Merry Go Round - February

This month, I am jumping on the Merry Go Round with a small group of ten like-minded craftswomen/artists, linking arms in friendship around the world. On the last Friday of each month we will post our individual responses to a chosen topic. Please check the links to the rest of the group's responses, under the clock in my Sidebar :)

This month the topic is "What do we hope to learn/achieve this year?"

Pheeeeew, I don't know where to start with this one - there's so much I hope to learn and achieve. Primarily this year I hope to gain complete artistic independence, (3 years ago I was awarded some local funding to set up my business which helped me purchase my Harris Tweed stocks, laptop, etc) and this October will be the end of my obligation to my 'grant provider' - Hooray! I'll be free to follow which ever path I choose then, but I'm guessing it will be a very similar 'tweedie' path - just no strings attached :)

Having said that, this year, it would be great to achieve some more commercial success - wouldn't we all! But mostly I want to continue experimenting with new designs, maybe looking into creating more 'softie/soft toy kits', having some fun with my 'art dolls' and continuing with some more embroidery ideas. I learn so much all the time, simply through experimenting and looking at craft books, blogs, etc. Soft-sculpture is a real passion for me.

Some of my earlier 'softie' dinosaur designs.

No major plans in terms of 'world domination through tweed' or anything like that, hehe! Just continuing to learn, experiment and have fun with my craft. Over and above that I hope to carry on with my 'home decor' range and continue with some new ideas/designs. My own 'craft-room' would be nice but that just ain't going to happen with two boys wanting their own space!

(Continuing with my Home Decor range would mean that I am supporting the local Harris Tweed industry to a greater extent than with the rest of my smaller items - it's something I hope to achieve but we'll have to wait and see how it pans out. There's only so much one person can do, especially on a part-time basis)

In conclusion, to carry on creating with Harris Tweed in ways which which will delight, stimulate and entertain - I just love to use it! As long as I have my tweed, fabrics, and some polyfil (toy stuffing), that's all I need :) In business terms - keep on keeping on, I love what I do, so . . .

Here's some pieces I loved doing this year, and which I hope to do more of:

More experimental embroidery (eg. Harris Tweed amulets) . . .

More Art-Dolls . . .

More 'home-decor'designs . . .

Just more of everything really!! (if only there was more time too!). Whether I end up focusing on one particular area is yet to be seen. You can check out all the responses to the same topic from the rest of the group - under the clock in my sidebar :)

P.S. Depending on world time zones the group members may be posting at different times throughout the day!