Hippystitch

Monday, 26 January 2015

Katharina Fritsch - Blue Cockerel, 2013 - Trafalgar Square, London

Katharina Fritsch - Cock, 2013

Don't know if I haven't been to Trafalgar Square since July 2013 but I have only recently spotted Katharina Fritsch's ultramarine blue cockerel on the fourth plinth. It's made from glass fibre reinforced polyester resin on a stainless steel supporting structure. Standing 4.72m high, it weighs over 800kg.

Katharina Fritsch - Cock, 2013

Good job they're not that size in real life - that'd be a bit scary!

You can read more about it here. Go see it won't be there much longer.

Thursday, 22 January 2015

Richard Tuttle - I Don't Know. The Weave of Textile Language - Tate Modern

Richard Tuttle - Turbine Hall, Tate Modern, London

Currently exhibiting in the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern, London, Richard Tuttle is an Amercan artist for whom art is an adventure. He is also a collector of textiles from around the world and is fascinated by weaving. He is interested in the different techniques and technologies that different cultures use to create their textiles.


Richard Tuttle - Detail of central section

This hanging structure is the largest sculpture Tuttle has ever made. It uses about 2,500 sq metres of fabric hanging from a plywood frame 24 metres long and 12 metres high. It looks like two wings separated by a large red covered structure.

Richard Tuttle

It is supposed to relate to Tuttle's memories of the Vietnam war (he had wanted to be a pilot until he realised his role would be to drop bombs) and to raise the issue of genocide in the 20th Century and to comment on the separation of the mechanical (e.g. large scale industrial textile production) and the human (e.g. "art-making").


Richard Tuttle

The three fabrics were woven by Garden Silks Mills Ltd in Surat, India. They are a combination of natural and man-made fibres, dyed to the bright colours & textures specified by Tuttle. I could see the red and orange/yellow fabric quite clearly. I read there was some midnight blue too but I couldn't see it.

Richard Tuttle - Holes in the red fabric

When close up you can see that the red fabric has a pattern of small holes at regular intervals.

On until 6 April 2015, you can read more here. I think, unusually, it's better in the photos than in real life. Not quite as exciting as some of the other Turbine Hall exhibits but if you are in the vicinity, then take a look!

Friday, 16 January 2015

Treasure from Yorkshire

Vintage mother of pearl buttons

This week I have been the lucky recipient of treasure. It was presented to me in a bag & having spent some time looking through it all I thought I would share it with you ...

Spare buttons from many sources

Green buttons

Knitting needles, crochet hooks and other paraphernalia


Vintage tins

There was also some yarn and felt which will go to this year's yarnstorming project - planning underway - more later! (Did you spot the 18 count Aida in the background in some of the pics?) And this was just some of the treasure. It was such a lovely surprise and do you know what else - when Rosalie told me she had this for me, she was wearing one of my brooches. Thank you very much, Rosalie!

Vintage Spools

Spool colours

I have also had some good finds at my local charity shop this week with some vintage threads and a sewing box - which inspired me to sort out my sewing things. Hooray!


Sewing box

And inside ...

Friday, 2 January 2015

Happy New Year - Welcome to 2015

So... welcome to 2015 - a new year with 365 new opportunities to create. I'm looking forward to sharing some of my creative adventures with you this year. Let's hope 2015 is a good one!

And yes, I did get some magnetic letters for Christmas!

Thursday, 25 December 2014

Merry Christmas

Well here's what I've made this festive season... origami Christmas trees (thank you, Christine!) and turned them into placename holders,

origami Christmas tree placename holders

plastic bottle icicles that look more like a jellyfish installation (now there's an idea!) but it does make a change from the usual Christmas decorations and has become quite a talking point (...now where does the jellyfish come in?)

plastic bottle icicles (or jellyfish?)

put my Prosecco corks to good use for a bit of Christmas fun ...

crazy cork characters

(you see there was a reason for drinking all that Prosecco!), made my Julie Arkell doll another outfit - this time with wings ...

Julie Arkell doll with wings

you can just see them peeping out at the back there and, having put her back in her knitted ski-wear, had a Christmas photoshoot ...

Christmas photoshoot

But will there be any Christmas lunch? Fortunately I have delegated that task so that's all right!

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone - see you next year!

Monday, 15 December 2014

Volunteer to make blankets out of mini jerseys for Oxfam

Blankets using the jerseys made square

You may remember all the excitement about the Tour de France in Yorkshire earlier this year. You may also remember knitting mini jerseys for the Knit a Bike Installation in York or for the Tour de Bunting displays across Harrogate district. In fact Harrogate had over 23,000 mini jerseys knitted for their displays.

Blankets which keep some of the jersey shape

Now they are working on turning the mini jerseys into blankets for Oxfam - and they need your help. With about 5,000 jerseys still to stitch together they are after volunteers to come to their aid. At the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate in November some of the blankets already made were on show (and baskets of the jerseys yet to be stitched together!)

So if you can get to Harrgate to collect some jerseys and can lend a hand stitching them together then please email Sue Wood at Harrogate Borough Council:

sue.wood@harrogate.gov.uk