The journey.

Today three mummy bloggers  Josie, Eva and Sian head off to Bangladesh to see the work that Save The Children is doing.

Nick Clegg will be at the UN Summit in New York at the end of September with a crucial opportunity to ensure world leaders re-commit to the Millenium Development Goals.

I admire these mums for going out there, it's hard enough to watch what has been happening on the television, but to actually go and see what can be done to help, is inspiring.
Their blogs will document their experiences and you can also follow them on twitter.

They are trying to raise awareness and if you want to help you can sign the facebook petition here.

I wish them all a safe journey.

Festival Fun?

So today I am sitting reading "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert ( the film is released soon and I want to read the book first). The rain is poring down outside and tinkles into a metal pan on my wood floor, as it drips through the velux in the kitchen. Mmm.

I am quite chilled though. I love to hear the rain drumming , nay bashing, against the velux windows when I am curled up on the sofa inside reading.

My little one is excited because his friend is coming for lunch and to play, and he has just made a car out of his Lego and is mighty proud of it. He is seven in a few weeks and has just announced that he wants more Lego for his bithday. I love Lego. We have two massive boxes that contain the remnants of his brothers Harry Potter Lego, and I love the creations he comes up with.

The rain does hold one concern with me at the moment.

Camping.

My daughter goes to the Leeds Festival on Thursday and will be camping for four nights. The weather forcast for Thursday is not good. Heavy rain and wind. Joy.

Her wellies are at the ready, but am I?

I need your help please.
Has any one got any advice for:

1. Calming neurotic mother down - (er yes that would be me, clearly not as chilled out as I think I am) ?
2. Festivals?
3. Wet weather camping ?

Think I might just need to face the fact that she is going to get soaked, muddy and cold, but hopefully will have a whale of a time with fab music and her buddies.

Secretly wish I was going (but without the camping) :)

Random Muppet Show Post

Reading the comment section in this post of Tom's blog "Tit Willow" was mentioned (hope you don't mind me linking to your blog Tom). Someone commented that The Muppets had done a version and I found it on "You Tube".




It still makes me laugh, I love Sam The Eagle.


Willow, tit Willow, tit willow.... It's been a long week.

Result...

My work was accepted!
The exhibition opens tommorrow and runs until mid October.
Will post some more info and pictures of them in the next few days.

Thankyou so, so much for all your positive comments, they really do mean a great deal to me.

Suze xxx

Nauseous

Not a particularly nice title for a post but it really sums up how I feel today. You know when you get that feeling in the pit of your stomach, when you are about to do something that is completely out of your comfort zone.
Today I have finished my artwork and will be going to town later to submit my work for the "Nostalgia" Exhibition. Any one would think I was submitting work to the Tate...I cannot believe how nervous I feel. A "guest curator" will decide yay or nay, and I am thankfully at the stage where even if it's nay, I will knuckle down and still carry on down this creative path I have set out for myself. My husband sort of rolls his eyes at me, he's heard it all before. I seem to constantly be putting myself in situations which  will suddenly scare the pants off me.

"You're a Ninja," he just says, "you will be fine.".

But I have butterflies.

Here is what I will be submitting, the only thing I haven't thought of yet are titles. I don't like the thought of having to name my work, but it's a requirement. I guess material wise they will be classed as mixed media, there is embroidery in there but there is also photography, cyanotype, paint, found objects... (click to enlarge pics).

Completely inspired by the legend that was my Dad. He absolutely loved serving in the Navy and would always say that his Naval days, though harrowing at times, were some of the best of his life.  When my daughter saw this she said, "I'd love that in my house when I'm older can you make one for me?"

So this is for her - I couldnt ask for a better home for it.

She was seven when her grandad died and I was so touched that she would want this.

 

Inspired by family , poetry and the power of words, it contains a quote which is so apt for me at the moment :

"I have spread my dreams under your feet; tread softly because you tread on my dreams."

                                                                                                                                                       WB. Yeats.

Finally I am going to submit my old piano stool drawer with the embroidery suspended within it.

Will find out on Monday. Have a lovely weekend.

Words (again)

ABC's of Life (R.Stewart, 2005) Click to enlarge.

I look at these words every day, but wonder how many of these I actaully live my life by. I try but sometimes xeriscaping is difficult! (major brownie points if any one has the time or inclination to look it up). I hadn't a clue this word existed until I saw it on here.  "Harm no one" also tested today.

                                        

I have been creating this week in preparation for submitting some work for the exhibition. The pesky cat often decides to visit me at some inconvenient moments. I had just painted the canvas on the floor (yeah I know I should have done it at my desk), when she came in and proceeded to walk on it, thank goodness missing my embroidery. Only just - it would have been ruined. 

 Note to self : Don't paint canvases on the floor.

"Scream at no-one" might be good addition to ABC's of life.

Off to see "Step -Up" tonight in 3D. Five ladies, teenage film, is that wrong?
 Can't believe it's Friday again tomorrow. Where does the time go?
Hello to new followers too :)

Talking the talk...

..time to walk the walk.

I have just been accepted as an associate member of a local arts group.

They have amazing studios above the shops in my local town, a room where you can use the facilities to make frames, printing press facilities etc. My friend H ,who is a painter, showed me around a few months ago and I felt waves of excitement surge through me as I peeped into various artist's rooms.
 I am happy working in my little room at home, but being a part of a creative community will be fantastic, and although I won't have a studio there I will be able to use the facilities, and exhibit with them.

They have several exhibition spaces in town and are also in the process of boarding out an old small shop with a view to holding solo exhibitions there.

The next exhibition which will run from the end of August to October will be around the theme of "Nostalgia", and that fits in perfectly with some of my ancestral work. I am allowed to submit up to three pieces of work, and they have to be ready for next weekend, to be considered for inclusion.

Although I have classed myself as a freelance artist for many years, I have never really put my work "out there". My work for skybluesea is out there, and although it is me, it's a more commercial side to me. I think I am finally reaching the stage where I want to show my other stuff, things that I have posted about on here but also art which is brewing inside my mind, that I need to create.


I have pinned some bits up on my wall that I might work from,

 and I also keep looking at my wedding dress which I mention in this post, which also belonged to my mum. I have photographed details from it this morning and have found a somewhat ghostly picture of me which I might use, and one of my mum.

         I have wiped down some cobweb coated frames which were in the shed and a piece of wood.

   Think I can find uses for them.

         Well that's me kept out of mischief for the next few days. Wish me luck.