QUEEN ROSILDE'S TREASURE CHEST

I have just spent two weeks in a beautiful village outside Rome, where my sister got married. 

I had the pleasure to stay at 'nonna' Rosilde's house, an amazing two storey building, which dates back to 1885. The interiors and objects have remained unchanged for decades, it is like going back in time or visiting a museum, something very special indeed.

Rosilde is a really lovely, generous and observant lady who will be 83 years old in January; her outlook on life is so positive that it is contagious. 

She is very proud of her home and her persona. She has no feelings of envy towards anyone, not even the Queen, for she feels like a queen herself amongst the precious memories and familiar corners of her palace. 

The exhilarating scent of her coffee drifts from the kitchen to the upstairs rooms and escapes through to the adjacent narrow street in the early hours of every day. I miss waking up to that, seeing her sweet smiling face first thing in the morning and then hearing her 'Buon giorno!'... 

How could one not have a good day?

Photos courtesy of Alex Rankin

SMALL WORLDS

I have started a series of small canvases on which I am stitching the outline of animal shapes. 

I don't want the embroidery to be perfect, the aim here is to mimic paint drops and, by using this method, place them in line to form an image, something that I have never done before, but thought about for some time. 

The first one had to be a rhino:

My new designs are now on sale on Etsy

RHINOMANIA

Here is a beautiful rhino at Longleat Safari Park. Another inspiration for a drawing...

WEDDING & BAPTISM SKEWERS

My twin sister is getting married on 15 September 2012, on the same day we will be also celebrating the baptism of her baby boy! I have made these wedding 'skewers' using some of my butterfly designs and cut outs. I then added some blue embellishments to symbolically combine together the two events. The skewers will be placed with the flowers in the centre pieces and, perhaps, slightly altered to be made into cake decorations.

PERFECTION

This is a close up of a beautiful orchid I was given by my colleagues on my last working day. 

I just keep looking at them and thinking of how perfect and intricate nature is. 

I intend to do a pencil drawing and, perhaps, I can use it for my fabric collection. Lovely!

ps. Thanks everyone!

TRUE ICONS IN BATH

Here are a few pictures of Bath Guildhall before the premises were open to the public for the Art fair on 14 July. It was lovely to chat to the other stall holders and learn about their creative journey. Also, it was great to receive such a positive feedback from the visitors and sell something...

TWO-DIMENSIONAL COMBINATIONS

'Favolando', 20x20cm, digital print and thread on linen cotton canvas