May you be........
If you haven’t yet joined our Collage Card Connection project, it’s certainly not too late. Submissions aren’t due until the end of July when one lucky collagist will be our guest at one of the LSA workshops next year. It’s as simple as emailing us your full name and postal address and we will send you a “starter” collage to complete and return. We have some exciting ideas of how to then use the collages to raise money for one of the many charities that have suffered during the covid crisis and we would love your feedback about which one of the three worthy charities below you would like to nominate. But you don’t need to be part of our collage project to vote - just hit the button below and let us know your preference…..
2. There are plenty of ways to scrutinise your shopping habits and make sustainable yet fashionable clothing purchases. Alternatively you can mend, rewear and breathe new life into your wardrobe with the help of Orsola de Castro’s book “Loved Clothes Last: How the Joy of Rewearing and Repairing Your Clothes Can Be a Revolutionary”.
3. It’s been a fair few years since I last picked up a crochet hook, but I recently embarked on a little project and rediscovered how soothing the simple repetitive crocheting process can be once you’ve got the hang of it. The US has, without doubt, the best selection of cord colours and weights, but Europe seems to offer more in the way of natural fibres such as hemp and linen.
4. Known for her use of wood and laminate with precious metals jeweller, Emily Kidson, produces stunning, modern pieces influenced by old industrial city-scapes - from tapered chimneys and pottery kilns to barges and water towers - and the sensitive, muted colours they suggest.
5. During the covid crisis there have been a significant increase in the number of vegetarian worldwide. If you are not already one yourself here are some stats that might persuade you:
Eating quality plant-based food lowers the risk of death by 30%.
A plant-based diet reduces the risk of death from heart disease by 40%.
26% of Millennials are vegetarians.
10% of the world’s population follows some kind of vegetarian-diet.
If you are already a vegetarian you might be interested in how to persuade those around you to eat less meat…..
6. If embroidery is your thing, you might have fun designing your very own Bayeux Tapestry with The Historic Tale Construction Kit…..
7. Over the last 18 months we’ve probably been watching so many films that it’s hard to remember the which and where of them all. Well now you can track down the exact movie by item reference with Beta Film, a search engine that uses screenshots from movies based on keywords like “piano”, “teacup” or “sewing”.. Enormous fun if, like us, you are enthusiastic movie buffs!
“Whiplash” 2014 “Carrie” 2013 “Mulan” 2020
8. We love the texture, softness and natural colours of Moeke Yarns, a Romanian company promoting traditional knitting designs with a strong ethical message.
9. Just as the Eskimos have over 100 words to describe snow, we feel it’s time there were adjectives to describe the various sizes of social gatherings - for example, a “mingle” for 2-5 people, a “pother” for 6-30, or perhaps a “crampoline” for a group of 30+people. And we’d love to hear your suggestions - better still, see your words stitched and photographed!! Then, with the help of a well-known novelist we will choose the three best descriptive words and send their authors one of our beautiful textile-covered boxes, chock-full of patchwork sized fabrics, hot from the Les Soeurs Anglaises’ collection, as prizes.
10. Book Review by Susie
In these “unusual times” I’ve begun a book that seems very relevant to us in 2021. It is “Whose Names are Unknown” by Sanora Babb. Think of Dorothea Lange, the photographer, and you’ll have the time and place. A bit like Wallace coming second to Darwin, Babb was pipped at the post by John Steinbech’s The Grapes of Wrath in the publications race. If, however, you were moved by the latter then I’d recommend you add this to your reading list. I shall be moving on to Babb’s other book, “On the Dirty Plate Trail”, about the 1930s exodus of "Okies", migrant agricultural labor who were dispossessed by repeated droughts and failed crop prices.
Stay safe…. Katie
