Exhibition Time!

Gosh! It's only one more sleep until my exhibition!

I say 'my' exhibition but it's not really. The lovely and very talented artist Sue Godden asked me if I'd like to share her exhibition as we both create animal pictures which would compliment each other nicely. Mine as you know are made from wet felted wool and Sue's are pastel drawings.

Beautiful, isn't he?

The exhibition is called Natural Magic and it's on at the Station, Richmond, North Yorkshire for a couple of weeks.

So today has been a day of glass polishing, labelling and wrapping. I know this sounds silly but I forget quite how big my work is. It's only when I'm fighting with huge sheets of bubble wrap and heavy pictures that I think maybe I should try and work on a bit smaller scale.

This is 'Fox'. 

I think he's rather a handsome chap. Let's hope somebody else does and whisks him away to new home. 

If they don't I shall send him to Harrogate as I'm also taking part in an exhibition there for most of June into July. A handful of my works will be at the Bath House at the RHS Harlow Carr Gardens in their Summer Art Exhibition run by Just Makers. 

This one is that big that I can't even see over the top of it! 

More glass polishing!

There has been a bit of card packing too. 

Well I better say good night as I've got a lot of lifting and hanging to do tomorrow. Oh! I nearly forgot... We'll be doing a 'meet the artist day' on Saturday 6th June at Richmond Station so if you're popping to the cinema or catching a bite to eat don't forget to look for us and say hello.

So till next time

love Fi x

A Mouse for Mum.

At long last I've finally made a felt picture for my Mum. It's not that I haven't wanted to or that she hasn't wanted one but demands elsewhere got in the way last year. So this year I was determined that for her birthday I would make her a felt picture of her own. 

It had to be a little animal as she loves nature especially the wildlife that visits her garden. It's always full of birds and she and my Dad have a couple of squirrels that visit. Last year there was also a cute little field mouse that would visit looking for bird food that had fallen to the floor, so there was no doubt which little animal I should choose. 

This one tested my patience though. It nearly ended up in the bin on a couple of occasions but I don't like to be beaten and once you've invested hours of work in a piece it seems silly to abandon it, much better to persevere and strive to make it right...and I'm so glad I did. It wasn't until the very end, after the felt had dried and I was adding the whiskers that I was happy with it.

Till next time

love Fi x

Cushion Love

Hello from the hills!

It was a bit blustery and very fresh but well worth the climb! Only joking we drove up in the car, lol. This is the view from the Buttertubs Pass looking down at the valley. 

We had a little ride up to a small viewing area after dropping our daughter off at our local train station. Would you like to see that too? It's very pretty, well for a train station anyway. Here it is.

Small but perfectly formed. Very pretty and remote, surrounded by nothing but hills and moorland. Beautiful in the sunshine but on a stormy winters evening it's more Wuthering Heights, burrrr!

Back indoors and I've been busy stitching away on my sewing machine. I've been making  more cushion covers, this time with digital prints from some new felted wool pictures. 

You can't tell from the photo but these are printed onto faux suede fabric and feel lovely and... well... suede-y. 

The backs are also a faux suede fabric in a neutral colour and all of it washable too. I sound very smug don't I? Well I can tell you ladies...I certainly don't feel smug when I'm sewing them, I don't find it a very easy fabric to work with at all. It kind of sticks to the cutting mat and won't slide into position. I wouldn't say it frays but long clingy strands come off when your cutting it but...when you touch the finished piece, if feels luuuverly!

And just to give you an idea of size here I am trying to balance on the kitchen table while holding a cushion in one hand and taking a picture in the mirror with my phone in the other, at the same time trying to look relaxed as if I do this all the time.

These cushions, along with a few previous designs are now available in my Etsy Shop.

Till next time.

love Fi x