Just about recovered now from the final episode of Wolf Hall – phew – even though you knew what was coming, it was still heart-ripping.
And so apparently it’s nearly the end of February – a busy month around here, family birthdays, car MOTs, half-term – I’m always surprised how very ‘full’ this shortest month can feel.
This month, despite remaining cold and grey for much of the time, spring has actually arrived on the lane. Buds on trees and a tiny clump of snowdrops give me visual confirmation, but the daily chorus of birdsong (plus the drilling of the woodpecker), leaves me in no doubt, the mornings are getting lighter and spring is here.
I’ve had a sticky few weeks on the stitching front. Several pieces started, with enthusiasm, but somehow unwilling to go the distance. In an attempt to rid myself of whatever was blocking me, I had a good old thrash around with the metallic paints and then on Friday 13th, I went off for the day to Ely cathedral – an artist’s date – to top-up the creative juices. I’ve posted about the cathedral over at Mists of Time – do pop over there if you’d like to see pictures.
Ely has a superb stained glass museum – and of course the cathedral itself has a vast amount of stained glass windows – the whole jewel colour extravaganza always carries me off to some other place – and I think it shows in the stitching…
I’ve finally managed to settle into a piece that I’m confident now I’ll stay with until it’s finished – another tree would you believe.
And February has set me a challenge which I’m sure may well keep me occupied for some considerable time – the whole question of whether William Shakespeare of Stratford, was actually also the playwright...or not.
Since writing the previous post, I’ve been carefully reading Shakespeare: An Unorthodox Biography by Diana Price – a good place to begin as it attempts to establish the knowns and unknowns, without getting hung up on possible alternatives. I’ll post more, once I feel I’ve digested it enough to make my initial thoughts clear, but I’m already hooked, it really is a fabulous mystery, and perfect for early night bedtime reading.
I hope February hasn’t been too harsh where you are – happy stitching!
❤
You can find almost daily pictures on my Instagram page.
Dreaming In Stitches 
The days are definitely lengthening so spring really must be on its way. Hurrah! Ely Cathedral is magnificent isn’t it?
It truly is – I loved watching people’s faces as they came through the small door and encountered that tremendous nave – if it can produce that effect today, I imagine our medieval ancestors would have been totally enchanted.
Lovely to see your photo collage…. and the connection between your stitching and the stained glass comes through! So looking forward to Wolf Hall when it arrives over here and your Shakespeare sleuthing too!
Sleuthing! Yes, I like that!
Loved your Ely Cathedral post and pictures – made me sure I really must visit, it looks so beautiful, but gosh, don’t we wish that damned reformation hadn’t destroyed so much that was beautiful. And here, a tantalising glimpse of a twisty tree – look forward to seeing that expand.
Sad to say I failed to watch Wolf Hall at all – shoud I be excommunicated, or perhaps just pilloried for stupidity?
You’re right, we’ll never really know just how many treasures were completely destroyed in the Reformation, but the brutality is so evident at Ely, you can judge the height of the attackers by seeing how far up the stone carvings have been butchered.
It’s not too late to see Wolf Hall – it’s on BBC iPlayer – and the DVD is released very soon I think – but I don’t expect Henry’s executioner will be visiting if you don’t watch!
I might cheat and wait until the DVD is bought by the library – a perk of work – how poetic 🙂
Hi Anny I remember a visit to Ely Cathedral when my daughter was a student in Cambridge. I loved exploring around that area of the country. The quest to find Shakespeares identity -first establish the facts – we do this at work with Care cases in a Finding of Fact hearing where everything know to be actual fact is put forward. It cannot be heresay or a theory or presumed it has to be a concrete fact. The book you are starting with sounds good to establish this. I’m afraid I am in love with Proust rather than Shakespeare – I couldn’t tell you why in particular I just like the way he writes about everyday things. Shakespeare and I just didn’t gel at school maybe too much pressure to understand it back then! We did Hamlet and King Lear. I did see a brilliant performance of Measure for Measure in Stratford and I really enjoyed that. But I will be interested to find out more about him so I will keep reading about your findings and who knows perhaps I’ll become hooked on him as I see him through your eyes. I am thinking of you now as a regular Miss Marple!. x
You’ve uncovered my little secret – I’ve always fancied myself as a Miss Marple (Joan Hickson variety). Was it by any chance the Jonathan Pryce Measure for Measure in 1979? I was extremely lucky to live quite close to Stratford in those days, so my introduction to the plays was largely at the RSC, which I’m sure meant that we understood more than we’d otherwise have picked up as teenagers – another secret – I had a teenage crush on Jonathan Pryce – he was Petruchio in a wonderful production of Taming of the Shrew – fair got me through my A levels thinking about that!
I’ve never tried Proust – what an admission!
Proust isn’t everyones taste but it does it for me. The way he describes an ordinary walk in Swanns Way is wonderful and of course it may be lengthy but it doesn’t need a translation like Shakespeare! In answer to your question it would have been a 1969 production at a guess 10 years earlier. I have also seen the Taming of the Shrew and also like that one and Comedy of Errors. It is the King Lear, Richard the whatever, Hamlet, Macbeth ones I am not keen on. I do love his Sonnets though and would not part with my book Shakespeare on Love. After writing this I am beginning to realise perhaps I like him more than I thought what a revelation Miss Marple! I will let you get back to your sleuthing now you have converted me.
Love the jewel-bright colours of your mosaic – just what we need in February. Also tantalised to see what my pulled thread might have sparked off but looks like I’ll have to wait!!
Hi Alex, yes, nothing happens very quickly around here! But because I mainly work in linen scrim, nothing I make is ever ‘square’ and I often agonise about the edges once the stitching is finished. Your pulled-thread work set my mind alight – now I’m thinking of ways to extend the designs out over the edge but within the threads of the canvas – I love a challenge (and I love the way one idea sparks another – thank you).