What Katie Did

Art Tour 2008

What a glorious day. The sun shone, the people came, the shed looked magnificent and Annie and I had a very lovely day. The shed is my haven of creativity and a place to escape from the everyday world. It was so lovely to be able to share it with some like minded people.
some of today's images were taken by professional photographer Paul Harris during a visit to my shed for Art tour publicity - this is one of them - this is another

Here is the popular line - 'A Bag a Book and a Bar' which is fairly descriptive of what you get. A bag (made out of an old bit of curtain) a book that I have enjoyed - registered on Book Crossing and a bar of Fair Trade chocolate. The perfect treat!

More curtains this time for little girls and some necklaces and brooches

 
Something for everyone - well - except some less textile inclined men - but for them - there is Geoff's workshop, so there really is something for everyone!
If you are in the area, please call by - the Village Hall is hosting three very talented artists - Mandy, Mike and Jill and of course - The ever popular Garden Station, who ran out of cake yesterday because they were so busy! You can be certain that won't happen again!

Now I have to work out how to do the sizing of these photos on the new Typepad template - these look all over the place - but it is sunny and there is a rabbit getting into the vegetable garden - so finding the hole in the fence is priority!
Enjoy your week!

In Praise of Sheds

My neighbour Jane runs the Garden Station and for Art Tour this year, she commissioned an exhibition called 'In Praise of Sheds'. Seems like everyone has a shed these days, to use as a traditional depository for the lawn mower and old plant pots or some, like mine as their own unique work space. Lots of local artists rose to the challenge and the results make an impressive display at the Station. Rosie Villiers Stuart is a wonderful artist and dear friend of mine. She decided to paint ME in MY SHED!
This photo does not in any way do the finished picture any justice at all as it is merely a photo of the framed picture, but you get the idea

no - you really have to see the original.
look at the detail

my coffee pot and little milk jug

amazing knitting needle shelf!!

Geoff says that Rosie has captured the way i sit at an angle like that perfectly. Also, Poppy looks a bit coy because she knows she is not allowed on the sofa!!

I have never been painted before and I was full of trepidation about how it would be. If you look at the link to Rosie you can see that she mostly paints birds and landscapes and hardly ever uses this much pink!
 
So - how wonderful to have a shed and be in an exhibition and be doing Art Tour! As if all that wasn't enough,  BBC R4 Women's Hour will be doing a feature on the exhibition soon and a lovely reporter came to interview me in my shed, so I have that to look forward to. An ambition realised - always wanted to be on Woman's Hour. (That's one I forgot to tell you about M&D - I'll give you notice when its on)
I am overcome!

Juggling Balls

A blissful day in the shed today, finishing more things to take to this little craft fair next weekend - my first outing as a maker of things. Today I made little drawstring bags for the sets of juggling balls I made last week. Each ball is felted around a golf ball for weight, then tied into a pair of old tights and washed in the machine with the jeans. The golf ball gives them a good shape and they feel nice and heavy to juggle with - only wish I could juggle!

thoughts please?

Saturday Round Up

I seem to have settled into a once weekly post, and that sometimes means there are lots of things to show you, and sometimes, not very much at all! But I have had a busy time in the shed lately, so here is the result.
It is my little friends Cala's 2nd birthday soon. I'm sure her Mum doesn't check this blog, so here are the birthday girl's new trousers

Mum gave me a whole stack of upholstery weight fabric ages ago and it's been sitting in a heap waiting for me to do something with it. I like how these turned out - -they are lined with an old green silk blouse I picked up in a jumble sale. I made her a little bag too -

and I liked it so much that I made four more! Rosie who is part of this great place, has asked if I would sell some of my things at a Christmas Craft Fair on November 11th, so I'm making more things like these.

And another project for Cala's Mum is a blank book for her to use as a diary, especially for this latest pregnancy! (exciting!)
Here is an amazing book that I rescued from work just before they threw it away. It has such great pages and wonderful marbling on the ends, the idea was to use it as a photograph album, but that never happened. Now I think I'll use the pages to make blank books like the one I started today.

I spent a term doing a book making course every tuesday morning, but we didn't really make books - more pop up cards and boxes and things. It was a bit disappointing as I was really interested to know some book binding techniques, but I got some tips and clues and have invented my own style. Also - I find lots of inspiration on this wonderful webby place.
I am sewing the pages onto stiff paper spines - also from books - like this.....

(don't panic Mum - I will change the needle after this terrible use of my machine!)

Then I've hand stitched them together down the middle - next I'll make the cover - still puzzling that one out - but it's taking shape in my head! I'll let you see how it ends up! And more importantly, whether Lara likes it!

Next - I've liked old Yarnstorms tea cosies for ages now and had to make my own for my Rooibosh tea times. This is rooster wool  but it will never have a companion because I really disliked knitting it, even though I love the result - and had to go and find a teapot to match!

What else? Oh yes - I got some silk yarn from Hip Knits and I love it!

These are very small amounts and will be little flowers for the 'wacky' workshop I'm doing Very Soon!! And this ...

no idea? but I'm sure something will occur.
And that will do - another week flies by, the woods are turning golden and beautiful. Poppy and I love to walk here as often as we can.