Rule Britannia!

You might remember the series of 20 cm square quilts with the theme of Britain, which I made earlier in the year.

These were selected to be part of a quilt put together by Contemporary Quilt as part of the exhibition about Celebrating Diversity. The exhibition is on at the Quilt Museum at the moment, and will go to Carrefour Europeén du Patchwork. September 13-16 2012. Ste Marie aux Mines, Alsace, France.

A few months ago, some of us who have work as part of the quilt were asked if we would be happy for the Quilt Guild to use images of our work to make cards for the Guild to sell. We said Sure! as long as our name is on it and we retain rights to the original. Then we heard that the card company was so impressed with the images, that they offered to make up the cards for their company to sell - with the Guild receiving royalties! Even better.

Somewhere along the way, some of the cards were also made into postcards. A few weeks ago I received a few complimentary postcards. (If you are interested, they can be bought on the Quilt Museum website - the card page.) The one chosen from my quilts was 'Phone Home', an image of a telephone box.

And then the other day, a parcel came with complimentary cards from the company! Two of mine were chosen, 'Phone Home' again, and also 'Cricket Wicket'.

Here is the postcard along with the two large cards.

The company is Colcards. One of the things they do with some of the cards they make from images of textiles is to emboss the cover. The 'Cricket Wicket' card is embossed. Here is the page on their website where our cards can be found.

Very exciting! And I heard today that they will have the cards on sale at the Festival of Quilts. Guild trading stand, R14  I am going to see if I can get a set to include the others. They are nearly as large as the works themselves and are just right for framing. This is the ideal time to sell them, too, with the current feel good factor about Britain after the Jublilee and the Olympics.

Whenever the originals do come back, they are going to be for my son to hang in his flat when he gets a job. He wants to work in oil exploration, so he is likely to end up abroad somewhere. I thought they would be good reminders of home...I guess others have thought so too!

Bright Green dress

Before my son's graduation in July, I was trying to make a dress. As I was also dealing with external verifiers and end of year marking at the same time, my friend wisely encouraged me to wear something else. So, it only got so far.

Then, I worked on it more around the end of July before I went on holiday. I got a bit further at the last TV Offcuts meeting.

But the machine I carry to the meetings doesn't do very good buttonholes. So, In the day or so before going I tried to do the buttonholes. I am sure I must have attempted the top buttonhole at least 5 or 6 times, but the thread kept breaking - even with a different needle, even with a different type of white thread. SO, I didn't take it on holiday either.

Saturday I determined I was going to sew the buttonholes. I changed the position of the thread, used yet another needle, and finally succeeded. The rest of the buttonholes went in easily.

So today I got to wear it!

This is in the afternoon after wearing it to church, so a bit of creasing. But I am glad I got it done to wear in the bright sunshine. That is what appealed to me about the fabric. At the point I bought it, I just needed something summery to wear, even if it didn't look like we would have one at that point!
I am not particularly convinced that it is the best colour for me (or even the best size print for my figure) but by putting the white binding on the neckline, it redeemed it a bit.
back

But it fits, and is evidence that I think I have finally got the dress pattern right. there is enough ease that it is fairly comfortable to wear, as well. and enough flare that it doesn't come right up my thigh when I sit down.

Hurrah!


Perhaps it is time to start winter clothes? well, not yet anyway. I think I will make a dress out of some of that fabric I have been saving for when I have a pattern that fits!

Experiments

Continuing with the CQ journals, I am a bit behind on the yellow ones. However, I knew that when I did finally get a chance, I was going to try something.

So, I finished the Stretching Art work* and sent it off.

Then I took some yellowish fabric, cut a lemon open and printed with it onto the fabric.

Lemon prints

This was a what would happen if? senario, so the first thing was to put it in the sun to dry and to see if it would do something...bleach it?
Anyway, I read a good book in the sun and then had a look. It didn't seem to have made a difference, but it was dry.

Lemon prints drying

And then as it was time for making tea, I popped it in the oven! Actually, that was my original what if Idea. If you could use lemon juice to do 'spy writing' - revealing the words made from lemon juice ink by heating it - then what would happen if you printed with lemons, let it dry and then heated it.

First of all, I must say that if you try this, don't fret if you can't see the print too well and don't decide to press down a bit more so it gets a good print. The less pressure gives better definition of the lemon.

But anyway, after only 10 min in the oven (set for Oven chips) this is the result.

Baked Lemon prints

Cool! So, now I am going to work into the circles to define them as lemon slices. I will let you know how I get on.

What I need is more yellow fabric - not print. I have just enough for another yellow journal and then some which is going to have to be for straps for a rucksack because I haven't enough of the actual fabric. SO, I am going to have to put that on my list for FOQ.

* I haven't sorted the photos yet, but will do so soon. I have been hijacked by a sunny garden and some good books...oh and some British Olympians from time to time.

Almost, but not quite

A few familiar things but done the Guernsey way.
'not red' phone boxes

'not red' post boxes

Now to go find one of the towns with the newly painted gold post boxes in honour of our Olympians.

Here and there and back again

After my birthday, the next thing was heading out for a holiday. This year my husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary on the 1st of August. So we took a break to Guernsey in the Channel Islands.
I let my husband arrange things - it was so nice not to have to make any decisions after such a busy year. So, it was a big surprise to find we were to stay in a posh hotel! I think the Queen has even stayed there!

We had separate room with a settee and another TV - not sure what it was meant for, but we used it for the suitcase. :-p

We had a very lovely relaxed time. Went to a Chamber concert in a church one night. We took a day trip to Herm with a tour of the Gardens there.

A very peaceful place...we sat on the beach and read books for the afternoon!

My husband offered to buy me a nice outfit for the big day. (I think after I panicked on the first night when I realised the hotel was so posh and I hadn't brought much by way of posh clothes!) We had the Maitre D' take our photo. Another couple had an anniversary, too. We saw them asking a waitress to take their photo. But I didn't catch what the year was and my husband insisted I didn't speak to them. (That was fine, I know he isn't keen on speaking to complete strangers!)

Another day we took another ferry, this time to Sark. No automobiles allowed. Only tractors. So we had an interesting ride round the island by horse and cart. It happened to be a day the horse, called George, was feeling particularly lazy. At one point a lady on a mobility scooter overtook us on the road! We all had a good laugh at that! However, it was nice to be so laid back and look at the scenery.

On a few other days we visited Castle Cornet on Guernsey,

Sarnia Arts and Crafts Club Exhibition at Elizabeth college,

as well as a Museum with a Costume section, the Freesia Centre where I bought my husband a selection of bulbs for his garden,
the Guernsey Tapestries - done for the Millenium, and a WWII Occupation Museum. The Channel Islands were the only part of Great Britain that were taken by the Germans in the war.

The conditions were dreadful and the realization of the oppression islanders went through really hit home for me when I saw posters like these.

On the last day, we went to the home which belonged to Victor Hugo when he was exiled. He had gone to Belgium after speaking out against Napoleon III. Then he had to go to Jersey, where he his views about Queen Victoria's acceptance of Napoleon got him into further trouble. When he was sent to Guernsey, he had money from the sale of his Collection of Poems - Contemplations. So, he purchased Hauteville House. And now owning property, he could not be exiled again! All together he was 19 years in exile.

It is very hard to describe Hugo's house. It is just a bit OTT and rather strange altogether. I guess he was rather theatrical in his life, not just in his ability to write books like Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Miserable. There was a hall/storeroom decorated with plates

- even on the ceiling!
The dining room had a tile surround, surrounded by more tiles, for the fireplace.

All Walls and Ceilings were covered with fabric

or tapestries...some in rather unusual ways.

At the top of the house was his studio - a novel idea for those days when servant's quarters were usually in those positions. He had a sort of conservatory where he was able to see the Sea, which fascinated him, and where he would pace back and forth writing as he walked.

We just managed a short look at Fort Grey before heading to the airport.

It was a very lovely time just to be together and enjoy a leisurely pace of life.

...and since I have been home I have been right out straight on finishing the work to send off for the Stretching Art exhibition at PNQE - Pennsylvania National Quilt Exposition. I will show more of that another day.

Birthday

Today was my birthday!
Amongst some special things including 2 Natalie Bray Pattern cutting books, I also got some of these...

wireless headphones

and a CD of one of my favourite groups.

So, now I can carry on listening when someone in the lounge is trying to watch something.

and I can listen to my audio books from the computer and the sound of the machine won't drown them out! Perhaps cancelling out the sound of the Singing Troubadour next door on his karoke machine. cross fingers

We went to Woking to see Snow White and the Hunter and had dinner at Cafe Rouge. then came home to some of my husband's new gastronomical interests - ice cream from his new ice cream machine - £9.99 on sale at Aldi! we have had a new kind of ice cream every night this week. My idea of wonderful!

first official day off

Due to increasing difficulties with recovering from a mere 2 1/2 hours teaching per week, I took the decision to stop teaching... at least for now. I do have a few late units remaining to mark, but after that, no more travelling back and forth to Reading.
I had a lovely group of students this year. The majority are excelling in all the aspects of the work for the City and Guilds Fashion courses. I will post more about their work tomorrow when I can. (EDIT: I've been form filling today/Tuesday - end of course tutor evaluations - and was nearly done at about 10pm when it all went poof and dissappeared. so glad dearest clever man is a computer expert and found all but 15 minutes of it.)

So today, I worked all day on the Stretching Art piece. I just need to finish stitching down the hanging sleeve tomorrow.

It is late, so I will just leave you with this photo of a work of art that was in the building where the graduation photos were being taken. (photos mentioned yesterday) I don't know the name of the artist.

The photo is very skewed because of the angle I was sitting (too many photograph crowds below it.)I thought the colours and the shapes were fascinating.

Here is another version using the perspective tool on Paint Shop Pro. Not sure if it truely resembles the original as seen from a different point of view, as I didn't get a different look.

photography in the 1600's - or not

So, last week after the graduation, we waited for our son to have his official graduation photo taken. My husband said...Founded in 1689? they hadn't even thought of photography then!

So, I took a photo, like you do.

Then whilst cropping it to post here so you could join in the humour, I thought, well, maybe they made frames in 1689 and it progressed from there.

So I thought I would look it up. Oh! robes. Okay, this company has moved with the times haven't they! They provide robes to hire AND with hiring a robe, you can also pay to get your photo taken in the robe. Win Win.

sewing going on

In spite of the series of posts about things that happened at the beginning of June, there has actually been sewing going on around here.

sewing buttonholes

Oh! unsewing buttonholes and redoing them on the right side.

Don't use crepe if you want to see if the pattern is right at last. It ends up sagging so much that it feels way too big.

I started this dress, but realised it was way too in your face for wearing to the graduation.

I will finish it this week for going on holiday instead. I had in mind the hope of summer when I saw the fabric. but in reality that colour green is not so great for me. So, I am going to bind the neck with white. The buttons are just stuck on with pins at the moment to see what I think.

I sent off the Tin mine piece for the Festival of Quilts. Wow. It has been nice to not be frantically stitching to the last minute. and it is not even due til next week! Makes a change to be early.

And then today I have been working on a piece I was putting off. You know how strange it is when you begin to fear a piece, but when you start working it is quite easy? Well, that's what this had become.

It is a piece for the Stretching Art exhibition at PNQE - Pennsylvania National Quilt Exposition. The theme this time is Fountations. So this one is Sewing 101: Seams. I need to finish the edges in some way and see what else it wants. Next week I will do a companion piece. And then they will be on their way  - early again! What fun!

Lingering Question

We got to Guildford Catherdral for the graduation ceremony early, so while waiting, I looked around a bit more.

The burning question, though, had to be...

What must it have been like to make the curtain on the wall of the Cathedral?

To put it in perspective...the small arches near the lower corners of the photo?

They are doorways.

!!!!!

graduation day

A few photos of yesterday the BIG day for a Certain Young Man

Much Ceremony

 Being Announced - he was the only graduate for the Physics with Finance degree

Being greeted by the Pro-Chancellor

Happy graduate

Two long legged men...Loved the billowing cloak - just like in the films

In all his finery

And with the Stag

Graduation present - secondhand I hasten to add!

All in all a lovely day.

And in case you thought you recognised the Pro-Chancellor, you probably did.

Penelope Keith

She is also a Deputy Lieutenant of Surrey.

She was very lovely with each of the students, greeting them as if she was ever so proud of them. Beaming with her signature smile.

If they had won an award, she actually had a little conversation and then proudly watched them walk over to receive it.

For our son, she asked him if it was rather lonely being the only one doing his degree. He replied that there had been one other person doing it as well.

Guildford - 4

So, this post is scheduled for Tuesday. My son is graduating from the University of Surrey - Guildford today. The ceremony will take place in the Cathedral. We visited and looked around the inside when we went to Guildford with my sister.
I showed the doors previously.

The Cathedral, as I mentioned, is a more modern Cathedral. The building itself doesn't strike you as Cathedral-like, in fact it has sometimes has been discribed as more factory-like! But, it was the first Anglican cathedral to be built on a new site in the south of England since the Reformation. Construction had to be halted during WWII, and it was finally finished and consecrated in 1961. You can read more about the process of constucting the building here.

While the exterior of the building does look mid- 20th century, there are sculptures which have been done in a modern style, but do make you think of the sculptures from churches in the middle ages. For instance, you wonder if in 100 or more years, time will have softened the angles on Charles Gurrey's carvings like this one.

But then some things have been done in an older style, too.

And there is a beautiful gold angel at the top which can be seen from a distance as you approach. I also spotted this cockerel at the top of another part of the building.

Inside, it looks and feels like a 'normal' cathedral. The stone used gives it a lightness and even perhaps joy that you don't feel in older buildings.

There is a mixture of decoration that give the feeling of age combined with other items that have a definite modern feel, like this altar.

this stag in the floor under the crossing.

It marks the summit of Stag Hill, the hill on which the cathedral stands.

and these traditional looking pieces of needlework.
Embroidery

Goldwork

There is a Regimental Chapel to the left side (as you look towards the altar).
the Chapel altar

decoration over one of the entrances to the chapel

I thought the arrangement of these organ pipes in the Cathedral look like a modern sculpture themselves!

I seem to have gone on a bit, but it is such a contrast from what you normally see with centuries old churches and cathedrals in England.

I will see what other photos I might be able to get today during the Graduation Ceremony. but mostly I will be celebrating a Certain Young Man with a Degree in Physics with Finance.