Plastic Entrapment

 The other week I took part in a zoom meeting held by Nikki Parmenter on plastic entrapment.

Before the meeting I had chosen to make a flying fish and I was posted a small pack of glittery pieces, clear plastic and a pattern.

I drew the pattern on to the plastic and then covered one piece in shiny bits and pieces.

Choosing orange and blue as my colours I free machined over the fish body until mostly covered. I had separated the flying fins so I could stitch those separately.

The eye was then added.

When the stitching was finished another piece of plastic was attached to the back of the body and then stuffed.

The flying fins and sequins were attached.

The fish was then trimmed and neatened,

The fish was finished but I decided to make a background of waves with a splash for the skimming flying fish.

Celandines

 Celandines are one of the first flowers of Spring and they love the sun. As the sun comes out they fully open their petals which reflect the light from their shiny petals.

The dark green heart-shaped leaves set off the yellow flowers. I leave some in my garden but you do have to be careful as they can turn into a garden thug!

I painted some of the celandines from my garden in my sketchbook. At the top of the page you can see some chicken scratch embroidery which reminds me of a celandine.

There are lots of wild flowers to enjoy at the moment!

Loving Earth Project

 The Loving Earth project encourages us all to think about the environment and to do one small thing which will help improve the state of the planet. If lots of people do one small thing  this will add up to produce a greater impact.

We were asked to make a panel to represent what we were going to do, or to represent something we have lost and will be greatly missed by subsequent generations.

My Loving Earth panel was about clothes and particularly fast fashion and its effect on the planet and what small thing I could do to help.

Having looked at my wardrobes I decided I had too many clothes. I made a pledge to only buy new basics and wear older items more times and modify other items to update them.

By buying fewer items and extending the life of others hopefully I would be reducing the use of pesticides, cutting water consumption and reducing carbon dioxide in transportation and production.

Close up of a basic skirt and jacket.

The panels will be displayed in exhibitions, all around the country, to heighten awareness that we are all capable of making small changes in our lives to benefit the planet.

Chicken Scratch Embroidery

 I was introduced to Chicken Scratch Embroidery and I have to admit I had never heard of it let alone tried it.

It is worked on gingham and uses quite simple stitches building up patterns.

Pattern on gingham

Close-up of stitches

After I had embroidered the square I thought what am I going to do with it!

I realised I needed a pincushion so set about making a back by joining scraps and cutting to size. I joined the back and front together leaving a gap. I made a small stuffed square cushion to go inside and then closed the gap. A completed pin cushion!

Front of pincushion

Back of pincushion made with scraps

Here is the pin cushion in use!

Spring is Coming!

 A dry day at last and I went for a wander around the garden and what a lot of plants are in flower. A welcome site after all the snow, ice and rain!

The weather is due to be good for February over the next few days so hopefully there will be more flowers soon.

Bread

 I like making bread as there is something almost magical about it and during lockdown it seemed a positive thing to do.

Using strong flour and dried yeast I mixed the ingredients in a bowl with warm water to make the dough.

The dough was kneaded for about 10 mins. and then put in a bowl and covered for the 1st proving in the warm airing cupboard.

After about 1 1/2 hours the dough had expanded to twice its size.

It was taken from the bowl and the air knocked out of it and kneaded again and then shaped into a cob loaf. It was then put back into the airing cupboard for the 2nd proving.

After about 1/2 hour the dough was cut across the top and put into a very hot oven to bake.

The loaf was then removed from the oven and allowed to cool. When cut it had a good texture and tasted good with some butter.

It was fun making bread but I had forgotten what hard work kneading was!!!

Snowy Weather

 We have had a lot of snowy weather this year often accompanied by ice. However none of it has lasted long but the temperature has been very up and down with heavy rain in between the cold weather.

The first two photos were taken while it was snowing!

The next four photos were taken after a hoar frost,

Everywhere looks beautiful after the ice and snow but it can be very dangerous for everyday living.