box-a-rama

Lots of box making going on round here lately...


And in my mind boxes are swirling round; boxes with clasps and fancy ways of opening, with draws and hidden compartments and little pull out trays...


I'm thinking about boxes for books, boxes that are books...


And on our walk today the sunshine felt warm. Spring is in the air; snowdrops and daffodils and buds on trees. I feel like it's all ready to bust out from just around the corner...

Thank you for all your happy engagement wishes , I didn't mean to not mention it sooner (sorry Hazel!) I might've even posted a picture of my ring for you to see today if I hadn't just sliced the finger next to it with a stanley knife then got screen printing ink all over it. The black ink under my nails and flesh coloured plaster really set off the sparkle of a diamond you know ;)


Anyway... these (rubbish) pictures are of the boxes I've been making recently for a local art collective. They were coordinating a wedding and the boxes are to be used to contain the catalogue/rsvps...


An A3 sized clamshell box, the biggest I've ever made by a long way! But it worked out well, it opened and closed... I just took it steady and concentrated hard :)


This is a big box to hold objects sent with the rsvps. Its bigger than A3 and 25cm tall (I moved in...)




The exhibition title was embossed onto the boxes with a heavily etched copper plate.

So, I'm hoping that when I next come to make a small box (normal sized box!) again it will seem a bit easier...

venus

This is Venus. Last night in the snow in the garden...



And this is it through the telescope... the photo doesn't capture it too well; in my eye it looked crisp, a tiny crescent moon. The shape is something to do with it being between us and the sun Matt tells me, the sun shining off one side. Amazing. We saw a nebula too.

I've been rubbish recently, haven't I. I think that once you get out of the habit of putting something here regularly it just gets harder and harder to start again... Where do I start?

Perhaps a random list...

- There's been lots of snow around here recently. Soft snow and crunchy snow. My work stayed open despite the slippery roads so I was inside whilst most snow related fun was going on, but I did make a really big snow ball on my walk home from work late one night. Snow is surprisingly heavy... There were no cars, no people, just the creaky sounds of snow. The moon was out, bright, and I felt I had the whole world to myself...

- I've been feeding the birds in the garden, the blackbirds, the wood pigeons, the sparrows. I hope their feathers keep them warm at night.



- Matt asked me to marry him, did I tell you that? (I said yes :) )


- Me and two friends have a stall at the International Artists Book Fair at Leeds University in March, so I've been busy making books at every spare moment. I've been trying to challenge myself a bit... make some new work, incorporate more content. I don't want to get stuck churning out the same old same old stuff because it's easier and I don't have to think. It feels like the cogs in my brain are squeaking a bit at the moment though, a bit rusty... I feel like I need a longer stretch of time to sit down and work at the ideas in my head (but life's not like that anymore is it!) There's about a month until the book fair, and hopefully it will all come together, so fingers crossed...


These pictures are the sewing I've been doing in amongst work and food and sleep; belated Christmas presents, finally swapped (along with lots of biscuits, cups of tea and nattering) last weekend in sunny Liverpool :)

From the top:
Zip pouch of a hopefully practical shove-stuff-in-it size, full of some of the vintage sewing stuff my Grandma very kindly gave me over xmas (it's treasure!)
Clutch bag with silky pink lining and exchangeable long and short straps (I couldn't work out how to make the straps removable, but then I thought of press studs (also from my Grandma) perfect!
Pencil roll with elastic and mother of pearl button closure. And pens in four shades of green (love muji)

If it stays light long enough, I might be back with some book work in progress pictures soon...

bird face

blue skies

New paper (from here, and just under an hour for a visit just isn't long enough, trust me!) and sunshine. What more could you want?

trees

The tree quilt is finished. All quilted and washed and attractively wrinkled...


I've enjoyed every stage of making this quilt, cutting all the bits and sewing them together (no ruler or rotary cutter required!) then basting and quilting. I did intend to hand quilt, I had plans for tiny stitches outlining the trees, and filling them in and covering the whole quilt, all closely spaced... And then I was ill over Christmas and then I realised I had four evenings to finish the whole thing and decided machine quilting was really the best option...


But it was still a pleasure to quilt, absorbing. And although I did end up with a few knotty caught stitch bits at the back (I think perhaps the foot was too low, but I don't think it can be altered) my old machine was still a pleasure to use. I love the patterns created on the back too...

I did finish the binding by hand, a very satisfying task, gradually seeing the quilt become complete, it's weight on my knee...

Every stage of this quilt has been so interesting and relaxing to create. Time suspended. I've always looked forward to the next step, always been eager to get back to it, had to drag myself away at bed time. I think, because I had no preconceived ideas about how it should look or how it should be, I've felt a great sense of freedom whilst making it.

But it's also made me realise there are things I would do differently, better... a wider seam allowance, better pressing of seams, more bravery with the colours... I based the quilt with red thread and it really made the greens and browns sing. I also still want to have a go at hand quilting... on to quilt number two I think!