Our daughter Barbara printed this fabulous denim fabric with Jaqui. its going to be transformed into bean bag covers for the her first show Girls + Zines at Tatty Devine on 236 Brick Lane, from 3rd August til 3rd September 2011. Barbara has been creating her own zines for a few years now, but this show is a showcase of girls zines from bedrooms around the UK and the world. It's been quite interesting seeing numerous handmade and decorated envelopes that have been coming through our letter box over the past few weeks, I think we will be in for an interesting show!
Today I popped into 'Prick Your Finger', even though it's just up the road from my studio I don't visit often enough. Rachael and Louise whose venture it is are two very inspirational ladies, they are usually up to their eyeballs in projects and schemes, and their shop is filled with delights for knitters - I love them! Check out PYF's blog here, it's my favourite.
I've been having a break from sewing for the past week or so, imposed by my physiotherapist. Apparently I've been giving my neck a bit of a rough ride and I also have a frozen shoulder (ouch!), so for the time being my sewing projects are on hold until my neck calms down....oh noooooo
....and sometimes the big things in life make me happy too! Check out this giant urban fox on the South Bank, foxy is around until September....
Sometimes its the little things in life that make me happy. Take this sewing thread for example, on first inspection it looks like plain blue thread, but wait, look again - it's denim colour - yippeeeee!
Here's Clare, one of my studio mates together with her new doggy draught excluder. Clare's also sporting a snazzy pair of jeans- check out those studs baby!
I tried out my fox design using this herringbone fabric, kind of makes your eyes go a bit blurry eh?
I've started on another mammoth task, this time I'm working on a couple of 'log cabin' patchwork quilts, I'm sewing pairs of blocks, so that I won't end up with two similar strips of colour next to each other when I stitch all the blocks together. I haven't decided how I'll mix them up and stitch them together yet, maybe in diagonal stripes or in a checker board style...mmmmm
I met my other half, Rob, over thirty years ago now. Somehow he has managed to hold on to the above photo from the last century! He created this piece for Elle magazine (July issue) they wanted something on 'Love & Fashion', I just want to say - thank you my darling! X
Happy Birthday Maria! Yes its a year since we started working on our lovely Emily Peacock tapestries. We had a competition to see who would finish first, Maria (HUG)finished way before me a few months back, and I(KISS)trailed in second completing weeks later. I must say it was quite a challenge! There were days when I thought - I never want to see a tapestry again! But mainly I enjoyed the theraputic quality of drawing thread through the canvas, the colours and warm touch of the tapestry wool, all of which soothed me after many trying commutes from work.
I've been getting to grips with my knitting machine again. Not sure if the bears like the jumpers though, they're looking very alarmed!
Sorry for the lack of posts, the main reason for this is sorting out how to use my new camera... anyways this little fella and some other Barbarabearo dogs and bears have travelled all the way to bonny Edinburgh! So if you happen to be in Scotland do pop in to this new sculpture garden/ hip-hop happening place called Jupiter Artland 
I've been working on a group of foxes, seven in all, cut out from seven different fabrics. I think this fox style works better with a mix of fabrics because the pattern shapes are easier to see, with the last set I made you can't really see how the shapes fit together so they look like mysterious blobby creatures with protruding noses and tails! Anyway here's one from the set, I'll show you the others another time....
Last weekend we visited Great Dixter Gardens in East Sussex, we caught the end of the lovely snowdrops display and walked around the fabulous topiary - check out those peacocks! 
Here's my latest offering, a tweedy family of foxes. I'm not sure which name to use for a group of foxes there are quite a few - skulk, cloud, troup, company, leash and earth.........
I ordered some stuffing last week, it arrived compressed into this bundle, it weighs a ton (25kgs). I dont know how, but I managed to drag it up the stairs. It is so tightly packed that I daren't cut the string incase my whole studio becomes filled with polyester fluffiness! For now I'm pulling handfuls out from between the gaps.
My other half's latest screenprint has been produced to raise much needed cash for a very worthy cause..... 
Hello, I'm back in the studio after what feels like yonks! I have been busy posting out zillions of packages for my other half's Etsy shop, a lot of you out there are sooo romantic or maybe you have been dropping heavy hints your partner's way! Anyway my work was temporarily put on hold, but now I'm back in studioville and plan to be making things on a regular basis.
Hello, I was in my studio today. I really wanted to make a bear, so I made this little sitting bear but he looked a bit naked and it was a bit chilly so I thought I'd knit him this little jumper. My next job is, (now I have worked through my knitting urge)is to work on all the foxes I have cut out......
Went to lovely Rye last weekend and picked up the Uhura book and storage bags, I didn't buy the Basil Brushes - I just took a sneaky photo of those cheeky fellas. All of which remind me of growing up in Birmingham in the 60's and 70's. For a young girl growing up in inner city Birmingham it was very inspiring to see an intelligent, sophisticated and seriously glamorous black woman on 'Star Trek'- great TV. Basil Brush was a nutty TV hand puppet character who was very naughty and made me and my brothers laugh.....
