Creative surge

I have been feeling particularly creative the past few days, and have enjoyed allowing myself to play around with drawing and stitch without any particular outcome in mind. It's refreshing for me and resulted in some lovely ideas and designs.

Commission finished! (Part 2)

 

 

 

...And so, here is the second of my altar cloth panels finally finished. I had a kerfuffle with some missing beads and had to order some more, hence the delay with this panel. But now it is finally completed and I can relax (for a moment or two) :)

 

 



Drawing - a love/hate relationship

...Although, if I'm completely honest, a little more hate than love. I've never enjoyed drawing. I somehow scraped through an entire Art GCSE barely lifting a pencil (and tracing a lot of what drawing I did do!Ooops!) I knew very definitely that I couldn't draw well and so I avoided it like the plague, I just didn't see the point...

...my Textile A levels mercifully didn't include a large amount of drawing either so I got off there too. My degree however, did. Drawing was one of the core practises of the course, it was the basis of everything we did. (I made the mistake of telling my lecturer in my initial interview that I disliked drawing immensely, I will never forget the look of horror on her face and will also never be sure how I managed to get a place of the course at all! Although thankfully I did! :D ) Unfortunately this didn't endear me to drawing either, I just don't get the point of drawing for no specific reason, mark making, exploring, whatever you call it I object!

I don't think my typical design process helps encourage me to draw, generally it goes like this. I'm inspired by something, I imagine something, I create it, done. No need for drawing at all. If I draw it is only for the purposes of design, for creating a template to stitch to or for deciding on a colour palette.

However last night, something odd happened. For the first time since finishing my degree (possibly the first time ever) I felt inspired to just sit with a pencil and a sketchbook and draw. And I actually really enjoyed it! :)

(The drawings in this post were some I did back in the first year of uni and go to prove that when I really put my mind to it and apply myself I can actually draw rather well, not brilliantly but not badly either!)

Cheesecake!

 

 

 

 

Just a couple things I whipped up at work this morning, and yes I am rather proud :) Didn't get to taste any though! 

Commission finished! (part 1)

 

 

So here it is, the first of two embroidered panels I've been working on for my first ever commission. They will become part of an altar cloth to be on display at The Sanctuary at South Bristol Community Hospital. This is the first one which is will be displayed at Easter. I am so pleased that it's come out exactly as planned. I'm really excited to see it completed and in place!

 

 

 

 

Please excuse the slightly poor quality of these photos, I meant to wait for a bright day with good light but I think I could be waiting a long time in the current British climate so here they are anyway! :)

 

 



Beautiful Cambridge

This past weekend was spent in Cambridge, somewhere I hadn't been before. It was beautiful architecture, being punted along the river, castles, blues skies and sunshine and a sweet bed and breakfast packed full of beautifully patterned china. The latter being something of an obsession of mine, and which sparked an enthusiasm to draw (which I haven't been inspired to do since uni)

 I'm thinking of taking up where I left off with my final uni project and perhaps designing a further collection/ expanding my existing collection from that project. I feel like having left it for a few months I now feel full of fresh ideas and ways to the collection forward and I'm really excited about it! :)

100th post!

Yes, this is officially my 100th blog post! Which seems like quite a milestone to me. I've loved having a blog over the past year or so, it's a place I can share my creative thoughts and the things I've been up to, as well as a place for me to document my creative doings for my own reference. Not only that, but it spurs me on to continue to be creative, I have a platform to share my work which encourages me to carry on with my creativity!

 (I'm well aware the word 'creative' was used far too many times in that paragraph!)

I didn't bake a cake to celebrate the occasion, (it did however cross my mind)

so instead, gratuitous cake photos from the fundraising bake sale we did at uni earlier in the year!

Mocha cupcakes

Yesterday at work I spent the first couple of hours baking two mocha cakes, coffee sponge with chocolate fudge icing. (easily the best part of work is baking cakes, the worst being I don't get to try any! boo) So today at home I baked these mocha cupcakes. Delicious with some freshly brewed coffee :) 

Etsy

I'm incredibly excited about the official opening of my Etsy shop! I have been working hard on products and logos and setting everything up. 

Here is a peek at the first of my line of framed embroideries that you will be able to find on Etsy very soon. I'll keep you posted! :)

Commission update

Super smoothie!

So, I'm trying hard at the minute to be healthy but the problem is I really love to bake and cook. So I'm trying out healthy things to concoct. And here is a fruit smoothie I made this morning which not only tasted delicious but looked beautiful too, crossing off all my requirements of good food or drink! :) I made it with a couple of handfuls of mixed summer fruits, a banana, some orange juice and a couple of spoons of Greek yogurt. Whizzed up in a blender - delicious! :)

New logo!

I have been working recently on my new logo, I'm determined to turn Midnight Rose into a functioning business in the next few weeks and months. My Etsy shop is just the first step in my plan, I know it's going to take an awful lot of hard work but I'm so excited, this is what I love to do and if I can turn it into a way to make a living it will be amazing! :D I can't wait to get going!

Floral skirt

I've had this floral fabric for literally years, maybe 5 or 6. it was originally already a skirt but the shape of it just looked awful on me but I love love loved the fabric! :)

So finally I got round to doing something with it. I attatched a waistband in Fuschia satin and gathered the fabric into wide pleats. I also added mother of pearl buttons which aren't shown in the photo as a final touch.

I'm just annoyed at myself that I haven't done this before, it was super simple, only took a couple of hours and now I have a beautiful new skirt that suits and fits me perfectly!