Bewdley

After Yorkshire we headed down (on a tour of the motorways of England - A1, M1, M6, M42 then M5) towards Kidderminster and some friends we’ve known for a long time.

We girls have known each other since we were 16, the boys (young and old) all get on fabulously. 
It was one of the highlights of the holiday.

One evening we walked Ozzy and Deli in Bewdley.

A soggy Ozzy, worshiping the act of “Catch the Ball”

Bewdley is somewhere I visited a lot as a child (when Dad went fishing).  The shops have changed - not so many antique shops, but the buildings and the river front still look the same.

One shop that NEVER changes is Teddy Grays sweetie shop.

Childhood dreams are made of this.
NOTHING seems to have changed in 35yrs.

All the sweets are still handmade in Dudley (close to my original home). 
You can see a great video here.  Really, make time to watch this, its a piece of history. 

Well, we had to go in didn’t we?

Then on to the fish ‘n’ chip shop. 
After a huge order for six we headed back to the van to eat the chips and open the bubbly.
Really it was perfect.

Who needs posh restaurants? 
You just need great company and a glass of something fizzy.

“Three Men and their Bacon”

Sorry, I couldn’t resist this photo!

We didn’t stop talking for days and I do wish we lived closer.
Still, we have several holidays booked for the future, including a kid free jaunt in 2020 (which involves the hire of sport cars – more later).

We left in the rain and drove through England's Green and Pleasant Land to Great Malvern.

I really didn’t want to leave.  Must get back together soon!

What I did on my holidays.

 

For the last two weeks we’ve been away on holiday touring middle England.
With a wedding to attend on the 1st June near Cambridge it was the perfect opportunity to introduce DS to more of England, catch up with friends and family and visit some new places and old haunts.

We left as the Cherry Blossom came into full bloom and I was sad to leave it but really excited about going away. 

We hired a motorhome – a really fabulous way to travel if you
1. Self cater -  for dietary issues
2. Have a child
3. Want to visit a different place almost every day

We stocked up the fridge (full sized) and thought we would be using the (also full sized) oven, but to be honest we almost always picked up an easy meal, good salads and a decent coffee from Waitrose, M&S and Costa at the motorway services.  A decent bottle of wine too.

Is this glamping?

The Van was upgraded from a 4 to 6 berth, giving lots of extra room, but also an extra 6ft at the back end.  I soon learnt to call ahead and check out (coach) parking facilities.

Our first stop was at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

We couldn’t help wondering what Granddad would make of this? 
Was is straight?

We walked for quite a while to see a special installation by Richard Long.
Mmm…. was that it?

Heading off in the opposite direction we walked for miles. Up the “71 steps” (we counted and yes there were 71) and then through a stunning bluebell wood.

 

Eventually the sculpture we’d really wanted to see was in sight “Hanging Trees” – by Andy Goldsworthy.  It was well worth the long, uphill walk.  Every time I achieve such a walk I realise how much has changed with my energy levels over the last two years.

There were three of these large “boxes”, each with a tree, only one had plant life and this really added to the organic / inorganic contrast.

Overall a great first day out with wonderful weather and lots more sculptures to assess (some we liked and some we really didn't!)

Spring at last!

 Hi everyone,  hope you have been enjoying the warm sunshine and the gardening opportunities.

It feels as if Spring is finally finding its way here.
I had a fantastic birthday weekend or a whole week really.

I'm trying out a new Blog Editor so I hope this works OK :) 

I still have the London photos to process…. but I've been spending my time outside in the sun.

The studio border is replanted (can't claim I did this part).

But I did put down ground cover for a willow patch and more fruit trees.

The greenhouse is a hive of activity and I am like a mother hen nurturing my seeds and tomato plants.  

Now for some stitching - here are some details from the last four "Journal Quilts" made January - March this year.

I promise to be back soon, I must get back to a regular blogging habit.

Towers of Flowers Workshop!

Its been a while since this workshop was offered and I’m really pleased to say that there are still places available at Penrith in the beautiful Lake District, on June 15th & 16th. 

If you would like to join me for a weekend of creative stitching (plus laughter and generous dollop of creativity) please contact Just Sew here, or drop me  a line at helen.cowans”at”btconnect.com (replacing the “at” with @). Or leave a comment below.

The course is suitable for  beginners and the more advanced and can be tweaked to your skill level. 
If you have a sewing machine that can do straight and ZZ stitch and you can use a pair od scissors I can guide you to make your very own Towers of Flowers.

Hope to see some of you there!

Where is the time going?

How easy it is to get out of regular blogging.  After a trip to London I’ve got so much to share - Just as soon as I get time to sort out the pictures.

I’ll tell you more about this…..

And this (mind blowing)……

And this….

And this too.

The Vintage Pattern Selector - A Book Review

Morning!  Goodness time is flying just now, I seem to have just recovered from half term holidays in February and now its the Easter Holidays.

The urge to stitch has returned and (when I get chance) I am putting needle and thread to fabric.
Will update you next week, in the meantime enjoy this review of a dressmaking book.

Very topical with the Great British Sewing Bee on TV (what do you think of it?)
The Vintage Pattern Selector is a good practical book and I'm looking forward to having a go at a few pieces, just as soon as I get some some free time.

The Vintage Pattern Selector by Jo Barnfield is described by the publishers as “a practical sewing book that arms the reader with all the techniques and information they need in order to mix and match clothing styles from the 20^th century”. The book is “a comprehensive guide to creating contemporary outfits from vintage styles”.

The book comes with a CD enabling you to print off 15 patterns for a range of dress sizes. There is a helpful chapter on how to alter the patterns if you’re not a standard size.

 

The book covers the 1920’s – 1970’s including dresses, blouses, skirts, trousers, coats and lingerie. It then goes on to cover headwear and gloves, a really useful addition.

Each chapter starts with a style review of the decade with pictures of original patterns and modern designer interpretations. It discusses the fabric choices, the colours, the styles and offers advice on mixing and matching other garments.

 

When you come to make the patterns you get the print outs from the CD along with clear instructions giving you all the basic information you need. For those with more experience ideas for further embellishments are suggested.

If you are a beginner or need to brush up your skills you’ll love the chapters on the basics of dressmaking – alterations, construction of darts, inserting sleeves.

The book assumes nothing and gives all the information you need to make your own vintage inspired clothes. I've not made anything from the book yet, but I do like the looks of several patterns; the Kimono jacket and the wide legged trousers are the first two I’ll have a go at and not being a standard size (I’m too short and my bust is too big!) it will be good to have a go at altering the patterns to fit.

Colour in Textiles – a book review

Something different for today – a book review, the first of a three coming over the next week or so.

This one is close to my heart combining history, colour and textiles. 
How perfect is that?

Colour in Textiles by Susan Kay-Williams (Bloomsbury Press, 2013)  gives an introductory overview of natural and synthetic dyestuffs over time with lots of interesting facts along the way. 

It’s set out in chronological order, starting with “Fragments and Glimpses; dyes from prehistory” and carries out a broad survey of how and why people coloured textiles – mainly in Europe.

After discussing madder, indigo and (roman) purple the second chapter moves into the Dark Ages and a discussion of the influences of Christianity and Islam on textiles and trade.

Chapter three moves to the Middle Ages and discusses the influences of heraldry, the crusades and the rise of blue, yellow and black dyes. 

The book is full of interesting facts such as the effects of the sumptuary laws across Europe, which saw the rise of black dyes (notoriously difficult).  Black became favoured by the merchant classes as it projected an air of status, whilst still keeping the wearer within the law. 
Black was achieved by a laborious under dyeing with madder and overdyeing with tannins such as gall nuts.

Chapter six discusses the New World dyestuffs – mainly the introduction of cochineal.

The overview of the history of dyeing continues into the C16th and C17th when dyeing became more scientific leading to the introduction synthetic dyes such as Turkey Red – which, although it had up to 30 stages, was a valuable red dye because it was so colourfast.

There are fascinating snippets of information – Queen Victoria for example, wore a new mauve colour to a wedding and set the fashion for 1859-61.

The final chapter looks at the major dye developments during the C20th and C21st and the impact of world wars on supplies and trade.

The book ends with a discussion of the revival of natural dyeing by todays craftspeople.

Its a very easy to read book, a story more than a textbook and a valuable addition to the library of any dyer, textile artist, historian or crafter.

Art of the Book

Bit rushed for time this week with studying and building work in the house.
So I’ll point you in the direction of a great introduction here.

Here are some images and some links for you to follow. 
I’ve tried to give you a very quick insight into how the art developed over time.

Folio from an Arabic translation of the Materia Medica. 1224
Opaque watercolor, ink and gold on paper
H: 24.6 W: 33.1 cm
Baghdad, Iraq

Al-Jazari: Water-raising-device from al-Jazari's Kitab fi macrifat al-hiyal al-handasiyya (The Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices, a.k.a. Automata)
The Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul, N° A 3472  ca. 1205

The elephant clock from Al-Jazari's manuscript. 1315

Folio from a Khamsa (Quintet) by Nizami; verso: Khusraw discovers Shirin bathing in a pool.  1548. Safavid period
Ink, opaque watercolor, silver and gold on paper
H: 31.1 W: 19.7 cm
Shiraz, Iran

At the end of each week we are asked to select a favourite item from the many, varied selection we are asked to look at.  Mine for this last week is from the Adventures of Hamza.  With tales of legendary hero's and … well, adventures! 
The colours are so beautiful and fresh and the detail is exquisite.

Ceramic arts

Just finished studying Islamic ceramics and now I understand the process of creating lusterware and the differences between stone paste and earthenware, the influences of the Chinese arts via the silk route and the Mongol invaders and also the amazing inventiveness of the Islamic artists in both copying and creating new ideas.

Here are just a few of my favourites for you.

Tile

ca. 1525-50
Ottoman period
Stone-paste painted under glaze
H: 27.8 W: 24.4 D: 2.8 cm
Iznik, Turkey

More information here

 

Tile

ca. 1575
Ottoman period
Stone-paste body painted under glaze
H: 31.3 W: 30.0 D: 2.4 cm
Iznik, Turkey

More information here

 

If you are near Oxford consider a visit to the Ashmolean Museum or see more on their collection here.

The V&A has as online reading list for ceramics and glass and more dangerously I went on to discover an online reading list for Islamic textiles and dress!  Eeekkk!!!

The book I have on the topic is by the wonderful John Gillow “Textiles of the Islamic World”

And other books from my C&G days (when I studied Moroccan and Turkish embroidery as one of my three countries – maybe I should have seen the interest in Islamic Art way back then.  The third country was….. yes, its an easy guess.  India, of course.)

 

And back to ceramics, there is a great collection in Stoke-on-Trent, you can see online here.
No doubt used for inspiration for the UK market.

This C17th covered bowl was sold at Christies in 2009 for £17,000 from the Ismail Merchant collection (as in Merchant – Ivory films, some of my all time favourites).  You can spend an hour browsing this wonderful collection here.