Playing at Littleheath

This month's episode of Textile Explorations was postponed 2 weeks ago but the wait was worth it.

Liske had two ideas for the day.  The first was to layout shapes on fabric using masking tape.  I used some cotton poplin (top) and a smaller piece of calico.

I aimed for 5 inch squares.  The other pieces I have made in this project are 10cm or 4 inch squares.  But I thought I would make 5 inch ones which I can cut down.

Using mark making tools, stamps, Thermofax screens and acrylic paint, I randomly printed over the whole fabric including over the masking tape.

Then I flooded the fabric with Koh-i-nor dyes.

I tried putting some freezer paper masks on the fabric

And painted over them with acrylic paint.

In the afternoon we used cold water paste to glue the remnants of fabric onto a backing fabric.  This is how it looked wet.  At this point I really didn't like it much.

However when it dried it looked much better.  It now needs machining and then I shall cut it up.

When I got home I decided the fabric was too pink rather than the orange it was supposed to be so I painted over the fabric again with orange watercolour paint.  There should have been crisp white lines between the squares but the original dyes had leached under the masking tape.

 

 

I cut the fabric up into approximately 5 inch squares.

They are now ready for the next stage.

Thanks for joining me today
Bernice

Online and In-person 2022

If you are a regular reader you will know that I frequently write about how many courses and workshops I've signed up to.  Most of which I don't complete.

So, what am I up to in 2022?

I currently have two online courses that started in 2021.

Notice What you Notice with Christine Chester started in September 2021 and ends in August this year.

There's also Saturday Sketchbooks with Hilary Beattie.  This started in October last year. There are livestreams once a month and pre-recorded videos once a month. Apart from starting to make a book pf patterns and making a few collages I haven't really done much with this yet.

The in person workshop that started last September is Textile Explorations, where I'm making small fabric collages.

You may be wondering by now what I have lined up for 2022.

Not as much as usual really!

At the beginning of 2020 I had a discussion with Leslie Morgan about my continually booking workshops.  I came to the conclusion that I should book less workshops.  And then I had to go cold turkey!  Covid-19 brought about the cancellation of most workshops through 2020 and I made better choices from those that were available in 2021.

So back to the question of what is lined up for this year.

Three days with Christine Chester doing Paper Lamination and four days with Liske Johnson doing Art Cloth: Maps and More.  Both of these are in July at Littleheath Barn Studio.

Plus an online course with Hilary Beattie called Inspired by.  The first class being Inspired by Tulips.  

I was clearing out a cupboard over the weekend and found this tulip stencil I made in 1996!!!!!

Strange the things you hold on to.   Mind you I also found some work from my college finals in 1970.

What creative things are you planning this year?

Thanks for joining me today.
Bernice

Addictive or what!!!

Oh dear.  This Happy Planner lark is becoming very, very addictive.  I promised myself I would only have one planner but then I bought a Be Happy box called Grateful Heart and another planner came in the box.  So now I have two.

Warning! Long post.  Lots of photos.

I decided that now I have {more} than one planner I would use the second one to record the {more}.

I have mixed up a variety of products in this planner which is called frankenplanning.  I know!

Here is a a folder and an opening card divider.

I decided to print out a bigger version of the Values, Intentions and Goals from my everyday planner journal.

This new planner came with 4 tabbed dividers.  This one says Define Your Passion which I thought would be a good lead in to the Creative section.

I printed out a larger version of the original Creative list in my other planner.

I moved the books read tracker to this planner and made myself a blog post tracker.

I've made several pages about workshops and online courses I'm doing.  It's my intention to write about what I'm learning and to include photos.

Next, I have a section on my finished pieces of work and those which are still works in progress.  I have written how they were made.  I want to go back to this to write about what I learned and what I could have done differently in the hopes that will lead to other piecs.

The next divider says Happy & Grateful.  I decided to use this section for my Spiritual intentions.

The opening page and list

My daughter-in-law recommended a Bible-in-a-Year reading plan on YouVersion.  I've downloaded the year's plan and intend to colour in each completed day.

Following on are the notes I've made whilst reading the Bible and listening to the accompanying podcast.

The next section has my notes from the talks on Sunday at Jubilee Church.

The next section is for the physical intentions

However making the page is as far as I've got.  Does cutting out and glueing count as movement?   It's probably good for my mental health but not really getting me any fitter.

And the last section's divider says Be Present in the Moment.  A suitable comment for my section on Community.

This section will record the various activities I'm involved with.  Here's a list of all the themes we've had in Snapshot Girls.

I have spent most of the week working on this.  I hadn't realised it would be so time consuming.  However now it's almost set up it should take up less of my time.

Thanks for joining me today.
Bernice

Pattern around my house

The theme for the photography group over December and January was pattern around the home.  Or pattern outside if people managed to get out.  I didn't so my photos are from around my house.

pink spotted box

curtain fabric

cheese grater

cheese grater

glass lampshade

pottery

radiator

shadow on the wall

window in the kitchen door

wooden clock

wallpaper

What patterns can you find in your house?

Thank you for joining me today
Bernice

More planner stuff

I told you about my {Word of the Year} in a recent post.   The word {More} was supposed to be about more creativity, more connection and more moving about.

Well, two weeks in, it seems to be about more Happy Planner stuff especially stickers!!!  I now have 7 books of stickers with another 4 in transit.  I really recommend hifivergirl on eBay for her excellent customer service.

I made myself a bookmark using some paper I printed out and the acrylic backing that came on the planner.  It has the holes ready punched in it.  In Happy Planner terms it's called a Dashboard.  I have no idea because it's a bookmark!!!

I stuck in all the boxes I made that I told you about in the previous planner post.

I bought a digital print of books on a bookshelf from PeaceBasket99 on Etsy.  My plan is to record the books I read.  However this is a list of my favourite authors on Kindle Unlimited.  They all write detective fiction.  I will be doing other lists.

Here are the pages for the month.  For the last two years in my journals I have only filled in the calendar at the end of the month so that I only recorded things that actually happened.  I thought I would be safe this month to put things in ahead of time.  Wrong!  Textile Explorations was postponed due to Liske's boys having Covid.

On to my weekly layouts.  This was my first ever spread. I'm still not sure whether to cut the 2022 numbers out of coloured paper to cover up the not quite black ones.

The first week of January

This week.  I used the Miss Maker stickers because this week was going to be heavily creative but that didn't happen.  However I have cleared the table so I can work on it.  And I cleared up a bit of the spare room.  Need a lie down now!

Here's the layout for next week.  I've hardly anything to do next week so there's more stickers than ever.

How are you recording your life this year?  Journal?  Diary?

Thanks for joining me today
Bernice