I painted and drew these yesterday. They are Japanese orchids and relate to the idea I think that children can be dandelions or orchids. Meaning that some will grow and thrive wherever and some will need a lot of TLC. This was said to me recently by a friend. Don’t know how true it is reckon we all need a lot of the latter!

I found this beauty on the pavement in front of me yesterday afternoon. It had been knocked off a flowering bush nearby and would only have got squashed, so I decided to take it home and make a little study. I was so glad I did. These are some of my favourite flowers. I used pencil and watercolour for the observational study and pen and ink with watercolour for the broccoli. We get this vegetable from the market and I’ve wanted to make a little drawing of the bunches for a while now and it was only on Sunday that I got round to it! We ate it then with our Sunday dinner, delicious! These studies form a welcome break from the embroidery I have been concentrating on and gear me up towards moving back into drawing and painting. I have a feeling a painting will be coming next!

Am really pleased to see my most recent artistic statement on the Neoartists website ( I am an associate member with them) and link to this my personal website. They are a great bunch doing some challenging and impressive work. I hope to co-curate a show there next year for painters primarily with Richard Cross under the title ‘The Undiscovered Country’. Wish us luck! Here is the link to Neo, you can find me in the list of artists!

neo:artists

Well I have finally completed my ‘Dawn Cloth’ this week. I used a strong Prussian Blue type thread for the final bit of background to the sky but didn’t quite have enough, so the pinks beckoned again! I am leaving it now and it is in situ on the wall in my little studio. Am still waiting to hear from the facility that offers counselling for sexual abuse survivors if they want me yet for my proposed workshops in embroidery and puppetry. I am well but had the idea if I asked a textiley young person if they would be interested in carrying on this work that might be a good idea with a view to looking forward to the future. I so believe in this work and just don’t want it to disappear down the proverbial rabbit hole. I have a couple of people in mind and will gradually put feelers out. They have to be folk I trust and who get what I am wanting to offer. Wish me luck everyone!