Embroiderers anonymous

I have just had the pleasure of spending the afternoon with the local branch of the Embroiderers Guild and a very nice group of ladies they were. This month, luckily for me since it was my first visit, there was a talk by Lucy Goffin, which was tremendously interesting. She showed slides of her work, from the very early days, through working with Jean Muir in the eighties to her current collaboration with Anokhi in Rajasthan. It is always inspiring to see an artist talk about what they do and how they came to be doing it. She had lots of slides of her work, and included some lovely tales behind some of the commissioned waistcoats she has made, her time in residency at Great Dixter and her other commissions including one for Glyndebourne and the ecclesiastical robes which provided timely income just as her husband was setting up Marchants Hardy Plants. She also brought along some examples, which ranged from the most delicate gauzy scarves dyed with Japanese Indigo, to a wonderful waistcoat with a shibori lining.

So, a fine afternoon with pleasant company, interesting talk and more to look forward to in the coming months, including a workshop in October on using fusible fabrics. I thoroughly appreciated the warm welcome I was given, and will go again.

Then I decided to go with my plan for walking home, it was "only" 2.4 miles. I started out in good spirits with the sun shining on all the neat suburban gardens, holding Beachy Head in the distance, in a blue veil of haze. I love the meditative swing of walking in town, I think it reminds me of the hours I spent walking home from school, books full of good intentions tucked under my arm and summer breezes wafting across from the distant sea. However, I had to be rescued by me dear man after 1.8 miles, which is at least better than not trying at all. 

I really do need to get out more!!