Bead on - 24,000 - 20-26

This week’s work towards connecting with 24,000 individuals - Indian Christians who were physically attacked in the last year because of their faith.

The third set of nine needs one more. (which I will do today) 26 days making 2,080 people noted.

For this set of 9, I stacked the beads then stitched down into the same sequin, making loops. They end up looking smaller. It might be a useful thing to change about so that the height undulates in different ways.
detail

This playing with colour and technique keeps it interesting for me!

Something on Saturday

Treasure 4

A small bowl from Zimbabwe. Hand painted. I love the patterns, different each way you turn it.






Reminds me of the giver, my friend Yvonne. Praying for safety for you ...and hope and peace in that country.

Bead on - 24,000 - 13-19

This week’s work towards connecting with 24,000 individuals - Indian Christians who were physically attacked last year because of their faith.

I have moved onto the third set of nine, making 1,520 people noted. 

Something on Saturday

Treasure 3

Carrying on with Paintings.
This one I love. I sit and look at it for ages discovering the details. Wondering how the painter got the effect of the children at the back having just been moving around when you weren't looking.
I love the coral colours in the front that draw you in through the intense stare of the older girl and the focus of the little girl on the straw. and then the Teacher with the little one on a bench. Certainly easier than bending down in a corset? I love the boys  getting into mischief on the right and the little boy asleep with his sister keeping an eye on him. and again, all the children moving around, chatting while plaiting in the background.

I am not completely sure, but perhaps the children then were kept out of the way at harvest while being practical to make the straw plaits sent off to be made into straw hats which were very fashionable then.

George Washington Brownlow - A Straw Plaiting School in Essex

click to see more detail

This has a precious story for us.
Our attempts at trying to adopt 2 children from Romania had fallen through. We were grieving. I saw this print in a furniture shop (hung to give furniture a setting more like people's homes). I had to go in and ask. Is it for sale? How much? £50. oh.
(this was 28 years ago and £50 was more than we could imagine paying for something that wasn't practical.)

I can't remember the order of things, but next time we were in town, I took my husband to look at it. off and on, we went to visit it with our son in his pushchair.
When my mother-in-law came to visit, we took her to see 'our painting'! I think it was then we decided that even for £50, we had to buy this. I think for all of us, it was something like a soothing of the soul to have these children when we had 'lost' our Romanian children.

So, we all looked in our purses and found out we had just £50 together. I went in to ask. But the different sales person said it wasn't for sale. SOB! so I went back out where they were all waiting, very distraught.

Mother-in-law takes up the challenge. Marching in there, I don't know what she told them, but she came out with the painting for £50! She was an amazing woman. And she knew how dear to my heart this was after what we had been going through.

So, there you are! A bit more of a story than some of these treasures will have.
Go sit in my chair in the lounge and look at the painting for ages.

I like Thankful Thursday - even on Friday!

Here I am late again. I have been making loads of progress though...sorting.
We are having a bit of building work, which involves part of my studio. SO. I have been sorting all those bags that just get dumped behind the table. Shifting things from one cupboard, which is meant to be moved, to wherever else I can get them to go. And of course, I am aching. Well, just such a relief to feel better than I did the past couple months.
The resulting work will be very helpful to me. But I will leave that excitement for the week it happens.

So, onto the things I like.
I also peeled these pumpkins to roast. I figured from Harvest to January was long enough to have them on the side in the kitchen!! I am going to make a pumpkin soup with some, and freeze the rest for future pumpkin soup.
And suddenly, I was amazed at the colour! the striations of colour. I decided this was a like to share.
I do think it glowed more in person though.



My friend Debs gave me an amaryllis for Christmas. How special! I like amaryllis! The ones I had kept from last year decided not to have flowers this year...well, just one. and this one has flowered this week it also has another flower stalk coming.


My husband bought this penguin doorstop before Christmas. But we liked him so much, he lives on the little chair in the front entryway.

So cute to see him when you come through from one place to another!

The Thoughtful Man does the shopping. He has found some gluten free things that are not so great and some that are Very Good! I like these!

I also like their counterpart which is without chocolate, but more of a ring and with a bit of jam in the hole! no photos today.

Right, back to work.
To see more I likes, check out LeeAnna's blog.

24,000 technique explained.

Questions answered... Fabric size near the end of the post.

Stacks
This is day one, I used what I call stacks.
There is a small sequin at the bottom where it touches the fabric. I find it just adds a bit of grounding. and overall, glistens in different ways when the fabric moves.
I used 4 beads of one colour, 2 beads that create a contrast and then 4 beads of another colour...making 10 beads! The 2 different colours with 4 beads each are strung in different patterns for each set of 8. On the stacks, the 2 beads of contrast are used as stop beads at the top of the stack.

Each set leaves the centre open for now. So, there are 8 stacks each with 10 beads!
This set makes the centre of what will be a 9 patch.

Arches (formerly known as humps)
Then Day 2 starts the sets of arches. Going around the set of stacks.

Each arch starts and touch down in the same square. If you look at yesterday's post, you can see that I have been doing a bit of playing with the direction they point. But I will go crazy if I make that a Rule!
I am not going to get bogged down when it comes to using the same kind of bead or even bead pattern somewhere else. after all I am recording 24,000 People!!

Reminder of 5 sets done...it makes the shape of a plus or a cross.

The centre one is not so easy to see because the stacks splay out.

Reminder of 9 sets, which makes one big square.

What I did to fill in the corners, was to swap the size 15 beads. Now shiny light green becomes part of the main arch and the opaque blue becomes the contrast. It is not easy to see, but I have always found that with patterns on a small scale, it gives more interest from a distance if you change things about. (Like this... my dog is black, but when you are closer there is auburn tips that show in the sun and brown hair amongst the black ones.)

For the moment, I am using more of my size 15 beads because I have had them for ages and they never seem to run out! But I don't expect to only use the combo of 2 types of size 15 beads with 1 type of size 11.

And finally,
Fabric
an idea of the size of the squares. It is almost 2squares to 1/2in, but not quite! or 2 squares to 1cm, but not really. 😬

Approx. 41-42" (104-107cm) long (it isn't cut straight!)
42.5" (108cm) wide

Bead on - 24,000 - 1-12

12 days work representing 960 out of 24,000 Indian Christians who were physically attacked last year because of their faith.

The post previous to this one tells the thoughts behind what I am doing for the bead project this year.
10 beads in a stack or hump (like an inchworm) 8 stacks or humps done each day. There are also sequins, but they serve to ground the stack or hump where they meet the fabric.

To start with, I want to show you photos that can give an idea of what that means! Hard to photograph because the colours glow, like I meant them to do!
Day 3

Each day, I am sort of doing a nine-patch. For now, leaving the centre open so that it makes 8 x a day. In the above photo, you see the variations basically making up 3 sets of 8 small squares.



This is 5 sets of 8 small squares. The centre section is made of stacks and the 4 sets around are made up of the humps. (I wish I could think of a better word!)

This is 9 sets of 8 small squares. I want the colours to flow and to represent the colourful people of India.
So, I started another colour pattern to make the next 9 sets of 8 small squares.

Altogether, this is 12 sets of 8 small squares.
I may change things at some point and do a rectangle or other shape rather than a square, just so it is a bit freer.

So, that was a bit complicated. From this point I will show 1 or 2 photos showing the process and result for the week. I will post them on Sunday as before, with a bit of give and take.

I'd love to hear your comment about this idea...if you understood it for starters!
More explanations on Monday.

Bead on - 24,000 - the 2019 project

This is a long story, Bead project photos in a following post!
For 2019, I wanted to find out just how much 24,000 looks like.

Why?

Not long ago I began hearing about Persecuted Christians in India. As you may know, issues like refugees and persecution weigh heavy on my heart. I am not comfortable to go protest, but I can make and show work that might make other people aware.

And why should it matter? Well, it could be me or my family or my friends or my neighbours! Or yours.

So, we know India is a very big country. But I began to read that the current Indian government is led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). They believe that being a Hindu is part of Indian identity, and frequently turn a blind eye to attacks on those of other faiths. Also, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is a militant Hindu nationalist group linked with the BJP; they have stated that they want to see India free of Christians and Muslims by the end of 2021.
Organisations monitoring the persecution estimate that almost 24,000 Christians in India were physically attacked last year because of their faith.

What does 24,000 look like? I mean, each 1 making up to 24,000 is an individual. For a start, I looked up Cricket Stadium Capacity.

via

A list on Wikipedia states that Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham, England holds 24,803. The WACA in Perth, Australia holds 24,500. (If you are into football, Stadion in Malmö, Sweden holds 24,000.)

OK, that is a bit of an idea. It is a lot of people! But I realised I wanted to personalise it a bit more. I am not good at sums, but this turned out to be something possible.

24,000 ÷ 8 = 3,000 and  3,000 ÷ 10 = 300. So, If I used 10 beads 8 times for 300 days, it would take nearly a year to show what the count of 24,000 looks like.

Furthermore, I had this fabric with orange and black squares, which (if I got those sums right) should have enough squares to hold the record.

I chose this because I want to use beads in bright and contrasting colours like one might see in a crowd of Indian people. The sarees are so beautiful and so eye catching; pink, orange, yellow, bright purple, turquoise, blue and more.

And so, then I had a cataract op! 😵  So, I waited til I could see a bit better and caught myself up on the project.

Something on Saturday

The treasures I am showing aren't in any order of preference. More like getting a photo as I remember and discovery them around the house!

Treasure 2

These 2 prints I found at a charity shop. I know the Ambassadors. But haven't been able to find out who painted the other work.

I really like these because of the 'costume' of the people in the paintings. The Ambassadors especially because I looked at Tudor clothing for my design project for my C+G Fashion.

The photos are a bit odd because I was trying to get a photo without climbing up over the studio door to get them down. But I love having a bit of "proper art" for inspiration in my studio.

Thanks from Faye “The second one is by Pieter Hooch "Interior of a Dutch House".

I like Thankful Thursday

I like these fingerless gloves. I wear them with my thin leather gloves. It works really well when I take Holly with me to the library and shops. I can still fiddle with the lead when I type her up to go inside. Or try to find a treat in the little bag so I can tell her she is a good girl.

My friend made them for me for Christmas. I wanted to show the bit of sparkle in the wool she used, but you will have to imagine it yourself!

I like how The Thoughtful Man has been picking up on my mumbles. While my back has been so bad, I have been sitting in a chair with the heating pad behind me. Now that I am feeling like I could do some sewing work in my studio, I didn't last very long at all before the pain got bad again. So I think I said something like " I wonder if they have belts with heat that could sit against your back. Perhaps if I had warmth there, it would keep my muscles relax."

And then this arrived in the post. Yes, it is pretty good! and makes you sit properly, as well. And, no, I don't run while I have it on. 😳

I like this little torch thing. Our church gets pens and whatnot to hand out to people at our Christmas carol service. This year the company we order from (who sends us samples a least every month, but seems more often.) sent this little gadget.

It looked like a good idea, so we ordered them. Wow, we have had such comments about the torches*. Every one thinks they are fantastic. There is a magnet on the bottom you see. and  if the battery runs out, you can change it. So, it isn't disposable like a pen is if it runs out.

This is how I am using mine...I got another in my stocking at Christmas. What a help when your eyes are neither here nor there about seeing at the moment.
The bead set up for this week. (I will show what I am doing with them on Sunday.)

This photo is without a torch.

With one torch, especially helpful with the size 15 beads!!

and with 2 torches. Amazing! and especially in the evening or late afternoon when it gets dark early still.

*torch is the British term for the US flashlight.

And now my back needs a change of place. If you want to see more likes, head over to LeeAnna's blog. She is great to do this little community of sharing. I hope to get involved more as I really hope my health will improve so I can do longer bursts of time at the computer. I have tried my phone, but it comes up so small that I struggle to see it, and when I can, it is very stubborn about getting photos and text where you want them. 😒

Bead on 2018 finish

Although I spent sometime where I just couldn't work on this because of my back, and as well, haven't been seeing properly, I was keeping track. I finally caught up and completed the 2018 daily bead project before the New Year. (Then couldn't see to sort the photos to put up here because of the second cataract. 😵)

So, am doing much better now. It isn't a Sunday, but I want to get this posted before it gets any later in January.

Week 52
So, here is a detail of the last week of the year.


And here is a photo of the whole bead project for 2018.


As you see, it doesn't cover 1/4 of the fabric. (It is folded in half to hang up for the photo.)
So, now I am considering what is next for it.

In the meantime, I have been working on the bead project for 2019. Will post these first several days on Sunday. I hope to get back into the routine of posting about the week's work. (£1 glasses are helping some while I wait for the ok for seeing about proper glasses.)

Something on Saturday

For 2019, I have decided to post photos of my treasures here and there around the house. You have seen the cows already! So, we won't have those. Maybe I will discover some little things I had forgotten about.

Treasure 1 -


This little badge is a treasure because it stands for my husband being from the UK and I'm from the US.
Actually, I think I have a Scotland/American badge because that would be more precise. But I am limiting computer time because of my eye, and found I already had this photo in my files!

I like Thankful Thursday

I do really like this, but the past couple months my health has made it very difficult to go round gathering photos of things to post!
So, this is a very late and very short one.

I like yesterday's result- the second cataract surgery. I am doing well. Both eyes seem to match in distance.
When you have worn glasses for 50 years, it feels like your face is naked now that you don't wear them!
I did get into a bit of a panic about not being able to see to read or sew. I tried a few reading aids...a page magnifier and a large magnifying glass from when I did cross stitch. It was very hard to hold it and try to centre the magnifier over the work!

So we went to Poundland. I got 2 of the £1 glasses. I will keep one in my bag for when I am out and need to read labels or something. and the other I meant for my sewing, but they work perched on the top of my head so I can straight away read, sew, work out what the instructions for cooking something says. Phew! This means I don't have to go 4-6 weeks not sewing before I get an eye test.
I will probably need distance correction,as well as reading glasses because I am not seeing as far as I hoped. Unless maybe now they will work together and begin to improve. It is all a bit of try and see.
I will let this eye settle down a bit and then get back to some sewing projects.

Several months ago I discovered I like Halloumi cheese.

We went out for lunch and I ordered this. Yumm! I don't think I have had it before.
The Thoughtful Man chose quiche.

And now we will see if I can get into a better routine for this I like Thursday posts.

Happy New Year! 2019

Hope your New Year is full of blessings.

Photos from the telly.

Sorting 2018

O

Tidied away

Auditions for 2019. This will become a record of lives.