Hello...

I don't know where the time goes, it's an age since i last posted with all sorts of plans, which have been on my mind, but as usual life happened in between which couldn't be helped.

The workshops have finished here at Indigo Moon and we've been developing the Indigo Moon shop at full pelt, including extending some of the show room to the workshop area.  It's been a hard slog with huge amounts of work involved, but we're almost there now.

Gav has his workshop for restoration in the shop area and i have my own studio again, it allows us both to get on with what we enjoy.  It also means that Gav will be spending most of his time in the shop leaving me free to get on with the creative side of things.  More news on that soon.

I'm having a huge sale of 'older' work, unfortunately,  i haven't got around to putting it all in my Etsy shop as it was selling well here at Indigo Moon.  However there are still some pieces left which i'll photograph and create a separate page on here, if anyone's interested let me know and i'll check if it's still available.

In the meantime, in amongst all the chaos and mayhem i've managed to organise my studio and get on with some new paintings.

These are very small pieces and will be for sale unframed and unmounted.  I'd like to put together a series of small affordable art work.  It's been hugely cathartic getting back to painting, i've been experimenting with mixing acrylics, gouache and watercolour and playing about with collage.

I love working the backgrounds on these pieces, it's a technique well within my comfort zone...pushing the heavy rich paints around a substrate with anything other than a paintbrush, creating texture and a sense of space.  When i look at the background, i feel there is a vagueness, maybe silhouettes of people hovering nearby!

Some other new paintings i've been working on:

I wanted to experiment with bold lines and colours, i'm a great fan of brut/outsider art, and any sort of graffiti brings joy.  It's very hard to replicate, you have to have a command of 'unbridled' thinking (an oxymoron i know).  I just can't seem to let go enough, i get so far and then i have to 'tidy' things up, however it works in a 'sort of' way.  

I've also done huge amounts of work on my 'Boro' stitching and have now finished four scarves, "Part of your Story" 
but more on that soon.

XOXO

INDIGO MOON - newly refurbished

Good morning from a very beautiful sunny Montgomery

We finally re-opened our shop Indigo Moon after refurbishment, so grab a coffee/tea and sit and peruse, it's a feast for the eyes.

Hope you've all had a fantastic Easter i'll be back soon with more news of the workshops.

XOXO

Indigo Moon Creative Workshops

George Bernard Shaw said "progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything".  

I change my mind (and life) often, if only on a small scale, for me it keeps my mind fresh and active, always thinking where to go and what to do next.

There are changes afoot here and 

i'm more than pleased to announce that i will soon be opening 

"INDIGO MOON CREATIVE WORKSHOPS"

 This is a completely new venture for us here and something i am keen to explore, develop and commit to.  

I'll be facilitating these workshops along with contemporary leading artists here in Montgomery from above my shop "Indigo Moon" (hence the name).

The plan is to provide a place and ambience for creativity with inspirational artists in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

Of course, there's a lot of work to be done to prepare for this not least setting up the rooms, it's quite overwhelming, daunting and exciting all at once.

These are just a small glimpse of some of my art collections to display in the workrooms

 Works by Cathy Cullis, Viv Sliwka (Hensteeth), Faye Moorhouse and others

 Chairs adorned with beautiful vintage quilts

 Vintage materials

 and exquisite papers from old ledgers

 A quick lookie at the rooms/area planned for change

This long corridor currently has two rooms to the left which will be knocked into one where the work tables will be set up

 You can just see in the photo another door at the end of the corridor with another room for use as well as the corridor itself...

and of course a bathroom

Think no carpet, curtains or chairs, in this corridor but  beautifully sanded (mediaeval) floorboards filled with quaint little cabinets of supplies and such.

The plan is to hold my first workshops from Mid September 2015 onwards and i'm pleased to already have some artists on board.

I will be setting up a facebook page, website and blog for the workshops but as this will take me a little longer to do, anyone wishing to be added to the mailing list for information on forthcoming workshop dates/artists please forward me your email address via tina@indigomoon.co.uk

That's all my news for now, i hope you enjoyed the photographs of pages from my stitch sketchbook.  I've been working through some ideas using ephemera and 'wool' of all things.  I found myself, whilst thinking about the changes here, knitting small squares of vintage four ply wool for use in my boro stitching.  I secured them into my sketchbook before they got lost in the mess currently being created with the work going on here.  It's very tactile and beautiful seeing them altogether and a nice creative journal of work in progress.

More news soon on developments.

XOXO