London Summer Season

I try and get to London two or three times a year.  I am lucky, my brother lives in zone two and is an accommodating host. He loves to visit the same sort of arty stuff as me so we catch up on any exhibitions that I've been keen to see.   He has a bright, airy flat which becomes more homely each time I visit- he's just got into balcony plants for the first time- the hipster succulents are thriving.

 This year I had my heart set on seeing Savage Beauty: The Alexander McQueen retrospective at the V&A.  It has been there most successful show ever and on the weekend that I had booked my travel  for, it sold out so we ended up having to buy membership- there is an option for a membership that allows one guest.  With a train strike as well it did add a little tension to proceedings but it all worked out fine.

We went on Friday evening which is an excellent time to visit the V&A generally.   There are less people around, space to eat and drink and it probably encouraged a little more dressing up in the Savage Beauty attendees- I saw some spectacular outfits.  No cameras allowed but my eyes thrilled at the spectacle.  The variety of galleries and theatrical presentation for McQueen's different themes and catwalk collections was perfection.  Excitement and drama in each room.  There was a quote about the importance of designing clothing from the side as well as the front and back; when looking at the tailoring, the side view and attention to detail on cuffs and collars was exquisite.  Hats, shoes, jewellery as well as the clothes and an extraordinary level of craftspersonship from collaborators- beading, crystals, feathers, film and video artists. Amazing.

Saturday morning was spent at Broadway Market walking to the V&A Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green.  Lunch was at the nearby Gallery Cafe which is a calm and relaxing space to eat vegetarian and vegan food.

The Museum of Childhood is a generously sized building with lots of open space for children and push chairs and a mezzanine exhibition area.  It is a place for nostalgia. 

 In the upper level was a 'Small Stories' Doll's House exhibition telling the stories behind a huge variety of dollhouses.  Twenty contemporary designers had each decorated a single room in the 'Dream House'.  This is Home is Where the Bear is by Helen McGinley a.k.a Mister Peebles.

This detailed little space is Library (a recent plan) by Emma Mawston for Liberty Art Fabric Interiors

On Sunday, I visited the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2015.  Every year, a judging panel sift through thousands of entries and pick and eclectic mixture.  Most of the work is for sale- the lowest price I saw was £150 for a tiny photo print- and the artists are a mix of established Royal Academicians and little-known, unknown or amateur artists.  It makes for a democratic atmosphere and a freedom that seeps into the viewing experience.  The first art work is the dynamic technicolour floor, 'Zobop' made with vinyl tape by Jim Lambie.  You can browse the whole exhibition online.

The greatest triumph of the exhibition is how well such a diverse collection of artworks are displayed.   The curation was excellent- thoughtful and kept your attention through the multitude of galleries.  The exhibitions has been up a while so the 'sold' red dots are in evidence and part of the journey involved me imagining how I'd spend my pennies and marvelling at how others had spent theirs.

Seeing so much art in the one place does make you evaluate what appeals to you and what doesn't.   There was a lot of whimsy and commercialism- images that I would have expected to see in a branch of Paperchase but maybe not a gallery?  There were artworks that challenged and interested me but I would never want to buy and then there were pretties that I couldn't explain but loved the colour, shape and pattern.  The magenta pink Gallery III was a glorious space with its ornate roof and light flooding in.  There was the ubiquitous gin bar in the centre with a lonely bartender- no one wanted gin at noon on a Sunday.

I loved the portrait on the left, 'Megan in a Spotted Silk Blouse' by Chantal Joffe RA.

Urban landscapes are another favourite for me.  This was a generously sized canvas, I liked the higgledy, piggledy look of the high-rise:  'Tower' by Alison Boult. 

My brother loves to take me on a little detour, always on foot and often involving a few extra miles of pavement  pounding.  Saville Row was a treasure.  The highest end gentlemen's outfitter shops on the ground floor and the tailoring guts underneath.

A great trip and inspiration resources are all topped up.

Fat Quarterly Retreat London 2014

It's that time again; Fat Quarterly Retreat is starts this Friday.  I am there for the day on Saturday, not teaching this time just there as a participant and attendee and at this madly busy time of year I am so pleased I am not having to prep class materials for multiple groups and instead I can slowly pull supplies together for the classes I am taking part in.  For identification purposes (as if I don't have enough pics of myself on here) here I am with our dog Lottie.

I am dressmaking like crazy at the moment, a dress for retreat and a few others for the weekend!  I am going to be doing Modern Knots with Thomas Knauer, I have a lovely linen blend for this and for...

embroidering with Jo Avery.  I am using this Lecien Cosmo 'vintage' thread set for the knot and embroidery class and am going to cry some Clover embroidery needles- all their needles seem to be brilliant so I am hoping these are too!

I have my pattern traced and ready for Jo's class- I used a window and stuck the design and fabric on to it, the marker is a Sewline fabric pencil, my favourite way to mark fabric.

My third class is Jen Kingwell's Green Tea and Sweet Beans class so I am sorting through my fabric drawers to pull out a stack of fabrics and hoping to learn some more piecing techniques.  I am very excited about this class indeed!  A whole afternoon of cutting stitching and learning from a master of hand piecing!  My version of her 'Bring Me Flowers' quilt is slowly making progress and is something I am hoping to complete over the summer. 

If you are going and you are reading this, leave me a comment and I'll be sure to look for you!  I am packing all my retreat experience into one day and I am so looking forward to it!  

London

It has been a bumpy 12 months.  This time last year I still had labyrinthitis and I couldn't travel apart from on foot.  Two holidays were cancelled and the weather was truly awful.  Christmas was a challenge.  There was a sudden, awful death to deal with that left us all reeling for months and months. After all that, this summer has been an utter relief.

Prince Albert Memorial

This time last week we were starting long weekend in London.  A few days in a very comfortable, luxurious hotel, meeting up with my brother and getting our cultural top up.  We are all pale, freckled types so sunbeds and pool holidays are out of the question, but we do all like museums and city breaks and London is a treasure trove of the most beautiful sights and experiences.  Starting with my very, very favourite, The V and A.

V and A Gardens

V and A Cafe ceiling  

13th and 14th Century stained and painted glass, V and A

'The Seamstress', Russian plate 1924, V and A

 On Saturday, we toured Westminster Abbey (pricey but worth it), no pics allowed but much awe at its beauty.  I was similalry awed by seeing Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament so close up.

An afternoon of walking along the Southbank and over to Covent Garden with a little shopping for the daughter.

View of St Pauls

I had a totally me made wardrobe including a little shortie wrap robe, made from Art Gallery voile in Branch Silhouette Blue (generously provided by Jacqui at Hantex).  It was a mix of Ann Ladbury vintage pattern book from the 70s and my own invention.  It has sleeves, belt loops and a hanging hook as well as a generous crossover.  It is a short shortie, more of a PJ top but it ideal for travel as it packs easily in a case taking minimal space and is light and airy for the hot weather.

Sunday morning, over to Petticoat Lane for the enormously large market.  Its mainly cheap clothing, shoes, bags accessories and is across many roads.

and then only a short distance away is Spitalfields market, we all loved this.  Lots of cool stuff, vintage clothing, food and pretty nonsense.

We bought some of the best granola I have ever tasted ( I don't think I have written a sentence more yummy mummy and middle class than that, but it really is good).

We split into two directions in the afternoon.  Lula and I went to The Foundling Museum, Damian went to The British Museum for us to join him later.  I have wanted to visit The Foundling Museum for some time.  The hospital collection is truly touching, the tiny tokens left by mothers and to help identiy their child should they ever be able to collect their child.  The history was fascinating.  We sat and listened to interviews from adults who had grown up in the hospital.  I thoroughly recommend it.

The museum has a wonderful record of collaborations with artists including contemporary artist, the latest of whom is Clare Twomey and her ingenious and thought provoking 'Exchange: 1000 Good Deeds' project.  Lula and I got to take part.  We entered a room of tables laid out with white cups and saucers.  We were told we could exchange our token for a cup of our choice; lifting the cup would reveal the good deed we would do in return.   We were allowed 1 choice, if you feel you are not able to so the task, you replace the cup.  There was some flexibility in interpreting the tasks.  

We spent along time reading the saucers of cups already taken and tasks already given: 'smile at 10 strangers today', 'cook a meal for a friend', 'Write a message inside your favourite book and leave it in a place for someone else to find' and so on.  So we chose.  I have donated to MERLIN, £10 can vaccinate 30 children against life threatening diseases.  Lula has made our bed (having no siblings) and we have the cups of a reminder of all the Foundling hospital stood for.  

We had a wonderful time in London, we walked miles and the weather was incredible and made the sights look even more iconic than usual.  And we came home to more sunshine and the  last few days of getting ready for work, prepping for the Exeter Sewing Directory Meet Up on Sat 14th Sept and making the most of free time by a little trip to a local beach, this is Budleigh Salterton.   I feel very lucky indeed.