This past weekend I was lucky enough to spend all day Saturday at Historic Savage Mill attending a class at this fabulous store called The Queen's Ink.
Savage Mill is an old mill that has been renovated and now houses wonderful shops, antique stores and restaurants. It's extremely quaint and located near historic Laurel, Maryland. The Queen's Ink has a prime location within Savage Mill and it's classroom space is one of the best I've ever experienced..nice large windows with plenty of natural light....
Photo courtesy of Debby Schuh
I completed two projects that day -- the first was making a blank book called "Wonderful Things".
Debby's inspiration for this book was her 50th birthday. She was not looking forward to turning 50 and had a negative opinion about it, when a friend sent her a wish that 50 wonderful things would happen to her that year. It was a defining moment which changed her thinking and she set out to journal 50 wonderful things that DID happen to her when she was 50.
I was so excited to actually complete this little book in two hours and I haven't decided whether or not I will give it away or keep and use it. I was delighted to learn all the various techniques that were included inside...You may see this resurrected sometime in the future in fabric...
The other project I was excited by was this rolodex card holder...I think we made over 50 ATC (artist trading card) sized cards that can be placed in this holder.
There was a woman in the class planning to use this as a guest book for her 50th Wedding Anniversary party. Each guest will write a note on the cards and she will have it as a memory of the event. Again, my mind couldn't stop thinking of the uses for this type of project and it was lots of fun to be working in "miniature".
I loved that Debby kept the class moving at a quick pace so that we actually finished our projects by the time class was over. I had a great sense of accomplishment -- I guess I'm so used to embroidery projects which are NOT as quick.
On Sunday, I played the role of Fencing Mom since I had to take Jack to an all-day tournament in Abingdon, MD. I took my camera with me so I could capture some shots of Jack unawares. I'm still trying to take that one good picture that I can send out with my Christmas cards...
When Jack said he wanted to fence, I knew nothing about the sport. Two years later, I've grown quite fond of it and I'm proud that he's chosen such a civilized sport where he can look so handsome and debonair for the pictures...
Lest I leave you without any needlework to whet your appetite, I give you this fabulous fencing uniform designed by Alexander McQueen in honor of the 2008 Olympics. The jacket is completely embroidered with shisha mirrors and silk. Isn't it yummy?
Twelve fashion designers were commissioned by Lane Crawford, the Chinese luxury retailer, to design a uniform of their favorite sport. While they’re not exactly sport-friendly and aero-dynamic, these garments sure are beautiful. You can check out all of them on this slide-show here.
7 comments:
Wow! Great post. Very interesting. You are so lucky to live in an area that so many talented artists come to teach. Its always a treat to visit your blog. Thank You!
Wow, Susan, I think you did it! I love the last photo of your son; it's a keeper IMHO. Boy, my sister would go nuts in that shop... And in answer to your question, yes, it's called beauty berry and sometimes just beauty bush. Have you started your KAL sweater yet?
What an impossibly gorgeous space to work in!
Great photo of you and your teacher, wonderful class too. There is a real design link between scrapbooking and CQing, for sure.
Fencing will teach that boy so much, including real grace. How cool!
I vote for the last photo!
Yes, I have been very tempted to get involved with scrapbooking too. Like AA says, it's a lot like CQ and since I already have all the fabric, I stayed with CQ. I do have a stack of mags I look at from time to time, though.
The (more) instant gratification of paper crafting is very appealing. Sometimes I just don't like to wait the amount of time it takes to stitch something. Lately I've been thinking about drawing on fabric as an alternative to stitching.
What great pictures of Jack. He cuts a very dashing figure.
It looks like a wonderfull workshop you had, and what a gorgeous shop!
I too like the last picture of your son, although they are all good.
What a fun post!!!! Fun class, adorable son and the shisha fencing costume beats all. My Goddaughter from Romania, now living in Denmark has been fencing since she was a child. Her fencing friends formed a long arch with their foils at her wedding. I have a picture of her and her husband walking through the arch... it's beautiful.
Hugz, Robin A.
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