Tea Cosy making

Wednesday is the day my friend and I get together to make things and inspire each other in our textile works (and generally have a good time).  Sometimes we go out and get inspiration.  Last week we visited the Buda Historic Home and Garden.
This week we attended a workshop at Bundoora Homestead. We worked in a beautiful old room with a chandelier and a beautiful ceiling.

The aim was to make either a base for a tea cosy or embellishments to add to a base.  We could choose crochet or knitting.
It is years since I have done any crocheting, and I tended to do granny squares and other very flat work.  So, of course, we chose one of the more difficult, textured patterns!

But our teacher was up to the challenge and got us far enough to think that we may understand how the pattern goes together.  It will need more making to get the idea firmly in my mind though. Actually, the two teachers did a good job as most people chose different designs and patterns and there was quite a bit of assistance needed.

As you can see, I didn't get much done and need to practise. 

We made sure that we were using Australian or UK terminology.  I once mistakenly bought a pattern for a scarf that was from the US and, even though I had printed out the comparative stitch descriptions, I kept getting mixed up about what I was supposed to be doing.  I would read DC and do the Australian movement even when I had the US description in front of me.  It was just instinctive to do what I had learnt so long ago.  I gave up in disgust.  Now I may get it out and try again.  I am feeling the need to have some knitting or crochet on the go - it must be autumn.  It will probably mean that I have to write the pattern out - not sure I can be bothered.  I might just find a new pattern.  There are so many around these days and many are free on the internet - but you have to be careful to know what country they originate from, what terminology they use.  Problems, problems.

One lady made a gorgeous pansy that can be added to a base.

Sorry about the focus, I don't seem to have much control with my phone.

The workshop was to support the Tea Cosy Festival that is coming up.  Last year there were all sorts of tea cosies made using a wide range of techniques and materials.  Some were quite practical and some were just amazingly outrageous.  All proceeds go to Cancer Council Victoria. They are hoping to have 500 tea cosies this year.

More pictures of Turkey

While I'm giving my back a rest from the tapestry, I'll put up some photos I took in Turkey.  The focus here is of interesting things we saw at roadside stops.

Protection from the evil eye.  We saw these all over the place.

This is one of several ladies we saw selling their amazingly intricate, hand-done crocheted doilies.  We saw the ladies making them while they sat and waited for custom.

More hand-made, crocheted work.  The crochet hook was tiny!

A tree covered with tissues and fabric, whirling dervish  figurines in the foreground.

The Discussion Continues

The discussion about nudes in art, especially in textile art, continues with members of my group. There seems to be a range of thoughts on it but I must say that if it is art, then I don't think there should be any difference between painting, prints, sculpture or textiles. It all needs to be done respectfully - but that becomes an issue when people have different ideas about what is respectful and what is titillation and what is exploitation.
However, there were a couple of links I found interesting. This one, Bid-4-a-Cause, aims to raise money for women with breast cancer and I found that even here, there were a couple there that had nude female figures. Obviously, the aim is not to titillate but to celebrate the human figure.
The other link I came across was a bit more light-hearted. It has some images that some people have found offensive but I must say that I just found them amusing. It's called What Not to Crochet. There are some hilarious items and comments on it. Some of the items make me wonder why anyone would bother! It seems some people have too much time on their hands.