Just a quick post to say I will be back in the New Year after an 18 month break.

My plans for the blog are that I will continue to  add what I am working on as I do them but in the main it will become focused on my life as as artist, beginning with my first embroidery which, in a sense, makes a full circle of my work so far. A biography in other words as no one else is going to write it.  I will be honest, its only recently that I have used the word ‘artist’ for myself as I make no attempt to sell my work or show my work other than via this blog and Instagram. It seemed too grand a title for what has been a rather stop start stop approach to my work.  There were years, especially when my kids were younger that I didn’t do anything creative other than paint kids faces or make birthday cakes.  Art has always been part of my life though, so I thought I should record its progress from its earliest days when I didn’t even know that being an artist was possible, through the college years, etc to present day. Turning 60 in August 2017, really was a turning point, although life does intrude, as it always will.  Now though, I am accepting that and hoping I can get another good 20 yr or so, just enjoying what I do. 

2018 was productive in the sense I realised that I needed to stop putting on pressure on myself for not being ‘productive’. ie not painting. I took an almost complete break from painting and plein air painting. Instead I focused on what I enjoyed doing which at the moment,is learning to quilt and free motion quilting. I am sure it will eventually tie in with my other creative practices.  Until I actually learn how to do it properly though, quilting is what I am focused on.  I am also going to do a class (with actual people) on how to dye my own fabric in March.  I did a bit of that when I attempted the online course in 2016 and did some mono printing. From that I learnt online courses are not really my ‘thing’ and that I enjoyed making my own cloth. Youtube, however, is a great way of learning all sorts of stuff! I am also going to do a couple of quilting classes from the experts at one of the local quilting stores. 
Keep tuned. Hoping to make this a regular thing this year.