This is my first ever post on a blog Having used a written monthly diary for Textiles 1, I decided to expand my horizons and try out using a blog for my new unit. Well, it is recommended by the OCA!This definintely can't be a daily blog, and I might not even manage a weekly one. After all, I signed up for Textiles 2 a couple of months ago, but home and work commitments have prevented me from setting up a gmail account and entering the world of blogging until today. Ho hum, c'est la vie and all that jazz, but I can't just ignore the fact that as a single parent with two teenage sons plus working full time, so I've got more than enough to be going on with before I get to the fun of textiles work.
Recent bad news: microwave expired, vacuum cleaner gave up the ghost and drains decided to block requiring my plumbing expertise - too expensive to call out a professional :o(
Recent good news:
- I gained a Distinction grade for my City & Guilds Level 2 Machine Embroidery Award - hurrah, all that hard work paid off!
- Older son (Steven) passed GCSE's so is off to 6th Form at the end of next week; younger son (Andrew) gained a few GCSE units as well, prior to entering Year 11 ;o)
Visits: Managed to escape with my Mum (her annual birthday treat!) to The Quilt Show at the NEC last Saturday. So many quilts that it's hard to take everything in. Some amazing pieces of work. Great fun having a look around the stands and spending a few pounds on some bits and pieces such as stuffing a bag with as many buttons as you can for £3, a couple of rollers for spreading paint etc from Art Van Go (just couldn't stretch to afford a screen printing frame at this time), and some reduced price pieces of brass and copper sheet/grid to experiment with. I won some vouchers to spend on Amazon recently and so treated myself to a copy of The Art of Stitching on Metal by Ann Parr and am fascinated by the idea of using this technique. Only sketched/noted a couple of things, but I believe in quality and not quantity and noting things that interest me rather than doing a lot of scribbling for the sake of it. Don't suppose the OCA official line would agree, but nothing is going to make me love sketching, unlike both of my sons who have artistic talent, especially Andrew. I'm creative and need to work in a way that suits me.To my mind my sketch books should remind and inspire me, so I don't want to take copious notes about what I don't like, although a few warnings about difficult techniques etc are very useful. Anyway, did gather a few leaflets, business cards and postcards to add into my sketchbook for future reference as well.
Plans:
- Need to work through Assignment 1 by the end of September if at all possible! I did the observation before I signed up for Textiles 2, so there is a gap between then and now that I'm picking it up again for the assignment. I actually think this is a good thing, partly because I'm coming back to it with fresher eyes, and partly because as I finished my Level 2 C&G and looked through some work that my tutor (Trisha Forshaw) had done for her Diploma I noted a couple of techniques that I want to experiment with as part of the assignment.
- I'm desperately trying to sort out the funds to do the Level 3 C&G as well. This may be the last chance I have to do it through the local adult education system (they don't like C&G admin systems and my tutor may decide to give up teaching) so I really need to do it now. The cost has doubled due to the loss of the Government vocational funding so it's £500 for the year! I had a bit of a 'debate' with Dorset Adult Education who started off saying I could only pay this in 3 instalments, but my email of protest seems to have struck home and they've agreed that students can pay over 6 months. That will still mean payments of around £83 a month - a lot of money to someone like me, especailly as I'm commited to paying my fee instalments to the OCA as well - but I figure it's worth the struggle in the long run. My Mum, in her usual fashion, says do it while you're still young enough, but I'm on the slippery slope to 50 now, so I'm not that young! Anyway I'll do the best that I can ...
Right, that's enough. This was only going to be a brief first posting, but as usual I've run away with myself by thinking fast and being able to type pretty fast as well after all these years. Off to join the bank holiday traffic!
