St. Clement's quilt - That niggling project

My unfinished object. I also have a waistcoat which is unfinished but I'm going swimming with the Scouts tonight so it'll have to wait 'til Sunday! Please enjoy these pictures of my progress. They're laughing at me. It's so close! 

Paolo Nutini feat. Chaplin review

Photo source: News limited 

I saw Paolo Nutini, at the LG arena, whilst he was on tour last year (promoting Caustic Love) and he did some amazing arrangements and re-arrangements of his songs. Let me down easy and a really psychedelic version of one of his songs that I can't remember now - might've been Jenny don't be hasty (if there's a live DVD I'm getting it!). The light show was fantastic and he was the friendliest artist - really up for chatting to the group of people watching him perform. I have to admit his accent took some listening to at times, but I think the microphone was a little quiet when he was speaking because I'm usually fine with that cosy, Scottish accent.

I absolutely love one of his songs (amongst others), Iron Sky, which has a brilliant crescendo leading to this powerful speech by Chaplin, which sits perfectly within the atmosphere of the song and is crushingly inspirational. Nutini's depth of tone and vocal power drives the story of the song and I just thought I'd pop a video of Iron Sky here and the final speech from The Great Dictator for you to watch. It is also quite strange to hear Chaplin's voice and that shocked me into really listening to his moving words in this speech.

Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator

Paolo Nutini singing Iron Sky (Abbey Road live session) 

Southbank public art

Capturing some brilliant public artwork whilst visiting London's South Bank.

Blog posted on Wordpress - 17.12.2014

Fig Leaf Wars review

@Fig_Leaf_Wars

There were about 20 audience members who were slowly tempted out of the Blue Orange Theatre café in the Jewellery Quarter and into the theatre. On the night of the 2014 Brazilian World Cup Final they were doing pretty well for patrons. Although we were a small group it only increased the closeness between the audience and the man and lady dressed up as a giant penis and a giant vulva. The tagline was:

A human-sized walking Vagina and Penis are going to meet again for the first time. How will the meeting go? Will they meet each other’s expectations? What are they supposed to do and how will they know?

Dick timidly broke out of the shadows and came to chat to the audience about how excited (no pun intended) he was to be free. He’s usually attached to someone, and it was a while before Fanny came on-stage to tell us that they’d been having a fight for thousands of years.

Not only were Fanny (or the Vulva of Venus) and Dick representing individual lady parts and man parts, they were also representing those of everyone in the world. This created an easy bond, and slight uncomfortableness, (which I think we soon got over - through much giggling) with their audience.

Throughout the partly-improvised show the characters demonstrated the trials and tribulations, as well as the pleasures, of being human genitalia. This sincere and welcoming pair gave us a hilarious and open night out. They spoke with the audience about the relationship between genitalia, in the olden days, and wondered aloud why people turn the lights off to have sex. With tunes such as “Sexual Healing” and “Floating through Space” (it might be called that – I’m not really sure!) they took us on a sensitive journey around the most intimate regions of humanity. Fanny showed us how she felt about rape and Dick told us how many rapes go unreported.

Far from being an after-school special this was a very playful yet grown-up, real platform from which to discuss sexuality and how we are all going to afford to get up to Edinburgh to see them again.

Follow this Facebook link for more info: https://www.facebook.com/thefigleafwars/timeline

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I can't find the link to a great Huffpost article about what our brave cast members, Dick and Fanny, get up to when they’re not on-stage! It involves a man in Glasgow attacking Dick (AKA Chris Murray, in costume) and Fanny (AKA Joanne Tremarco, also in costume) saving him! If you find it please post the link!

Blog posted on Wordpress - 17.12. 2014

Richard Long Pre-preview at New Art Gallery Walsall

Richard Long (copyright Tate)

I felt very special going to the Richard Long Pre-Preview at The New Art Gallery Walsall. The Exhibition Spaces and The Fourth Floor now have Richard Long installations and images which are really cool.

His big installation is very playful - The walls are painted black and white diagonal steps. The artist has basically taken mud (from his home) and brought it to the gallery and smeared it all over the black wall. The spatter from the mud skips down the white part of the wall. He mentioned how the painting is an autobiography of himself, his gestures and that was evident in the way the marks were very similar because the way he moves is the way he moves - his physical signature.

There is another mud painting which was, 'made for a contemporary art exhibition and auction sale in aid of African famine victims. The project was called ‘New Art New World.’ This piece makes me imagine Richard Long physically getting his feet all muddy and making the shape of Africa on a piece of paper. The action of that is very playful.

Africa Footprints 1986 by Richard Long born 1945 (Copyright Tate)

I went to see an Tim Johnson exhibition at the IKON a few months back and a painting called 'Walk On' (see Image) includes the footprints of Tim Johnson's children like they've just walked all over the canvas. I really want to do that - I may have to do that soon!

The main ideas behind Richard Long's work are about wayfaring and being in the moment. He also said that, when his works are photographed the isolation of the place and the fact that it might be 20 years ago or thousands of miles away is interesting. His work is made in isolation and then, if it's good enough, he shares it. And even after a thousand years have past, the rocks he uses in his Artwork might still be there, even if they are no longer considered to be Art.

In relation to his Textworks, Long mentioned that he goes on walks and there is some work he does which involves looking at things - for e.g. he notes down the first time he sees a fox or an owl. He has then returned to that place and seen how the walk is different than before. I will try and find the link for a journal I read called 'Lines' which discussed Wayfaring which I think might relate to this. He also mentions how he had always wanted to be an Artist. Even when he wanted to be an Ornithologist (when he was young) the way he communicated that was through pictures of birds.

One last thought is that I thought it was funny that he said that Tribesmen would come up to him and look at what he was doing but not be very interested because they might not realise he was "making Art." I thought it was interesting, for lack of a better word, to think about what they would consider Art to be and why it would be attractive to them, from a different cultural perspective.

Blog posted on Wordpress - 17.12. 2014

How to let an artist rifle through your archives

Here's a little image of some of the stuff I have learnt from this amazing and really readable book so far! It describes the journey two people took when discovering and presenting the Beth Lipkin Archive at New Art Gallery Walsall. Reading it doesn't feel like work, because although it's non-fiction the intriguing relationship 'spirals' (as Smith calls them) keep crashing together in a story which still retains great potency. The curator-researcher, Neil Lebeter and Artist-researcher, Bob&Roberta Smith have really got a feel for the conflict in Epstein's life and works! Especially as a figure in a public space, which comported itself so differently from the modern public arena.

Blog posted on Wordpress - 4.4.2014

Reviews

The blog might look a bit random at the moment but I'm just migrating some of my older review blog posts over from my old blog on Wordpress.

Babylon: A show review

‘Babylon is a show about kings and queens and revolutions. It’s about the things we love, the things we should hold tighter to every day. It’s a show full of folk music, of drinking and dancing, of singing with arms wrapped around strangers’ shoulders. Come raise a glass with us.’ 

Babylon images Copyright Old Joint Stock Pub and Theatre 2014

I was looking for Folk music events back in February and noticed that there was an undefined show which the Old Joint Stock (OJS) had tweeted on Twitter. It was called Babylon by The Flanagan Collective. The words folk music, drinking, dancing and singing were involved. I thought, “I’m in! Why not? It ticks all the boxes,” hoping I hadn’t accidentally signed up to a workshop again.

The Old Joint Stock Pub and Theatre is a beautifully distinctive building with high ceilings and gilt cornicing. It has that lovely quality of being simultaneously grand and inviting. I got a drink in the pub before the show, still unsure what I was letting myself in for but open to a new experience. I sat reading my book and waited for the doors to open to the Club Room downstairs.

The club room was not exactly what I was expecting. I walked in and there were a couple of people sitting at tables with drinks. There were some very folkily-dressed people who I assumed to be very keen audience members. I wasn’t sure where the stage would be. I chose a seat in the corner near a few mandolins, a drum set and what I later discovered to be a Bouzouki..

The support acts (Blues guitarists) were surprising. This doesn’t usually happen at a play so I was, again, questioning what I’d come to see. Were we moving to a different venue after this? I didn’t know. Some actors from ‘Passchendaele,’ apparently, took a place next to me. I was eavesdropping, but it’s hard not to in such a small space! I’m surprised they made any money at the OJS because of its prime location and the fact you could only fit 50 people, if that, into this room. HOWEVER, the atmosphere was cosy, sociable and the play, as it unfolded, was engaging and all-consuming.

The story was based around a young girl called Hetty who wins a competition to become the Queen of England. All the audience got a rejection letter, Hetty received the winning letter. She stood up on an old luggage case to deliver her acceptance speech. They took pictures of her with members of “her public,” that being the audience. We already felt part of her story, which would become our story. We slowly see Hetty growing up. We are thrown through the chronology of her life a bit but never to the detriment of this story of revolution, of self-discovery, loss, being lost, love (always need a love interest), corruption, truth and courage. Her ability to recognise her mistakes is admirable. There’s another story of two brothers. Their relationship puts a spotlight on the community which is being broken down by a corrupt government, the price to be paid for freedom and when to fight for it.

The fluidity of the scene-changes in such a small space demonstrated the skill of the actors. They would move out of a scene to play an instrument whilst another actor comes into focus from the apparent wings.

The use of folk music was beautifully rousing and provocative of all the emotions the composer wished to convey. They involved the audience, too. It was very subtle, the way we were engaged. We all received musical instruments to play with throughout the interval; castanets, drumsticks and, what I later found out to be an egg shaker. We were all playing with them throughout the interval so that, by the time it came for us to be called upon to start a musical revolution, we took up arms. The sheer force of Ollie, the zealous revolutionary, (when the revolution started in a pub) meant that when he asked us would we stand and take up the cause, we all did. His eyes said, “you’re going to stand up and no other answer is acceptable.” Exactly the power one needs to make a public stand and an audience stand. Needless to say, I stood. They sang, we sang, they danced, we danced, they played instruments, we played instruments. It was absolutely brilliant.

The best part was perhaps the juxtaposition between the loud uproar of the changing politics to the simple, quiet moments between Ollie and Hetty, the moments when there was simple truth and quiet realisation of human emotion, the Beauty in action.

Post-Event: They said we could stay behind and there’d be music from the support artists. I spoke to the friendly actors and musicians after the show. They have been politicizing audiences in pubs around the country. Serena Manteghi reckoned if you did start a revolution you would start one in a pub. They have their own writer to write scripts with which the actors work and fit into different spaces. They were selling CDs, which can only be described as the soundtrack CDs, for The Beulah Band after the show and they ran out such was their popularity. One of the actors showed me a South American drum which I had thought was a box. It was a box, but it also had a snare inside. I played with it. I also played with the egg shaker whilst the Blues guitarist, Robert Lane, played his guitar and one of the actors played the mandolin. I was practically a collaborative artist! As I left to trot on home, down the steps, into the night, I saw the musicians putting their instruments into their van and I felt part of something very cool.

BABYLON Company
Jim Harbourne: Composer and performer in Beulah; composer and sound designer for Tortoise In A Nutshell
Ed Wren: Composer and performer in Beulah; co-artistic director of The River People
Serena Manteghi: Performer and co-creator of Some Small Love Story; performer with Belt Up Theatre
Conrad Bird: Front man of northern folk band Holy Moly & The Crackers
Joe Hufton: Director of The Bridge That Tom Built; associate artist for Belt Up Theatre
Dominic Allen: Writer and performer for The Bridge That Tom Built; co-artistic director of Belt Up Theatre
BABYLON was originally developed with The Fauconberg Arms, Derby Theatre and Greenwich Theatre across 2013.

Follow @BeulahBand and @FlanCol on Twitter

Mar 1, 2014

Mary Arden's Care Farm Open Day

Yesterday’s Care Farm Open Day, at Mary Arden’s Farm, was really fun. Lots of staff attended to support the Open Day and were very enthusiastic about Care Farming as part of the Mary Arden’s Farm offer. The catering team had put on a lovely spread with loads of yummy almond croissants and hot drinks!

Copyright Shakespeare Birthplace Trust

The introduction to the Care Farm, given by Care Farm Coordinator Shashika Poopalasingham, gave everyone a good idea what the Care Farm is about. There were various activities throughout the morning including a short film about Care Farming at Top Barn, testimonials from a Welcombe Hills teacher, a tour around the farm with members of the Mary Arden’s Farm team and we saw some Care Farm clients in action. They were being very industrious, weaving our willow tunnel with their teacher (who seemed to be having loads of fun too!), and we even got to have a go!

People had an opportunity to chat to Shashika about working with vulnerable people, engaging with visitors and about how the farm, as a historic visitor attraction and farm, could accommodate the specific needs of Care Farm clients.

It was a lovely, informal event. Looking forward to the next care farm open day!

More Winter partlet-ing

Couple more pics. By the end of tonight I WILL have sewn the whole partlet together, except the bottom seam, and I will have finished these ties - of which I need 10. I've done 3 so far. Nearly nearly.

I took some pics to make me feel like I've actually done something. Sewing these ties together took forever last night. I went to bed at 2am: I was on a roll watching Kaamelott and doing sewing :)

I turned it inside out yesterday and now it's ... FINISHED!

Winter partlet continued

Despite some personal frustration over switching to autopilot, and sewing the wrong part of the partlet to the wrong part of the partlet, whilst working on the train (which I thought was a very efficient use of my time on the way to brunch)...

... I am now using my winter partlet as a break from the frightening issue of actually quilting my Orange quilt! It's taken me so much to get there and I don't want to ruin it. I think I'll sit down tomorrow night and tack it all up. No sense in rushing it.

So my winter partlet is all pinned up, I've read the Tudor tailor for guidance, not really that helpful, but at least there was a picture. We'll see how that goes... 

I need to make some nice ties to go in there before I sew up the sides too... Hmm... Not too keen on making ties - it's a bit fiddly - I can make big ties though, therefore less fiddly. Hmm... Ooh! Ooh! I can use my bright blue wool and some white linen I have left over. Ok, procrastination over, I'd better get onto doing my handstitching before bedtime! Here are a couple of pics.

N.b. Pincushion is definitely not an authentic Tudor one! ;)

Night!

She's back!

She's purring like a dream. I don't want to jinx it too badly just yet, though, but my sewing machine is back from the lovely people at Frank Nutt (Birmingham) and I will be hiding away in my sewing room for most of the rest of today.

From my sewing room, door everyone else will just be hearing the whispered mutterings under my breath and the light whirring of my little Brother making a delightful orange quilt. Finally all the component parts are together, they just need a bit of sewing.

... Mwah ha ha ha! ...

Late night sewing tip

The sewing machine shop informed me that you have to change your sewing machine needle every 8 hours. As someone who has not changed their sewing machine needle in as many years, that is a good tip and potentially why my sewing machine has decided to give up the ghost (that might be putting it a smidge melodramatically): pure neglect. 

A needle only costs a couple of pounds, so it's nothing major and, if you think about it, 8 hours probably doesn't equate to too much packed-in sewing time. I'll probably just start changing the needle 4 times a year and flout the rules until I become a millionaire, preferably through crafting genius. Looking at prices for new sewing machines, however, really makes you appreciate what you borrow from your mum for an extended period of time, and sometimes let her use!

And on that bombshell. night night!

My favourite tutorials

I like Hey Quilty best for tutorials because it is filmed like a TV show. 

They have 2 people discussing a subject, lots of text visuals, quilt examples and explanations. The audio, video and close-ups are great. The lighting is also very bright. The presenter (usually Mary Fons) speaks clearly and is also very clear about their techniques and what you have to do to achieve their results.

Here is an example of a brilliant Hey Quilty introduction to making your own bias binding 

Tiny hamster quilt + Buffy = smiley face

Does exactly what it says on the tin :)

Tiny hamster quilt (crochet) 

Using 2.0mm crochet hook

Embroidery thread

26 stitches across with changing colours.

I'm making it as long as I'd like for a tiny hamster.

Although I have now opened a long stream of Buffy YouTube videos, I must go to sleep. Such a good accompaniment to craft, though. The script is amazing!

**Oh, this video might be a Buffy season 2/1 spoiler.**

Exploring Martineau Gardens in Edgbaston

My sister, my niece and I discovered a beautiful trail through the woods at Martineau Gardens last week. We tramped along the woodchip path and found Mister Fox's lair, Mister Badger's den and to be honest I'm not sure what Mister Toad was living in but it was woven in willow. I have a feeling they have something Wind in the Willows-themed going on in the Summer but we didn't have too much time to do that what with all the exploring. The garden has lots of open spaces for kids to run around in and a wild flower meadow which will look amazing in the Spring! By the time we got to my car my niece was definitely ready for an afternoon nap!

One of the volunteers working to keep the gardens tidy showed us the snowdrops that had just started blooming in the wood. A sign that Spring is nearly here. I think I need an opportunity to get my hammock out. It's been far too cold for far too long, although it does mean an excuse for hot chocolate and knitting which I love!

So much work goes into keeping this idyll running. It costs £250 a day to keep it going with no government funding (so donations and volunteers are key) but the core team that work there are dedicated and they have loads of great events which keep the public coming back for more! They have a Bat Walk, a Honey Show, a Storytelling Festival, they did Tai Chi classes last year, they sell their own jams and honey and have a great Art collective, (Tiger Skins of Sunlight) which is in the studio for the Summer - lovely, friendly artists making excellent art and planning loads of brilliant arts/crafts workshops for February Half Term as well.

I can't wait to go back with my picnic rug in Spring!

Blog blog blog blog blog...

Having spent a couple of months blogging now, I've decided that it is so much fun that I want to do as much of it as I can. I'm going out with my Folktales and Gigs in Birmingham Meetup group this week to see some events this week and I can't wait to tell you all about them...

- Bonfire Radicals at the Red Lion Folk Club in Kings Heath (video from YouTube)

- Birmingham Storytelling Cafe at Kitchen Garden Cafe

And well, there's 50 Shades of Grey too. I wasn't too keen on the first 2 pages of the book, but I'm being dragged along :) to see the film this half term so I might as well write about that as well.

Token Valentine's Day heart

If I had my sewing machine (my one true love, which is at the "garage") this would be beautifully and tightly machine-sewn... and finished. But don't cry for me Argentina! They're getting the parts in next week, by which time hearts will be redundant and I'll have to think of something else to make but, live for the challenge!

Facebook page

This blog is kept up to date but why not check out updates about our events via Facebook?!
Here is a link to our Monster Eyes Events Facebook page. 

Sewing machine breakdown

I have to edit one of my free workshops a bit because I can't take my sewing machine now as it's broken. Hmm... Well, we can sew and handstitch hems which is fine but I would've liked to do some simple threading of a sewing machine too. 

Not to worry but I'm apparently getting to that point in my life where I feel that I need a courtesy sewing machine more than a courtesy car. Surely this is strange but we've developed a bond and I need it to finish my quilt. Thank goodness I have my handstitching to do for my historical garments to keep me occupied!

So I'm off to the shops to get some lovely people to give my sewing machine a service and see if it can be fixed. Otherwise you may be seeing a lot of sewing machine reviews and decision-making on this blog!

I just typed in "Singer" into Google expecting sewing machines to come up but it's just lots of pictures of Adele. We crafters must be alternative.

Beautiful Singer sewing machine - I've already got one this old that is working anyway

Sewing machine - This would be nice with less pink but look at all those potential stitch styles!

Brother sewing machine - Or I could just stick to what I know.

The sewing machine hasn't even broken down yet and I should repair it but a gal can dream!

Goring up the lining of my waistcoat

The Gores I had mainly been avoiding yesterday... are predominant today. You are getting sewn in and you're going to look sleek and elegant and THAT'S THAT! 

So I have tacked in my triangular gores to the slits in my Tudor waistcoat. I've fitted them so the seam is graduated so there's no bunching-up in the garment. 

I might need to put some overstitching or blanket stitching at the top which will look fine. Not sure how that'll look on the woolly exterior of my waistcoat but we'll see. At the moment the tacking looks fine - I'll go somewhere with better light to make sure I get a good, straight, hand-sewn seam so that the bottom of the waistcoat really sticks out (literally - Tudor gals need a good set of hips!).

"Gorey" stuff

The Gores I have mainly been avoiding today...

Winter partlet

Ooh I eyed up some lovely fabric whilst volunteering this week and now I am going to make a madder/pink winter partlet. Partly because the lovely fabric called to me, partly because my "gores" on my Tudor waistcoat are getting me down :)

Such pretty wool. I'm using a wool blanket (100% wool) and some linen for the lining, and some ribbons for ties, I think.

Ribbons: Might make braids but my friend said that putting pink on one side, black on the other, would make really fun linen ribbons when they're tied!

Advice from a US Singer sewing manual from 1949

Still can't remember where I found this but I find it equally hilarious and unsettling. I like to imagine Bear Grylls or similar following these instructions :) Lol!

The Marie Curie TV advert has got it right. #NoChores - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwJEapdvLp0 On Scout camp, there are no chores. Just sitting with cups of tea and encouraging the kids to be independent. 

Je suis plutot les dessins de Penelope Bagieu

(Trans. I'm more like the illustrations of Penelope Bagieu)

Dessin de Penelope Bagieu http://wantit.free.fr/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/paques1.jpg 
Drawing by Penelope Bagieu (French graphic novel artist)
(Speech bubble translation: There's so much rubbish on my desk that I could hide Easter Eggs on it!) 

Et je les ai sur mon bureau, les oeufs de Paques! :-/ Excus d'etre "un creative"
(Trans. And I have creme eggs on my desk! Excuse of "a creative")  

This is just a Tribute - to my disappearing blog post re: Applique banner

Blogger app just deleted the post I just wrote so I'll leave it 'til the morn to remember what eloquence was portrayed in this space just moments ago! I was having a bit of a crisis anyway as my machine had completely eaten my fabric. Humph. I don't know who was more tired, me or the machine, but one of us definitely had to stop sewing!

The (very eloquent I might add) blog post definitely had something to do with applique... Anyway, here we go...

This is an applique banner I'm making for my friend who has just moved into a new workspace! I thought I'd customise a little strip quilt I've been working on and give it a new lease of life (as it hadn't quite developed into a project by that point)) by making it into a colourful and decorative banner for her which can be hung (from tabs) on the wall.

My work in progress. Reckons it's looking pretty cool. It's quite patterny. If I were to do another applique letters project I'd probably choose a block colour for the background to make more of a contrast - so that those letters REALLY stick out. (I wanted to use the pig material, though, and this is the last of it as I've had it for a couple of years just looking pretty. I might look for more farm-related fabrics in the future too.)

I realised, too late in the cutting stage, why I had originally wanted to use the squares material (other than it being really colourful) .... 

because applique-ing curves is so hard on a machine!

- but I have my walking foot now so maybe it will be easier. I only have a couple of letters left to do but it's always worth having a play. 

  

NEW MACHINE FOOT!!

The day I post principally about machining and machine feet, THIS arrived in the post. Feel like I've been waiting for so long! Can't wait to play :)

Craft bags for my Knitters

Craft bags with all the stuff you'll need for "knit your own Blanket Square" workshop at Cherry Reds in Birmingham, UK.

Get more details on our events page or on our Facebook page

Exchanging your foot for another

Might be best to keep your needle up while you're doing this - so you don't knock it.

If you're doing a zip, you probably don't need to take the whole foot off but if you are working with something a bit more heavy duty like this...WALKING FOOT I just received in the post (woohoo!) ... then you may need to go ahead and take the whole foot off. Trust me, it's not a big thing to do. You'll be fine.

- You just need a penny/5p, or similar, to unscrew the screw and the foot will just drop off (not always a good thing in life, but in sewing - yay!) - Keep it in a safe place (some sort of box with drawers/a specific "MACHINE TOOLS BOX" is probably a good idea.)

Sewww... (sorry) So! Next you just need to make sure you don't lose that screw (put it to one side for a minute) and fit the zipper foot into the space where the old one was. Screw the screw in again tightly (don't want it falling off halfway through) and you are good to go!

Putting your foot down

Your machine foot that is! You'll want to do this if you are putting a zipper foot on. If you are sewing a zip onto something you will want to change your machine foot to put on the zipper foot.

On my sewing machine you simply push that lever and it drops. To put it back on you have to push the lever and put the foot up to the metal majiggy. The mechanism on the brother xl-

4060 works like a clasp so it opens to pick up the foot.

Foot is about to be dropped

Bang. And the foot has dropped

Sewing machine dissection

It feels very intimate showing you the inside of my sewing machine all laid bare. 

It's very dusty in there but I've just given it a little spring clean so we should be good to go very soon!

So this is how we get some cotton out when the machine is trying to eat it and turn you into cotton as well! (I'm getting an old Superman visual here *spoiler alert - when Lex Luthor has the machine in the cave and they get covered in tin foil).

LET'S OPEN HER UP!

Grab yourself a 5p piece or similar. A screwdriver is not going to do it! 

It didn't fit!!! Use something everyone has about the house instead - check in the sofa...

 

Unscrew the 2 bolts on the sewing machine with the 5p / 5 centimes. Keep them safe!

Take the panel off and have a look inside. I took out 3 big bits of fluff so it's good to have a look inside every so often just as a bit of an MOT, although some shops will do this for you. 

N.B. If you have bought your machine from a retail outlet you can go back to them with any problems. John Lewis is quite good at that sort of thing, but if you can go back to the Brother/Singer people they can help you too.

  

Look at that! So much cotton rammed in his mouth! I wonder if they wanted it to look like that when they designed the machine, or whether it's random? Right, I'm off to get my tweezers :)

Found the tweezers! Bish bash bosh, job done.

Look at all those strands that were tightening up inside to try and chew up all my fabric :( 

Pondering: Bit of a distraction but, now that the machine is fixed and as my yellow bias binding has just arrived in the post, I could also finish off another quilt while I'm at it. Pondering on whether I should try my luck with the new quilt foot or if I should get my sewing machine MOT-tested in case there is a bigger problem there. It's an old machine and has been a bit finickety but it's not like all sewing machines AREN'T finickety...hmm... Agh! Don't want to spend a small amount on a machine just for now. Some people save up for cars - me, I save up for a fancy new Singer sewing machine. But then there's always going back to my grandma's old 1950s Singer which fits into a table and has a knee handle! I'll show you that sometime. It's cool. It's currently my bedside table so very practical!