Studio Notes no. 148
Sketchbook, Tiny Stitches and a cat story
Hello Everyone,
Photo: recent sketchbook pages
I hope you have had a good week and are keeping well. Despite the gloomy weather I have been keeping myself ridiculously busy, with plenty of radio for good company. Where would I be without my radios? They link me to a family history of radio listening. My Granny listening to Woman’s Hour and tut-tutting, sipping her sherry and making pastry in the kitchen. My late father, listening to shortwave radio, tuning into some obscure station because it was just about audible. Like him, I have several radios around the home. I do listen to podcasts and watch a bit of YouTube, but radio is my thing. I get used to presenters and shed tears when they leave a presenting slot. I have my favourites. Radio 3, 4, 6 Music - BBC World Service for news.
Are you a radio listener? A podcast collector? A silence lover? An audio book enthusiast? I prefer reading on the page, but totally understand the joy of an audio book too. I wonder what listening company you might keep, as you work. Please leave a comment, if you would like to.
This week I am sharing a story that did not make the final edit in my recent A Pocketful of Ghosts collection of small stories. A big thanks to everyone who has purchased a copy of this zine - so very much appreciated. I have more copies going out tomorrow and there are now more copies available in my shop.
photo: a drawing in progress
As mentioned last week, I am preparing for an open studio weekend at my friend Kath Hitching’s colourful home: Sat 26th and Sun 27th - as part of Farnham Craft month. I will be there with a variety of artworks for visitors to see. I will have items for sale but I am approaching this event as an opportunity to showcase and give a window into my world. I will have sketchbooks, a series of new pencil drawings (I always find pencil drawings tricky to photograph, so am happy to have this chance to show them in person), book page paintings, embroidery including embroidery in progress, postcards and more. If you are in the area do pop in and say hello, I will be there both mornings.
photo: Daughters - a new drawing - one in an ongoing series, exploring women’s lives and memories through the ages
Shop News
From now until mid December I will be updating my shop with small collections of work once or twice a week. There will be updates on most Sundays and Wednesdays - but not all. Here are the dates and times for the next several weeks:
Sunday 20th October 7pm UK time - a collection of smaller embroidery portrait brooches
Wednesday 23rd October 8pm UK time - a mix of new artworks
Sunday 27th October - no update
Wednesday 30th October 8pm UK time - a mix of new artworks
Sunday 3rd November 7pm UK time - a mix of new artworks
photos: examples of small brooches coming to my shop later today
With gift-giving in mind, I am going to be offering small brooches over the weeks leading up to the end of the year.
photo: recent sketchbook pages
Yes, still very happily playing with paper doll inspired figures and all those textures, lines and vessels, deep autumn colours - working in my sketchbooks is a joyful, deeply joyful process. I am grateful to everyone who has said they are enjoying my regular sketchbook posts on Instagram - I am actually happily surprised by how they have been seen and the glad for the thoughtful responses.
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A story - this week instead of several small stories just the one. I hope you don’t mind, and small stories will return soon. This story, Aldous, as fond as I was of it, did not quite fit the page/layout for my zine, so I thought - let’s share it in the notes. I hope you enjoy reading.
Aldous - A Short Story
Witty, clever and cultured, he said, and that is just the mother cat.
We were shown a box of meowing kittens, lavish in their prettiness. The girls wore ribbons. My son said he felt this was unfair to the boys. The man said he would give any kitten we chose a ribbon, of any colour as long as he had one, without hesitation. We decided against it, for there was a feeling about the man and the sadness of the mother cat that made us unsure.
My son, though wretchedly disappointed, knew we would find a kitten for us, eventually.
The next morning I woke to find my son in the kitchen, a black kitten sitting on his lap with a saucer of milk on the table. Where did it come from? I asked. My son said it must have simply entered through the cat flap; the previous owners of the house had kept cats.
The kitten immediately took a fancy to me and would not leave the warmth of my neck. I carried him about the house and slept with him like a warm violin below my chin. So that we could find him easily - for Aldous was forever squeezing behind furniture and into old built-in cupboards - we bought a velvet collar with a bell. It was strange how whenever visitors came we could not find dear Aldous, even with the bell to help us. When, eventually, we let him out into the garden, I watched as Aldous darted across the lawn and straight up a tree. We could not find him.
We returned to the man with his ‘witty’ kittens and sad mother cat. It was an idea my son had: get another cat and Aldous would show himself. And so we chose the most feisty Tom kitten, a tabby named Bill. We took him home and placed him on watch in the kitchen. I could feel no affection for Bill, who slept in a basket and showed no interest in anything but food. But yes, eventually Aldous came home! Or at least, a sleek, shadowy version, who without a bell would be hard to detect. Aldous and Bill chased each other about the house as if they were old brothers, both friend and foe. Bill grew into a muscular beast but Aldous remained forever kitten-sized. Of course, when people visited only Bill ever appeared. We stopped mentioning Aldous, for if any company entered the house he kept himself to himself, in the shadows.
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photo: sketchbook pages from 2022.
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Thank you always for reading and thank you to all my subscribers. If you would like to support my writing, you are welcome to buy me a coffee, or become a paid subscriber. Thanks so much to everyone for their kindness and please leave a comment, share - and have a good week ahead. No notes next week as I will be busy with the open studio weekend but will report back to you soon.
What a cool post!💕 I’m a radio listener too- the local station, the Zone 91.3. Recently one of their longtime DJs died of cancer and I wept for him. They’re like family to me- I always stop at their booth at the music festivals and say hello. I listen in the morning while getting ready for work, and at night when blogging.
I love the story. Sweet and thought provoking. I still talk to my old furry buddy, though he's been gone 7 years. Haven't got a new pet because of my age. Don't want to pass on and leave one to wonder what happened, but my sis and I live together, and she has a cat that she shares with me. Although he knows she is his "mama" and not I. Here's hoping your open studio exhibit will be a big success. As to radio, I never cared for the sound of the radio or TV in the daytime, but I do like music. Too many radio talk shows in the U.S. seem to be filled with egotists with an ax to grind. I watch the evening news from our local channel and a national channel with David Muir. One keeps me apprised of what's going on locally and the other hits on the major news stories, plus David always closes with a short heart-warming report on something good. My sister and I, both old crones, love David, and can frequently be heard to comment that he's a "good boy."