Cotswolds and New Year greetings

Before Christmas, I was so busy preparing for the arrival of family visitors that my intended post didn't appear. We had a wonderful time - busy, noisy and great fun and the grandchildren were a delight as always.

Now, however, that everyone has gone home, this small piece (a suggestion of the ploughed Cotswold countryside in winter or a hint of those beautiful Scottish heather-covered hills before snowfall) comes instead to wish all the bloggers who visit my blog and those who leave kind and encouraging comments a happy and creative New Year.

May you continue to enjoy and share your artistic life with fabric and needle, paper and print, brush and canvas or whatever excites you ... I know I will be seeking you out with great pleasure in the year ahead.

Season's Greetings
Margaret

Flavour of the year

It has seemed this year that certain colours came in certain months for me so here is a small taster of the last few months for me - not as wide and varied as I would have liked as my recent computer problems are still not resolved and I don't have access to my large library of photos ... or indeed any before September.

There was much red in Utah in September ...

 ... and terracotta, of course terracotta, everywhere we looked ...

... Then teasels in Gloucestershire in October ...

... and then rich reds ...

... and surprising greens in November in Gloucestershire ...

...then soft brown in a wonderful 16th century ceiling ...

... and black and white, both in Cheshire in December (and in every other month come to that ...)

Now, here's to next year and another search for colour. It's been a pleasure.

Paper folding and Christmas cards

Every year, I make my own Christmas cards. This is always a pleasure but there is also always a stage at the beginning of the process when I'm planning what do. Sometimes, I begin with one thought, try things out and then abandon the whole thing for a different approach.

This was definitely the case this time. I make over 100 cards and things have to be simple and quick and with as much impact as I can muster so I began by getting out my embellisher (needle felting machine) to do something strictly textile. I couldn't get things right, and time pressing, I turned to paper with teabag folding. 

Here you will find some of the results, all using commercially produced paper (time an issue, remember) - three different colour ways and two different basic folds. 

(Hopefully) sophisticated silver ...

Bold blue ...

And that traditional British symbol of winter and Christmas, the robin ...

Both these folds, along with several other more time-consuming ones, can be found in Teabag Folded Greetings Cards by Kim Reygate