Okay! Before the news...

1: If anyone out there hasn't recieved a reply within a reasonable period, say..2 days, please comment / note me as I've noticed that messages have gone awol from my profile etc... When I contacted the dA help desk they said it's a known issue and are working to correct it but.... so if there are obvious outstanding non-replies do let me know...

2: Here is a feature of first person in dA who got the answer right:

Firstly

who does really nice weaving arts, feltwork, indigo dying, tie-dye and heaven knows what else! (She's just too cool...) Generally practical items, which is a bonus, but always with skill and passion! The first (bag) was one of the first items I fav'd when I registered with dA.



And secondly: (even if just for the free stuff!....)

who does a bewildering range from polymer clay jewellry to crocheted mice, used as toys for cats ...(made to support The Animal Care League), which is another of her passions, cats that is...that she photographs (apparently with all the verve of a an acolyte of Bast...) Then there's some beadwork and colours galore.....




Hello people!
I haven't written one of these for a while... the only reason I can offer is that life has so much going on in all its incredisplendifantastimagicalacious enormity that I would have to do nothing else but write journals in order to keep up.... Anyhow I wish my friends and all others on dA my very best wishes and trust that their creativity is bringing them reknown and, hopefully, a bit of, well-earned cash... that ubiquitous substance by which us craftspeople measure those words issuing from non-craftspeople/designers/artists when complimenting our work...

Whilst writing this I've been watching a series of 5 minute films, (about 3 or 4 in total), on Channel 4 (UK) about chidren in various parts of the world creating toys, jewellry, rugs, and many other items from found materials, tin cans, sweet/candy wrappers etc etc... It / they were fabulous! measuring tin to cut out shapes with a twig, no rulers available! etc etc the results were gorgeous and ingenious. I knew about a lot of this stuff for a long time but had never seen it being made before...

I couldn't find any video links for this sstuff yet but will continue to try... and insert later. The Films were made under the auspices of the CTTI (Childrens Television Trust International)

I have been meeting people with a view to getting an agent for the purposes of representation in London amongst the national crafts societies and prospective publishers as I'm nearing the completion of my first book on knots and knotting. (I met with someone recommended by a friend who understands what I am trying to achieve and seems to have integrity, intelligence and a sense of humour which all adds up to a good total.. in addition they they kept using words like Sotheby''s, the V&A and wow! which augers well...we shall see...) The illustrations for the book take so long as they necessarily must be clear and understandable across a large age range... I can at least gain the fees for translation in french and spanish as a little bonus in the event it sells in countries using those languages or english as a mother tongue...

I have also been working on the next 5 tutorials I shall post, with another 7 in the wings awaiting my attention... The next 2 tutorials plus 3 appendices of the finished "Picot Edges" will be posted within the next 20 minutes of this journal being posted... It will be noted that my tutorial postings will continue until I have posted what I consider to be an entire basic macrame course which I envisage will contain about 28 individual sheets... This course, on a scale of 1 - 10 in complexity, will cover up to about level 4, ie about 40 - 50 per cent of items I've posted... It is also a fact that I haven't posted anything of level 7 or greater on my personal scale of complexity.. so the course, therefore includes the possibilitiy of making many and varied projects of simple to quite substantial and relatively complex / interesting forms in the projects one may take on having learnt all the tutorials...

I'm working on the last 3 or 4 illustrations (knotwork Projects) for my part of the gallery section in the book and have been contacting other knotters and macrameists and have 6 or 7 so far who are going to supply me with 4 or 5 examples of their work to be included in the gallery section and on the gallery in the website I'm writing at the moment. If anyone out there is interested to be included, either the book or website, please note me... NB: the website is basically for information, educaton and exposure of work done by knotters of all disciplines ie: traditional sailors knotting, macrame, braiding, kumihimo, knitting, embroidery, sprang, weaving, knitting, crochet, carpet & rugmaking etc etc.

I have also been playtesting the new card game I've designed and creating the designs for different styles of cards for the deck. I shall quite soon be organising a blind test at a stratagy gamers club whose organiser seems to like the deck and different games that may be played with it...

Another on the list of my stuff being done is editing the dozens of poems I've written into some kind of anthology together with drawing the illustrations, (mostly pencil or pen & ink) that I wish to go with them...

Finally, I'm working on several projects for specific people which are quite complex and very satisfying... The weather is getting quite cold here in devon and though there are wonderful moments of bright sunlight the nights are getting longer which means I have to work indoors a lot now which is not as good as far as light is concerned... in england now practically all lights are "energy-saving" which is great in a general way but unfortunately all the domestic lightbulbs now have a lower maximum brightness which means I'm probably going to have to install halogen spotlights or something.....

Well... all the above, I hope, go some way to excusing me for the dearth of journalism, and thats without including stuff we all do to help out friends etc who are maybe in hospital or breaking up with an erstwhile partner....

Bye for now! to you all, Peter.