Zips, Keys and the swish of paper.

I have actually been quite busy getting some pieces ready for submission for an exhibition and thinking through ideas for another piece, but in-between I have had time for some light relief. If you want a quick fix I have two great links for you.

One is for the best tutorial I have found for putting a zip in a lined bag or purse with no fuss or problems. I used to have what I thought was a simple way but this one is definitely the best I have found and is a video which helps. It is good way to use up bits and pieces of fabric which you have experimented with and on. I made a small purse and a new pencil case. I may try and source some fancy zips; like the ones Melanie Testa uses.

That link could well send you into frenzied activity if you are anything like me and just have to do something creative straight away. So now I have a lovely contemplative break for you, that is if you love the swish and sound of books and handmade paper. Take a look at Susan Mills website, it could make you drool.

I have finally finished the hanging and added keys along the bottom. They are old family keys so it is a bit sentimental. ‘She will need help in the Persian Palaces’, I think there is a fire and her old retainer is off to find the keys to the locked tower- or something like that!

We recently visited the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and because I was with my husband we looked in galleries that I would probably not have visited, for instance the ironwork gallery, where there is a whole display of keys from over the ages. They were really fascinating. These small keys don't give the clang that you get with larger ones; I know because we have just added some to a hanging at the day centre where I work. There has just been a survey which has, for some reason, found that most homes have a hoard of keys with long forgotten origins.