Of gorse!

Spring might be a bit slow this year but I know we are on the way when the gorse comes into flower

We have a lot of it growing around here and while for most of the year it is doesn't attract much attention, when it comes into flower it really adds a wonderful splash of colour.

What's more it smells of coconut, making it feel positively tropical around here!!! ...mmm!

These are also showing up! The way they push up through the grass makes them almost seem like something from an alien planet! They remind me of one of my favourite quilts by Frieda Anderson.

I call them Lords and Ladies but I know they have lots of names.

This is already to be stitched. Just need to find the time.

Linking up with Off the Wall Friday. Why not share what you have going on creatively?

Exploring Flight and other thoughts

I shared these pages of my sketchbook with you a while ago and I sort of made a start on what I thought would be some hand stitched samples with this, which you have also seen before, but time is a passing and as I am keen to have some new pieces to show in my booth at this years Festival of Quilts, I have jumped straight in and started on a bigger piece (which I hope will become pieces).

It is not easy because I find increasingly that my time is taken up with teaching commitments and pattern and kit preparation for my little Quilt Routes endeavors...this is not a moan, just a statement of fact... but I am determined to produce my own personal work as well.
The plans I have for this are multitudinous.  I am sure that there are a lot of you who know what I mean by that. So many ideas, so little time :)
Apart from the Flight series ( not sure about that title yet, it might be changed to Above, or something else)
I want to do more Dim Siarad Cymraeg, continue making more Stitched Seascapes, explore more design possibilities along these lines ...to name but a few.

Anyways...

This is where I am at with one piece.

Sketchbook Sunday

I know that there is a lot of this kind of thing and not much stitching here lately, but these activities are getting the creative juices flowing and I am stitching.... don't have anything to show just yet!

Hope you are having a creative Sunday.

Sketchbook Sunday

Enjoying taking 21 Secrets Art Journal workshops.

Valley Trip.

We took a trip up into The Valleys last week.

This viewpoint looks towards the Brecon Beacons.

The blue skies are deceiving. It was bitterly cold up there with a wind that  blowing straight in from Siberia (at least that is what it felt like :)

What is this?  A waterfall?

Yep! That would be a FROZEN waterfall! In  April!!!

Told you it was cold.

Region 12 Exhibition

The reason for me being up in the valleys (see previous post) was to make a visit to Cynon Valley Museum which was putting on an exhibition of quilts made by members of Region 12 of The Quilters Guild of the British Isles.

Turkish Delight by Anne Lewis and Me!

There were many lovely quilts but I have chosen to feature here the ones that belong to friends who I know won't mind me featuring them.

Dim Siarad Cymru plus Liz Savages' Welsh Babe (I know you have given this another name Liz :)

Joy Morgan** Welsh Quilt

Sonia Fox Ginkgo

Belinda Bajai Moonlight

Pat's interpretation of Nash Point (a local landmark) is one of my favourites.

 This whole exhibition was the brain child of our recently retired chair woman Jackie Pugh. She has put in an amazing amount of hard work during her tenure and this was her farewell for a job well done. I owe her a personal debt of gratitude as she has been very encouraging to me over the years. If it wasn't for her booking me to give a my talk (even before I had even put one together!) I probably would never have done anything.
A huge THANK YOU Jackie.

**Joy has begun a Virtual Quilt Group over on her blog Joy of Quilting. Go take a look.

Wrapping...

Other commitments have kept me away from creating lately, but now I am getting back into the swing of things by putting together a couple of book wraps.

The top two are made out of old projects completed a while ago, and now re-purposed.

The bottom one started out as a class sample and I have written a short tutorial for it on my other blog if you are interested.

Linking up with Off the Wall Friday. Pop on over to take a look at what others have been creating.