Cheep's epic tail

Cheep wants to show off his tail . . . in fact showing off is what Cheep does best, he does it to impress girls! He also guards his patch and warns his girls of any dangers, four legged ones and two! I was very pleased that after a formal introduction to photographer Laura Edwards when she spent a whole day taking photographs for the Country Living Magazine article, he behaved courteously (phew! good boy).

But I think Cheep is a tiny bit disappointed that in the published article he only appears in a small black and white photo and from a back view, he'd secretly been expecting to be on the cover in full colour.

So I'll let Cheep show off in a whole blog post to himself.

Cheep hatched in September 2011 under my neighbour's broody, who instantly decided she didn't want to be a mother hen and tried to kill the newly hatched chick. So Cheep was raised in my studio – he thinks he is human and that I am his mum!

Cheep, on my desk, September 2011

Cheep is now just over two years old, after his near-death experience he regrew his missing feathers and is now fully fledged in his mature plummage. Cockerels are far swankier than hens, they have extra long and dense feathers which drape over the basic plumage which is more or less the same as that of a hen. And as Cheep proved, these long dense feathers can save them from mortal wounds if attacked.

So, as you can see, Cheep has long silky Neck and Saddle Hackles in a beautiful mixture of black, gold, copper and irridescent green. If he wants to be aggressive, he can *raise his hackles* and appear to be three times his normal size! He can really scare unsuspecting visitors to our garden by appearing at their ankles in fully puffed-up mode!

And then there is the magnificent tail! In fact technically the tail is just the stiff straight feathers that sprout from the fleshy stump or 'parson's nose'. What makes a cockerel's tail special are the Tail Coverts – the soft draping feathers at the base of his back, which fall either side of the stiff tail. These feathers have downy fluff at the base which gives extra padding around his hips - rather like something Henry VIII might wear!

And the two very long curved feathers which drape right over the top of the tail, are the Sickles - and they are shaped just like a pair of sickle blades. Bigger really is better in the chicken world!

What does Cheep do all day? He doesn't have to eat continuously to produce eggs, like his girls do. But he keeps himself busy escorting his girls to find the best food, this may mean excavation-projects in the flower-beds . . . but mostly it impresses the girls.

Afterall, that's what it's all about – impressing girls and fertilizing their eggs ;-) 

 "Follow me darling,

I know where there's a nice nest ;-)"

Cheep and me, November 2013

Cheep and I respect each other, I know he could become aggressive but won't if I treat him with respect and care. Shared moments in the garden with Cheep are very special . . . then I let him swagger off to impress his girls.

Celia

xx

Sew Me! Take 2 (not just with quilters in mind)

I haven't forgotten to tell you about Cheep's magnificent new tail, the photos have been taken but I have something I must show you first . . .

Remember the Sew Me! project? Well there was another very special secret sewer, Stephanie or as she is know to her many blog, facebook and etsy followers, Madame Millefeuilles. I knew that she would be very busy with her many projects and her lovely family but she's just revealed what she's been making with my fabrics over on the Millefeuilles blog. Thank you so much Stephanie for taking part in Sew Me! xx

In addition to the lovely crisp linen/cotton canvas that Su, Tracy and Gina used and can be seen here on my Sew Me! Pinterest board; I've now added some smaller versions of Stripe and Sprigs with quilters in mind. And to test them out I thought I'd have a bash at machine quilting.

On holiday in Canada in 2001 I bought a book with some lovely ideas for quilting blocks, Scrappy Duos: Color Recipes for Quilting Blocks. Of course it got put on the book shelf and I never did any quilting . . . until this summer!

I had 5 fat quarters of fabric:

Ruby Small Sprigs

Stone Small Sprigs

Sea Small Sprigs

Stone Small Stripe

Sea Small Stripe

From these I was able cut squares for this design

I then machine stitched them together, the book explains this very clearly and it means being very methodical and precise – which is actually very calming and satisfying to do. It doesn't take long to put all the pieces together.

I wanted to try my hand at hand quilting – I don't think any of my vintage sewing machines is cut out for machine quilting and I wanted to work on it while sitting of the sofa in the evenings. I've no idea if this is the 'right' way to do it, but I used a thin cotton batting (actually it's that thermal stuff that's used to make curtains warmer) and backed it with soft well-washed vintage cotton sheeting. The thread is a fine crochet cotton which just happened to be the perfect shade of blue.

I enjoyed working out where the stitching should go to make patterns around the squares.

When the busyness of this pre-Christmas season is over, I'll have time to make it into a large cushion cover/pillow case. 

The fabric is Retired Kona Cotton (quilting weight). Rather frustratingly Spoonflower have introduced a new version of their Kona Cotton with brighter more intense colours. So if you order make sure it's the RETIRED Kona Cotton rather than the new one.

I'll have to do a test swatch and adjust the colours for the new fabric . . . oh well, that's manufacturing for you!

But on a positive note, it's lovely to sew - doesn't slip and irons really easily (though you do have to iron on the reverse or use a protective cloth just in case the heat discolours the fabric).

Mmmmmm this was fun! maybe I'll make a whole king-size bed cover one day?

All my fabrics can be ordered from my Spoonflower shop.

And a huge thank you to Stephanie for adding her needle skills to the Sew Me! project.

Celia

xx

Cheep's tail coming next, I promise x

Probably the last seaside ice-cream of 2013

The delivering-work-to-galleries season is here, I always slighting underestimate the amount of time it takes to frame prints, pack cards and compiling itemised lists in duplicate.

But I try to combine taking the work to a gallery with some time for relaxing and enjoying a day out. In the past week I've had a super giggly day out to Norwich with a dear friend who has just dipped her toes back into the blogging pond; a wonderful day showing a very special New York blogger the out of the way corners of Cambridge; and then yesterday Cliff and I had a jaunt to the seaside.

We were blessed with good weather, it was mild with fleeting sunny spells through the broken thin cloud . . . so not bad for 1st November! Our first stop was to deliver my prints and cards to The Gallery at Snape Maltings. I'm still a little excited that my work is in the same gallery as Maggi Hambling's.
I love this tranquil view of the river and reed beds and the quay at the Maltings.

With the delivery done we ferreted around the antiques barn (but resisted buying, mindful that our house is full of 'stuff', we need to sell things rather than buy more!) Then we headed further East to the coast at Aldeburgh and a nice lunch at The Lighthouse, fish and chips of course!

We had to follow that with a walk down to the beach to see the grey North Sea . . . very churned up but calm again after the St Jude's Day Storm.

And we couldn't resist having an ice-cream from the hut by the Boating Pond . . . probably our last seaside ice-cream of 2013.

And then it was the long drive right across Suffolk (a very wide county!) to home and supper of the best potted shrimps from a fisherman's shed on the beach and delicious bread from the Pump Street bakery at Snape to remind us of our day.


I have a little space now to work on a couple of commissions and plan more work . . . and maybe another blog post, Cheep wants to show of his swanky new tail to you!


Celia
xx

Country Living Magazine - December issue

The cat's out of the bag!

Some of you might have noticed already . . . there's a feature about me and the inspirations for my block prints in this year's Christmas issue of Country Living Magazine. If you subscribe you probably received it last week, but it will be on the news stands very soon.

I'll tell you a few behind the scenes secrets . . .

I've had to keep this under my hat for 10 months.

I designed my "Christmas 2013" designs just before last Christmas (which was weird!)

The photos, were taken by Laura Edwards early last February when Suffolk was under a blanket of snow.

I pretended to draw non-existing birds in a hedge for one of the shots.

Cheep and his hens upstage me in another photo.

The studio assistants refused to co-operate.

Before writing the article, Louise Elliot spent a whole day with me in the summer, both in my studio and visiting some of my favourite local places.


I enjoyed meeting both Louise and Laura, hope you like the feature they put together.

Celia
xx

St Jude . . . SuperStorm or storm in a teacup?

The weather forecasters are issuing a warning of a huge storm system sweeping eastwards on the jet-stream over the Altantic. St Jude (it's due to hit land just after midnight on Monday, St Jude's day) may not be as bad as the Great Storm that flattened thousands of trees in 1987 or the Burns Day Storm in 1990, but we've been warned to . . . er? stay indoors and have a cup of tea, or something.

However, today dawned bright and breezy, the sky was a deep blue and clouds scudded briskly across the sky. I felt the need to get out there in the fields, to go for a walk.

I started by walking under the Lime trees in the churchyard opposite my studio, the colours are swiftly changing from green to pale primrose.

Out along the footpath that follows the Stour Brook the gently sloping valley fields are bright green with young shoots of winter wheat and the trees in the woods have barely a tinge of autumnal tints.

I love the framed views through breaks in the hedgerows, as winter creeps toward us I'll look for migrating flocks of birds; and fallow deer and hares nibbling the crops. But today I was enjoying the sunshine, the sound of the wind in the trees and just being happy to stride out in my walking boots. If you follow me on Twitter you'll be aware of my slow recovery from Achilles problems which has meant months of not being able to walk far on uneven ground or to wear my boots. Well, I'm happy to report that I'm on the mend, the damage to the surrounds to my tendons is healing well and as long as I do as I'm told by the physio and the podiatrist, I'll be able to gradually build up to 6 or 7 mile walks this winter.  

This is a huge relief, outside in the fields is where I gather inspiration and walking gently distils the ideas into images I jot down when I get back to my studio. Like the beautiful silver and faded gold of the Crack Willow leaves against the blue sky; or the crouched shapes of the woods.

I walked as far as the derelict WWII Nissan huts where the Barn Owls live.

On the way home I noted the black Sloes in the hedgerows and made a mental note to check whether we have enough gin to make a bottle of Sloe Gin from the Sloes in our garden.

Of course my hand was full of leaves I couldn't resist picking up along the way . . . Oak, Hawthorn, Pear, Lime, Aspen, Dogwood, Gelder Rose and my favourite buttery yellow Field Maple.

So, if you're in the path of the St Jude's Day Storm tonight and tomorrow morning, don't get blown away and stay safe. Let's hope St Jude remains the patron of desperate causes and not synonymous with a devastating weather event. 

"May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be adored, glorified, 

loved and preserved now and forever. 

Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on us, 

Saint Jude worker of Miracles, pray for us, 

Saint Jude helper and keeper of the hopeless, pray for us, 

Thank you Saint Jude."

Celia
xx

My blog is a RHS Gardening Blogs 2013 Finalist

I could hardly believe the email I received last night . . . my blogpost "As UN-like as peas in a pod" has been been shortlisted for the RHS Gardening Blogs Competition 2013!

There are 10 finalists and I have to admit that they are all very very good. The winner will be decided by a public vote . . . so please follow the link above or click on the green button in the side bar, then scroll down to find all 10 blogs (mine is at the bottom by the way).

As as finalist I've already won a lovely prize – I can attend the press preview day of one of the RHS garden shows . . . maybe I'll go to Chelsea! If I do, I'll definitely blog about it.


Do you like the flower arrangement? It was inspired by the amazing floral arrangements I saw at Het Loo while on holiday. The in-house florist (can you imagine that job?!) creates the most stunning exuberant arrangements in all the palace rooms, using the beautiful antique ceramics as containers. We had a peek inbetween the flowers and the secret was tall, tiered up containers ;-) so I experimented with a tall jar standing inside a Victorian planter . . . it looks OK don't you think?


Celia
xx

Tah-daaah! My first fabric collection

I've wanted to do this for years – adapt my block print designs for a repeat pattern for fabric. Then someone pointed me towards Spoonflower, and I got very excited!

There were other options of course . . .
Such as, printing directly onto fabric from hand cut blocks (tempting but it would mean completely reorganising my studio and I had other priority projects this summer)then printing to order - and I don't think I could handle the stress (perfectionist).
Or finding a UK digital fabric printer – yes there are some good ones BUT I would need to order everything and then resell it.

With a Spoonflower "studio" I could upload all my design ideas and order swatches/trial lengths and test them out before then opening a shop for anyone to order from. Fun and no wastage :-) Everthing is printed to order using eco-friendly water-based ink on beautiful natural fibre fabrics.

I've put together a collection Birds Wedding based on my print and popular card design 'The birds' wedding day'.

There is a large repeat design 'Hearts', a solid colour with small white motifs 'Sprigs' each are available in three colourways: Ruby, Sea and Stone. And also a modern Regency-style  'Stripe', which is available in the two pastel colours, Sea and Stone.

Well, the sample lengths arrived and I skipped around a bit because they were very very lovely. Then I snipped them up into pieces and made up three bundles of the beautiful linen/cotton soft furnishing quality canvas for my "Secret Sewers".

Later today they are going to blog about what they made, so pop over to visit:
Tracy's blog – where there is some superb patchwork (a table runner, coasters and cushions) and a give-away!
Over on Gina's blog there is a stunning tea cosy, a lovely red cushion and a make-up purse (which she's giving away to one lucky person)
And on Su's blog her makes are a large comfy cushion and padded case for her iPad.

For myself, I ordered a length of the cotton voile fabric printed in the Stone Stripe design . . .

My vintage Singer Starlet helped me stitch it into a simple curtain (a pole slides through a large hem at the top)

It makes the little window in the old stable room look very charmimg :-)

Although it was very difficult to photograph because the room is always quite dark . . . so I took the curtain outside and pegged it onto an apple tree to watch it ripple in the breeze.

And to admire my neat stitches :-) In fact it was a dream to sew, no slipping and the design makes it easy to align the hems perfectly straight.

So there we have it! 'Birds Wedding' my first ever fabric collection, available to order here.
Please don't let ordering from the US put you off, it is incredible efficient and even if you have to pay a little extra shipping/vat (duty is only charged for parcels over £135) the prices are very reasonable for such good quality fabrics.

btw I've started a Pinterest board Sew me! to collect together all the things that have been made from my fabrics, so if you buy some fabric and make something, please let me know and I'll Pin it :-)  
Celia
xx

PS with quilters in mind two small scale prints, "Small Sprigs" and "Small Stripe", will be available soon (I am trialing them in the quilting weight cotton this month).

The Secret Sewing Project

I promised in a previous post fabrics designed by me . . . and there isn't long to wait!

In fact sample lengths arrived in my studio earlier in the summer, but I knew I'd be too busy to make things from them . . .

then I had a cunning plan :-)

The Secret Sewing Project

I enlisted the help of three of clever creative blogging friends who I knew wouldn't be able to resist a free parcel of fabric :-D

And I invited them to . . .

Then, inspired by the excited emails I received with attached photos of work-in-progress, I got out Starlet and did some sewing myself :-) The fabric was so lovely I've found my long-lost stitching mojo!

The Secret Sewing Project big 'reveal' is coming to a blog near you very soon . . . Friday 4th October is tah-daaah day :-)

I'm excited to see what Gina, Su and Tracy have been stitching, aren't you?!

And my trusty Starlet will share her 'make' too!

Celia

xx

Psst! I've heard a rumour there may be a give-away

In a gardener's garden

Gardens, like rooms, fall into many categories; some are beautifully conceived spaces with each element carefully selected, some are work spaces and others are the result of one person's personal passion.

While on holiday in Holland earlier this month, I was able to visit a garden I'd dreamed of seeing for many years – Anja and Piet Oudolf's garden at Hummelo. I've been an admirer of Piet Oudolf's work for many years and have visited many of his gardens – I love the landscapes he creates inspired by nature, art and time.

It was a glorious late summer day, we were the first visitors to arrive at the garden on the outskirts of Hummelo village surrounded by open fields. Anja was watering the plants and saw us drive in, she showed us a cool shady place to park the car, then invited us to take our time enjoying the garden.

We had the garden all to ourselves for over an hour before a few other visitors arrived, what a treat . . . I could pretend this was my garden!

This is the back garden, a series of rectangular beds with narrow paths running down to the end of the garden where a painted cut-out 'statue' stands under a tree.

The front garden is the one you may have seen photographed in books and magazines, an area surrounded by tall blocks of clipped hedges contains a tapestry of Piet Oudolf's signature grasses and perennials. I noticed that there are now fewer hedges – the space has evolved and is now a more open and softer than its former design.

Oudolf's style is all about texture and movement . . . and time. In late summer the garden is a rustling, shimmering, sea of grasses and seed-heads. 

And what photographs can't convey is the sound . . . of thousands of buzzing insects and the swish and rustle of the breeze through the ever moving stems.

I think this is the most inspiring garden I've ever visited!


And now for a complete contrast – the garden of an eccentric English gentleman plant-hunter and gardener . . .

Last weekend was Open House London, we took the opportunity to see inside the house of one of Britain's greatest gardeners E A Bowles . . . if you've not heard of him, I bet you know Wallflower 'Bowles Mauve'! 

Edward Augustus Bowles lived at Myddleton House in Enfield; now the offices for Lea Valley Parks, the ground floor rooms are grade I listed and were open for just one day last Saturday. However, the gardens and new visitor centre/museum have been restored and are open throughout the year. The gardens encompass Bowles passions for Alpine meadows, native water-side plants, bulbs and the weird and wonderful of the plant world . . . as well as odd pieces of architectural salvage!

Cliff and I visited many years ago, before the restoration; I remember the secretive, rambling, overgrown garden. Now the greenhouses and cold frames are beautifully restored and full of Bowles' favourite plants and bulbs. The rock garden restoration is still in progress, but will soon be a fitting tribute to its creator where his ashes rest.

Well – with all that inspiration I couldn't wait to get to work on our garden! Now the tree has gone, the left side of our patio has been transformed into a cutting-garden full of flowers grown from Higgledy Garden seeds.

What was needed was another large border to balance it on the other side . . . to fill with perennials and grasses, with spaces inbetween to grow flowering annuals. Cheep and the under-gardeners helped mark out a shape on the lawn and we've started digging :-)

There's still a lot more digging to do, but I've already planted the plants I bought as souvenirs from Myddleton house – and I can admire progress from the bedroom window. 

I've taken some of my favourite books off the shelf to make lists of plants to track down and make more plans for the new plot :-)

Who are your favourite gardeners? Have you ever visited their gardens?

Celia
xx