Perpetual journal / nature Diary Jan

Perpetual Journal for January. As you can see I have been mostly drawing birds this month. The weather has been very cold and not much foliage to draw. This year has been more about wishing for signs of Spring. In strict lockdown with horrendous numbers of deaths and new cases of Covid it has been a grim month. Thank goodness for drawing and stitching and our daily walks. If you scroll down you will see a new work in progress using these drawings as inspiration for stitch. More detail  and daily progress on Instagram. Love to you all out there, keep on going on. My husband is to have his first jab on Saturday, every person I hear of having their jabs is a little bit more hope. x

 

New work at The Glos Guild of Craftsmen.

These pieces are now at The Guild at 51 in Cheltenham. I am starting some new work tentatively, will see what happens!

February embroidery- finished.

 This one is a partner for the January landscape embroidery. (link on the labels below if you want to see Jan) I started this landscape wanting to keep it light and minimal but it didn't come together until I thoroughly stitched the grasses on the bank. It is the bank at the top of our garden which is completely overgrown now and a wildlife area. There are snowdrops and daffodils on the bank and a path to the field at the top. There are a lot more trees, shrubs and brambles on it at the moment and it needs some work (all in planning stage) before it smothers all the wild flowers out. When we bought this house, forty years ago, this bank was all primroses at Easter time.

 Feb started with snow for us but now it is milder and lighter- this morning the birds were singing early! We have a few early daffodils too.

The Heart of the Field.

 A small embroidery called The heart of the field - 10cms x 13 cms. It has come from my experiments in my winter field book. Winter stubble and the first leaves of the crop appearing. I am a bit obsessed with the stark hedgerows.

 A view from the side to show the loops.

 I have been keeping up with my journal but about one entry a week seems enough when I have other work to finish. I must get on with the Winter book because yesterday felt like Spring for the first time.

Winter footpaths.

These are 2 tiny winter footpaths (13x8cms) as life gets back to normal after the Easter holidays. Well not so normal. Alan, my husband and tree expert has now retired completely and is getting used to life without rushing off to work in the morning. I am getting used to that too! He is volunteering at Westonbirt aboretum some days and we hope to have more days out and more holidays. Hurray to that!

Winter quilt

 You may remember this winter quilt of bare branches and tiny patches with running stitches, well I am working to finish it now for the exhibition.

 There is now a swan in the top left

and a heron in the bottom right corner. In my mind I have the Gerald Manley Hopkins words ringing,
'o let them be left, wildness and wet, Long live the weeds and the wilderness yet.'
They are written on the wall at Slimbridge Wetland Centre and I associate Winter with trips bird watching to see the Bewick swans and other wild birds that fly in.
I am also trying to do a little mark making each day- working on a little book.

Looking back 2

 Some more winter work from my past. Winter footpath. Hand and machine embroidery on felt.

 Photos taken through the glass of the frame so a few funny reflections of colour here in the detail.

These winter seed heads also on felt - machine embroidery- lace applique, french knots and sequins.

Looking back.

 It's the usual bustle and busyness of Christmas preparations before the holidays and not much time for new stitching so I have been looking back at some older work. This one is gold machine embroidery on soluble fabric. It is sandwiched between 2 sheets of glass and framed that way. Created way back when I was making textile jewellery and little purses.

A couple of snowy landscapes and textures- both machine and hand embroidery.

This piece was a favourite so I kept it. I have kept the pieces that I thought were significant milestones and would shape future work. The New Year will probably bring further musings. Good luck with all your preparations. I am nearly there!   

Winter in the Enormous Field.

 This may be familiar if you are a regular visitor here ( thank you as always!) I started it earlier this year but now it is finished and in the right season and weather. This is the field beyond our garden that anyone can walk around and has so many changing faces. Bleak this time of year but usually interesting flock of birds around- redwings and field fares or sparrows or yellowhammers.

 I have used my own invented loop stitch. So, recently taking it out again after a long rest I backed it, added more running stitch footmarks around the edge - because it is very popular now with dog walkers- and stitched a little bright yellow green to lift the colour and refer to the peculiar colour that sometimes happens when the farmer sprays around the edges. ( yes I have put it in the furrows - poetic licence!)

I rather like the close up of the loops. It gives the 3d effect that photos tend to flatten.
P.S. snow here now turning to slush.