Breaking through.

My apologies for being late with this one.

A rather facetious image. The thought behind the design was a fervent wish that we could have some sunshine. This dates from the dark and windy days of early April when Spring seemed a very distant prospect. As I write this, we have a beautifully sunny and warm day here in Cheshire.

The image is a collection of dyecatchers, cut through to reveal plain blue fabric with a sheer fabric sun with bondawebbed features. Free machine embroidery added to highlight features.

Survivors

My apologies for the bleak subject this time. 

I was looking around the internet for copyright-free poems when I stumbled across this one. It drew such compelling images in my head that I just had to try and get something down.

The words are by Siegfried Sassoon:

Survivors

No doubt they'll soon get well; the shock and strain

Have caused their stammering, disconnected talk.

Of course they're 'longing to go out again,' —

These boys with old, scared faces, learning to walk.

They'll soon forget their haunted nights; their cowed

Subjection to the ghosts of friends who died,—

Their dreams that drip with murder; and they'll be proud

Of glorious war that shatter'd all their pride...

Men who went out to battle, grim and glad;

Children, with eyes that hate you, broken and mad.

Craiglockhart.

October, 1917.

The words drew such a strong reaction from me since I had, some days earlier been listening to a radio broadcast detailing the mental health of today's soldiers. Some things just do not change. 

The words and image are printed onto silk fabric, the background uses the chance-dyed dye catchers I have collected over the years. Lastly, the whole is overlaid with some sheer fabric, and hand stitched.

The 39 steps

I must admit that I really do like the most recent of the versions of this story. The original book was written by John Buchan in 1915, and is very much of it's time. The book and the older versions (starring Robert Donat, Kenneth More and then Robert Powell) all have a weak and rather insignificant female character. The latest version with Rupert Penry-Jones, has a rather feisty female character which gives a really interesting twist to the story.

For those not familiar with the plot, the main character, Richard Hannay becomes embroiled in foiling a pre-first world war German spy ring. He is chased around the wilds of Scotland by the spies in a car. They also use an aeroplane. In the book, the phrase "39 steps" refers to an area on the coast where there are 39 steps leading down to a harbour. 

Chatting to my daughter, she pointed out the similarity of the chase by aeroplane to that portrayed in the Hitchcock film "North by Northwest". Interestingly, Alfred Hitchcock also directed the earlier 1935 version starring Robert Donat.

For my version, I used images handstitched onto sheer voiles, with bondawebbed trees and running figure made from dyed scrim. The green background is painted fabric, whilst the remaining fabrics are accidentally dyed dye-catchers.

Days of wine, roses and castles

This small quilt recalls some very happy memories of when my daughters were young. We had a boat and travelled the canals during the summer holidays. As a family we had huge fun with "Cats Paw", which we kept for  several years. We sold the boat when we moved house twenty years ago.

The photos featured here date from 1990 and our summer holiday that year. The small figure on the back of the boat with me is my younger daughter, then aged 6.

I should explain, that the "roses and castles" of the title refer to the style of decoration on narrowboats on the canals in England and Wales. The decoration on "Cats Paw" is not really quite in the same tradition - I preferred to paint cheerful daisies. I must also apologise for the dreadful photograph. I shall try taking another photo once the weather improves here - the daylight is so dull at the moment.