Snow Snow Snow! about a foot of it,the poor dog found it very hard work, she used to love it when young and fit.







But I am now in the warm watching a flock of Long tailed Tits on the bird table,they are little,pink/grey and fluffy , a Sparrow Hawk took a Tit the other day, sad but that is nature. We get a good selection of birds




Have been making hats using raw fleece look very Russian, can't take a picture as I sent them to a gallery,I wish I could make more time to work with raw fleece but life takes over, This Friday is HOPS Christmas lunch so must shop and cook for 70-80 folk.

Today was cold, with an early morning start,it was Apple Day at the Farmers' Market, and a lot of children from the local schools coming to learn about apples, tast different varieties, try some juice and apple cake, I think they enjoyed themselves and hopefully learnt a little about where and how they grow and of course had time out of school.


Apples waiting to be eaten, hands free



waiting to tast different apples.

Helped set up The IFA stand, it looked good, I put Decopodastica up, was pleased with how it looked. Thursday was not as manic as last year, but we were busy, lots of demonstrating. I took some raw fleece with me and felted them in to merino, I just wish there was time to experiment,I have lots of ideas but no time.
Thursday evening had a phone call because my Mother had had a fall, so that was the end of knitting and stitching and come home to help Vanessa. Realised I had missed things I wanted to see, never mind there is always another year.

Knitting and Stitching

Next week I am of to Alexander Palace for the Knitting and Stiching show, The International Felt Association have a stand which I help man, spend hours demonsrating. There are lots of stalls selling wonderful goodies and great exhibitions. The best of the textile students degree work is shown which is wonderful, i alsways love it, may see some of you there.

Seem to be busy, not much felt making. Good times with HOPS, lovely outing to river, See HOPS blog. Celebrated my Birthday, one daughter came and cooked dinner, really lovely. Son phoned, eldest daughter did send email, Alison and Oskar! their web sight is on my blog list, if you want a yoga holiday in Cambodia.

Proxy grand daughter made me a really rummy cake.



Have played with raw fleece, just got some lovely Gotland and Wenslydale, so no excuses.



Quite like dead animal look.

Just made a cushion for a friend's daughter, who was married recently in Greece.Always hard to do gifts for people who already have a home that you have not seen, and they will have to take back to Greece.




Very envious of all who went to MFS, especially those who did Vilte's raw wool workshop,have tried won piece my self, must do more this bit is still wet so shall see what like when dry and I can fluff it up a bit.

My 3 day summer school at Adult education was cancelled because there were not enough students, five signed up but 3 were concessions so finances did not add up, I was looking forward to it despite other commitments, i always enjoy a three day class as students really get a lot done.I went to Goddington Gardens to hang Decopodastica it looks good in an alcove in the Italian Garden.



Friday I took HOPS,(the club I run ) to watch Polo, my niece and her husband demonstrated the skills needed, then a group of children they teach played a match, See it all on HOPS blog.

Bag by Student



A student who attended my bag class sent pictures of her finished bag and the purse she made from her sample piece.It is so nice to see the finished piece of work made my your students. It was the first bit of felt this lady had made, a great effort on her part.

Having read about Suzann's pod she hung in the garden and a bird started nesting in it, I thought I would post about a piece of my felt.




CHAIN MALE, When new in an exhibition


I put it in our garden, in the shelter we call the bus stop for some obscure reason,






The first year a robin nested in it's head but got disturbed, may be the Magpies, since then birds have taken wool from it, slowly it is disintegrating but interesting to watch.










I intend to put Decopodastica in the garden and photograph it over the next two or three years

I have just spent a couple of days in Somerset, was very blessed with lovely weather, had a morning in Wells, and the cathedral, it is such a beautiful building.



The scissor arches are amazing, well worth a visit. The altar frontal are displayed round the walls some amazing work,designed by Jane Lemon and Maurice Strike.



I really loved this



A boat
Home of a fish a man
that once rode a stormy sea
and from which nets were cast on the
the right side
now lies
abandoned

Broken and holed

Empty and silent

The shell of a past
from which
on white steps,
life went forth

it was made by Anna Sikorska

After Lurch in a great pub in Mells we visited the walled garden, what an unexpected delight, it used to belong to the rectory and is medieval, a jumble of wonderful cottage garden plants.














of course I came home with some plants, unfortunately not the beautiful "Black Lace Elder"

I also went to Stour Head and walked round the lake, very grand but prefer the charm of the walled garden, where you could eat a cream tea sitting on a bale of hay covered with a rug under an old apple tree with a rose climbing through it, just perfect in the afternoon sun.






,

Art in the Garden went well and my felt stood up well to a night of torrential rain, there was some lovely work there, several pieces by students doing degrees in floristry



You nearly missed this wonderful necklace,made using papyrus


loved this one made by Heather Brown





Just a small selection of work.

Today I hung Decopodastica, quite pleased with it, but looking at the pictures I know one bud needs lowering, see what I can do tomorrow. I am hoping it does not rain too much over the next 4 days while the show is on. There was some amazing work being assembled, look forward to seeing it all when I go back tomorrow.











Will do a few more photos tomorrow and take some of the other work.

Been working very hard on piece for show, all done and ready to hang,do that this week, will post pictures when done.
Took 56 to Rye for lunch, in glorious weather, great day out.
Lots of gardening, pleased with how it looks, but weeds growing like mad, will get out there and pull a few. Today I am teaching, Bag making, I think only 6 students,a nice number if some are new to felt making.



The Mallards seem to enjoy garden pond.

Shaping my felt flowers for a show,"Floral Art in the Garden" at Broad View Gardens, Hadlow College, Hadlow, Kent from Jun2 10th -13th, I worked the flowers over a flat resist, then when felted poured in some PVA, put in a balloon, blew it up to shape flowers, when dry remove balloon. There are several flowers going from bud-flower-seed head, worked in black and white Norwegian wool, did not want to compete with nature. The whole thing will be in a willow arbour. I am trying to work out how to make gruesome bug or butterfly to sit next to it, the original idea came from crewel embroidery and carnivorous plants.



Hadlow College is and agricultural and horticulture college with a floristry course, there is a garden centre(good plants) and tea room, so if in area and have the time do come and see the show.

This is a rather belated Easter blog, I was lazy about down loading photos. After Easter we had a special Eggy Day at the Farmers Market, with egg related activities for the children. Planting cress, marbling and blowing,a few people went home with bowls of duck eggs, Omelets! Cakes! There was also a collection of eggs to be identified, from Quail to goose and turkey, with all sorts between.
The Cress growing well




Marbled eggs










The Church Yard was looking lovely





The primroses have been spreading over the years, they welcome spring in a wonderful way and are one of my favorite flowers, have not yet tried to do any work based on them, don't think I could do them justice, snow drops are another favorite, those i have done in a wall hanging.

Today I went for a walk through the kentish apple orchards, they are just coming into flower, it was lovely to See so many new orchards being planted. We saw Swallows flying low over a field of sheep with lambs, more than one so summer is here.

London Duck

Today I took the proxy Grandchildren for a day out, went to London, saw a water colour exhibition at the Mall Gallery,some great work, I love Micheal Morgans work and a painting by Jean Robinson.






Then a trip to Cass Art, best value shop for painting materials, then over to the south bank, so lovely and full of life on a sunny spring day where we got on our duck






A short sight seeing trip, being told about various sights, then splash down into the Thames near Vauxhall Bridge, up the river to Westminster bridge, back on dry land to return to the London Eye where the trip had started.



This was a fun and informative trip and not too long for younger folk, we had a good day out, I am very blessed to have such great children to take out. The London Gardens are doing great, the park keepers do a grand job.

I had a wonderful time on Monday, my proxy grandchildren came for the day and we did some scree printing, the eldest doing her GCSE, working on Klimt's kiss, she had to do a response, so photographed her self under water with blowing bubbles, so was experimenting with ideas.her face fits into space in middle.








The younger one really took to it with very detailed design.






He did it in lots of colours then printed on to a cotton bag.
They also had a friend with them who was working on her AS level art, based on festivals, we had been to celebrate the Chinese new year and her work was based on the lanterns that were strung across Gerrard's street.
A tiring day but fun, lots of clearing up but they all went home having achieved something.