Happy New Year

Well I can’t believe another year has passed zip zap!

So many things not finished… sigh

hey, a new year.. so many things to start LOL

but for now Happy New Year and do look back at my last (first!) blog year if you like.

I’m not making resolutions but I am going to try to blog more frequently- or at least more regularly; the long gaps mean things get passed by as something else happens!

FOR EXAMPLE “here is one I prepared earlier” THAT NEVER GOT FINISHED AND POSTED UP. I would like to use it as it is a good way for me to remember a start of a project. ( so, sorry, but I’m going to inflict it on you too)!

This is the first publisher template I made for the matchbox accordion booklets. I’ve adapted it a few times now but at the time I felt very pleased with myself! It has made new ones much quicker.

It also shows me how much I can prevaricate and get sidetracked! ( cue; sidetrack)

My favourite author Terry Pratchett has a bit in one of his books where he describes ideas as sleeting through the universe- sometimes the best idea “hits” the wrong brain and is wasted; other times there is a lightbulb moment for some bright spark!

This idea so resonates with me; I often feel like I am standing ( or to be honest, more probably sitting) under a veritable rainstorm of ideas- sorting them out and getting a proper solid hit to work with has always been a problem. I like the metaphor of all the randomly crashing, sleeting, rain better than butterflies fluttering. It feels much more like what happens to me at times. It stops me actually finishing so many things- I prove concept and then get distracted by the next thing.

Of course sometimes I just can’t be inspired, or bothered, (impatient and lazy?) Know thyself! 🙂

Anyhow here is a sequence taken which to me shows how I work things out ; or how i should not to do it if i ever want to finish it!
!Idea! This well known rhyme “Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home, your house is on fire your children are flown”.

Firstly a 3D paper house using my bag/box/house fold. I wanted it all as one piece but the flames are added separately on these rather scruffy tryouts. [idea 1]

Then messing about with a little paper doll [idea2]

Then I think it would go well in a matchbox (at this point I had done only the doll and beetles in them) so made a rough working out of layout of the text…

…and decided to try out Publisher.

Much gnashing of teeth ( Publisher was, is a learning curve all by myself!)
but started messing about with seductive clip art [ ideas3 and 4] Oooo, great fun.

Covered a matchbox with fortuitous tiny scrap from friend quilting leftovers and thought about maybe using my nice vintage ladybird or house buttons. [idea5]

Which led to the idea to use even- more- tiny scraps as individual ladybird children (as can’t bear to waste such an apt bounty) glued onto card with threads so they can dangle..! [no.6]

Then had idea to make mini fabric ladybird ( like Agatha beetles ).[idea7]
Tried it but at about an inch long a bit frustratingly fiddly- so not really happy with it and left that.

I also made up some individual booklets for my cousins’ children, with their names in the text and the – second verse ( more clip art fun and games)[no 8]

Abandoned whole boxful to do other rhymes.!!!

I did actually finish baa baa black sheep ( but there is a similar abandoned boxful of other ideas for that too!).

Hmm.

But today I feel like doing the ladybird one again- can’t find the energy to start anything completely new- even if it is New Years day!

Watch this space- I may actually finish one.

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Butterfly Days

I’ve been working on lots of things – at the same time as usual. It’s a wonder I ever finish anything. I was reading on another blog about limiting the creative theme to focus the creativity; but when I have a theme my brain immediately zips about with lots of different variations or uses for it. I can’t help it; and it makes finishing things so hard. As fast as I start something and prove concept, I have another idea; and then it is tedious to work on one thing when I’m itching to see what I can do with something else. Especially as, like most of us, I usually have to put it down in mid flow, to “do life”. This is why I am so often in a paper, wool and fabric chaos zone- one I have a definite love- hate relationship with. Sometimes I long for a nice normal uncluttered home- but a soon as I approach this holy grail… in starts to creep another muddle as I try to “just finish off this”.

For example yesterday- an “at home day”; having excavated my table the day before.
Started in the morning- over breakfast.
Decided to get on with the nursery rhyme boxes which I’ve been dying to do since I sold the Baa Baa Black Sheep one.

Got out “Mary had a little lamb”.
Remembered where I had got to.

Remembered the look I wanted for Mary – got out old needlecraft book to refresh my memory of the crinoline look.

Cut out Mary, roughly.

Realize she is totally out of scale with the lamb.
Remember him? He had a little side trip when I did the lamb jars.

So; also realized the crinoline Mary was for a “Mary Mary Quite Contrary” box!

The other style matchbox doll (here in my shop) had been my original thought – but I think her vintage pantaloon undies short circuited my memory to ‘crinoline effect’ and mixed it all up.

Bother.
So redid lamb smaller anyway, as quite liking the crinoline Mary and getting on well – end in sight.
Took some photos as I am trying to get on top of this blogging-as-you-go thing. ( Sorry, they’re a bit dim; dull day. )
Decided to photo the crochet from night before while I was at it – pumpkin cosies.

See how this distraction thing happens…?
Peep Po!

Waylaid by Mr. WG’s arrival and second breakfast cuppa!

Then, necessary housework. 😦

During tidying decided to prep evening ‘easy to do TV project’ while I was as it and the light was good enough in the “wool mine” (AKA spare room).

So sorted out some tiny balls of weird and wonderful marl boucle etc. that are lovely but only big enough crocheting for tiny objects (i.e. cosy, finally something to use them for!).

Daughter arrived for Tinkerbelle outfit and party planning.

Green dye session to dye purchased leotard from white to Tinkerbelle green ( win some; loose some. No need to cut out fitted underbody / need to have dye bath in kitchen sink for couple of hours).

Meanwhile… made some Peter Pan silhouettes to hang from party ceiling!

Fitted Tinkerbelle overdress dress toile in old net curtain ( handy in the hall in a designated “really do not need; to leave the premises” pile ) but it did come in useful after all.

– Fits. Yeah! Relief.

*worked out pompom for shoes- persuaded her old satin shoes better than new ditto for partying in. Or messing up with pompoms.

Dinner.

TV and bit of mindless crochet ( preparation paid off – yeah ) – some more cosies from bag of nice wool.

Made two!

Fell into bed!

This morning … Oh dear!

Tink stuff still in hall by big mirror (fitting remember)!

Mary the lamb, 3 pumpkin cosies and the two marley ones, all sitting on my table reproachfully!
One pumpkin at a jaunty angle on Shelly doll’s head – courtesy: tinkerbell!

Hmm; she looks a bit like I felt by the end of yesterday…

So I’ve typed this over breakfast. Badly.

Wonder when I’ll post it… 🙂

Anyone else have this sort of day?

It is fun though! Wonder what I’ll do today…

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Three Bags Full

Just catching up after the “Lamb Jars”, [ note to self; have to get on top of this blogging stuff].

Preparing artwork for the spinning event leaked over into the creative project I was working on at the time (and still am, mixed with new stuff 🙂 )

Nursery Rhyme Matchboxes.

Little accordions of nursery rhymes with extra bits!
Here is the baa-baa-black-sheep one.

I found a watercolour illustration in a vintage farmyard book. I loved the row of different breeds and just thought it would work so well as an image on the accordion book.

So I redrew a similar “usual suspects” line-up in ink, to go underneath the text, and just tinted it a bit with pencils.
The original thought was to pop in a mini plush lamb so I did still want to put some needle work into it. (I will still do one with the lambkin sometime, ‘cause he’s cute.)

I used some of the wool we had for spinning at the event to fill three bags and make a thread, and a ball of wool. The ball of wool has cocktail sticks and fimo “needles” in it. I accidentally slightly overcooked them – oops, but now I like it because they look more like bamboo ones.

It is probably a bit much to stuff in a matchbox; but it does fit, just, and opens out nicely- so I am pleased with it.
I made a group of matchboxes in scenic colours with my hand dyed scraps of cotton, so I’ve some more for variations when I get around to it.

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