Sunday 25 September 2011

Craftivists, Fine Cell Work and awholelotta-Wool


 Yesterday I joined the awesome group Crafitivists to help out in sorting wool for another excellent organisation Fine Cell Work.
Fine Cell Work is an organisation that helps rehabiliate prisoners using crafts, mainly embroidery, to earn, save money and rebuild there lives whilst inside prison. Sitting listening to our co-ordinator, Ella, tell us all about the work they do, was thoroughly inspiring.
They needed the Craftivists help, as their wool donations was starting to over load the office, so the tapestry and the crewel wool had to be organised into colour, and the old and wrong wool weeded out.
We all quietly sat picking away at our laps of colours, it was very meditative and relaxing. Loved the Colours!
Ella, our coordinator, wasn't sure how much we could do but we ended up sorting the lot out and clearing the space under the desk in the office.
I was really glad to join the Craftivists for the day, and do something totally worth while. I wasn't sure how activism and crafts went together but I'm liking their thinking and shall be keeping an eye out for other events. I'd also like to do more voluntary work for Fine Cell Work, really important work, I think.







Saturday 24 September 2011

Leafleting My Neighbourhood


A brilliant new event for South London has been born, the South Lambeth Market, consisting of Local people selling there products locally. The first one last weekend on the 17th went down a treat, with a constant flow of visitors. Selling fine foods and wares from fresh baked bread to plants to crafts, all housed on the court and inside hall of a local pub The Cavendish Arms, I am so pleased it will be a regular thing and I look forward to the next on Saturday the 8th October, 10-4pm. 

I am very keen to help any thing that helps to put Stockwell on the map. So the week before I offered my services to help with distributing fliers. I opted to distribute around my mums neighbourhood just a couple of roads.
Boy, I never realised what strange and hard work it is, up and down stairs, sweating buckets on a highly humid morning. It's Spider season so had to navigate huge webs with orb web spiders in the middle covering pathways. I encountered greasy, grimy gates; front gardens overloaded with gorgeous flower; a faded gnome garden; multiple doorbells on large houses and loads of no junk mail stickers “it's not junk, it's an invitation” I thinks to myself. By the time I finished I was grimmy, covered in cobwebs and dripping with sweat but I got to know my neighbourhood a bit better. Just walking through their gate up to their door gave me more of an idea of who lives in my hood, it's not as posh up close.  


Tuesday 6 September 2011

End of The Road 2011: Paintings

Well I've just got back from EOTR, slightly tanned and quite contented.
In many years gone by, festivals to me were about getting wasted outdoors with loud music, and fancy footwork.

This festival I was determined not to drink but to try and see as many bands as possible because I was over awed by the line up, the line up was the reason I leaped forth and brought a ticket.

Saw some amazing bands including: The Growlers, Secret Sisters, Caitlin Rose, Micah.P.Hinson, Clap your Hands Say Yeah, Joan as Police Woman, Sam Amidon, Beirut, This is the Kit, Diagrams, Nathaniel Rateliff, Phosphorescent, Tinariwen, The leisure Society, Josh T. Pearson, John Grant, and Joanna Newsom to name but a few.
My favorites were Josh T. Pearson, John Grant, The Leisure Society, This is The Kit,  Diagrams, Joanna Newsom.



I liked stargazing to Joanna Newsom it was so cold and our legs killed so we lay on Chezza's poncho and watched the stars to the gorgeous voice and harp of Joanna Newsome, it sounded like the stars singing.
This is the Kit filled the Tipi tent, with a full crew of musicians including a lady playing the saw. I found some of her music I hadn't already got and was lucky enough to have a little chat about South London and get a signing from Kate Stables of This is the Kit. 
The Tipi tent was very good for discovering new music, Nathaniel Rateliff was phenomonal, Sam Amidon stella voice, and Diagrams were my big favs with their ballons and mention of Streatham!
Diagrams' Sam Genders was telling the audience how he'd asked the manager for a budget to make this gig 'wow', and got given £15....so he went to the pound shop and brought loads of bubble blowers and balloons and handed them out and I have to say, it was awesome. The whole of the front of the stage was multi-coloured balloons bouncing up and down. And really loved the music.
I was utterly mesmerised by Josh T Pearson's soulful singing, blew me away.


As always the festival food was Amazing food Pieminster, Nachos, pizzas, corn on the cob, falafel, proper lush and yum!

Being sober and forgetting my camera I took the opportunity to draw and paint, I'd forgotten my paint brush so had to use my fingers, but I think they came out rather nice.


And the company was awesome, thanks Ladies, Chezza and Ams for good times and good company! You guys are awesome :)