Teabag Art, Silk Paper and Beyond the Enclosure Project

It's time for WOYWW again and this week I have been using some of the silk paper I made last week, and continuing with an old theme I often come back to about garden history - there are links back to some older work here and here for any one interested.  I have also had a yearning to play about with teabags for quite a while, since seeing a whole table of them drying and waiting to be used over at Shoshi's blog!  

Silk Paper Making

In amongst the chaos of decorating this week I have managed to create some silk paper - I love making it and I'm thinking of using it in the work I'm doing on gardens.  Although there are two different ways to make it, the simplest and cleanest way is to use coccoon strippings (silk that hasn't had the gum removed).  This is laid out thinly, sprayed with water and ironed.   There are good instructions for both types of silk paper making here for anyone interested.

  
In the samples below I've ironed crochet edgings onto the silk to create the embossed effect, added silk yarns and used silk rods to get different effects. 

  

I am linking up with What's on Your Work Desk Wednesday - why not pop over and see what's on other people's desks this week. 

Pin Cushions and WOYWW #275

For WOYWW this week I don't have much on my desk - I have managed to spend a week making a pin cushion - yes, just one! Being in the throes of decorating I was quite pleased that I managed to get something done at all!  I decided to use a little vintage patty tin and some favourite fabric scraps with bees on - it's the start of my Christmas gift making - see how organised I am!  

Christmas Bottle Brush Trees

 It's Wednesday again and time for WOYWW.  This week on my desk I have been finishing off some bottle brush trees that I started glittering a couple of weeks ago.   It's been a great way of using up some of my stash of old beads, earrings and trinkets, and I've really enjoyed feeling festive.  However, the weather has warmed up again and the sun is shining so all Christmassy stuff is on hold while it lasts!

Creative Blog Hop

I've been nominated by the wonderful Shoshi to take part in the Creative Bloggers blog hop this week.  I have been following Shoshi's creative journey for a long time now and she has to be one of the most enthusiastic and diverse artists I know - her work is always inspiring and she generously shares her techniques and discoveries.  The Creative Blog hop happens every Monday and we all answer the same 4 questions, then nominate 3 more people to hop on to.

1.  What am I working on?

I have several projects on the go at the moment - the main one is about decay and repair, which is incorporating my love of moths with my love of antique and vintage textiles.  My background reading to this project is The Subversive Stitch by Rozsika Parker - it's about the social history and relationship between women and embroidery/sewing.  

2.  How does my work differ from others in my genre?

I don't think my work fits into a particular genre, I work in many different styles and mediums, but I do usually have a strong textile theme running through.  I like to have a meaning and concept behind my art work, and often spend quite a long time researching ideas before doing any actual work!

3.  Why do I write/create what I do?

I LOVE doing what I do - I create because I feel the need to and because if fulfills me.   

4.  How does my writing/creative process work?

I am usually inspired by an image or object.  I take the image and start collecting information and researching ideas around it.  For example, one of my current projects is inspired by a large beautiful piece of coral.  I started collecting coral images and looking at the fragility of our coral reefs - this led me to explore how we as humans live and balance life on our planet - I started to think of coral as a delicate base underpinning our lives, representing the fragile planet and how we live on it. By mixing it with architecture I wanted to question how man lives in harmony with nature - this is leading me to explore other ideas, different textures, using other mediums and collecting anything I find that might be remotely relevant to this work! 

Now for the tricky bit - I am supposed to nominate three people. I thought very hard about who I would choose and I tried to find three people who are all very different in their chosen genre, and who I find very inspiring and uplifting whenever I visit their blogs - in fact it was an incredibly difficult thing to do!  However, each person for different reasons was unable to take part and at this point I decided that I wasn't going to start looking for anyone else. I felt uncomfortable at the thought of working my way down a list.
However, although I am not nominating three people I would highly recommend visiting some of the blogs on my 'People I Like to Visit' list - here you will find some fantastic artists and some very happy, inspiring and visually delightful places to visit.  All these people and many others put a smile on my face, lift my spirits when I'm down and inspire me when I have lost my artistic motivation.   A huge THANK YOU from the heart!