Tagged - A photo Meme - Art & Design Textiles

Gigi's Ramblings has tagged anyone with this meme and with me being the ultra lazy blogger that I am at the moment, I swear my brain cells have been replaced with air bubbles, I thought I would run with it.

And wouldn't you just know it, it's a photo of one of my Teen Daughters Textile projects...Grrr!

This is a particular bugbear of mine at present. Last September TD chose Art Textiles and Photography as her A-level subjects (plus 2 other re-takes). Now, just in case none of you are aware, both of these are HUGE coursework based subjects. During the first year they have to produce 3 separate finished final pieces (for each subject), with large, fat sketchbooks to support the work.  TD had completed (ish) 2 and had number 3 underway, when a meeting at college was called and we were told, reading between the lines, that given the work she had done in Textiles so far, she probably wouldn't have a place at the college for the 2nd year! WTF...

TD was fine with this, she had already decided mid way through the first textiles assignment, that she'd made a mistake and wanted to change courses, too late of course. So she struggled through, with  gritted teeth (both mine and hers) I might add. 

When we had this meeting (only last week) she was 7 weeks away from her final exams (May this year), and their suggestion was that she drop textiles, there and then, with nothing, no qualification at all to show for it. So 2/3rds of the work was a complete waste of her time...as I said Grrrr!! Also, I'm not a believer in starting something and not finishing, I think it conveys a message of "It's ok, if its too hard you can just give up". She is continuing with her Photography course, but only till the end of this academic year. So we are now looking at other courses at different colleges for her, as you have to have a minimum of 3 A-level courses to attend the college, which she now won't have. More Grrr...

Anyway, rant over, back to the photo...

The first photo is of TD's final piece (not quite finished) for her 2nd project based on the title 'Lost & Found' with a sub-theme of 'Body Adornment', using some of the methods she learnt, plastics, jewellery making, etc..

She used only items found in the house. Plastic sandwich bags and fine copper wire from cables and melted them to create shapes.  Which she then turned into this 'neck piece'.

In fact, because she put a lot of hard work into this piece, contrary to college opinion, I'm going to add more than one photo, so it's the tenth, eleventh and so on, photos...well, I'm already in the folder anyway, so I may as well.

The rules are:

Open the first photo folder you find.  Scroll to the tenth photo. Post the photo and tell the story behind it.
Tag five or more people. But I'm not going to tag anyone, just jump in if you feel the urge.

The end is nigh.....Goodbye to dye under my nails!

TD has finished her Art textiles 'Final Piece'.....Yippee...YAY!

Phew.....

Finally it's done. For TD no more stitching, sewing and dyeing. And in my case no more nagging, cajoling, persuading or whatever else you want to call it when us mums end up trying to get Teens to do what they 'really, really' REALLY' don't want to!

'Flotsam & Jetsam'

So, for now, the sewing machine can leave the kitchen table.....

Until next term, and we get to have this fun (!) all over again....

I'm going for a little lie down, to conserve my energy you understand.

So how come I'M the one with dye under my nails?

After more than 2 months of college, TD seems to be, sort of, getting the hang of it. Dare I speak too soon?... and is this the point where I should start touching wood? (it is only one term in)

TD now realises she made a big mistake taking on 2 courses with huge coursework content. Unfortunately she came to this realisation a week too late to swap to any other subjects.
All other courses were full, so, she's got to stick with it. This is one of the reasons her mantra is 'I HATE college'. The other is, of course, it means she has to 'GET OUT OF BED'...

Both her courses, Photography and Art Design:Textiles, slowly appear to be coming together, and she's due to hand in her finished pieces next Friday.

Currently she's filling/filled up one of her two A3 size sketchbooks with negatives, test strips, notations, photographers work and her own prints.

The other one, Textiles, the one she really, really, really (Have you got that yet??!) wanted to 'drop', is straining at the seams with fabrics, sketches, paintings, and artists work. It's actually so full, it doesn't come close to shutting.....



I've tried to help her, particularly with textiles, as there is probably 12+ hrs work a week (outside of classes) to keep up with. I've added loads of pics (I'm generous like that!) to give you an idea of the amount of work generated in less than 1 term.

This is, of course :sigh: an ongoing battle as 'I HATE this course!' is another favourite line, as she tries again, to un-stitch what the sewing machine, 'This STUPID sewing machine HATES me!' somehow manages to get wrong!








Let me explain why I'm helping out. I understand TD now 'realises' she made a mistake with this course, and there is nothing she can do but plod on with it, until the end of the academic year next June. The very fact she recognises it as a mistake, and acknowledges it, is for me, a small sign of maturity. Yes I know, this is a very tenuous 'grasping at straws' logic on my part, but hey, you grasp 'em where and when you can with Teenagers!



Which is why I ended up last night, in the kitchen, supervising saucepans full of Blue & Green food dye/Ink & mutton cloth, as TD wanted a particular colour of 'Teal' fabric to use in her Final Piece.



Can I tell you something else? Just in case you're contemplating encouraging your Teens in their creative endeavours?.... THAT particular colour of 'Teal' is a real bitch to get off your fingers & nails!