chequerboard patterns
I am blundering about Word-press like a blind rhino at the moment, trying to work out what I need to do, to do what I need to do, if you follow me. It’s a pleasant if slightly scary experience being an unsighted pachyderm, but I think I am going to like being here.
Well, welcome to my new musings . Draw up a chair and I will tell you why I am here.
It all began last year when I started blogging at http://threadspider.blogspot.com. I have been pottering away over there for almost a year now, happy enough in my own way. I have another blog at http://evrythinginthegardensrosie.blogspot.com/
http://evrythinginthegardensrosie.blogspot.com/, all about the happenings in the horticultural side of my life. I am finding it increasingly difficult to post to 2 blogs and to do the things that make blog posts worth reading, that is actually living.
Being the world’s greatest procrastinator-and I am prepared to take on anyone in that fight- I will pootle around the Internet reading everyone else’s’ blogs for hours before I write mine, and of course that takes away time to get on with the living business. I have tried to make life easier by putting my very favourite blogs onto Google reader and concentrating on them but I still find all those web-ring links folk put on their blogs tempting and before you know it-well the morning has gone.
I do love blogging-I have to remind myself of that sometimes. I have met some truly lovely and generous people who have bothered to say something encouraging, usually when I most needed I am proud now to have cyber friends all over the world who I would never have met any other way. And I’d really love it if you find me here and say hello. And if someone knows where the spell checker is that would be great too.
So I have decided that gradually I will merge the 2 into one and concentrate more on using my blog as a bit of a visual journal/diary rather than trying to compartmentalise them and run both. There will be pretty flower pictures on here-there’s one coming up very soon-but not too many germinating seeds and manure heaps. And there may be more “think writing”. I am trying very hard to truly see things and store up an encyclopaedia of images.
I thought this little flower might be a great place to start.
It is a Snake’s Head fritillary (Fritillaria meleagris) , just coming into flower in the garden. It has the most beautiful chequerboard pattern in shades of purple and cream. And that has sparked some explorations I am going to make into patterns.
I looked at this picture for a while through half closed eyes and found I could detect 2 creatures. I know they are called Snake’shead fritillaries but I never really saw the snake before today-those green patches on this specimen are so like eyes, and the shape is very snakey. And then I though I could spot a moth, the wings inside those green patches, furry body just below the stalk.
I sketched those little guys and then had fun making a paper collage , chopping it up and piecing it into a mini quilt. Those colours from the fritillary are lovely.
Right -it has taken me more than 2 hours to get this far and although I have now found the spell checker there is so much more to do. And a new season of House is about to start. So Hugh Laurie wins for now.
Hellooooo over here !!! I’m glad to be the first visitor commenting on your new place! Sounds like this will be a great blog, combining all the things you enjoy together. I’ll be avidly following along. Thanks for sharing the photo of the snake head, I’d never seen one before. so exotic.
Have fun with your new blog, Jane
Hello!!! I like your new digs… very spacious and I see you even have the spell checker working… awesome! ;0) Good idea to combine your blogs. I gave up long ago trying to keep my poor little blog just fiber related. Too many other things going on and not enuff stitching to fill up those “pages.” In fact, I rather like the blogs that just put it all out there… you never know what you’re going to get when you come to visit!
Seems like a good plan! I like the way you showed the flower and then what it inspired you to do. I always love seeing inside someone’s sketch book and seeing the process that goes on to create.
If you get really stuck, I might be able to help. I have a wordpress blog, too, and have figured out a lot of things. I just use it as a place to keep a list of all the blogs I like to read. I sorted them on the sidebar. =)
Hello!! Im glad you are combining the two blogs – I like to see the flowers mixed in with the fibre. I am particularly pleased to see this snake head fritillary – Ive seen then in stitch (janet Haigh etc) but not real life. very nice (and snaky). did you know that you can compose your post in microsoft word (by creating a new blog post) , spell check add all the photos, hyperlinks etc and then publish it to your blog, or save them for later. You have to set it up in microsoft word – but once you have its really easy (you can write them in advance – sometimes I write a couple of posts in one day) and publish them when you want. I might be able to help with wordpress questions, but Ive only been blogging since dec last year, so maybe not! BTW – I like your header!
I do like being here-I was right and it’s very neighbourly of you all to come by!
Congrats Jane on being the first person to comment. I was so excited.
Marty-I love my new digs-they feel more spacious somehow-I guess there are more “rooms” to explore.
Susan and Paula-thank you both for the helpful tips and hints and for the encouraging comments about the fritillary and the header.