New Beginnings

2020  left us reeling from a pandemic none of us could have seen coming. Covid- 19 has tested our resolve to the limit.

Like you all I had plans for holidays, parties, celebrations, christenings, and all the normal activities we take for granted. Oh, how I miss my friends, their company, be it happy or sad. Lots of us have been confined with partners, children and in my case my long suffering husband, Ian is usually at work 7am – 6pm so my days are spent doing what I love most; shopping, chatting over coffee and cake in my lovely Granny B’s coffee house with my wonderful girlfriends , walking and sometimes  with my feet up surrounded by my threads silk threads while watching a romantic film on TV.  Other days I  created felt: layers of Merino wool and silk bound together with soap and water and rolled, rubbed and thrown. My  amazing, colourful, wet felt then hung on my washing line much to the amusement of my neighbours – I certainly had the most colourful ‘washing’.

But in 2020 my world turned upside down due to a prolapsed disc in my spine; I  carried on regardless until I could no longer stand. Covid had arrived and I couldn’t get help I needed, except a cocktail of every mind-numbing, sleep-inducing drug my doctor could prescribe. Ian fed me, dressed me, and bathed me, shopped, cleaned, and all with love and affection. How blessed am I ? My friends arrived with cake and chocolate – and even posted chocolate via Royal Mail.

I must have had a premonition as in 2019 I created a huge amount of wet felt, Most of it was experimental as I had fallen in love with Nuno Felting – a wet felt process but with added fibres and fabric. Silk is my chosen medium. So, running out of work I delved into every box and bag I had until I found a huge amount of felt which I examined and put to one side for the day when I could work again.

In July I had my operation, which didn’t go to plan so ended back in hospital for fourteen days. Ian brought me in embroidery thread and felt and the joy of being able to work again was overwhelming, It didn’t take long to get back into the swing of creating again spurred on by doctors, nurses and patients who all popped in to see how my pictures were coming along. It all kept me focused on recovering and getting back home.

Once home, my first  project was a picture created a while ago, (the  one below) which if truth be known, I was never really happy with, I don’t know why but maybe because of my lack of enthusiasm for it and it was very pink – not one of my favourite colours! I took it out of its frame, gathered lots of threads and lovingly revamped it. It came to life  with its red poppies, blue and yellow flowers and also the addition of some bees. I posted it onto my Facebook page once reframed and it sold within one hour! I named it after the lady who bought it and part of it is now a greeting card called Julie’s Joy.

BEFORE

AFTER

Last week I created my first piece of wet felt since February 2020.  It will be the first picture of my new year and hopefully the first of many more to come. I feel that the thought of a new year spurred me on and let me put 2020 behind me, which many of you will relate to.  I hope that 2021 brings us all new beginnings, joy and happy days.

Janice