a little stitching interlude

A break from the travel record for some stitching and local photographs.

I've made a few more journal covers recently, prior to teaching how to make them at Fleurieu Quilters. I enjoy creating them from left over bits of favourite fabrics, technique and class samples or by recycling/repurposing other items.

I recently finished off a sample needle-turn applique block started many (15?) years ago. I am not planning to do more of the same, so I it might find its way into a journal cover some time...


Back in November I made a wallhanging to incorporate some Tambani African embroidery pieces I bought in France in 2016, at the European Patchwork Festival. (Hence the name I gave it - 'The long way from South Africa') From a community project to help the women of a very poor area of northern South Africa, each piece of embroidery tells a Venda folk tale. I wish I had bought more...

The background fabric is from Ghana and the hanger is bamboo.

I recently visited the China and the World Exhibition at the SA Art Gallery. www.artgallery.sa.gov.au/agsa/home/Exhibitions   I enjoyed the exhibition which includes some brilliant embroidery pieces, but I think I was most taken by this account of how the gold thread is made -

 But the thread is so fine! Fascinating and amazing.

Now a little bit of nature that has caught my eye.
A large stick insect

Busy bees in some thistles

After I turned the sprinkler off

Young seagulls at the beach

 

Finally, some beautiful lisianthus blooms on my kitchen bench. Lisianthus is one of the flowers we were growing when it was just new to the cut flower market - that all seems so long ago now.

 

Once again in Morocco - next stop Meknes.

 

 Meknes was formally an Imperial City. These enormous structures, a Granary (above) and stables, were built by Sultan Moulay Ismail, one of the more ruthless Moroccan rulers, to house and feed his 12,000 horses, and make him unbeatable in times of conflict - cleverly positioned with the granary over a canal, and a lake beside the stables.

Also visited an artisan workshop to see embroidery, jewellery, silver and wood work. This traditional Fes embroidery is done by counting threads, not marking, and is as good on the back as the front!

 

 

 

 Then on to Fes. A couple of gates - in Morocco they have gates as commemmorative structures, not so many statues as we might.

 

 

 A workshop for beautiful pottery and mosaics

Tile cutters. The sides of each tiny tile are chamfered

and the pattern laid out upside down, before covering with a concrete or mortar

 

 Tile and pottery paimters

 

 and the finished products

 The Riad Salem Fes - plain on the outside, magnificent within.

 

 

 Beautiful, embroidered linen

 The rooftop

with a kind of reverse tile decoration. The glazed surface, usually plain tiles, is cut away leaving the pattern

 Fes has the very famous Medina in the old city which can only be traversed on foot or by donkey.

 A place one could easily get lost in, with many incredibly narrow alleys. The Medina began as a fortress as well as a dwelling and market place, so everything was/is available there. The narrow alleys (this the narrowest)

 were meant to confuse intruders and make it difficult for them to navigate.

 Here is a random selection of photos taken in the Medina, of goods for sale, and activities going on behind the narrow frontages -

Snails

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The real estate office, with keys on the wall

 Cording machines

 How to wear the cactus silk

 

 Painted woodwork decoration

The back in 10 minutes indicator (cord and chair)

 An old school building

 

  The famous tanneries

 

 Lastly, the food was really good. Here is a Moroccan salad, served as an entree before tagine - 8 dishes plus bread. Another came with 18 different dishes!

and our breakfast in the Riad, which had a boiled or poached egg as well