well too many flipping days since my last blog and I’m definitely starting to get confused over where I’m putting stuff a the moment as I gear up for Open Studios – I am exhibiting at the Physic Garden in Petersfield from Thursday this week..10 30 til 5pm ..do drop in…. I am also exhibiting at Christine Watkins Art House in Romsey….I shan’t be exhibiting at Owselbury this year as I’m spreading my self a bit thin! The Room6’ers will still be there tho and it’ll be great..have a good one ladies!
So why so long since my last blog? I hear you ask..or not as the case may be..well there are a number of reasons, and I’m writing them here whether you are interested or not…because I can….I keep having this internal conversation with myself..why blog?//..the thirteen year old going on 30 year old (ttyogotyo) tells me I should just instagram????* any way I have decided I blog really for myself as its good to get a handle on where I am..so sorry I am going to keep doing it…(*and I am instagramming as
mycathasniceboots now …I’ve a bet with ttyogotyo that she gets a share in my profits if she gets me 600 followers by Christmas…evidently there’s a method…all double dutch to me but hey I’ll try anything) ….I haven’t broken it to her that as I’m not Hemsley and Hemsley or Zoella there is no profit in it..but hopefully she wont read this…????well she will but whether she admits to it or not is another matter) the other reason I stopped was it was my birthday…..39 again…whoohoo..so I was busy…spent a great day at Art in Action….. there was also a flurry of activity when I tried to get a life size cow made …( hence the title of this blog)…. don’t ask..suffice to say it all got too awkward and mired in raising money.. not my strength…so I gave up on that lark and went to Glastonbury and Camp Bestival instead with glasto girl (Bananarama were cr** and always have been – they should have stayed with fun boy three..Turin Brakes were a completely different matter however…….
.)……also did a lovely work shop with the ladies at Droxford Textiles group…..they are doing open studios too next weekend too…pop by and see them..details in the Hampshire Open Studios booklet….to complicate things even further.and contribute to bloglessness.. in my search for studio space we decided to sell up and move but after selling and then losing our dream house with studio.. (yes flippin flippin heck!!1). we decided it was better to stay put and try and create more space in the space we already have…watch this space……space space..aaargh
…then there was rather a large amount of time spent writing materials for the Embroiderers’ Guild connected to the Worlds Longest Embroidery for Schools..look out for it in the autumn and please get schools involved..it will be great…….
……and there you have all my excuses…by the way… .I do realise I am just talking to myself now..this blog is about naval gazing after all….the next bit’s more interesting honest…if you;ve hung on in therr it wil lbe worth it….nice pictures to follow, anyway there are all my excuses and I do feel vindicated
Feel I’ve been neglecting my drawing and creativity so was good to get away to Cornwall for a week….
..arriving in St Ives in style…don’t ask….stitching and dinner out..when you have children….yes you are extremely happy with a plastic cup of wine and half a cheese and onion pasty….fine dining is so over rated!….who needs the Wolseley…
the mad canadian does……hello are you reading me in Canadia?
I digress….stayed in a cottage overlooking Barbara Hepworth’s garden which was definitely good for the soul and did a great Tate Walk ..as the Tate is closed .they’ve got loads of stuff going on..I had a great week….. also worked on Viyella bodies…yes the ladies are still there…..
saw some fab exhibitions in st ives.. .Arthur Lanyon..getting the household paint out as we speak!!!..one of the best exhibitions I’ve seen in ages..the images don’t do the paintings any justice they really were fabulous…really inspiring and very tactile…
also saw great work by Terry Frost, Tony Shiels. and Bryan Pearce….
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aren’t these lovely?..There was a lot of rubbish too…
So that’s it, my edited highlights for the the last month and a bit and I think I’m back to the present and I’ve caught up with myself….
Just been to drop off some stuff at Petersfield Arts and Craft Annual Exhibition this morning and tomorrow I will be mounting some limited edition prints I’ve had done..my latest money making scheme.. or not……hmmm
PS I have called them Mighty Chondria..thanks for that one Annabel!! BTW tell your daughter Nathan threw a pot on a wheel in St Ives and he’s a natural!
PPS If my car holds up I’ll come and see you at Open Studios this week Sarah..sorry this is a bit of a jumble but I just decided I need to get it written and posted..once you fall off the horse its hard to get back on if you leave it a while…x.
and what a fab time I’ve had since Brock…… bit pooped tho. Arrived home in the evening to find a house full of people around celebrating the now teenager going on thirty year olds’ 13th birthday, him in doors hadn’t really thought much past ‘ sausages and chips for the kids’ (ooh we’re classy!) so needed to whizz to Tesco express to buy nibbles and drinks,ho hum good job I’m creative! Just would rather not be that sort of creative too often! Went to the Shard the following week and sat and did some drawing up there ..and more when back on the ground…
Went up to the City of London on Monday night to the 
oes next. Great church for venue rebuilt by Mr Wren after the great fire. Bought the amazing book of Miss Dean’s work that was brought out in 2011 on the centenary of her birth and talked to her archivist. Read it on the train ride home. goodness she was a power house!!! Apart from all the fabulous photos of her work I really liked the ten commandments for the Deanery created by some of her students including gems like ‘ In the beginning of thy work thou shalt ask thy teacher. Thus shalt thou save thyself many problems.’ I remembered be blown away by her work at the knit and stitch in 2011.! Saving up for my goldwork course at the RSN…just need to fix some dates!! My fine stitch skills …still need much work but I love to learn
Also Ralph AKA The GOM. has gone to a good home!
Good luck to Worthing Young Embroiderers’ …Happy book making and email me your results will be great to see what you come up with! Been making more books this week …..
And yesterday well it was fab! I taught a workshop at the Ashcroft Centre in Fareham at their fabric day. It was great….my class was fully booked and we did my version of crazy patchwork ….think the ladies were a bit worried when my opening gambit to my ‘textures of quilting workshop’ was’ hi my name is Helen and I am not a quilter’… But think I pulled it back! There is something about the randomness and ‘more is more’ with crazy patchwork/quilts that I love. …. anyone who knows me, knows I am far from an exact person…and I am definitely not a quilter. There is nothing more satisfy thing than bringing together lots of old bits of material cutting them up joining them back together to make something new and beautiful that just sings!… Fitted with the theme of CAROL PARKER’s VISIBLE MENDING project – which was also at the Ashcroft …REPAIR – A participative postcard exhibition about visibly mending items when her allotment shed was broken into and she had to patch it up with whatever materials she could find.
Wish me luck!!!!
Before I left I managed to sneak into Jenny Rayment’s talk and let me tell you that lady should be doing stand up… So glad I got to listen to her. Her next book is evidently a hundred ways with a bathroom scrunching thingy!! Loses a lot in translation. Haven’t laughed so much in ages!!NB couldn’t find a photo of her as a bunny girl??
*’ see below’ as I cant manage to insert an EMOJI…Well what a week and it’s only thursday!
yes it really is the man him self…look in the back ground..check out those shoes! Starting with a conflab about room 6 exhibition at Birmingham NEC at the end of the month… to finalise arrangements. Sadly I will only be there on the Sunday but the rest of the group will be there ….come along and say hello if you are visiting the 
Tuesday started badly when I managed to fall over in a posh gallery in Grafton street looking at Tom 
Perhaps it was the post prandial seasonal lull..but I haven’t been totally dormant.. I’ve started an artist’s page and I’ve been making a lot of stuff . So with the glut of blue cheese and gin and too much Xmas cake a distant memory I am back in the blogosphere? (and arent you happy about that!!) Reading Nicky Barfoot’s blogs has made me laugh thru january , well feel happy then get terribly depressed when i realise i should be blogging too and that I need to get back into the saddle…. she’s also managed to provide me with displacement activities…good and not good..as I should be doing other things!!!! Check out her post on the textile challenge 
Anyway the good news is he sold and made lots of dosh for the canine trust..really pleased..it was fun to make …….
I love his work and the exhibition at the discovery centre last month was absolutely amazing!!!
also been finishing off my piece for the Embroiderers’ Guild on the celebration of 300 years of Capability Brown…heres a sneak preview.
Another reason for lack of blog is I have had to take on another paying job to keep me going on the art front but there are lots of nice things in the pipe line and, as a good friend said to me, Jan and Feb are the most miserable months and the best time to work lots. I’m also still in touch with uni and hoping to finish my degree next year, so I delayed the module I was going to do this term so can work to earn money to pay for the module..isnt that a 
?
And finally home and shopping…I went in to the marvellous ‘Stuff’ in Petersfield,..where Lyn has been selling my work for me ..she is rather good at it …. I took also took some of my mini sculptures in ….exhibited in Harrogate for the first time. ..the shop has the most beautiful items. If you are in the Petersfield area check her out..I have got my eye on one of her lovely kantha quilts…they are exquisite!!! ‘Stuff’ sells fab furniture, artwork and stuff for your home, and is at 2 London House, Chapel Street Petersfield. GU32 3DR and is open 10 til 4.30 Monday to Saturday or youican visit stuff on line at 
Definately worth a butchers on the iplayer…
on the front of the Guardian.. so here’s my starter for 10…………………………………………..⇓⇓⇓⇓.
…gutted that missed out on a place on the Opus Anglicanum stitch work shop a the RSN last week as I had to work..now there’s dedication for you…or stupidity!!! That really was a bleurrg…am on a cancellation list for the next one..so fingers crossed …….my spirits were raised by listening a great talk by Kay Ashby at Liss in StitcheS in the evening..very entertaining and lovely work.. I love that group..definitely builds your Wah!
helen sill 