Horses & unicorns

'Horse Girl wants to be a Unicorn'

The past week has seen a cosmic collision of my computer going mad and a wonderful new opportunity arriving with a very short deadline, which equals a black hole down which most of my time has been sucked. Very much cheered by selling one of my last paintings - rather poignant, as it was one of the last personal pieces I did before needle felting took over my life and soul.

I've been creating versions of these little Germanic toys for many years now, and they are a big feature in the collection I designed for Gisela Graham, which should be in the shops next autumn.

The toy unicorn painting is now on its way to America, the last one in a trio - they live on as a card set, in the shop here.

(Computer is fixed after several days of stress and fiddling. Once I've beaten this deadline, things can go back to some kind of normal. Hooray!)

Riddle Solutions

Apologies for the lateness of the draw and riddle solutions - after posting my brain teasers last week, I succumbed to an anonymous, head-clouting winter lurgy and am only just up and doing again. So, here we are with the answers; relax, the world can breath easily again.

RIDDLE SOLUTION

My first is in Plumage and also in Pyre, (the letter 'P')
My second is in Host, a Heavenly choir (the letter 'H')
My third is just nOthing, your pardon I beg ('O' or zero, both are 'o' shaped)
My fourth is in Embers in which sits an Egg (the letter 'E')
My fifth is iNk, as seen on this page (the letter 'N')
My sixth in Inferno, a fiery rage (the letter 'I')
My seventh is a cross (X) that is every man's mark (an 'x' being the commoners way of signing their name, if they could not write)
My whole is a flame which will light up the dark (the final clue to give the word)

answer - PHOENIX.

HAIKU

White angel gliding
Grace and beauty on water
Flip, flap, flop on grass.

Of course it was a SWAN - so graceful and dainty when swimming and such a clumsy waddler on the ground. To read a simple introduction to the form of the haiku visit this site - my version is a mere stumble in the dark compared to the people who write them properly, so for a better understanding of this fascinating art, just Google 'haiku' - and prepare to be amazed.

(All swan photos taken by me at nearby Kelmscott, home of the great William Morris)

Very well done to everyone who entered and nearly everyone who did, got it right. However, much as I love you all, there is only one calendar to be won...and the name drawn out of the hat was...EMA! Well done, the calendar will be on its way to you next week.

The roll call of honour to everyone else (blogs included where known, let me know your blog if I've missed you)

'Prickly Pinecone'
Bonnie of 'Love your Place'
Andy's mum - well done Mrs M, answered by text within five minutes.
Frances of 'Fairy Lanterns'
L from 'Amongst the Oaks'
Cathy of 'Down a Dusty Lane'

Jo M

Caroline of 'Uniqart'
Gemma of 'Sandy Floorboards'
Ember of 'Kindred of the Quiet Way'

Diana of 'The Qi Papers'
'Luna'
Frances of 'City Views, Country Dreams'
Terri M
Lynette N
C of 'Land of Sticks'
Mary-Beth of 'Fragile Earth Stuffed Animals'
Jean A.

It was lovely to hear how many people enjoyed tussling with the riddles; I may have to make some more up.

Old riddles

One of the small joys of keeping things (I prefer the term ''treasurer' to 'hoarder') - is finding bits of your old self, maybe in the form of writing. Today I have found two old riddles I composed many years ago; one is a traditional spelling riddle, the other in haiku form. I am not, I hasten to add, claiming to be an expert in either forms.

RIDDLE

My first is in plumage and also in pyre,
My second is in host, a Heavenly choir
My third is just nothing, your pardon I beg
My fourth is in embers in which sits an egg
My fifth is ink, as seen on this page
My sixth in inferno, a fiery rage
My seventh is a cross that is every man's mark
My whole is a flame which will light up the dark



HAIKU

White angel gliding
Grace and beauty on water
Flip, flap, flop on grass.

Email me the correct two answers via my blog profile to go in for a drawer to win my very last 2012 calendar as a prize! (Email answers only accepted). If you can only guess one, do send it in, just in case nobody gets both.

*CLOSES WEDNESDAY MORNING, FEB 15 12 MIDDAY U.K TIME!* (well done to all the correct answerers so far)

Geoffrey the Gentle

Geoffrey is the first giraffe I have been asked to do. I tried various designs, from very stylised to uber-cutesy baby animal style. In the end he was a mixture of all of them, the right hand page being the one I was happy with - and luckily my client was too.

My Facebook fans got a sneak peek of him some weeks ago, with this WIP picture -

He took longer than anticipated though! He is almost nine inches tall.

He is 100% felt- no wire armatures inside.

Although his 'horns' are wire, thread wrapped with little hearts to top them off.

Soon he'll be on his way to his new 'job' and I'll begin my next order - a lady ladybird. Yes, that is what I wrote - a lady ladybird. Or lady ladybug, if you are one of my American readers.

Goodbye Geoffrey!

Little dogs

If you follow my Facebook page, you will know why my Santa dog is sat with these two little resin dogs, looking very similar but made by the Gisela Graham Company. If you don't...I'll fill you in next week. It's been a long day at the coalface.

And breathe...

So, my first workshop seemed to go well. I arrived with enough time to have potter round Bath - (didn't do the Roman Baths, as too expensive for me, at nearly £13 entrance fee). I did enjoy the spectacular Regency streets and people watching.

Found a little market shop with, oh, look, ribbons! (Well, of course I bought one or two little bits...)

I stayed in a lovely house with super hosts - Lynne and Michael, who make exquisite collectors dolls - and was given the top room with views over the city - that large lit up building is Bath Abbey.

The view in the morning - Bath Abbey just viewable to the left above the foliage, if you right click. (Need I add that in a house filled wonderful toys, old and new, I was in my element!)

We travelled to another house for the actual workshop. I had nine well experienced crafters to oversee - they are all highly competent in their own fields, so didn't need bottle feeding. However, just to get them warmed up, I did set them my elementary challenge, which was to make a sphere - more difficult that it seems. Biscuits were necessary. Only one or two needles were broken.

After that, although I had my ducky design ready for anyone who wanted to try it, nearly everyone was keen to do their own ideas - something I very much encouraged, as I wanted them to discover their own needle felting 'voice', rather than simply copy something of mine. And by mid morning, a happy silence had descended, broken only by the sound of a multitude of needles poking wool.

The view from the room we were working in was incredible - with a canal and a train track disappearing into the distance. Somewhere in the distance, the Westbury white horse is visible but my camera couldn't quite pick it out. (Nor could my bad eyes!)

I prowled around, on hand if anyone needed help. But on the whole, everyone was in their own happy little needle felting world.

One thing which was noticeable was the dawning realisation that it is a v.e.r.y s.l.o.w process. It can literally take hours for a small piece, depending on how finished the artist wants it. I did have a little 'welcome to my world' moment. But, by the end of the first day, many had finished their projects.

Here we are on the second day and my toys have been joined by a wonderful dodo. Meggy goose looks somewhat startled, Kitty Blue is leaning closer to get a better look, and Mrs Mouse is so flustered by all the excitement that she has decided to concentrate on mixing up her cake.

Sally, who kindly hosted the workshop is the dodo creator and her second piece was to be an elephant. During our lunch break, she showed us videos of her charity in Zimbabwe - who's vision is, to quote - "to prove that wildlife can live in harmony with people in communal farming areas. In doing so we want to improve, through wildlife conservation and tourism, their impoverished life of subsistence farming".

Once a year the camp holds an 'eco- education camp' for the best achieving school children from the four schools that they are involved with - one of the most cherished prizes is a book. Watching the joy and reverence of the lucky prize winner, as they looked through their book, brought tears to my eyes - a salutory reminder of how lucky we in the western world are, no matter how poor we think ourselves. I was very glad that some of the proceeds of our workshop went to this charity and will be keeping my eye open for the official website - meanwhile, even basic school equipment such as a jiffy bag of pencils, pens, erasers, rulers, geometry equipment etc, are in short supply and are always welcome. (If you'd like to send something directly please contact me. I will definitely be sending something out.

Carolyn here is making a giraffe and was a very fast worker - by the end of the day she'd almost finished and got a nice, smooth finish.

On the second day, Heather volunteered to try my duckling. Heather is a highly skilled professional beader and bought some of her intricate, beautiful work to show us - she also writes books about beading and has a lovely site selling kits, beads, her books and news of workshops, which can be found here. And she has a blog too, always nice to meet another blogger in person.

It was, all in all, a lovely two day session. As will happen when you get several women together, we put the world to rights several times and there was a pleasant buzz of conversation, much laughter and the occasional intense debate - no wonder quilters call them 'bees', with the hum of chat and industrious hands.

Between the two host's houses, there were nine cats, and everyone was a cat lover. Here is Merlin, a noble Abyssinian, inspecting Meggy goose and investigating biscuit plates.

'Class of January 2012' with their work - didn't they do well?

I was so proud of them all. Even those who had started off with little or no needle felting experience had created their own design, a little wool sculpture unique to them and everything looking recognisable - even two little duckys in there.

I had marvellous time and was treated superbly, but I have to admit that I am a homebody and it was wonderful to be picked up from the train station and whisked back home to our small but tidy cottage, (well done Andy!) dozing cats, the woodburner toasty hot and my favourite meal ready for me, with a bottle of chilled cider. There is nowhere quite like home, is there?

Ribbon delights

When you are lucky enough to snag a gorgeous old chocolate box for a song, the only thing to do is to fill it with lovely things. Shall we put a sparkling cobweb collection of organza ribbons in the top tray?

And underneath, more sumptuous satin ribbons - all perfect for little circus ruffs for small circus toys.

Because you can never have enough beautiful ribbons. Or vintage chocolate boxes.

See you ducky!

January seems to have been sucked into a black hole - as I write, I am finally organised for my first (two day) needle felting workshop in Bath and will be away for three days; I'm feeling homesick already. As the trip must be done by bus and train, I am packing two rucksacks full of supplies and hoping it won't be too heavy. My nine pupils will spend the first day making this little duck, designed especially for the session, and I am expecting them to bring some prep work for their own designs, which I'll be helping them with - should they need help - on the second day. It will be a learning curve for all of us, and hopefully jolly good fun. See you on the other side, duckies!

Three for tea

Last week, two lovely visitors, Jane and Katie, popped over the county border from Winchcombe for tea, cake and chat. Partly business, mostly pleasure, it was my first time of actually meeting Katie Morgan, apart from chatting on Twitter and reading her blog. (Whoever said that the internet is killing social life? I have no time for such ill conceived nonsense). Katie is as fascinating as her blog suggests, I could have spent all day listening to her. She had brought along a beautifully restored antique clock dial - restored by herself, as that is what she does, alongside many other things. At the moment she is restoring a 1938 fairground Waltzer (a phenomenal job) - Katie's website is crammed with the gorgeous work she has done and is now working on. Well worth looking at if you are interested in painted Romany wagons, fairground and narrowboat art.

Copious tea and very chocolatey chocolate cake (not made by me) kept us going for several hours as we discussed the Winchcombe Wool Festival which Jane - of the Winds of Change Gallery - is heroically organising. It will be held in April and last for three weeks, celebrating the long history of this historic wool town and the modern legacy of British wool. I will be doing a needle felt workshop towards the end, (date and price to be confirmed). So if you are in the Cheltenham area, watch this space; it will be limited to about six places. I'll be announcing the final arrangements here and on my Facebook page.

As it's been a while since I bought my two Matt Grimmitt mugs which are in the top picture, I treated myself to one of his lovely slipware bowls. It's a pourer, so is perfect for beating eggs. Matt often has work for sale on a certain well known auction site, and the best way to find out when he is selling is to follow his Facebook page here.

I like to think that perhaps, 150 years ago, similar country pottery was once used in this little cottage.