Thread Book and Cover

Some time ago, a friend made a really beautiful Chinese thread book for me.  It has a total of 19 compartments - amazing.  A real tour de force!  I did try to make a video of it being opened, but I kept getting lost and missing out some of its secret boxes, so instead I have included some stills here.

I have now made a fabric cover for it using some sheeting.  I coloured this with inks, then quilted it a bit wonkily (my early attempt at free motion machining), finishing by adding some hand embroidery.  I had intended to try and match the colours of the book (lilac and green), but that didn't quite work out.

More arty outings

I have been very lax in keeping up to date with recent art outings, although in some cases time for sketching has been limited.

Exhibitions visited have included Kurt Jackson's "Biodiversity" at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (followed by a hurried look round both the Pitt Rivers and Ashmolean Museums); works from the TV series "Portrait Artist of the Year" at Compton Verney, Warwickshire (on until 5th June, definitely worth a visit)  and masterly watercolours by David Curtis at the Windrush Gallery in the Cotswolds (open until May 27th).

An installation in the grounds of Compton Verney -
"The Village" by Morag Myerscough

Lunch in the garden of the Fox Inn after
visiting the Windrush Gallery


..... and a few quick scribbles ....

Here I used an A6 Hahnemuhle Toned watercolour book with
a Pilot G-Tec water soluble pen

A very quick sketch, resting my book on a
dustbin outside the Windrush Gallery

Urban sketching

The venue for this month's sketch meeting was Queen's Park, in the centre of town.  A really glorious day and nice to be able to sit in the warm sun and sketch.