My work on a book cover!

A very exciting opportunity has come my way. I was recently approached by Tupelo Press, an American publishing company, and asked if an image of a piece of my textiles could be used on the cover of one of their books. They selected 'Little Stitches', featured in a previous blog post to use on a book of poetry by Jennifer Millitello to be published in spring. 

What a lovely adventure for the new year ahead. Happy New Year everyone, I do love the anticipation and invigoration of a fresh new year, so much to explore.

Rusty circles

I've always enjoyed the effects of weathering and seeing the impact of the elements over time. I find coastlines endlessly inspiring, the ceaseless erosion by waves, wind and salty air on wood, stone and metal.

I am mesmerised by patination and rust and have been exploring natural rust colours with rust dying.

I love the ginger tones that rusty iron creates and have been using similar shapes that I use in my jewellery to explore colour and pattern.

These experimental samples include iron wire, handmade paper, cotton, linen, muslin, hand stitch and burning to create holes and more natural colouration from the deep brown of the burnt edge.

In using copper in my jewellery I try to exploit the natural colouration from heat and exposure to the air, incorporating the warm peach tones, through to deep reds that copper takes on over time.

I can't resist playing with repeated shapes.

Moss pods

I have been thinking about making these for such a long time, I love the idea of creating hollow forms, with spaces inside to contain things. Hidden things, secret things, precious things. I love lockets, but find traditional designs really limited and predictable, so I decided to make my own variation.

 

These pod forms contain very small crochet and felt elements, which are based on moss, funghi and lichen growth. I like the way lichen grows in cracks and crevices, it asserts itself and thrives in the smallest spaces. It has resilience and vigour whilst being delicate and beautiful. Rich in colour, pattern and texture, I am always drawn to it. 

I have been exploring ways to recreate it with knit, crochet, felt and hand stitch for a long time, gradually reducing the thickness of the threads and the scale of my work, until I have arrived at these very teeny pieces. 

The contrast in texture between the metal and threads appeals to me, and the making techniques make me happy. The process of quietly constructing crochet forms is gentle, calming, soft and intuitive. It is in stark contrast to working in metal. Sitting at my workbench sawing, filing, hammering and soldering is labour intensive and methodical; planning the step by step stages of construction to factor in melting temperatures, and the need to constantly clean, sand and refine. There is a discipline to it, and working on such a small scale means every detail counts. As whole pieces, making and combining the very different elements satisfies my love of these different ways of working. I make because I enjoy making. 

This new work will be launched at The British Craft Trade Fair in Harrogate this weekend. I am curious to see what people think of it.

photoshoot

I recently had the opportunity to have some professional photographs taken of my work being worn by models. It was an amazing experience, a different way of seeing my jewellery, I am usually only really involved in making it and as I usually mainly sell through galleries I can be quite detached from seeing it worn. It was a treat to see it on people, and I loved the context of the shoot location, my work is inspired by natural forms, so the lush greens and dense trees were a perfect backdrop.

I loved the lighting the photographer used, it gave a strength to the images and a very fashion-lead styling.

Thank you so much to everyone who helped... especially to Matt Bates, my good friend, who organised everything for me.