Post101: Iter Autem and Iterations

I awoke to two emails prompted by yesterday's post. In Brussels Genevieve is helping her son furnish a home, mostly with recycled and renovated furniture and fittings. This resonates and sounds like a lot of fun to me. Good on them.

The second email was from Christine in Watford. She is still pretty limited in what she can do outside the house. I'm glad she approves of my Nicola birds, since it is her example of the same which has been my reference point. Christine supplied the title for this post, in answer to my Quo vadis question. She is, of course, absolutely right - the only answer, keep marching!

I spent the whole day working on the Silver Eye. 

This is iteration 1.  I completed the border and filled in the background with seed stitch, and some French knots behind the green, which, I thought, needed something more definite.

I didn't, however, like the yellow bits on the head. It was partly the colour, and partly the stitch.



It wasn't easy to unpick, because it had been put in before the other colours, but I did it with scissors and and tweezers. I replaced it with stem stitch in the very limy green.

Iteration 2 a big improvement I think.










In  Iteration 3 I traced the legs and feet on to paper, cut out the bird (scary),








positioned it on the fabric,



and appliqued it. Without the legs, the only tricky bit was the beak.






Iteration 4, adding the legs, was not straightforward. Getting the angle right took a bit of fiddling, but it was a lot better than applique.

I also went over the beak again.


By then I had an urge to finish the project.





I cut out the fabric into a carry bag shape and raided my cotton fabric stash for lining fabric.

Iteration 5, making the bag, took some time but I have made enough of these now to be able to do it fairly efficiently.  Even so, I broke a needle, attached the handles upside down and stitched the base as a side panel before getting it right.

















It needs a good steam iron, which will happen tomorrow. Iteration 6.

I have enough of the fabric to make another one, and I also have two more of Nicola's birds. I'm in two minds about starting on another one while waiting for my Crewel Work Company parcel.







Because the balcony got vacuumed and washed this morning I didn't put seed out until Turtle held a sit-in waiting for me in the afternoon. He cleared up all but 3 seeds in next to no time. I think it must be good manners in the dove world to leave a token amount of food behind.




I dug out the owl bag I worked on planes in Feb/March and also Phillipa's Redwork Rabbit, which I'm going to tuck into a space on my chair, but knitting won. I've worked about 4 rows of the Fair Isle scarf this evening.

In the afternoon I watched the TV coverage of the Black Lives Matter rallies around Australia. Attendance was a hard call for many in these times. So pleased they were well attended, orderly and as far as was possible, adhering to health requirements. Christine's Iter Autem was appropriate in more way than one today. We need to keep pressure on our governments to implement all the recommendations of the Black Deaths in Custody Royal Commission. 

Post 100: Quo vadis?

This is my 100th post in this blog, which was set up to cover my travels in England for 26 days from 24 February. I kept it going to cover my 14 days self-isolation on return to Adelaide, and then to tell the stories of my days following. When will I stop the blog? I don't know the answer. I'm expecting one of two things to tell me it's time to stop. Either (1) the feedback telling me at least some people like reading it each day will stop and followers will unsubscribe or (2) I will find my life has returned to pre-February routines and conditions. It has become a kind of diary of the plague year, not discussing the plague itself, but the daily life of one person through an extraordinary time. I think (and hope) I will know when to stop. Please do not hesitate to unsubscribe if it is no longer relevant.


Although I now have a battery for my SLR, it is so long since I have used it that I'm finding I need to teach myself to use it all over again. I'm not too bad on the regular zoom lens. I quite like this photo of the tree opposite my balcony, taken with that lens,  and could easily use the image  for embroidery,





but I am struggling a bit with the macro lens, which is mostly what I have, in the past, used the camera for. I need to read the manual again. I may also need to start using my tripod - something I didn't do in the past, but the movement in my hands at the moment is impeding me.

I did take this very decent photo of Turtle waiting for his seed - using the macro lens - but not at a macro distance.








The worst photo of the day was taken with my phone - through the fly screen - when the Noisy Miner flew in to sample the lemon rose geranium on the balcony. The Miner is just below the light fitting and flew away as I tried to quietly open the door.




This all occurred before I went to lunch at my friend Margaret's - a bold move for both of us and for her husband.. I swapped a glass paperweight Margaret needs to house a roundel she has finished embroidering, for a jar of her marmalade, and ended up with two jars. Margaret is Marmalade  Queen. I don't eat much jam. These two jars will last me all year - and marmalade is my very favourite.

We had a delicious lunch of Margaret's home made bread, smoked salmon, cheeses, ham, quince paste and salad and caught up on months of stitching projects, news and opinion. Margaret has finished and framed quite a few projects. All lovely and meticulously stitched. It was such a treat to spend time in their company.

Back at home I have been working on my Silver Eye version of Nicola Jarvis's bird. I have a bit of outline and some seed stitch fill to go. I should be able to cut it out and applique it this weekend. I'm going to work the legs directly on to the background fabric this time.

My shipment from the Crewel Work Company is on its way, with more pieces for my Crewel chair. That will keep me busy for a while, so I'd better get back to my Fair Isle knitting.

Post 99 : Some colour

h

The yellow succulent buds are opening into lovely little daisy-like flowers. They seem to have different numbers of petals.

The flowers are about 2cm across. I took these two this morning.

My new SLR  battery arrived this afternoon and I managed to get it sufficiently charged in time to have a quick play based on this cluster of flowers.

They are not well focused, but interesting. I was a bit late to capture the Rosella briefly on the tree at the back of my balcony.

I tightened the pins on Jennifer's crocheted shawl twice and removed the pins when it was dry about 24 hours after I blocked it.


It really is a lovely colour and shows up best with light behind it.








I dropped it back to Jennifer. I may need blocking again if it contracts too much. Jennifer is pleased, which is great. Jennifer is doing well - but gets extremely tired. That, doctors tell her, is likely to last for months.

We discussed the need to keep track of what happens to those who've had the virus. There are so many stories that need to be captured in this time.

It was another interesting sunset - quite dramatic cloud formations.

I managed to do more proof-reading, but spent time late this afternoon working on the White Eye. It's beginning to come together. I'm using DMC stranded cotton for the greens and greys but some variegated Gloriana silk for the peach colour, some Leaderette synthetic silk for the beak.A number of these have been gifts.

I wonder if the flowers on the succulent will be more open tomorrow.

Post 98 Huckaback and more birds

Today’s tasks were more proof-reading, sending out a message to the World Embroidery Study Group and picking up Jennifer’s shawl to be blocked. 

The link today for the World Embroidery Study Group was on huck embroidery.

https://pieceworkmagazine.com/embroidered-huck-towels/

I've done a bit of this in my time and still enjoy doing it. The first piece of embroidery I did at school, in Grade 3 and aged 8, was a huckaback hand-towel, which I still have. It's a bit the worst for wear.

I made a single bedspread on monks cloth 

But my favourite is probably the panel for a bag, 


The doves were back together today. I broadcast the seed after they arrived. He stayed but she took fright, coming back when I’d gone.










They came right up to the door again and polished off most of the seed.

I picked up Jennifer’s shawl and set about blocking it. The stripes are on the towel underneath. It’s a beautiful shawl.  I have tightened it up a bit before finalising this post.

On the way home from picking up the shawl I noticed the Yiros Hut on Hutt St was open so popped in and bought a Yiros to take home.Lamb of course.  I was the only one in the shop. I’m not sure when they opened again, but I suspect only this week. It was a good Yiros and I’m glad the shop is open again.

I am working slowly on the next Nicola Jarvis bird. I think I can see how it will come together.

I should be able to progress it tomorrow in between a bit more proof-reading.

Post 97: Plumber and Birds

The plumber arrived early at 8.15 am. Turtle turned up as soon as I stepped out on to the balcony with the plumber. He stayed for a few minutes in the hope we would feed him, but left disappointed.

The plumber was very efficient. The drain was blocked at the S bend - a build-up, he thought, of many years of dust, leaves and debris probably caught on a stick or a hair. He cleared and flushed it through. The pipe is narrower before the bend because the original tilers, he deduced, poured their left-over cement down the drain without ensuring it flushed right through, so some of it set in the pipe. It is not, he says, uncommon. Often it can be be chipped away, but not in the case.

There is enough room for water to flow freely through. He believes it will not need to be done again but recommends I flush it once a year from the hose or a bucket of hot water.

He talked to me about my paintings.  Josh, my usual plumber is on leave with a busted hamstring he did while getting out of a boat. I find these young plumbers really interesting and knowledgeable  problem solvers.
I settled down to finish the Nicola bird . The legs were tricky. It's very hard to  turn under an edge on such a narrow area and the fabric frays badly if cut. The French knots are a good cover, but apply them too close to the fabric edge and the legs get thicker. I spent more than an hour this morning trying to manage it. I was reasonably happy with the result. I think, however, that  with any of these birds I embroider in future, I will trace the legs and feet on to the fabric and embroider these directly on.

The next project is to embroider and applique the second of Nicola's  birds on to the back of the bag. The shape of this bird is more robin-like.

Silver Eye

I went through a list of Australian birds, until I found the Silver Eye (also called Wax eye, Silver eye, or, in South Australia, apparently, white eye. It is about the right shape for the next bird, and the colours should work well.

Late in the afternoon, Turtle turned up again and ate a lot of the seed.

















I sorted through my threads - choosing colours in line with the White Eye. I found many of them in my tine of DMC Mouline stranded thread, The greys took a bit longer to find, until I checked a bag of threads Vivienne sent me and there were the missing shades.

I also had a skein of Gloriana silk perfect for the breast.







I have just begun the head, but am falling asleep. I was up early this morning for the plumber.





In between these tasks I did some proof-reading and cooked rainbow trout fillets, bought yesterday, for my lunch. Jennifer has her little shawl ready for me to pick up and block, but I didn't make it today. For the last two hours Poirot has once again been solving Murder in the Clouds.  I may just about last the three minutes to the end. I'll try to pick the shawl up tomorrow.

Posy 96 Dinner’s back on first day of Winter

The magpie shrike was back this morning, along with one dove. I didn't see any aggression between them
but they flew off making a lot of noise.

I saw my podiatrist this morning - the appointment that had been postponed about a month ago, because of the lockdown.  After the appointment I went to Frewville Foodland. It was lovely to go again. It really is the most wonderful place to shop. I got a pizza slice and buns for the kids this afternoon, a calzone for my lunch tomorrow, watermelon, grapes and some more Bravo apples. Yay!

Back at home I put the pasta sauce and the pasta into a dish ready to bake. I also rang Jordan Plumbing and arranged for a plumber to come tomorrow morning to clear the drain on my back balcony, which is not clearing properly since the rain started on the weekend.

It was great to have the kids here after school and for dinner. They were full of stories, considered opinions and questions. What I realised as I prepared the meal, was that there parents could have eaten as well, as long as we didn't all try to eat at once. Next time.

I managed to finish the beak and eye of the bird, and tweek a few bits. I do like it.


The scary bit was cutting it out.

I cut my piece of bottlebrush linen in half. It will give me two bags if I use plain linen for the side panels.










It took a bit of testing to see exactly where to place it on the fabric. I then pinned it on and stitched around it, tucking the raw edge under. The legs and feet are the challenge













I managed to get all but one leg done. The legs, of course, are the hard part because there is nowhere to hide the turn-under.


I was hoping to finish it tonight but  I am too tired to do the second tricky leg.

I will do it tomorrow. I have to be up to let the plumber in at 8.30 am anyway.

Post 95 Stitching progress

Showers this morning were light and sparse, but by this evening rain has set in and is, for Adelaide, heavy. There was another little dove drama this morning when the adolescent arrived at the same time as the pair and was fiercely driven off and pursued. It was more than an hour before the pair were back. They ate and hastened away.

I proof-read a story for my brother and went to Katherine and Anthony's place for afternoon tea. Brigid and Niamh made excellent scones which I helped to eat with Katherine's fresh lemon curd and cream. Yum. 

While at afternoon tea I managed to finish five of the last six hexies. The last one I finished at home. I now have 75 hexies to add to my quilt. I need to set aside a day or two to do it. I think the best plan is to replace the quilt with a doona for a while so I can keep the quilt and extra hexies in a bag from which I can do the work as a break from other projects.


I changed the hoop with my bird over from the upright stick seated stand to the jointed Nurge one.
I don't like the clamp on this Nurge stand, but it works OK with a hoop. It annoys me that it doesn't clamp a slate or roller frame, but it wasn't an issue here. It means I can sit further back in a chair, which is much more comfortable for hours of work.

I used a dark grey metallic thread for legs and feet and worked them in tightly packed French knots.






















I somewhat hesitantly filled the backgrounds in with seed stitch in metallics of a variety of colours.



I wasn't sure it would give the effect I wanted. The fine metallics have a way of disappearing into the linen. In the end I liked the effect.

I still have the beak to go, and a little work on the eye.


The overall effect, though, is very much what I wanted.


Tomorrow I have a podiatrist appointment and the kids are coming after school, but I should, I think, manage the finishing touches.