Celebrating Spring!

Oh the excitement! 

Lighter nights! Bank holidays! The occasional patch of blue sky! 

I'm totally looking forward to summertime...My focus at the moment seems to be flowers! This is one of my latest felted wool pictures...I'm really enjoying creating the flowers. 

Yes it's all about the blooms at the moment.

Quite stylised. 

Blousy petals. Bobbly stamens. Bobbing heads. 
Hmmm...I can almost smell the sweet new grass and floral scents. 
...and back in reality...I'm wearing two pairs of socks, leg warmers...a huge cardi and looking out of the window at the snow on the hilltops! 

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

The Cat and the Comet Ta-Daa!

Ta-daa!

A beautiful summer meadow on a warm heady evening. The stars are twinkling and the grasses are dancing in the breeze but can you spot the cat and the comet?

 My brief was for vibrant flowers, sparkly stars, a comet and a cat partially hidden. 

As you can see the only place I could find that was light enough and large enough to photograph this 6 foot long wall hanging, was outside on the garden gate. 

A close up of the cat, looking up at the comet.

And starting at the left hand side...

 to the middle...

and finishing on the right.

 And now just some gratuitous texture shots!

The whole piece is made from wet felted Merino wool and then embellished with free motion machine embroidery and finished with a little hand embroidery. 

Hopefully next time I might be able to show you it hanging in its new home!

Till then

Love Fi x

Hare in Daisies

Here he is finished at last. 

This is one of my large felt pieces measuring about 32 inches square. That's quite a lot of felt to stuff under the sewing machine but I just roll it up and hope for the best, lol.

He's made from Merino wool which has been wet felted and then free motion machine embroidered. I'll be taking him to Art in the Pen at Skipton on Sat 16th and Sun 17th August along with a few other felty friends I've been making. 

Maybe I'll see you there, it'll be a great weekend with a hundred and thirty artists transforming animal pens into mini art galleries including painting, ceramics, jewellery, sculpture, wood carving and of course textiles so don't forget your purse

. 

There's plenty of free parking and lots to see. 

Don't forget to come and say hello.

Till next time

love Fi x

Art in the Pen

Good morning! Don't look so shocked! 

Yes, this is me blog posting in the morning! Goodness gracious! 

Yes I'm on the ball this morning, well sort of. I've been rather hit and miss with my blog posting this year, but then this year has been quite different from other years. This year has been a bit of a steep learning curve for me. I've never created quite so much art work as I have this year or been so busy - which is all good. I just need to learn how to manage my time more efficiently and get into the flow of making, framing, ordering, supplying, BLOGGING etc.

For instance, take the picture above. The felt picture is a commission for a lovely lady who contacted me waaaay back at the beginning of the year.(The roses are from the garden and smell wonderful!) Now she did say that I had until September to make it but really! I should have had it done way before now. But then...who knows? She may have benefited from the time lapsed, my work may have improved or evolved slightly. Who knows!

This is one of the reasons I've been so busy. Art in the Pen. This year was the first at Carlisle although the event is in its 9th year at Skipton which is August 16th & 17th. This was also my first time but what a lovely experience.

Here I am setting up on the Friday afternoon. Wonderful Man is pretending to be David Bailey. There were over 80 artists all doing their best to transform animal pens at the auction mart into mini art galleries.

Hey Presto! As if by magic! 

I'm just adding the finishing touches in time for Fridays preview evening. Would you like

 a closer look?

 Starting on the left hand side. Lots of felted flower brooches pinned onto my mannequin Ethel Maude. On the table are a couple of small felt pictures and my hand embroidered felted greetings cards.

 Little Robin Red Breast, this one was hand needle felted.

Here he is free from his frame so you can see him properly.

 This one is a big one measuring about a metre square and is called 'Cow Parsley Mouse'. This one is wet felted and then free motion machine and hand embroidered.

 Here he is before framing.

After him is...

'Beagle Pup'. No embroidery on this one just wet felted.

You've already seen the 'Nasturtium Hare' at the top of this post but here he is again, just because he's my favourite piece to date. Again all wet felted with free motion machine and hand embroidery.

 Lets pop over to the right hand side.

Starting on the left we have...  

'Apple Blossom' (wet felted)

'Smile' Wet felted and machine and hand embroidered.

So called because I thought it would be rather nice to get out of bed every morning and see this. Surely it would make you smile? lol.

And lastly another Hare. (wet felted)

Have you had enough? 

Or would you like a little wander around some of the other wonderful pens?

I thought so ;)

I'll keep it brief.

www.bridgetwilkinson.co.uk

Stig Art

www.viviiennecawsonart.co.uk

sorry not sure who this is.

Sue Lancaster

www.amanda-mercer.co.uk

Kate Durdy

David Singleton

www.sketchbuck.com

Julie Gibson

David Brightmore

And lastly the lovely Diana Morrison who also supplies the one of the same galleries as me, Cherrydidi in Keswick. 

There were many more that I didn't manage to photograph including wood carvings, jewellery and ceramics.

 I've had an idea!

 Why don't you come to Art in the Pen at Skipton in August and see for yourself!

I'll see you there ;)

Till next time

love Fi x

Dangling Field Mouse, Wool Painting

 I've got a bit of a 'thing' for field mice at the moment. This is my latest finished piece of felted artwork.

 This little chap is dangling precariously...

above the poppies.

I'll be exhibiting at Art in the Pen in Carlisle on 28th and 29th June. This is the first at Carlise although it is in it's ninth year at Skipton, which is in August (I'll be there too). 

There is a preview evening on Friday 27th by invitation only, so if you would like to attend the preview evening, email me at fiona@marmaladerose.co.uk and I'll  be happy to post you an invitation. Otherwise please feel free to come along on Saturday and Sunday; there'll be over 100 selected artists who'll transform sheep and cow pens into mini galleries to sell their original works of art.

Till next time

love Fi x

British wildlife abroad.

I've been busy with the woolly stuff again people. I'm afraid your going to see a lot of this this year as I'm hoping to do a lot more art/craft fairs in 2014. Here's little Robin Redbreast in felted wool. He's now winging his way to new home in the USA with a travelling companion...

Can you tell what it is yet?

Here he is finished. A wily old hare, ready for his long journey to the States.

Love Fi x