getting to know me...

monoprint drawing - you treat me carelessly...

I've been 'tagged' as they say in blogging-talk..... thank you Lora.... which means I have some questions about me and then some answers to give, and so....

What is your current obsession?
I have several, as is usual.... drawing especially the monoprinting.... making natural dye samples, light, calm, meditative work, making space, giving time, simplifying...

What is your weirdest obsession?
I think keys are my anxiety rather than obsession... I like to know where they are at all times... I also share Lora's need for hand cleanliness, absolutely....

What are you wearing today?
a knitted purple dress - lace knitting, organic cotton, very comfortable ( I didn't knit it)...

What was the last thing you bought?
several packets of go-gos.... (plastic, collectable little monster things for kids)

what are you listening to right now?
veda hille's excellent album - this riot life

what is your favourite ice-cream?
I like ben and jerry's fairtrade toffee and vanilla, or whatever it's called... any ice-cream with toffee, caramel, mmmmmmmx

what do you think of the person who tagged you?
I enjoy knowing Lora, her comments on my flickr photos are always thoughtful and I feel grateful to know Lora..... I admire Lora's beautiful silver work, and am lucky to have a necklace that I enjoy wearing very much...

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
I would choose to live in London. Right now I rent a very modest house just outside London (without being too cryptic, exact location kept quiet for personal reasons).... I would love to own my own place, absolutely..... yes London because despite all the cons the pros are here and I like being close to a city of cultural diversity and stuff happening.... yes I like quiet and I like gardens and nature and there's the connundrum with me ... end of the day I don't want to be out in the middle of nowhere, which for me is the countryside.... I don't admire the big-wheeled driving countryside lifestyle as peddled by certain magazines etc... not me... I'd like a modest older property with a garden, preferably Victorian or older...

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would it be?
New York. I'd love to get there. For more than an hour. One day.

What is your favourite colour?
Green. Mostly all shades. But I do like inky blues A LOT.

Which language do you want to learn?
I'd like to know French, fluently.... but really I'd like to learn Old English....

drawing 'she sings all day she sings all night'.... inspired by old folk tales....

What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe?
hmmm mostly anything by Noa Noa... I save and save to buy, and buy second-hand.... each piece very carefully chosen.... at the moment a cream shirt that just makes me feel like I could walk into any past era and not look or feel wrong.... also love Keep and Share knitwear and save up for one or two pieces a year... I've learned it's better to save up for what you really want, or buy second-hand, better than filling your space with things that are half-satisfactory....



Favourite blog?
That would be so unfair to everyone :)..... I like so many... I prefer blogs that are just themselves and inspire me, of course....... three that I look at mostly every day: spirit cloth, feltbug and ornamental.....

favourite genre of book?
poetry..... and art books.....

If you had $100 now what would you spend it on?
I'd like a new ipod, just a small one...

favourite artist/s?
many.... in no particular order, William Blake, Egon Schiele, Marlene Dumas, Louise Bourgeois, Gerhard Richter, Tracey Emin, Jean Dubuffet..... many more

Describe your personal style?
Elegant meets quirky.... slightly wild hair sometimes tamed, not as arty as you might imagine, I don't like to try tooo hard, I like to relax but at the same time I often wear my 'best clothes' when I am working with ink or paint and get them mucky forever, or like yesterday I stumbled back and caught my blouse on the kitchen door handle and..... ripped it.... and I'll patch that up....

What are you going to do after this?
drink lemonade

What are your favourite movies?
Manhattan Murder Mystery, Blithe Spirit, What's up Doc?.... Oh but I love Barbara Stanwyck's movies, her black and whites like Double Indemnity.... she's my girly pin-up:) I don't watch as many movies as I might if I had more hours in the day....

What's your favourite fruit?
strawberry - no raspberry - no gooseberry.... berry crumble...mmm

What inspires you?
my own mistakes.... knowing my personal failings and yet..... also my children inspire me, both my daughter and son... my son's autism challenges me to see the world in a different way...... I'm inspired by many things as you may see...

What music do you like this week?
a mix of indie, folk, meditative new agey stuff, listening to Kasabian's album sort of because it's Glastonbury this weekend! we will be wearing our wellies and watching on tv..... (ok maybe no wellies)....

What is your dream job?
I like what I do now - but I'd also like to teach adults, college level, one day, maybe...

What are you working on right now?
drawings, natural dye, hand stitch

What is stopping you?
I can take a wee break

If you could change something in the world to make it a better place what would that be?
attitudes toward women and children, around the world......

What do you have planned for tomorrow?
It's Glastonbury on the tv..... maybe cook a curry, maybe some tennis..... a very British June weekend:)

The rules :
1. Respond and rework; answer the question on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention, add one more question of your own.
2. Tag eight other people.

Well I hate tagging other people so if you read this far and would like to participate, go ahead and link here if you like......

more soon ....x