aF9kVEjCwVazJFqK9zjlXt7Ct6GAr7qUJZp1XSU/s320/Agra+%2877%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331602072631810" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Jp21QioeE87en7ixpiAsxjNhm9Rr4wM4CHfv0lt8eb8X_mHXgAr282wxTgh2Zntw6szV7DnfJNx0pRQWJo4WvRRZdU4xyvm8W-dLtTWXaydaspCqb5aTBGhYUspnn7QVMyOJm0Qh7pBC/s1600-h/Agra+%2895%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Jp21QioeE87en7ixpiAsxjNhm9Rr4wM4CHfv0lt8eb8X_mHXgAr282wxTgh2Zntw6szV7DnfJNx0pRQWJo4WvRRZdU4xyvm8W-dLtTWXaydaspCqb5aTBGhYUspnn7QVMyOJm0Qh7pBC/s320/Agra+%2895%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331602072631826" border="0" /></a><br />Sand dunes near Jaisalmer, I'd just got off a camel when I took this, the sun was setting making it easier to distinguish the sandy ripples.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2nDhmUidxfer7vS8IVcj0ZiCSssich-6e_0ZRTJOZwApSP68CPdyM7636Hl6SPxC15vpJFb-WnLuc71dVr_Iv7_LLjB8sHvT6d6WSqGeeE82YgHslkKeFkpkci0XgsVocpDUP4LSadnu_/s1600-h/Camel+trek+Jaisalmer+%2823%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2nDhmUidxfer7vS8IVcj0ZiCSssich-6e_0ZRTJOZwApSP68CPdyM7636Hl6SPxC15vpJFb-WnLuc71dVr_Iv7_LLjB8sHvT6d6WSqGeeE82YgHslkKeFkpkci0XgsVocpDUP4LSadnu_/s320/Camel+trek+Jaisalmer+%2823%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331606367599138" border="0" /></a><br />Baby Taj again....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDI4Q0kWHYIEqmkpsfHNc4oZSfd-AsJyzSC6StCx2UsoSCpWpjIZVBevapOgYo_T7JciXBtL1LHuRAoV7Ctf-B58jQQau86w3fE8TObXoc9whwOLFOgTA0XKpIOtjR4Enshuq-cMqvdTb/s1600-h/Agra+%2846%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDI4Q0kWHYIEqmkpsfHNc4oZSfd-AsJyzSC6StCx2UsoSCpWpjIZVBevapOgYo_T7JciXBtL1LHuRAoV7Ctf-B58jQQau86w3fE8TObXoc9whwOLFOgTA0XKpIOtjR4Enshuq-cMqvdTb/s320/Agra+%2846%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331314309822866" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_i4G4g3vhAB6b2BEuiXAdGFiLoeUxiwR0lhnREU9twz84wg-xuRIvKsDFpzZLMM2uZo5VJNFKw6xozKlMvdlcHnWVCynmG1uY0IhDn4fxy9-zpMJU_h43_S9sLzitN4jI4wuNs9tJbD0I/s1600-h/Agra+%2848%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_i4G4g3vhAB6b2BEuiXAdGFiLoeUxiwR0lhnREU9twz84wg-xuRIvKsDFpzZLMM2uZo5VJNFKw6xozKlMvdlcHnWVCynmG1uY0IhDn4fxy9-zpMJU_h43_S9sLzitN4jI4wuNs9tJbD0I/s320/Agra+%2848%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331318604790178" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKD8xGbSINTO7-BzWIBuJgconRXRniix30d8llTlJFIWFtcX93m5XfrI3ddEI5whYpCM5nh4HDDZUhO7jiR8zmyp1VEq1kWP8WoXhnQLb3r-AxfsLFRVuzDmMkD-20IslKSylsKc9ycj4h/s1600-h/Agra+%2850%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKD8xGbSINTO7-BzWIBuJgconRXRniix30d8llTlJFIWFtcX93m5XfrI3ddEI5whYpCM5nh4HDDZUhO7jiR8zmyp1VEq1kWP8WoXhnQLb3r-AxfsLFRVuzDmMkD-20IslKSylsKc9ycj4h/s320/Agra+%2850%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331322899757490" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwLV-exI8qA9a8CwczkbjNpXP22uYLo04TaWH27xXkDzefyHkNFf93DzQ0ONHL_KtObVtq3oGA7eLXue_Zgg2JJPRlVZ3qGnVMqpHH2CzJo-mV4u-CoBWjlCoPAyMhb_boZ2M_diPnIUHn/s1600-h/Agra+%2851%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwLV-exI8qA9a8CwczkbjNpXP22uYLo04TaWH27xXkDzefyHkNFf93DzQ0ONHL_KtObVtq3oGA7eLXue_Zgg2JJPRlVZ3qGnVMqpHH2CzJo-mV4u-CoBWjlCoPAyMhb_boZ2M_diPnIUHn/s320/Agra+%2851%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331322899757506" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9EET0MRlt0poK277-gzkNJ-YXE4CcFHN89GrdZ7OrZqSUd-2DzNshloWwROY8Az3EDS8bKeODXy9BIprft284cv04R1NW8VQcXIcL_mnrDSMsJuXZAgqCJu71HGIEbhSuPee8d1DJHTyQ/s1600-h/Agra+%2852%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9EET0MRlt0poK277-gzkNJ-YXE4CcFHN89GrdZ7OrZqSUd-2DzNshloWwROY8Az3EDS8bKeODXy9BIprft284cv04R1NW8VQcXIcL_mnrDSMsJuXZAgqCJu71HGIEbhSuPee8d1DJHTyQ/s320/Agra+%2852%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331327194724818" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMvaWw98vHezV52Vmn9BcJZ4jPUZrENyM07HtHg2ncPngwZaSvpNZb35c6keBiRcJ1e8WBD355dGAn1XxMgnBaQLf89ZQZBi9maqyJ9GzZWKnWkpFXLdkbSn5TNwIFlCepcUa8eruehzhw/s1600-h/Agra+%2825%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMvaWw98vHezV52Vmn9BcJZ4jPUZrENyM07HtHg2ncPngwZaSvpNZb35c6keBiRcJ1e8WBD355dGAn1XxMgnBaQLf89ZQZBi9maqyJ9GzZWKnWkpFXLdkbSn5TNwIFlCepcUa8eruehzhw/s320/Agra+%2825%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331060906752322" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQN2E_IVnneWm4vIWtbtOoTUlrIugUdGlMbuzY_nDuD-KF53J3f8wxOVYVUsVt5-B9p2cGbClkHw5CKMBnLXVaDfvFJZbLhUq3DITZrkfF-cDyzZRnFgxw9M9dr4kboPJiZ5BHkVw5NHMl/s1600-h/Agra+%2826%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQN2E_IVnneWm4vIWtbtOoTUlrIugUdGlMbuzY_nDuD-KF53J3f8wxOVYVUsVt5-B9p2cGbClkHw5CKMBnLXVaDfvFJZbLhUq3DITZrkfF-cDyzZRnFgxw9M9dr4kboPJiZ5BHkVw5NHMl/s320/Agra+%2826%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331060906752338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgipzPirBOZNrp-8RK39Oh_d5lJJIsfj-99Y_8ilbxRiskHTc0591KLTGT2Shv6-SiGDP6ay-a4i4g_2nHj2vgzjtxJsPebW5I2jSPg4J4fuc3lhtiEG_eZWIzmp9XHwPOpjZOGdTsiDUsv/s1600-h/Agra+%2827%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgipzPirBOZNrp-8RK39Oh_d5lJJIsfj-99Y_8ilbxRiskHTc0591KLTGT2Shv6-SiGDP6ay-a4i4g_2nHj2vgzjtxJsPebW5I2jSPg4J4fuc3lhtiEG_eZWIzmp9XHwPOpjZOGdTsiDUsv/s320/Agra+%2827%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331065201719650" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv08UJVEzIxTKo4oZFlRpGbLaxuJ4ko8jTdvwVcw6RvxUI5GnVkHHwkRRNqNl6iC25l2WUiNeC0dPObcG4zTO3bD9SZCHOjndRolfyeMyMR0cNE4xh0L5E7HjifmUlGXtsnvkWUAQJJ3u8/s1600-h/Agra+%2828%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv08UJVEzIxTKo4oZFlRpGbLaxuJ4ko8jTdvwVcw6RvxUI5GnVkHHwkRRNqNl6iC25l2WUiNeC0dPObcG4zTO3bD9SZCHOjndRolfyeMyMR0cNE4xh0L5E7HjifmUlGXtsnvkWUAQJJ3u8/s320/Agra+%2828%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331069496686962" border="0" /></a><br />Baby Taj's younger, but much bigger brother, the Taj Mahal. Has to be seen in person to be believed, and even then it's difficult to take it all in.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJOzQwuqYf31SxlvZx93H2UWhCdMjd6bH9IUWiO0qQHB0KFF1ZscV4LcPpiSoIVKMgiHrNMZCbMwAAda1-_m1GCoOXjXiDvcymD68-LTjolRNJfTrfHucz9lKSPgif-yiQWAkrb0DP7QM/s1600-h/Agra+%2832%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJOzQwuqYf31SxlvZx93H2UWhCdMjd6bH9IUWiO0qQHB0KFF1ZscV4LcPpiSoIVKMgiHrNMZCbMwAAda1-_m1GCoOXjXiDvcymD68-LTjolRNJfTrfHucz9lKSPgif-yiQWAkrb0DP7QM/s320/Agra+%2832%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331069496686978" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This is Jodhpur, Rajistan, India, taken from the fort looking down on the city.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh3qdwVi4Qc4Qc1GYVx_FOn7al1Y4xz6cWEFHM2V0lI3i71WWVwpxz_UwFKgS8M42nWzsKA3YwOqh5wk-4k4kNnbWGocDsra8vz-pJZyyc2zNocv9AB_VZDYpu-e8OBoL4OVzazVYRGad0/s1600-h/Jodhpur+%2840%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh3qdwVi4Qc4Qc1GYVx_FOn7al1Y4xz6cWEFHM2V0lI3i71WWVwpxz_UwFKgS8M42nWzsKA3YwOqh5wk-4k4kNnbWGocDsra8vz-pJZyyc2zNocv9AB_VZDYpu-e8OBoL4OVzazVYRGad0/s320/Jodhpur+%2840%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166332246317726338" border="0" /></a><br />Pastry shop, McLoed Ganj - home to the Dali Lama (not this house though! He's got a much nicer one up the road).<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYkEktuDMQAsB4Md9NGKCaVR6tUfZfH52DnVJRtZeSqyLoNHDSMVJ1MziO4VGiOUNGCcehySlS7cSCDnq995iGgwGFf5kM8LAsjSDsYjyc6bzTxeFdHNP1r_ez9JCbhT2-WBIl-_SyoKW_/s1600-h/McLeod+Ganj+-+Dharamasala+%2820%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYkEktuDMQAsB4Md9NGKCaVR6tUfZfH52DnVJRtZeSqyLoNHDSMVJ1MziO4VGiOUNGCcehySlS7cSCDnq995iGgwGFf5kM8LAsjSDsYjyc6bzTxeFdHNP1r_ez9JCbhT2-WBIl-_SyoKW_/s320/McLeod+Ganj+-+Dharamasala+%2820%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166332246317726354" border="0" /></a><br />Shimla, another hill town in Northern India - I have no idea what these silver boxes were for, but there were a lot of them and they were the brightest things for miles around. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBNyHu90mhoIiumZY_z0gtt-xxBoZxffpTG6AZsHgYYDzzWRfAlZv2nV5-Wk78n2bR-Of0Z5j10kQSwVjrryHVE-25zaGc9diSQEJ7G0SBnLPKORktyv-RxJ8bsQX-T8nIQ4H2D8MUuWSs/s1600-h/Shimla+%282%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBNyHu90mhoIiumZY_z0gtt-xxBoZxffpTG6AZsHgYYDzzWRfAlZv2nV5-Wk78n2bR-Of0Z5j10kQSwVjrryHVE-25zaGc9diSQEJ7G0SBnLPKORktyv-RxJ8bsQX-T8nIQ4H2D8MUuWSs/s320/Shimla+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166332250612693666" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWzjV5qFeSrELk6FbWh4cVIbE-qQ51NGqPpQbDmqoPq8oBi4BBNw8fMj5ox7HJxYWAy5KIi5SW40wvl6Wcbe8_vYIaACm3Sw3VsVvOlRCzH4Srt-_ekuo0ZGWcmG_jO88RrzQdoH0bKYbF/s1600-h/Shimla+%283%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWzjV5qFeSrELk6FbWh4cVIbE-qQ51NGqPpQbDmqoPq8oBi4BBNw8fMj5ox7HJxYWAy5KIi5SW40wvl6Wcbe8_vYIaACm3Sw3VsVvOlRCzH4Srt-_ekuo0ZGWcmG_jO88RrzQdoH0bKYbF/s320/Shimla+%283%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166332250612693682" border="0" /></a><br />Jodhpur again - if you had fifty photos like this you wouldn't have got it all in, humungous.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB8JMWgtsg2kEAEorcJtXewjwmCdHLlIAzgR_Bv8hvvsDc9XSrLQ_0lHukab2rDkgeXgBZFWZe0scUhkvZGW4UQ1WmJM2GMCpioTtALEhM4KEKczrieyg3hI-HBYuh69QRHyJhkpnJQpyL/s1600-h/Jaipur+%2847%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; 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display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTJbF6FqhffNGuzYZCa7fZ0KRCLFFp2EKcnRVXBbIXSAH_ZyqB5ffSC-KnCtUt-tkaNW9R0BXc7LEf3ekp5LY96xwkkKZ7JF5Bl17bEL9Gpcg-7hc9bvjZg3gOfdI0J5iNOaohyA97eL71/s320/Jodhpur+%286%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166331971439819378" border="0" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-20817654755353315522008-02-11T20:38:00.001-08:002008-02-12T21:18:07.983-08:00Thai Sampler of Pattern InspirationsIn Thailand I started to try and train my eye to see patterns, and these photos represent my first attempts. They're my scrapbook of ideas for fill patterns or motifs.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQgHrA3EEPWpl9KhiUfaOe-_UouwLoZpVCDhrRrT3LxwnJ8Xd6fs7MDfBoGBY3QyewgeX237Cx3DHuHaJwissMhIg8dWxQYq20VZ9OXMuOZLHglh_OiFlaneaCneBScg1KA8qNHQILkRVm/s1600-h/Lauras_bedspread.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQgHrA3EEPWpl9KhiUfaOe-_UouwLoZpVCDhrRrT3LxwnJ8Xd6fs7MDfBoGBY3QyewgeX237Cx3DHuHaJwissMhIg8dWxQYq20VZ9OXMuOZLHglh_OiFlaneaCneBScg1KA8qNHQILkRVm/s320/Lauras_bedspread.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166328466746505458" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDmYL0XMnsn6h9PcK6M9t6czPcIh7N5TIp49LrthPODJkOQxXbj3uM7ymZ7uh41WbGD_i3DubkyHCMeLVXLZZSkADCsmwReMeh7KovfmT7XXqwpVxIwiWoRvUR8pvPE402k4QRh5hoPkqq/s1600-h/Lauras_bedspread+%281%29.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; 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display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdDD2Hy7zEAv-V5oY4jPJwGt3s0qZjIoAKj1c89u4fRWx6T8t6Wdb0ajv3W6TnfIomgg3IaIwj5lm-Jou8KdMegy15zTtdSXwVr_HAaLzTwUgl4c-aN8wT7DK4xyHyecsGpla45dQ4-yvi/s320/Cooking_school+%283%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166327234090891234" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMzrrOqOF_nsZh4VefxlW2WL8UvdvPhMeC5DyOLt5uV4zjOf-jlnOsA4wDMTohHDItO5kZ064LrBhgT19z1HAhokKdxS4MsJubkQNllp-Y8xWZvFKm5oA_JJ4tL-T_3MYRSahFpgcjko8G/s1600-h/Hong+Kong+%26+Pukurea+Bay+030.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMzrrOqOF_nsZh4VefxlW2WL8UvdvPhMeC5DyOLt5uV4zjOf-jlnOsA4wDMTohHDItO5kZ064LrBhgT19z1HAhokKdxS4MsJubkQNllp-Y8xWZvFKm5oA_JJ4tL-T_3MYRSahFpgcjko8G/s320/Hong+Kong+%26+Pukurea+Bay+030.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166327238385858546" border="0" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-87281743712836638852008-02-11T01:11:00.000-08:002008-02-13T01:47:41.288-08:00Maya, Ruby & the Blackwork RabbitThis project kind of landed on me. My neice Maya Durham, is an artist. She's 8 now, but in that small number of years she has produced hundreds of spectacular pictures.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFCnysk1Or0guJG79m8pwrT3SR9rhYdw8FdaAepGML83uQX8hF4jTNEcLYJ-uK9mkHhaqn-60pIg9yLNp158kxvO7FNi-oTL9K7rMaeXQ1Y7SEi8GCk7oG1gq3QJxkpETdZiVVZ_FCa2Uf/s1600-h/scan0003.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFCnysk1Or0guJG79m8pwrT3SR9rhYdw8FdaAepGML83uQX8hF4jTNEcLYJ-uK9mkHhaqn-60pIg9yLNp158kxvO7FNi-oTL9K7rMaeXQ1Y7SEi8GCk7oG1gq3QJxkpETdZiVVZ_FCa2Uf/s320/scan0003.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166340436820359874" border="0" /></a>For my birthday, she made me a story about rabbits, fully illustrated. She picked a topic sure to please -I previously owned a fantastically cute houserabbit called Ruby. Rube Boob Tube, to those who knew her best.<br /><br />The shape of the rabbit she had drawn was striking, and I thought it would be a good challenge to try and recreate it as a blackwork rabbit, and give it to her for her birthday.<br /><br />My biggest challenge was the size of the pattern to fill the rabbit. I didn't want the pattern to be too dense, too small or complicated. It needed to complement the simplicity of her shape.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid3g1ZG-vS0TCFV95v0woBnP72WPAVEC3CMuoHhv4D_0fTVabkrHXV355ebtg26Rx4x9r8aEzm8WAPft-UOx5JMc84b8KKXs8h7zHnFkwIpDS0MLEkGzmehwLU_uHL5zzV6eQq-Y2JGVRy/s1600-h/IMG_5709.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid3g1ZG-vS0TCFV95v0woBnP72WPAVEC3CMuoHhv4D_0fTVabkrHXV355ebtg26Rx4x9r8aEzm8WAPft-UOx5JMc84b8KKXs8h7zHnFkwIpDS0MLEkGzmehwLU_uHL5zzV6eQq-Y2JGVRy/s320/IMG_5709.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />On the left is a picture of 'avoidance' which was me,<br />playing around with different patterns, or rather<br />the same unsuitable pattern, as I stressed about how to<br />'fill' the rabbit.<br /><br />This was my first lesson that with sewing for other<br />people, comes responsibility. Your decisions matter. Someone's going to have to look at this, and like it.<br /><br />Size is traumatic also - big spaces, wee pattern = too busy. Big spaces + big pattern = lazy! I decided I needed a medium sized pattern.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Eventually I tried some other patterns out, and<br />realised that this one was probably a better size.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBSUhV-keNfPsL2JY1Y3XtcO8h-3BykDolbuzwdkV9wD36cG_LnMQBnb_XmgbxB3AhyULLbjUTylRuOh5gyZvJ19DlbuHotSIuJAPk7iinNzy0Z7NrAQz6AhW6hsMvacWZeIdWrZYypace/s1600-h/IMG_5711.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBSUhV-keNfPsL2JY1Y3XtcO8h-3BykDolbuzwdkV9wD36cG_LnMQBnb_XmgbxB3AhyULLbjUTylRuOh5gyZvJ19DlbuHotSIuJAPk7iinNzy0Z7NrAQz6AhW6hsMvacWZeIdWrZYypace/s320/IMG_5711.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166341858454534866" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I was also trying to play around a bit more<br />systematically with shading. Previously in the Thai Shack I just used the stitches to 'draw' in the shading - taking a step<br />back now and again to see which part needed more.<br /><br />But I knew that really I should be training myself to think about how the pattern looks if you drop or reintroduce specific parts of it. The rows and the number of elements within the pattern helped my experimentation somewhat. I'd love to do practice this a bit more, I just find it pretty challenging - there's a lot more to it than meets the eye.<br />I find it a lot easier to just let the pattern fragment or collapse organically, but it's not quite as effective - particularly within an enclosed, block shape such as this. In this case I wasn't trying to create form, so much as perspective - ensuring the ear was in front of the body.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMIZBe0Ld2w145EPve7d54mh9176m-q1_67nvA9szmjnyx43xvSBf8ybB0rvzgarr4uzzqFOFw02AYh7k9xv0FBP1ttWP9zNOye-nstEt0ssE9AVY8A2qcdMMsfunBU7VDazT-n_TfG56e/s1600-h/Helens+Rabbit.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMIZBe0Ld2w145EPve7d54mh9176m-q1_67nvA9szmjnyx43xvSBf8ybB0rvzgarr4uzzqFOFw02AYh7k9xv0FBP1ttWP9zNOye-nstEt0ssE9AVY8A2qcdMMsfunBU7VDazT-n_TfG56e/s320/Helens+Rabbit.jpg" border="0" /></a> So here we have it: 'Ruby', designed by Maya, Blackworked by Aunty Helen.<br /><br />The ears were also a tricky shape to fill, one of most satisfying things about the drawing was that Maya had drawn the ears as one shape. I picked smaller patterns here, and tried to use one that pulled the eye downward, to retain the ear's 'flop'.<br /><br />The shading worked ok now I see it again, but at the time I hated it so much I thought I wouldn't give it to her.<br /><br />In fact it's taken me quite some time to show my work to anyone at all.<br /><br />The outline is couched in black wool.<br /><br /><br /><br />This project was a lesson in my inability to follow things through and stick with it. It took me about a year longer than I wanted it to, I thought about it a lot more than actually doing it, and I avoided the task in hand.<br /><br />My husband and brother-in-law (Maya's Dad) are writers, and they have a lot to say on the subject of 'resistance' (avoidance) particularly when it comes to things which are actually what you SHOULD be doing, i.e. that give you the most satisfaction and fulfillment. This project was definitely a good example.<br /><br />Maya I suspect would have approached this more productively (I've never known her to resist her artistic drive). She probably piled in there planting a whizz of perfectly placed pattern to depict Ruby just as she would have been if she was still here, one ear up, one ear down.<br /><br />Ruby herself is another story - a house rabbit with attitude who would have chomped her way through most of my sewing, as she did my CD covers, pages of books, sofa bed mattresses, speaker cable...... if she hadn't been so darned cute I wouldn't have put up with it.<br /><br />This picture is therefore sparks fond memories of her, the endeavours of my artistic neice....and my birthday storybook.<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-56889091759160521592008-02-11T00:52:00.000-08:002008-02-11T20:24:51.742-08:00Frustrations!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlGTBGZa_aZY4SDGLKQL1Kkqn5VqOfRDbu8aEyYjAtd1XNEM5DXn8YX1Lznwoml4qkfuOl69MomWtHnZNy5jJ37CP09VxZJK6O1kTI8uG-cZJcfHywuPRehnpZCjAcMKXxRQ2r7kvcwyI/s1600-h/IMG_0447.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlGTBGZa_aZY4SDGLKQL1Kkqn5VqOfRDbu8aEyYjAtd1XNEM5DXn8YX1Lznwoml4qkfuOl69MomWtHnZNy5jJ37CP09VxZJK6O1kTI8uG-cZJcfHywuPRehnpZCjAcMKXxRQ2r7kvcwyI/s320/IMG_0447.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Unlike my Grandmother, I had a good art teacher<br />at school - Audrey Henderson - and one of her<br />many pieces of fantastic advice was 'collect collect<br />collect everything. This object to the left, taken from the beach<br />was fascinating, and if you look closely you can see the spangled<br />web inside each little compartment. I'm still new to sewing<br />and learning what is and isn't possible to depict on fabric, particularly<br />fabric which is for newbie sewers, which is forces you to be quite geometric.<br />I tried, and pretty much failed to recreate the organic randomness of the pattern<br />on the fabric (see below).<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjudVcI9IJ7kWMR_ldfgfkeOyRREDCqgGVPnOXmLD4QedT-t0zzT6rN2iIL5TEQ5U_Qw-Pd9besZc6fTZDELec6z5eMS4xKMXAEztMQ5koemd2P1QwlpihPIdcwe0w91VfmRk3zZnIehlFk/s1600-h/ACE+expert+KP%26+KB+018.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjudVcI9IJ7kWMR_ldfgfkeOyRREDCqgGVPnOXmLD4QedT-t0zzT6rN2iIL5TEQ5U_Qw-Pd9besZc6fTZDELec6z5eMS4xKMXAEztMQ5koemd2P1QwlpihPIdcwe0w91VfmRk3zZnIehlFk/s320/ACE+expert+KP%26+KB+018.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />This was another shape which mesmorised me, a longtail boat, particularly<br />when swooshing through the water.<br />This was a regular mode of transport for us in Thailand, this boat is<br />filled with our students, undergoing guide training. We<br />were about to go on a tour of their village.<br /><br />There's a real vibrancy about long tails, their shape demands good balance<br />from those it carries, and many Thais would happily skip around the<br />edge as we approached the piers.<br />The angle is the nightmare in this shape - the boat rises up and out of the water.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfq723Ax663Xwdp12ABsuTz30OFc_ad7SyLcsY61gF6HRVuMAcD1hTihWgF96gKfvO-VrDLdBpgV7CbdE33looSD8ap79HktYdcHD9xuQ5ISp43k37TrP5nmNy5ojQe7BG4WvxaDLBR77G/s1600-h/IMG_5717.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfq723Ax663Xwdp12ABsuTz30OFc_ad7SyLcsY61gF6HRVuMAcD1hTihWgF96gKfvO-VrDLdBpgV7CbdE33looSD8ap79HktYdcHD9xuQ5ISp43k37TrP5nmNy5ojQe7BG4WvxaDLBR77G/s320/IMG_5717.JPG" border="0" /></a>These are two failed attempts which drove me crazy - my first realisation that<br />sewing might mean becoming friendly with graph paper. Aaarg.<br />I want to be artistic not systematic!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ88sK6rn16Eibh6AmUyOZLFTVba4USZCR7Wv2TyPY0e8sdOygRr4ZrYwfCGeB0mAz4WHKLu6VppunehSz8WOqrIDnpS5SOVgMLU8jNzNm-bMVrjxd_ZMUZ4loHvitoJS3La1TltoAtt2s/s1600-h/IMG_5726.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ88sK6rn16Eibh6AmUyOZLFTVba4USZCR7Wv2TyPY0e8sdOygRr4ZrYwfCGeB0mAz4WHKLu6VppunehSz8WOqrIDnpS5SOVgMLU8jNzNm-bMVrjxd_ZMUZ4loHvitoJS3La1TltoAtt2s/s320/IMG_5726.JPG" border="0" /></a> This was a little bit more successful, although I haven't<br />tried it out on anyone who doesn't know what a longtail boat is...<br /><br />One project I would like to do is a sampler filled with motifs that remind<br />me of our time in Thailand, and designed around the shape of the<br />market and eateries in the main town.<br /><br />Samplers and traditional blackwork fills do not inspire me hugely, but<br />the notion of keeping a record of stitches and memories does.<br />I can see how a sampler could be a record of a time or experience,<br />and I hope to create my own using this motif, and others - fruit carts, ants, frogs,<br />etc.<br />Like Audrey said - collect, collect collect!<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-7762311839541784022008-02-11T00:35:00.000-08:002008-02-13T01:44:36.691-08:00Happiness is...a Blackwork Thai Shack<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIY50gPSgDUuylZBDQgg1-nVVOOt5aVInn4BuM7Ypz85c-oufzuvbsSY4z5gSvzaONN6hX7d7_c3cCQoV3KeMGnxc2T8NxnWAy5Mc290aLD_NXhNS196xv4T8XL5ei9eP1MfKhO2b7sPKy/s1600-h/IMG_5715.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIY50gPSgDUuylZBDQgg1-nVVOOt5aVInn4BuM7Ypz85c-oufzuvbsSY4z5gSvzaONN6hX7d7_c3cCQoV3KeMGnxc2T8NxnWAy5Mc290aLD_NXhNS196xv4T8XL5ei9eP1MfKhO2b7sPKy/s320/IMG_5715.JPG" border="0" /></a>This was my second project, and was a complete accident.<br />Jamie and I lived in Thailand for nine months<br />(that was an accident too) and living in this shack was the first point where we had our own house and I could actually concentrate on sewing for any period of time.<br />Most people have mosquito coils and some t-shirts in their rucksack, I had blackwork sewing books and oodles of thread.<br /><br />This picture started with playing around with a stitch while sitting<br />on our 'porch' looking at a the pattern on the bark of<br />the tree. Then it turned into the tree. That took a while.<br />Then I thought why stop there? And each piece was added, and I could see how another bit might be added, to make the whole - or half because it was so unplanned I ran out of material.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzaQmULDWsvfQlURiPbvQnvxv6P1AiE-VWq3QqkDHSD3CtW49fCrnJpz7wMfqvLOGbKwZsRBlF8JXiFOWJn1BiTwyNnu3iQGjjMtkvXzjf-KoMHtR0f66sD4VY_jTQC-OyE0hOA9FKjX0/s1600-h/Our+House+%281%29.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzaQmULDWsvfQlURiPbvQnvxv6P1AiE-VWq3QqkDHSD3CtW49fCrnJpz7wMfqvLOGbKwZsRBlF8JXiFOWJn1BiTwyNnu3iQGjjMtkvXzjf-KoMHtR0f66sD4VY_jTQC-OyE0hOA9FKjX0/s320/Our+House+%281%29.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /> This is our 'house' - or shack, which was in jungle-like territory. It's hard to see from this photo but the walls were woven ratta/bamboo, and had a distinct pattern which I used in concentrated form for the window, and<br />slightly larger for the main wall. The grasses hung down in straggles over the edge of the thatched roof.<br /><br />The stones in the front were large boulders set in concrete. I was particularly pleased with these in the picture, because I was a bit apprehensive, but the shapes totally remind me of sweeping in between the stones.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT6nLFzNMRUgm_zgcNmy4sjORCmkRDjD8bFCo4eszmf5r6orazNOiPYQ1vPug7LOI16HJ5DjV_EIbQYY46Y3ooP2cpYamUJd3ISGL4wQpKIBDGhGqYHbFICSsRdJCw7CVyKalC19mwBVv5/s1600-h/Our+House+%2812%29.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT6nLFzNMRUgm_zgcNmy4sjORCmkRDjD8bFCo4eszmf5r6orazNOiPYQ1vPug7LOI16HJ5DjV_EIbQYY46Y3ooP2cpYamUJd3ISGL4wQpKIBDGhGqYHbFICSsRdJCw7CVyKalC19mwBVv5/s320/Our+House+%2812%29.JPG" border="0" /></a>Here you can see the Thai pillow seat, where I sat to do most of the sewing.<br /><br />This is my favourite project so far, and I've yet to feel so satisfied with any other blackwork project. It was completed at a time when I was working hard with fantastic people, and fulfilling a dream of working in community development in a developing country.<br /><br />This project reflected exactly our situation at the time. I did not come to it with any ambitions, preconceived ideas or expectations of what it could or should be. It was a relaxed exploration, and each piece fitted as it was meant to.<br /><br />I loved living here, it was a simple and fulfilling life while it lasted, my Blackwork Thai Shack is more tangible reminder than any photo - not just of our first house - but of my state of mind.<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-33059000976910335152008-02-11T00:14:00.000-08:002008-02-13T01:39:31.542-08:00Jamie and our Cabin in the Woods<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">This is the first of my own projects which I completed just before I got married.<br />At this time the world and the future was a bit of an unknown, but my husband Jamie and I had pretty fixed ideas about where we eventually wanted to end up - a cabin in the woods, near a river. <br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Rivers were a significant feature of our life together up to that point, normally charging down Californian ones in rubber rafts, but we loved the quiet ones too and always escaped from the craziness of whitewater raft guiding to quiet wee cabins on the Yuba in Northern California. <br /><br />I made this for him just before our wedding and before we travelled and lived in Thailand, India and finally New Zealand.<br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvBf7k25d34Cz6xfJeY4HJvmKgwkRSMDk0-xOX0WPH_KDgQQLajkRt0W_dQtKlQKPhqO6bPP327vj-o1WrUa0leZet5TFfRSI7oGObVm5BymHFXSOeRQqqCntLgGgN7ZeVkarI4GRO2cG/s1600-h/IMG_5714.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvBf7k25d34Cz6xfJeY4HJvmKgwkRSMDk0-xOX0WPH_KDgQQLajkRt0W_dQtKlQKPhqO6bPP327vj-o1WrUa0leZet5TFfRSI7oGObVm5BymHFXSOeRQqqCntLgGgN7ZeVkarI4GRO2cG/s320/IMG_5714.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;">This was my first attempt at creating some kind of perspective, and it almost worked. Weaving the river in behind the trees helped- I tried to use different thicknesses of thread to help create perspective, but the difference is too great in the tree on the right and it looks a bit like a jelly mould pudding. But Jamie likes desserts too, so I thought that would be ok. In fact given his sweet tooth maybe I should have called it a Hansel and Gretel house, with ice cream bushes and a roof of flapjacks.<br /><br />So this was a mini, 2D version of our dream to remind us of where we were trying to get to, and the most realistic version we could hope for at the time. <br /><br />I unpacked this picture in New Zealand, I'd completely forgotten about it, and realised that the house we'd just bought in Wellington looked remarkably similar. Which just shows you, dreams do come true. <br /></div><br /></div><div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8105458633281991738.post-63808777460030179712008-02-11T00:02:00.000-08:002008-02-13T01:26:27.750-08:00Dedication & why this blog existsMy Grandma, Connie Wisely, is the reason I became interested in blackwork, and to whom this blog is dedicated.<br /><br />Absolutely no thanks goes to Mrs Scott, my Grandma's primary school teacher in 1920s rural Aberdeenshire who taught her sewing: "'We had sewing lessons which I loathed. Once we made lap bags (for holding knitting etc.) On the front we had to embroider three soldierly crocuses in bright purple. By the time mine was finished it was filthy. My efforts made my hands sweaty and the needle squeaked through the tough calico. Mrs Scott sighed and I always remember her comment: 'Poor child, you'll maybe be some use with your head, but certainly not with your hands.'"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYOz6jGg5o8-JzOaplDA2FnQuUMNGvHSnJn6C8rb2IMSlQ8BCkA1fxYWLdOj-ouK4NdOuCbOTojRnMBeYiytNvY5v1pLRD77o85JoGwzSML433EQMbrZI4ObLn6R2OL4rwEmBWgc_WfEFu/s1600-h/IMG_5718.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYOz6jGg5o8-JzOaplDA2FnQuUMNGvHSnJn6C8rb2IMSlQ8BCkA1fxYWLdOj-ouK4NdOuCbOTojRnMBeYiytNvY5v1pLRD77o85JoGwzSML433EQMbrZI4ObLn6R2OL4rwEmBWgc_WfEFu/s320/IMG_5718.JPG" border="0" /></a> - this exerpt is from Connie's written memoirs, she attended primary school a short distance from Craigievar Castle.<br /><br />This picture is a blackwork portrail of Craigievar castle by the 'poor child' who became a prolific needleworker. <br /><br />It wasn't until after my Grandma died that we discovered her blackwork. She was a late convert, and there weren't many blackwork pieces, some unfinished. <br /><br />I was aware of her needlework all through my childhood, but none of it spoke to me quite like her blackwork. I thought it was textile photography; skillfully using pattern to create light and dark, and ultimately form.<br /><br />What I've also realised is that blackwork, for me, is also about the people I create something for, or the situation I was in at the time. I didn't know my Grandma as well as I could have, and I've realised that behind a lot of her work there would have been stories and experiences, like that behind the 'soldierly crocuses' and I'm sure, Craigievar Castle. <br /><br />So as a tribute to her, I wanted to chronicle or share my own stories behind my sewing, the people, experiences and places that helped produce it.<br /><br />It's a blog, a portfolio, a diary and hopefully a story, and I have no idea where it'll end up......<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0