A Round Tuit.

I used to share an office with a colleague who had a round ceramic plaque on the wall by her desk, with the inscription ‘You always said you would get A Round Tuit, so I thought I’d give you one’. OK so it was abit cutesy – but I could identify with the sentiment! I definitely need to get a Round Tuit at the moment. People who have stitched alongside me know that I’m the world’s greatest prevaricator, and I spend for ever getting a round tuit. Right now I think there’s a good reason though, as I’m beginning to pack for a house-move. We’ve had an unbelievable gap of 5 months between exchanging contracts and completing, so we drifted into the mindset that we had endless time available to sort everything out. Now suddenly it’s looming in 5 weeks time and there’s so much to do. I haven’t moved for 19 years and Roger hasn’t moved for 26 years, so it’s a big deal and we’re quite unsettled. Art is virtually at a standstill, so I thought it would be a good chance to tackle some small UFO’s.

Earlier this year I went with some friends on a wonderful course with Gwen Hedley, called ‘Cut, fold, form, patch, piece’. We made a series of little pieces based on manipulating fabric and paper, enclosing and trapping things within folds and flaps. I came home with a head full of ideas and a box full of projects to finish, and of course that’s where they have stayed since then. But they are an ideal thing to keep out during the next few months of chaos, because they are small, portable, easily put-down-able, and can be done in the hand without access to messy space. They don’t need any great concentration on design – they just evolve in your hands as you stitch. That’s great at a time when I’m distracted by trying to get our current home ready for new people, firstly de-cluttering and secondly decorating.

Fellow textile addicts will understand the way that ‘stuff’ just expands, filling cupboards to bulging and over-flowing. When the cupboards are full, then the boxes start to pile up in front of the cupboards. Why is it that whatever you need is guaranteed to be in the most deeply buried and inaccessible place? And horror of horrors, when you start hoiking it out of cupboards and trying to rugby-tackle it into boxes, then it expands in an exponential explosion.

We’ll be saying goodbye to our sea-views, but we’ll gain a garden (and an ‘extra’ room…now I wonder what that could be used for??? Any ideas???) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are some more of these little experiments in the pipeline, and they’ll each have more stitching added before being mounted onto something less harsh than the paper they’re currently on. After that they’ll probably turn into a sort of little 3D sketch-book-thingy.

Roger just looked over my shoulder and asked why I was posting photos of strange stuff tied up with string…

…Is there anyone out there…?

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 thoughts on “A Round Tuit.

  1. Janice

    Hello Jane, First of all good luck with your house move. I hope it all goes smoothly and that you’re soon settled into the new one and spreading all your boxes out again.
    I think a 3D sketch book is the perfect destination for your collection of strange stuff tied up with string! I love the colour scheme drawing them all together, and it sounds like it’s the perfect project for you to keep out when everything else has to be securely packed away.
    Of course I understand the way supplies expand to fill available space and then some. Even as someone who no longer buys stuff willy-nilly – just things I absolutely need for my latest project and can’t find amongst my stash, I would still have to admit that I have a problem!
    Good luck, and enjoy as many peaceful moments as you can over the next few weeks!

    Reply
    1. Jane Post author

      Hi Janice
      Thank you for your encouragement. I’m glad you like the colour-range – I was looking for a particular ‘sour’ lime-green rather than an zingy one.
      Time will tell whether I do actually fit in anything artistic over the next few months. But if I’m distracted from art, then at least it’s all in a good cause in the long-run. I’ve booked into a one-day gelli-printing workshop with Hilary Beattie at the Knit and Stitch Show next week, so that will a little oasis of creativity.
      Best wishes,
      Jane.

      Reply
  2. Lornahowell

    Hi Jane,

    I love your little pieces from Gwen Hedley, I have her book and I find it inspiring. I might only have a small amount of stuff collected from starting the certificate but I’m fast running out of space in my little room and we’ve just had our requirements list of Janet, so more to find space for when we return from Ally Pally next week! Hope you’re move goes well and I’m sure you’ll find a good reason for the extra space you’ll have.

    Lorna

    Reply
    1. Jane Post author

      Hi Lorna,
      Good to hear from you. I agree, Gwen Hedley is inspiring – if you get a chance to go on a course with her then I do recommend it. Ah yes, the ‘stuff’ tends to expand after a trip to Ally Pally, doesn’t it? Whatever good intentions I set off with, I always spot something that just says ‘take me home’. Everything comes in handy in the end – at least that’s my excuse.
      Jane.

      Reply

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