A Year of Nature Walks....

Hello lovelies!

How are you all?

Deccies are packed safely away now until the next Yuletide,

our little home has finally been dusted again and January awaits with bitterly cold eagerness!

I suffer so bad with the cold as I have several ailments that abhor the cold but 

despite this I LOVE this time of year...

I love the winter sparkle

I love the winter crispness

I also love the winter hues at this time of year

New beginnings

Frosty mornings

time to stitch a new patch on your

life's quilt of memories...

So having gathered my thoughts after a very stressful end to 2106

I am now ready to face a new year ahead of beautiful smiles...

I very rarely make New Year's Resolutions as I often 

fall at the first hurdle of just the basics....consistency!

So instead, my philosophy in life has always been the same since a teenager....

slow and steady wins the race...

I write lists and have fun watching them slowly be ticked off, as and when.

This year my list consist of only one thing so far and that is to make myself get out more

to walk and photograph Mother Nature in all her finest splendour.

I know I do that already but this year I am on a mission to

make it a more determined effort.

All of my workshops and exhibits this year will have a theme running through them...

'Inspired By Nature'

Mother Nature is always waiting for a visit from us.

She offers us a free hug when we need one.

She listens to us when we need an ear.

And in return she offers silence for those who listen.

I have decided that photographs from my  #ayearofnaturewalks will be posted on my Instagram page

for anyone who wishes to have a nosey or join me.

You can find me here on the link Tilly Rose Instagram

I have been teaching a variety of crafts based around the ethos of well-being for so many years now

and I always use Mother Nature as an inspiration to encourage others to 'have-a-go' at something...

I shall be using my photographs on my workshops to continue this during the year.

I will be showcasing many techniques that some of you may not have encountered before or perhaps have not even considered having a go at doing.

I love to push boundaries...

I like to bridge the gap between a variety of crafts, combine them with my love of cloth and thread and add layers to my projects.

I always add in a flavour of nostalgia of course and 

mix in a blend of creativity to shout happiness from the roof tops.

* slow stitching * free motion embroidery * patchwork * mixed media * textile art * weaving * 

I will also be experimenting with new products and 

giving you tips on how to include them in your own designs.

If you are interested, I shall be posting details of my workshops onto my website and Facebook page next week once I have given them a little TLC and a fresh lick of paint for 

the New Year ahead so to speak!

I am only doing a few workshops so don't miss out on booking your place if

you are interested as I know they will go fast.

In the meantime I shall wander the paths and byways up and down the UK

to capture snippets of beauty that so often get overlooked by most.

You never know we may just bump into each other now and then!

Wishing you a beautiful weekend my lovelies...

toodle-ooh for now!

A Spoonful Of Sugar...

hello my lovelies...

Gosh I have so missed saying hi to you all!

Time always seems to propel faster when I want it to slow down...

Lately I have tried to regularly take a few hours out when I have got some spare time to talk with Mother Nature

and fill my sketchbooks with a few doodles...

Coming from the Fens of open land and vast skies I get the urge to reconnect with Mother Earth.

A day doodling is like taking a spoon of medicine when my soul is weary.

I always use my doodles as my inspiration when designing.

I've come to the conclusion that I was definitely born in the wrong era!

I should've been an Edwardian lady who meambled down the lanes capturing Mother Nature's

gems with my camera and notebook.

But hey... I can still be that lady just wearing my jeans and T-shirts!

I daydream all the time whilst on my walks

Something I was always getting in trouble for as a child...

I would make up stories in my head whilst walking of  animals meeting flowers, visiting different scenes.

Often I would write about them and my dream of becoming a writer has never waned... who knows one day...

Every little snippet of gorgeousness seems to capture my soul.

I'm an avid reader of all kinds of books but I especially love

the old ones (of course I hear you all say!)

Lately I have been building up my collection of Flora & Fauna...

So how do I use them when designing?

Well you may well ask the question but sadly I never have the answer 

My work is very organic and just evolves by itself...a little like a sourdough bread.

it has a life of it's own...

I start designing with thread, add in a little slow stitching and gradually add layers of texture and colour over a number of days, sometimes months or even days if I re-visit a design I find stashed away in a safe place every now and then!

Here's some of my work of late...

I never thought I would ever be lucky enough to indulge in a way of life that I hold so dear in  my heart and get paid to do it...

What ever form of crafting you lovelies indulge in, allow it to immerse itself around you like a great big hug.

Crafting is the best type of therapy needed for our minds to keep us on an even keel

in our busy society.

Indulge...

Inhale...

be still...

Enjoy.

Till the next time my lovelies...

Toodle-ooh for now!

Creating an Autumnal Design - FREE TUTORIAL

Hello my lovelies...

Following on from my last blog post, as promised, here is my tutorial on how to use Mother Nature's inspiration to help you with designing a project....

The number one question I am always asked is "As a textile artist, how do you know where to start when designing?"

the answer is simple... I don't!

I'm a firm believer in letting a design evolve in an organic way and apply this philosophy

to all my designing but I know that many crafters find this concept quite hard to follow.

If you love stitching, by hand or machine, you will want to experiment with colour, texture and of course think of your own designs.

Once you have gained confidence in your actual stitching from using a pattern you will want to move on and start designing your own projects.

I've previously written a tutorial on how to gain inspiration from Mother Nature to help you get started which you can read here

Today I am showing you how to use those ideas in the next stage of your designing...

Using elements from Mother Nature...

I hope you will gain some ideas from the following tutorial....

Creating an Autumnal Design

Last week I collected these leaves on an early morning walk not knowing quite 

what I wanted to do with them.

I simply loved the colours, the smells, the shapes and the textures!

I wanted to capture their beauty for future projects.

So, how to get started transforming them into a design?

Start by photographing each leaf in turn to show more detail and finer points to include in your design.

 Take time to look carefully at the colours, the shades and how the pattern emerges together

The next step is to capture your leaves actually onto paper for future reference.

You do not need to be an artist to do this....

Using a normal HB pencil and piece of plain white paper, simply trace a fine line around each leaf in turn to help you become familiar with the shape of each leaf.

Please do not worry about being exact because you can add a little more detail once you start shading.

You may want to only use the outline of your leaf for a particular design rather than a full leaf so try experimenting with ideas.

I like to use Derwent Artist's drawing pencils but you can use any medium you prefer.

You may prefer to use felt -tips (for a firmer outline), charcoal or even watercolour pencils

that you can later add more detail to.

The process is simply to take things back to basics and look at the shape of the leaf

and how the shading alters the actual look of the leaf.

Allow yourself permission to take time and focus on the leaf itself.....

These doodles will form the foundation of your designs however you decided to use them.

You can keep them as a visual reference and if you combine them with your original photos

you will have a choice of designs.

I chose a few of my leaves to combine to compare shapes and designs....

Here are a few questions that may help you decide what to look for when doodling...

Do you want to capture the glossiness of the surface?

Have you looked carefully at the leaf veins?

How many colours will you need to use?

Don't forget you DON'T have to use the exact colouring...

It is your interpretation.

You are simply using this as part of deciding how you would use your leaves in your design.

There are no right or wrong ways!

Even if you have no idea of how your leaves will be used in a design as yet you will have your doodles in your reference library that you can use time and time again....

You may want to use them for 

- hand embroidery

- free motion embroidery

- machine embroidery

-applique

- mixed media collage

- card making

I have used my designs on a piece of calico with some free motion embroidery

which I may make into a bigger piece of textile art

You can see that I have used the actual size of the leaves but you can of course reduce or 

increase your sizes to suit your project.

I often draw with my enbroidery threads creating shading as I work but you may want to work on top of your designs if you have maybe painted them onto fabric.

Of course, you will need to make sure you use washable markers if you intend to launder your actual project.

If you would like some more inspiration for Autumnal projects you can check out my Pinterest board

here

I hope these few simple rules will help

when starting to design...

I would love to see some of your lovely projects...

Happy stitching...

Tilly

x x x

Autumnal Inspiration....

Hello my lovelies!

November already.....

Wowie.

Just exactly where has this year disappeared to?

(answers on a postcard pleased to Tilly @confusedoldlady.com)

It really doesn't seem possible that we are turning our thoughts towards that

time of year....

dare I actually say the  'C' word out loud?

As many of you know I'm really not a lover of the torrent heat of summer but neither am I a fan of the bitterly cold Winter.

 I much prefer the gorgeous seasons of Spring & Autumn...

the seasons when you can wander out in just a thick wooly, some boots and a warm scarf to keep your neck all snuggled.

How about you?

I absolutely adore walking in the Autumn mists and smelling the change of season in the air...

Last week I managed a beautiful walk early in the morning when most people were asleep.

Greeted with early morning mists, dewy cobwebs and damp carpets of muddy grass I ventured out with my little camera for company.

At times like this, I do wish I had a lovely dog to have as a faithful friend to accompany me on my wanderings but hey, you can't have everything in life I guess...

My mission?

Simply to take in the sights, smells and sounds of Autumn early in the morning.

I've always been a fan of early morning since a teenager, when I had a paper round.

There was always something quite magical about the quietness of the day.

My thoughts have never altered and I still love to walk early in the morning when I can.

Mother Nature didn't disappoint and I managed to snap loads of beauties...

I do wish I had a better camera to get the really fine details and sharper colours.

(It's on my Christmas list!)

I love to save my shots for inspiration when designing especially when doing some free motion embroidery.

I always go home feeling very inspired from the sights I capture however big or small and then love taking some time out to doodle away in my journal a little, like a modern version of the Edwardian lady - Edith Holden.

I wonder if she would've enjoyed my sketches and embroideries?

As I wandered home with my collection of wet leaves I had collected along the way I decided I wanted to do a little tutorial for you all to help get started when taking inspiration from Mother Nature as many of you lovelies have said you sometimes struggle with knowing how to start etc.

Watch out for my next blog post with all the details...

In the meantime I'm off for a cuppa or two...

Will you join me?

Toodle-ooh til the next my lovelies!

Tilly

x x x