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Tuesday 12 February 2019

Marbling the Village Hall




Yesterday afternoon the tiny village hall was almost filled to bursting (slight exaggeration) as a dozen ladies of the parish attended our monthly TED's meeting.



They didn't come along for the local history, and I am fairly sure the refreshments were not what got them across the threshold.  My bet is that the chairman of our local Parish Council 'whipped' them in, for she was hosting the meeting and had arranged for someone to come and demonstrate the ancient art of marbling.


Whatever the answer, it was good to see the hall buzzing with conversation and activity.

The newcomers were introduced and some people found that they had been living almost next door to one another for over three years and yet had never met...and this is in a very small village - the total number of parish residents is 185, and a good number of them don't live in the village.



Then the demonstration got under way.    Our instructor explained the process, then showed us how to marble on fabric, paper, stones, wood, tiles - almost anything which is porous and can be submerged.    It was fascinating and magical.



Lots of different techniques, no two are ever the same.








This is a tiny mounted canvas - a few twirls with a cocktail stick, to swirl and curl the paint, a quick dip, and this pattern is what appeared.


A very jolly couple of hours passed, eventually we left clutching our own pieces of marbled fabric.






The lovely Miss Read was there, of course.  She enjoys anything to do with crafting and was one of the first ones to get stuck in and have a play.

She was also absolutely thrilled to bits when she spotted the enormous woollen tablecloth( click for story) which used to belong to the village WI.     My husband and I had been into the hall to hang it from a metal curtain pole, for all the village to see - on those rare occasions when they attend a function in the hall.


Unfortunately I forgot to take a photograph, I was slightly distracted by all the possibilities offered by the art of marbling - I am thinking about fabrics for fairies, end papers for books and journals, wrapping paper, greetings cards, etc.

Of course I had to come back down to earth - help to clear away the cups and saucers, then dash home to get tea ready for the grandchildren.

Still, it hasn't stopped my brain from ticking over, I like the potential of that craft.

Next month we are having a visit from an elderly woman who used to live in the next hamlet along, I believe she is a few years older than Miss Read, so we are looking forward to hearing her reminiscences of village life.     

It would be marvellous if we could have a similar turnout.





24 comments:

  1. I'm jealous... would have loved to give marbling a try!!

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    1. We would have enjoyed having you there, Bettina.

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  2. Replies
    1. Toby had better not stand still for too long...

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  3. Wellllll, why not enlist the lady, who "whipped" up this time's attendees???? If she did it once, perhaps she could do it again. :-)

    And it would be so lovely, to have a nice turnout, for this elderly lady.

    Actually have never heard of marbling. But that's obvious, since I don't craft.

    💗💙💚💛💜

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    1. The newcomers were almost exclusively interested in the crafting aspect, luckily we have others who like local history. She won't be disappointed, but neither will she be overwhelmed!

      Best teacups and some home made cake will help to make the occasion special, so will our interest.

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  4. Sounds fascinating. I can see with your talents how your mind started to put the possibilities together.

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    1. The trouble is that it is constantly running through the back of my mind right now, Marcia. I have so many craft bits and pieces which can be utilised - half term holiday is coming up next week, so I will have a bit of a play with the grandchildren, see what we come up with!

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  5. It's wonderful when villagers do come together isn't it.

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    1. It was lovely to see everyone chatting and laughing, the old village hall came to life for an afternoon.

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  6. I knew about marbling on paper and fabric but didn't know about stones. I'm glad there was a good turnout, hope some come back for the local history

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    1. I am hoping to attempt some marbling this weekend - a few stones may be dunked! I am looking forward to the local history, it will probably centre around the business of running the old watercress beds and sending the harvest out to the railway station, on the back of a donkey!

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  7. I had forgotten all about marbling! I think it would be perfect for fairy cloaks! (Keep moving, Toby...)

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    1. ooops! Too late, I got him! Fairy cloaks - I like the sound of that. Watch this space.

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  8. Marbled wings for the fairies... what fun.

    LX

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    1. Silk and organza will feature in my early experiments, angel wings could look wonderful!

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  9. I had only heard of marbling on paper. It all looks wonderful

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    1. Same here, Susan. It has really opened it up to experiment, knowing some of the possibilities.

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  10. You have the most interesting demos and themes. Hope those walls keep on bursting, especially for the next history lesson. It is fascinating to hear local tales.. I think
    Marbling .. never heard of it. Another fascinating subject. Looking forward to seeing your accomplishments

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    1. We have high hopes for those tales of hers, Linda. I believe she used to be rather good at telling her tales, so fingers crossed. No matter what, it will be nice to welcome her back to the village hall which she used to know so well.

      My fingers are tapping with excitement at the thought of playing around with the marbling paints, it could be fun!

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  11. I would live to give that a try, I can see marbling in my future.

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    1. You most definitely have access to the most wonderful stones, they would look fabulous - excellent gifts for next December...

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  12. How wonderful the colours and patterns are. You must be filled with creative ideas. It's good to think that your village hall is used for all kinds of meetings expecially local history as well as crafts and other get togethers:)

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Lovely to hear from you.
I will try to answer comments in the next post.