Dry run....

Well strictly speaking it was a wet run and quite messy! These are some of the results fluttering in the breeze.

It's been a while since I did any dyeing with indigo and some friends suggested that we get together in a week or two as they would like to have a go and as I am an expert.........

So I checked my stash and the only indigo I could find was some I bought in 1993! I didn't think it would have survived to give the sort of results my friends would be expecting, so I bought some more.

I made up the vat and it did work quite well but I think the water needed to be a bit hotter as it ran out of steam a bit sooner than I had thought it would.

It is such great fun folding up bits of cloth, tying it with string and elastic bands, wrapping it around an old piece of pipe etc because you can never quite predict how it will turn out.

Now I'm off to put it all in the washing machine for a good rinse while I write up my notes so I don't forget what I did and what the results were. Aren't I good!!

Fun at the Festival

Rather late with my post about the Festival of Quilts and I don't want to repeat stuff already posted on other blogs. My tardiness is due partly to a family visit, but also in the hunt for a way to download the photos I took with my phone.

I couldn't use my camera because it needed charging and having carefully packed the charger in a box, I couldn't remember which one! I'm sure I have a cable to connect my phone to the laptop which lets me download the photos, but again I seem to have packed it in a box and I can't find that either. So I have been emailing the photos to myself and its taken me a while.

As always the Festival of Quilts was wonderful. There is so much to see and whatever your interest there's always something for you to enjoy. This year there were three exhibitions that particularly caught my eye.

The first was the Contemporary Quilt Group challenge "Horizons". I really wanted to make piece for this, but given all the hassle with our move and the lack of time and space to get anything made, I wasn't able to. Still others rose to the challenge and what a fabulous show it was. All the quilts were beautifully made and the designs were fabulous. Lots of designs based on the sea but also some that were not. My favourites were this colourful one made by Gillian Travis on the left of the picture

This very subtle one using space dyed fabric which unfortunately was very badly lit

   
and this one on the right made by my friend Sandra Wyman

Sandra has really captured the essence of the Tern and the quilting is lovely. The figure is a representation of a younger Sandra inspired by the sculptures of Antony Gormley.

The exhibition "Through our hands" was also a great favourite. Apart from the wonderful quilts made by Annabel Rainbow, there were works by many other well known textile artists. My favourite was this one by Elizabeth Barton depicting Botallack Mine in Cornwall

The third exhibition which really caught my eye was the Quilt art Masters juried competition won by Dorothy Caldwell . I didn't manage to take any photos, but you can see details here together with lots of other lovely images from the show.

So all too soon my time at the show was up and after a bit of a nightmare train journey, I got back home with just enough time to prepare for our "royal"visitors! Lots of sunshine, laughter and jumping in the waves

before all too soon they went back to Yorkshire leaving us to make a real start unpacking boxes, painting and generally settling in.

Now I must make a start and get back to actually making something!