02/03/2021

Well, March has rolled back around again... In the words of a book blogger I follow, "We Have Always Lived in the Month of March," by Shirely Jackson. It's been such a very, very difficult and strange year, but I think we all seem to be feeling a bit more hopeful. I have my vaccination on Friday (I'm in the moderate risk group) and my Dad has had his too, so that is a positive for my family, which we're incredibly grateful for. Another positive is I'm borrowing my Dad's old laptop whilst I save up for mine to be fixed! 

The last couple of weeks have been mainly admin focussed (so the laptop has been very much needed) and quite a lot of practical work has taken a back seat. But I do have a few new things to share...

Here's a pile of crochet squares I've been working on. In my final year of art school I made a piece called 'Softer Landings' where I yarn bombed the main staircase of the Ruskin and I want to return to that project and expand it. My current plan is named 'Softening Sheffield' - I've applied for some council funding (please cross your fingers for me), but whether I get it or not, I plan on making a series of pieces over this coming Summer. I need to make a lot more crochet squares - I can do about 50 a day, but it makes my wrist hurt a bit, so I might need to spread my making out a bit more.

Another piece I'm working on is a new textiles banner, in pinks - pink crochet onto pink faux fur fluffy fabric - it will be a sister piece to a honey monster-is yellow banner I made for my boyfriend a couple of years ago. Pixel crochet is one of my favourite ways of making; it's time consuming and a bit fiddly and it's not exactly a 'cool' medium, but I find it a fluent visual language and I like taking time to focus on an unusual textile project. I'd love to get into punching and rug making, but it's expensive to get started and quite a crowded 'market' at the minute, with lots of amazing makers creating incredible and fun pieces. So for the time being I think it's most likely I'll stick to crochet.

My final piece to share is this drawing - I was adamant I wanted to get it done on March 1st, so it can be an official March hare! I have another hare to draw this month, which I think I'll do on the 31st, to bookend the month with hare studies. I really love their long legs - we have quite a lot of wild rabbits in our local parks, but I've never seen a hare in the wild. Will keep my eyes peeled!