Beaded swallows and project musings

 

So A little while ago I  talked about a beaded embroidery broach project I was making for a friends birthday ( yay unintentional alliteration I love that!)

 

Well this is a picture of the type of beaded embroidery I have tried before. It's a picture of one of the hats I made for the last millinery course I attended and my aim was to use the same technique and a similar design but just on a smaller scale.

 



 

Now the first time I made the swallows for this hat they took forever, but as I did the second or third I got quicker and the outcomes became better.

 

However when I scaled down the design to broach size I seemed to loose some of the definite pattern. To be honest I made the design up as I went along and in hind sight I think it would have looked better if it had a more structured motif like the one pictured on the hat above.

 

 

Any way I gave my friend the broach and she seemed very pleased with it and  was surprised when I said I made it myself  ( she said she thought it was bought from Monsoon, which I took as a very big compliment as we both love monsoon things )  

 

After it was completed I decided I wanted to do some more research before designing anymore beaded broaches  and I created this mood board.

 

It helped me see that I definitely needed to properly plan my motif out before I start making it and decide on an exact colour scheme etc. also I love the effect using a variety of larger and smaller beads creates and  also having areas that are really encrusted. The whole process has given me plenty of ideas to be getting on with so I'll let you know how I get on. Let me know if you any tips or thoughts on these kind of projects or if you too have had a project that hasn't turned out  how you hoped but left you with inspiration and new ideas.

 

Hope you are all having a great week , Jessie xxx

 

 

 

A Glimpse of Inspiration- Model with Bahianas in Salvador by Anne Menke

 

 

I've been a bit absent  in blogging for a while but whilst  searching for some inspirational pictures from my collection of magazine cuttings  this evening I came across this one. Its a photograph by the wonderfully talented photographer Anne Menke from  a series in her book - See The World Beautiful.

 I love the cool peaceful feeling of the colours  of the clothes and scenery and the expressions on the ladies faces. I suppose what initially drew me to the picture was the lovely headdresses two of the ladies wear and also the expressions captures on their faces.

Any way I just wanted to share this lovely image with you all, have a great week Jessie xx

Photos for Friday : A Picture post

Happy Friday my lovelies, today I thought I would do a spontaneous picture post just to share a few snaps I've taken recently that I thought you would enjoy



A beautiful window in Berkley Castle

Magnolia blossom from earlier this year

I've been trying to improve my general photography skills and I'm hoping that there has been an improvement, so let me know what you think in the comments below.

 

 

I can't believe it's Friday already  the weeks are just flying by at the moment, my to do list this weekend is pretty hectic, making a last minute present for a friend tonight, celebrating that lovely ladies birthday tomorrow plus I have a few hats  on the go that I want to get finished this weekend. Oh and I am also hoping to get some gardening done as well , Hmm maybe it's time to invest in some sort of  a magic watch that stops time, well I'll let you know how all my creative endeavours turn very soon, have a great weekend. Jessie xxx

Book Talk - Hats an anthology by Stephen Jones and Oriole Cullen

 

Today I thought I would share a little book post about Hats, An Anthology by Stephen Jones and Oriole Cullen.

 

 

A few months ago I was lucky enough to attend a  talk  given by the Millinery superstar Mr Stephen Jones at the V&A. The talk discussed his career and work and in particular the anthology exhibition originally put on in V&A but that has now just finished a world tour.

 

After the talk, Mr Jones was doing a book signing for the book that accompanied the exhibition,  I had wanted the book for a while and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to meet Stephen in person so I decided to treat myself to a copy.
 

 

The book itself is lovely, full of images of both Stephen's work and other examples of millinery throughout the ages. The book focuses on 4 different aspects of  millinery and what you could call the life of the hat, from it's inspiration,  the creation,  the salon ( where the hat is sold ) and the client   each section  gives an in depth view into this aspect of millinery and the way this element has changed and adapted over time.

 

 

 

 

I  loved the creation section as it gives a wonderful glimpse into  the creation of the hat and  the time and effort that goes into the process. It also shows  work in progress in the milliners workrooms which is great for me as I'm really nosey and love seeing into other peoples workspaces and studios.

It also includes these beautiful title pages for each section that have wonderful illustrations of all sorts of millinery trappings and quirky little rabbits and things. I love them so much I have taken a copy of the inspiration one to put on my wall by my desk.

 

 

 

Once of the main things I love about this book is the  crisp clear photographs of  the hats themselves. Showing  beautiful examples of hats from Victorian Britain to the current day is really inspiring and makes me aspire to creating hats that are just as ornate and beautiful.

 

 

I would  defiantly recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in millinery  or even fashion and historic dress, it is clearly lovingly put together by Stephen Jones and the  exhibition curator Oriole Cullen and gives a wonderful insight into the world of millinery.

Happy today

So my blog is officially one year and one month old, Hurray!!

I have been somewhat absent over the last month  but fear not it was not for lack of activity, I have been helping out with a month long theatre festival which  has been keeping me very busy indeed.  Actually July has been a really great month between my theatrical activities, a splendid trip to London with my mum to visit the David Bowie  exhibition ( yes this was my second visit to it ) and my lovely man starting a super new job,  its been pretty hectic but in a really really good way.

The next couple months are going to be a really big push for me creatively  I feel like its time to step everything up a notch and have some great projects to get cracking on. I also intend to  really start anew with this blog, the last year has had it's ups and downs  blogging wise, it sounds so naïve now but I didn't anticipate that  blogging would be such a challenge.

Pastel Star Patchwork by Kaffe Fassett curtosey of www.kaffefassett.com



I shall leave you now with just this picture of a Kaffe Fassett painting I stumbled upon today. I love his textiles work but had not come across his painting before. I love the style and his signature use of colour so thought I would share it as a  moments inspiration for you all.

Hope you all have a great day  xxx



A week of activity! Hurray!

My bunch of Sweet Williams - a reward for being so productive this week.

 

So After last weeks post  about  trying to  get over my creative block I thought this week I would give  a little update  of how I was getting on. I’ve  been trying to be really proactive with seeking  inspiration rather  than  waiting for it to come to me and am pleased to  say that my efforts have been rewarded am  feeling much more creative and inspired.
 

Here are a couple of projects I  have been working over the last week.  

This is my take on the floral headbands that seem to be really popular at the moment.

For this  one I used  some flowers I had made recently and some vintage ribbon and lace I had stashed away.

 

This fascinator  was a bit of an experiment really, I had already blocked the base  but was not sure  how to decorate it.

 

 I really wanted to use the floral fabric as I love the colours and the pattern but  as it was a vintage piece I bought in Paris last year and I only had a small amount I was really reluctant to cut it.

 

After a bit of playing I  fashioned it into this oversized bow and decorated it with vintage buttons I bought at the same time and some other beads.

 

The lace lining I used for the underside of the fascinator - I just couldn't resist!

 

Also here is a sneaky peak into what’s going on in my sketchbook at the moment. I am usually pretty  shy about sharing what  I do in my  sketchbooks but thought it was about time I broke that habit!

 

Anyway I hope everybody is having a good week and  getting a chance to enjoy the sunshine if you’re having it.  We’ve got a little bit but it never seems to last long enough so I’m off to enjoy it whilst I can xxx

 

Help I'm stuck behind a wall of creative block!!

 

Hello lovelies, well I have a bit of a confession to make I have been stuck in a creative drought for quite some time. It started off as just procrastinating and feeling a little low in confidence about the work  I was creating but I didn't really pick up on it and  have now found myself with a case of creative block ( clearly not just something writers that get it then huh!)

 So after making plenty of excuses as why  I was finding it tough to create work , and coming up with convoluted schemes to enable my inactivity ( who knew you could take days to plan out a way to clean the oven!) I have accepted the fact that I need to take responsibility for my lack of inspiration/ motivation and am preparing for the hard work that is sometimes needed to  get my creative groove back on!

Part of this process means really engaging with  what it is that makes me feel creative, so I thought I’d share my list of my top 5 ways to instigate inspiration.

 

1 Drawing/ Sketching - well as you can see from  my little illustration above, I am no draftsman but sketching and doodling  are two activities that I really enjoy and never fail to engage me with my creativity. Sometimes just the process of drawing can ignite an idea or design that may not be even related to the thing that I'm drawing

2 Listening to music - ok so this one may be a little cheesy but I really find music inspiring, sometimes if I'm listing to music whilst doing housework or  travelling around I have to stop whatever I'm doing and write down the idea that has been instigated by the music I’m listing too

3 - Watching costume dramas  - I am a complete sucker for a  good costume drama  from  old favourites like the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice or Vanity Fair to more recent productions like The Crimson Petal in the White, There is something about being taken away to a bygone age that really gets me feeling inspired and  the costumes and set designs are always such a visual treat .

4 Going for a run- I am a bit of newbie when it comes to running, having only started  last year and am not particularly strict on my running routine  but  I can vouch for the fact that some of my best ideas  have come whilst I have been running and on the days that I go out I find that I  have more energy to apply to my creative endeavours

5 Just do it- Sometimes I find I just have to  get on with it rather than waiting for the flash of inspiration to hit me . I think when a creative rut appears it’s easy to be scared off but from personal experience I find that the more time passes the harder it feels to get back to creating work. Sometimes just by creating something and not worrying what the outcome will be like or whether it will be 'any good'  it can break that cycle of creative block and helps to get me back in the swing of things.

So it’s now time for me to practice what I preach and get back to enjoying my creativity and  being my creative productive self. Hope you have all had a super weekend  xxx