A different view! Nicola Brown walking around her property. Happy New Year!!  Wherever you are in the world, I hope 2022 is looking good for you. Well here we are! Are you ready? I have lots of plans for my field/garden and the making of new videos for a subscription opportunity on my website in a few months time.   I have a few events in the diary already. 10 live Zoom workshops the last Friday in every month starting this month. I have been asked to do 4 more live streams on the Vlieseline Facebook page in January, February April and May and I am giving a live Zoom lecture to a textile group in Portland, Oregon, USA in February. That is enough to be thinking about for a while, along with running the website, social media and working in the studio.     Beautiful book covers by Sharon on a recent workshop I so enjoyed teaching the live Zoom workshops last year. They were such fun, it was wonderful to be able to work alongside the students in real time. So I am...

An amazing pinky blue sky as the light faded on the 13th December 2021             Well here we are - cantering towards THAT time of year. How are you all getting on? Do love Christmas, or do you dread it? I have had a busy few weeks with the exhibition and then a craft fair over 2 weekends at a local restaurant. I feel as though I have come into land now, and can take stock and start to look at next year.  You might have heard that Ireland suffered a pretty big storm last weekend. Luckily, only my big storage shed suffered, losing part of the roof. I am getting used to the regular storms that we enjoy on the west coast, but storm Bara was much more powerful than normal. I suspect the storms will be getting more powerful as the years go on. But onto happier and more colourful things. December can be strange weather wise here on the west coast of Ireland. We had temperatures of 13 degrees a couple of days ago. quite balmy. But today is pretty chilly. Th...

 A fabulous contrast between light and dark       The clocks have changed - it is getting darker earlier. It's the time of year when  you want to start snuggling in, getting cosy. There is a definitely nip in the air. Time to get out the thick jumpers. The light is changing, getting more dramatic as the days are getting shorter. Because we have so much rain in Ireland, and of course on Loop Head where I live, we have the most wonderful displays of light and colour. The day can be dark with glowering grey clouds, then the clouds part and a shaft of sunlight hits the green fields, Wow!! I love it. 'The Last One' - Mixed media and collage This is one of my latest canvases interpreting the local cows ambling up the low incline on the way to milking. It is one of my favourite sights. I find the rhythm of rural life here very comforting. Another great sky And my interpretation in painted fusible web and newspaper The huge skies and ever changing light will be inspirin...

  2 new pieces of textile art work       Phew!! Well, that was a whirlwind of a month or so. What with visitors staying and getting my new work ready to hang, it has been none stop.  It has been wonderful to finally have visitors to stay now that Shannon, my local airport, is opening up. More flights are being added every month, it is very encouraging. However, there was the added irritation of the studio door coming off it's rail and smashing that really didn't help.  I really didn't need this . . . Groan! It is very handy having large sheets of farm plastic stored in my big shed. The boarded and secure door. It can be locked. A local builder has kindly boarded the door so I can still use it, but is does make the studio very dark. Which is an issue when I am filming or doing a live stream. Any of you that watched the live stream I did for Vlieseline on Saturday will have seen what I mean. If you haven't seen it yet - hop over to the Vlieseline Freudenberg ...

A fabulous spiral created from newspaper faux chenille by Janet from Australia. We are halfway through September and it's time for me to think about my live Zoom teaching for next year. I have listened to those of you who want to do the Journey design exercise with me and the continuation workshop, making printing blocks for your designs. These are planned and now published on the website for January and February. A great way to start the New Year - with your new original designs. All workshops are capped at 15. I need to have the time to work with each you all during the one day workshop. The price of the workshop includes the 2 hour live Zoom group Show and Tell 2 weeks after the workshop, you have the encouragement you need to develop what you started on the workshop.  The Show and Tells have been almost as popular as the workshops. What started as a way for me to see what the students do after the workshops, has turned into something very social and enjoyable. The groups certai...