For centuries women have used cloth as a tool of comfort and as an expression of beauty within their homes. Creating cloth for warmth, cloth for shelter, our female predecessors embellished these linens with hand stitch using laborious and time consuming techniques thereby enhancing the functional beauty of objects which enveloped and protected their families. Inspired by these women I hope my creations pay tribute to and recognise the devotion expressed in cloth by our female ancestors .







''the use of traditional often time consuming process alludes to the devotion of a mother''. c K. A. Ruane 2007







Sunday, June 10, 2012

in progress and paint....






All the things I talked about doing yesterday and an old watercolour which I found that has nothing at all to do with the ledger class. I really don't think I have another one of these in me to be honest. 
These pieces (the cloth ones) require work, there is work that hasn't been damp stretched...throws up arms in horror, work that needs more work, huge, ugly and visible tacking stitches but hey, at least you know I'm not idle.
I am actually a little annoyed today and have to get something off my chest. I am not a mean person or a skinflint by any stretch of the imaginations but I HATE being ripped off.
My men folk are going away as you know, they are only taking hand luggage...it's cheaper. Because of security the max liquid allowed is 100 mls..we all know that, no problem I want them to be as safe as safe can be. This morning we went to purchase travel size 30 ml shower gel, shampoo, deodorant. 
I want to know how a cost of £1.09 for 30 ml of any of these products is justifiable when the very same thing can be bought in 200ml size for £1.29??????? (that's 20 pence difference...about 40 cents US)
I HATE BEING RIPPED OFF. It's daylight robbery and I am incensed...just in case you can't tell.
I feel much better now I have gotten that off my chest......
Back to embroidery...my surface with paper, silk and vintage cloth. Can you see it amongst the rest? It needs more work which will be happening soon...in five minutes to be precise.

11 comments:

deanna7trees said...

those petals and seed pods look very real to me. great job. as far as the small size gel, etc. for traveling. i used to just buy small plastic bottles and fill them with the things i needed from my supply at home.it's much cheaper that way since the bottles could be used over and over again for traveling.so many travel rules to follow these days.

Elizabeth said...

You are a much better painter than you give yourself credit for.
Just enjoy yourself in heaven.

Jane said...

That seed is amazing, looks as if it's lifting from the paper

Joanna said...

I like that seed too for the same reason, the shadow really brings it alive.

As for bottles, I used to keep the bottles from the hotels and then refill them for short stays, or take plenty of them for longer stays. I used to travel a lot though.

Anonymous said...

The painting is as delicate as the embroidery - gorgeous!

Elizabethanne said...

Your paintings look so life like Karen. When I first opened your blog I thought they where presses flowers.

As for the madness of prices. I do not know how they can justify things that are smaller being dearer than the larger items!! Crazy. I just buy small containers or bottles & add my own liquids in for travel. I have made small printed lables of what I use & stuck them on, so that if checked they can see what it is.
Your friend
Elizabeth

Lois Evensen said...

Yep, prices like so many other things don't make sense these days. Those small sizes for flights are sold to a captive audience. :(

We have solved the whole problem. We drive instead of flying. Yes, I know there are places we can't drive, but we try to avoid those places. ;)

Anonymous said...

Yes I too have bought a set of plastic small bottles and jars which I fill each time we go abroad. I find even things like hand cream can weigh heavy so I just fill my little jar with what I want. My bottles even come in their own little case
so I am up up and away!
Back to the quilt I am making for my soon to be new grandchild - no embroidery on it I am afraid!
Dianne

Christine B said...

I feel I could just pick up those petals and seeds from the paper. I love the way you have executed the shadows to give them life.

Re: the relative cost of things... I agree with you one hundred percent but once when I questioned a similar negligable price difference in a shop I was told "Well I could make the larger one more expensive if you like!" Unfortunately I could not think of a snappy answer fast enough I was speechless!

ersimarina said...

I also thought those petals were actual dried flowers. They look so real in colour and texture!

As for the rip-off, every single day seems to offer a rich boufet of reasons to be indignant. Grrr...

Aaaaand: I just singed up for the Ledger course!!! Tap dancing and doing pirouettes here!

Magpie's Mumblings said...

I've been told (when I complained once....well, more than once) that the manufacturing process to make smaller sizes is generally more...generally the packaging cost is the problem. I'm not at all sure I believe/agree with that.