Catch up!

Howdy! I just wanted to pop in and say hello, as it's all been very "Sewing- teachery" focused and not much chat at all. There is so much going on behind the scenes here that  finds me brimming with excitement and feeling all the worse for not being able to share it. (due to "sewing teachery" mode).
So I hope you will indulge me while I get it all out!


On the home front our  DIY jobs are coming along nicely and we look set to putting our house on the market by summer! (gulp did I just write that!) I have been painting walls like there is no tomorrow...and skirting boards and doors..and...and!
Its my youngest's birthday this week too, 6 years old. A marvellous age to be! And bless her cotton socks she finally relinquished her hanging-together-by-my-shoddy-darning woolly tights for some new ones (Miracle of miracles.) There is an Owl themed party happening this weekend (I have been instructed) and some "top hats" amongst other party delights to be made.
There's also a huge amount of plate juggling going on  with getting organised for London's design Trade Fair in May, and the whole new range of items I'll be taking. My heart and soul is going into these items which I would love to share in another post another time.....suffice to say I've been pushing and stretching myself in every way and am going out on a rather large limb.....but it feels FANTASTIC!....
especially when fabric rocks up on my doorstep with my designs printed on them. Love love LOVE.

I'm leaving it to the nth hour to create and introduce some new items that feature sewing too...deja vu of this time last year but thankfully no leather hard painted canvas to sew through..my fingers are feeling a lot perkier as a result!

A couple of my foxy prints actually made it onto the Pulse website which is a real honour....ok, granted if you blinked you'd miss them....but the prints are there none the less :)

You can see my little bit of blurb over on the exhibitor bit if you'd like a sneak preview of some items I'll be taking along..I'll be adding more soon.

I'll be back on Friday with more stitchery teachery-ness and a new bunting flag design...this week I'm looking at stitches to use for filling...a wee colourful sneaky peak below...

Really loving that acid yellow colour at the mo.....can you tell ;)

Hope you are gooooood wherever you are xx

A collection of love x

  I can't possibly start without sending out a heartfelt THANKYOU to those who left such dear comments (here and over on facebook), words of support and sweetness that celebrated my business birthday alongside me. It never fails to astound me, that a single individual has the capacity to fill another up with so much love and support...and this can be with someone we have never even met! I am so GRATEFUL. (insert very smiley face with a wee tear in the eye and holding a hankie!)
Maybe Cyril can say it better....here is a flower for you x

Love from Cyril

                

I'm not sure if you noticed, but I've turned the comment option back on too.
I had turned the comments off way back in the Summer as I was feeling bad about never replying to the lovely messages people had taken the time to leave. It was a time thing...not enough of it and having to use it wisely, which my polite upbringing struggled with. It was also to help create a bit of space for me to allow new things in , new style, new items, new approach, without outside influence.
Its a tricky thing this social media, or atleast I find anyways...that slight need for external validation..do they like this piece? Oh I've only got 1 comment this week, maybe this piece is not so good...and so on!

Anyhoos.....the reintroduction of comments for the giveaway (and then left on accidentally afterwards) has made me realise it's no fun being in a vacuum. Quite lonely in fact! Its not so much the comments that I missed but more the feeling that when I write a post someone somewhere will actually read it. Without the comment option I knew it was just for me and frankly I'm over that self indulgence! So if you ever feel like tinkling on those type keys, tinkle away....or not.  I'll feel delighted to know you are out there either way.

Side by side

So if I can draw breathe after this long ramble...I just wanted to share some of the new card designs that will be accompanying me to Pulse Trade Fair in May. These 3 are all about the love....

Beauty-FULL

Which I am sending out to you all tenfold xx

A song burst of celebration!

Its been 2 years today, two years since I left midwifery and became a self employed artist.
Just writing that feels pretty amazing.

New card design that's gone off to the printers.

                       
It's quite a feeling to remember the lead up to that date and the utter fear of failure (and being poor!) that surrounded it, and to be sitting here now knowing that everything has worked out beautifully so far.

I had a dream during the "fear" phase where I told myself to write down a list of all the miraculous things that have happened in my life ( I get the odd "prophetic" dream so am inclined to listen!) I'm grateful I did, because once I'd searched my memory for all the things that had occurred/ magically happened/ worked out in miraculous ways, I was overwhelmed with the proof that life really is set up for good things and that it conspires to have it all work out for us!
The "fear" phase left pretty swiftly after that.

There have been other phases of course...the "excited but really have no idea which direction where I'm going but I'll just keep creating and put my name down for a Trade Fair even though I don't know what I want to sell yet "phase. Surprisingly that worked out.

"Phase 1" 2012

Then there was the "blimey these stitched pieces seem to be going down well so I guess I'll sell them and go to a Trade Fair too" phase...that worked out also! 

"Phase 2" 2013

Now I find myself back at the Trade Fair scenario for year 3, but it's a new phase called the "realising winging it is maybe not the greatest business model, so having a little more purpose,clarity and direction is a good thing...and I'll launch my new work at Pulse Trade Fair 2014" phase. (or Phase 3!)
Hmmm feels like the best phase yet...and I'm kind of hoping the track record keeps its momentum ...that things works out too :)

I've never considered likening my business to the growth that we experience, but I'm realising that's precisely what my business and I have been experiencing together....birth, vulnerable and still developing, exploring/touching/tasting everything, first steps, starting to walk, learning as we go, making better decisions, maturing a little.....
I don't think we're much further than that....but not bad considering we're only 2!
And I have to say I'm so delighted and thankful to be here, because the prospect of the future and the rest of our growing together is really exciting, and so much BIGGER than what I could have imagined at the start of this journey 2 years ago.

So yes, I'm celebrating!
I also have to end by sharing the other phase I've entered , inspired by receiving not 1 but 2 of these diaries as crimbo pressies. (I did tell you I am "inclined to listen"!).....

Designed by Rachel Bright

The "becoming ruler of the universe and eating cake " phase (otherwise known as "Phase 4"). Oh yes! Consider yourselves duly warned ;)xx

A pleasant little interlude...

"Admiring from afar"

To counteract the feeling that everything I'm trying to put together is taking so long, it felt great to do a bit of tearing and gluing, painting and drawing, and end up with something to show for it...albeit  a bit teensy!

(A little jiggery pokery computery collage added to the mix!)

"Footprints"

I am really excited about showing you the goodies I almost have ready to launch into the world. But for now I offer you these little mixed media pieces. I love how they have turned out, especially the bear below..but you know I have a soft spot for these furry fellows!

"Friend..?!"

The tea bags even got involved in these ones...yet another excuse to pour a cup!

Hope you're all getting back into the swing of things again after the hols...did they even happen?! xx

Recent makes!

I love this squirrel... "Little sushine" is what I called him..he ended up in The Found Gallery along with the mounted pieces below...

"Song Bird"

"Un-impressed!"

"Call of the Wild"....seemed so fitting to have made this then went to see "Sky Fall" ...homage to 007..swoon :)

I apologise if you're a visitor of my facebook page as you'll have seen these all before! I've been very busy with projects and exciting new ventures..but alas none of which I can share right now.
I can however share that I'm off to the very grand (and recently rennovated) Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh this weekend with my creations...must remember to bring my camera this time as this place is STUNNING! Can't wait!
Hope all is wonderful where ever you are xx

Nudges

The kids go back to their normal duties of school and pre-school nursery on Monday..and I have to say I'm doing a wee hop and skip at the thought! Naughty mummy!

Suffice to say there's been very little creativity, so I'm dragging out some photos from a while back....which as I sit and type, I realise actually have a story to tell...

"Kite flier" my very first experiment!

                                    

When  I was at the Harrogate Trade Fair in  April, a very lovely and talented lady named Eve gave me some very astute and direct advice. I loved her ability to be cuttingly honest but extremely complimentary at the same time....this is a skill I want to develop! 

She felt my stitched girls were lost on the books I had on display, and should be pieces of art themselves. 

This matched exactly my feelings at the time...that I was leaning away from focusing on the labour intensive books and wanting to concentrate more on the blank canvas that they provided. Also that I was leaning towards stitching instead of painting...

So when I came home and digested the whole experience, the highs the lows, the feedback and advice I began experimenting...

I was loving the stitched girlies I had been creating, their simplicity and the pose that did the talking (as I had tried to capture in my paintings) but I wanted to add some more texture...just like the mixed media paintings.

What followed ......

"Wondering"

Each piece lead to the next. and I was feeling more excited about finding an outlet that covered EVERY aspect of creating that I love...paint, stitch, colour and texture...

The silent observer

It was this piece however that lead to the animals in stitch! ...who knew ducks looked good in stitchery 

form :)

"Hello duckies!"

This was the piece that started my "walk on the wild side" .... which funnily enough has taken off on a new life of its own....

Amazing where the twists and turns of life will take us...all beginning with a gentle nudge!
I've been meaning to email Eve and say thankyou for saying the words out loud that had been whispering inside. For the "permission" that sometimes we need to hear from someone other than ourselves.....it's time I did!

Stitches with sketches

I thought I'd show you what I've done with one of the sketches I showed you in my last post.

"Woodland King"

The crochet hook even came out for these!

"Nature's stage"


I'm liking their simplicity, the layers and contrasts of different elements...and also that finally the frames that have been gathering dust are finally being used! More to come me thinks.....well actually there definitely  will  HAVE to  be more...the remaining dust gathering frames are giving me the evils :)


This last one I wanted to share because it just make me smile ..a big cheesy one at that!

"High on a hill"

       

Llamas in general make me smile and a stitched one seems to tickle my funny bone even more.....call me strange if you like :)

So thats all I've got for now. The kids are about to break off on their Autumn holidays already......

I am seriously struggling to keep up......won't be mentioning THAT word just yet though :)x

Things of a birdy nature

Birds have predominated my latest creations....you've seen my "subirdia" books before, but I've turned these ones into notebook covers and saved on the time consuming task of hand binding the pages.It struck me that people may want to reuse what they've paid substantially for!  And I found some cracking little hard covered A6 sketchbooks to nestle in the covers..perfect for the doodling on whilst out and about!

I've been making more little birdies too for a new kit I'm working on....promise to show you when finished !

My fave latest birdy creations, however, are these little "hangy thingies"...(yes that is the technical term!)

 

I hacked into a vintage linen table cloth with its lovely scalloped edges and embroidered "holey bits" (yes..another technical term) and stitched up these birdies using freehand machine stitching as well as hand embroidery.

 

A band of barn owls is what I call them.

 I take great pleasure in imagining my Nana, who has just recently left us,  flying with these beauties to meet the love of her life on the other side. Sending all my love with you Nana xx

Jenny Bear....

I've been hopping on the bear band wagon, but really its because I do love these beautiful beings.

 The bond was well and truly sealed when I read a book over a decade ago , where astronomy was morphed with Native American Wisdom...instead of being an uptight control freak, perfectionista Virgo I was a nurturing, loving brown bear. Hear me roar.

This piece went through a few lives before it got here. I've been experimenting with hand painting/stamping my own fabric and incorporating it into my stitched pieces. However the colour choices didn't work,so the whole bear fabric got painted over! (and a few triangles added...it felt rude not to join the triangle bandwagon too) I prefer minus the blue..but it needed enlarged to fit a 5" x 5" block. 

So there you have it...

Jenny Blair  Bear xx

A woodland walk...

:) xx