Elderberry progress

So here is my elderberry wine coming on nicely. Hopefully the 4-5 month wait until it's ready will be worth it.

Elderberry wine fermenting

And here is some of my wool soaking in elderberry juice. It looks a bit disgusting at the moment but it seems to be taking on a nice pinky colour.

 

 

Elderberry solar-dyeing

Elderberry picking

It was such a nice morning so I went out to pick some elderberries to try out dyeing some of my wool. I'm also going to make some elderberry wine!

Elderberries

Dew shows off the delicacy of a cobweb

Mist rising from the fields

Spinning some yarn

After going along to Twisted Tailor's open studio last weekend and being invited by a few members of the Diss Guild of Spinners, Weavers and Dyers, I went along to a sit and spin meeting with my wheel and some wool. They are a lovely group of ladies with a wealth of knowledge between them. So excited to finally learn what to do with my wheel and spin some yarn from my fleece.

My first bobbin

 

Getting my wool on

So I have finally started doing something with my fleece. My sister-in-law's grandfather gave me a few fleeces a while back now, from his gorgeous Suffolk-Merino cross, which produce lovely wool. Here they are:

The boys

I've started cleaning the fleece by soaking it in cold water to dissolve the dirt and then in warm soapy water to remove the lanolin. Makes it smell a bit better too.

Soaking

Drying

By chance I ended up visiting an open studio yesterday. Twisted Tailor studio is based just a mile up the road and produces beautiful knitwear, weavings and handspun yarns. Chatting to the ladies there I found out about a local spinning group. So I am excited to go along this week with my spinning wheel and wool and finally learn how to spin some yarns. I'll let you know how it goes.

Well done to Harriet as New Designers comes to an end

New Designers part one has closed now, it was a great week and a good experience. There was a lot of really lovely work on display from universities from all over the country. If you didn't manage to visit last week, part two will be open from 4th-7th July.

A massive well done to Harriet Riddell for winning the Absolut Blank competition, it was well deserved!  Visit Harriet's blog to find out more about her work.

New Designers

Contemporary Applied Arts from University of Hertfordshire will be exhibiting during Part 1 of New Designers later this month.  Follow the link to the website for more information and how to visit the show.

Degree Show

The private view which took place on 31st for our degree show was a great success and everyone really enjoyed themselves. I have uploaded a few photos under the degree show tab at the top of the page, which I will add to when I get a chance to sort some more of the images out. Everyone did really well. Congratulations!

Hand in day has arrived!

Think everything is done now. All my pieces are finished and in place. I keep looking through my sketchbook wondering if I can add anything, but I think it's all there. I do wonder if I should do some drawings to add in, as they like that, but I feel it's so forced for me. I just don't do drawing. Hopefully after these past few years they might have got that by now. Anyway, I'm pretty happy with it all, and relieved it's all over.

Large Wall panel

Small Wall Panel 1

Small Wall Panel 2

Degree Show Display

Last push

I made another vessel today, which came out ok I think. This just leaves me with one more to make and to finish off all the paper work and supporting material for the project. Stress levels are reasonably high at the moment and so I am looking forward to being able to relax on Friday.

Tomorrow I'm going to the studio space to hang my wall panels. Fingers crossed all goes to plan and there won't be any problems.

Vessels

Ok, so I have made my second vessel today. It's looking a little phallic...

Oh well, not to worry. Keep going!

A productive day

Today has been a good day. I made a trip to Wicks and Homebase, bought wood and a picture hanging kit; cut and painted the wood and mounted my wall panels, which are now ready for hanging. Hurray!

I also managed to grab a plinth, which I have sanded, filled in the holes and re-painted. It now looks lovely and ready to display my vessles on... Now I just need to make my vessels.

Thank you Howie for your help.

Large panel complete

After days and days of continuous felt making I have finally finished my large wall panel. Made up of nearly 60 hand felted pods, is it any surprise that my hands are dry and sore.

Still more to do yet...

Promotional bits

These are the business cards and postcards designs that are being printed. They'll do the job nicely I think.

Business card

A6 postcard

Pods in the making

 I love felt...

One of the smaller panels, which just needs tidying up and finishing off:

No pain no gain...

That's what they say isn't it?

I've been making so much felt I'm beginning to wonder if my hands and wrists will make it through.... and I'm not even half way through making yet.

Oh the sacrifices we make for our art.

Surface embellishment on background

More pods

 Trying a few different colours inside the pods and looking at arranging them

Felt and crochet

 I've been making lots of felted pods and crochet bits

Arranging onto a vessel form

Just been playing around with putting the crochet samples on and inside a vessel form to see how it looks: