3d Paper Mushroom Experiments

These experiments were made at the end of January (sorry its another late one)

The first selection of experiments are made using an origami technique called crumpling. I really want to look into this further and perhaps use the technique to create a large amount of multiples somehow attached? Food for thought.....

Paper pulp made from brown paper, shaped and scored. This is really quite effective, I like the idea of doing a series with the lines and textures inside the vessel rather on the outside.......

Small experiment using simply folded handmade paper to create a mushroom shape.

First experiments with embossing mushroom inspired shapes and lines into some handmade cotton linter. These have given me lots more inspiration. Watch this space.......

And another one.......

Seems ive lost any track of order teehee! Another post written at the beginning of January and slightly before the finished curtains! O well, here goes.....

Had the greatest weekend with the man.

We've had many jobs we've been meaning to do around the flat for some time now and this weekend we finally did them! (including cleaning my troublesome but now lovely metal framed windows) just a few bits of furniture to buy, a micro oven and a lick of paint and we will be finished! I can't wait for adam to move in and to make it officially our home. After this weekend it's definitely getting there!

Today was another quite typical day as an art and textile technician but involved more walking than usual! One of the main teaching corridors in this school stretches for just over 1/3 of a mile and I have been up and down the entire length of it at least 5 times today. Its display changeover time at the moment including all the garments on mannequins! Plenty of pins involved today!

I did aim to be in the studio this evening but have been so tired I couldnt face it. Instead I picked up my fabric and lining for my curtains and brought them back to my flat to iron and pin ready to sew. I'm using some of my favourite fabric from ikea, a white on grey starburst design. I will post a picture when i have managed to get them sewn and hung!

Well as is custom with the new year I have made a resolution and decided to try and improve my fitness. Tomorrow I will be attending my first kick boxing class. Although I am concerned I may die a death I'm actually looking forward to it! So let's see how it goes!

Heres one I made earlier......

This post was written on the 9th January, my first day back after the Christmas break. I'm only just getting round to putting it up here. Apologies!

First day back at work with the kiddy winks. Forgot how much I love my job!! Yesterday's efforts clearing the textiles (messy) cupboard have already been paying off! I should have taken a before and after photo!!

A typical day today as an art and textile technician. Putting up new artwork, ordering supplies, designing posters, general sorting and paper chopping. Then after a lovely lunch finished with a warming crumble (mmmmmmm) it was off to textiles. A spot of finishing and displaying swimsuit designs, folder organising, more paper chopping, general helping out and discussing girls portfolios finished my day.

Crafting wise I just want to get back into the studio and sort and make! Will hopefully make it in tomorrow after work. This evening and yesterday evening I have made a couple of needle felted birds, one of which was a request from my friend inspired by charley harpers illustrations of red cardinals. I think they are so lovely and I love the process, I'm going to invest in some more supplies and different needles so I can experiment further.

On a separate note I must get my mushroom project back on the road, 3d here we come!

Another little resolution for this year is that i must make more of an effort with the little winks that live downstairs, they are just so lovely!

I will end this with one last comment about the weather. As I live in an attic flat I seem to feel the weather more than most and am wishing the typical british weather of wind and rain would go away!

It's been a while.......

It's been quite a while and I have a lot of things to update! Luckily I have been taking small notes about what I have been up too so here goes!

During the winter term at the school the art department has been running a life drawing workshop. After much thought I realised that I hadn't done any life drawing since collage which was a good 5 ish years ago (scary stuff!) At first it did feel like I was back to square one but I soon got into the rhythm of things and loved it! The classes were great and I had great fun trying out different techniques and even painting (another thing I haven't done for I don't know how long!)

I have included a few of my favourites.

Another little project I finally completed over this week (12th Jan) was to make a pair of curtains for my bedroom using some ikea fabric that has been sitting on my pile for ages. The fabric was the perfect size and I'm so pleased with them!

Well that's it for this post, have much more to come......

Mushrooms!

More mushroom work....

Think I'm becoming a tad obsessed!

Trip to London zoo

During half term, my boyfriend Adam managed to get time off work and we had a wonderful week!

As neither of us had been before we decided to visit London zoo (on a typically rainy British day) and we loved it!

It was much bigger than expected, with a good aquarium too. Favourites of the day were the penguins, especially the rock hoppers! Also spotted were some surprisingly noisy and hungry otters and a very cute pair of sleepy anteaters.

As we were getting the tube from across the other side of regents park we decided to have a play on a pair of 'boris bikes' in the rain. They are great fun, and very good value. The sun even came out in the end.

We had a brilliant time which was topped off by a set of very amusing photos of us superimposed in backgrounds from around the zoo.

Rummaging, sorting and concocting!!

Being given a studio to make my own and work in again has been brilliant! A combination of this and a huge abundance of mushrooms around has inspired me to get working!

After a lot of rummaging and poking around in woods and exploring the huugggeee school grounds, (photos coming soon) I have managed to collect, photograph and draw a large amount of brilliant, interesting and possibly very poisonous mushrooms!

From these I have been exploring various printing techniques and other materials. Im so excited to be crafting again and although I've sorted my office in the studio i still have a huge space to sort.

Talking of sorting, my little flat will soon need to accommodate another when my other half moves in! He's been so amazingly supportive right from the interview to moving down here and even doing silly things like mushroom hunting and exploring the area! Ive been spoilt absolutely rotten! He currently still lives in Lincoln but is planning on heading south so we've been concocting plans for the flat!

When the studio and the flat are sorted I will put some pictures up, just have to find the time first! Luckily I'm going to have a lot of school holidays to look forward to!

I only have a few photos of recent work, will get some more taken and put up on here asap!