Saturday 24 August 2013

Nkwali Second Day

Another drive in the morning. More leopards, antelopes, birds and wart hogs. The latter two insist on moving away at high speed when humans appear so I have only limited photos.

Here is one of a bee-eater which I did manage to take. He. Is about five inches long.g

And here is a zebra. The tails are like well made braids, very regular in black and white with a black tassel at the end. I must try to get a photo.

A picture of the river crossing. We have taken to crossing a little downstream - by driving across. Unnerving. Yesterday evening we drove north up the main road to cross into the park at the main entrance. A different kind of landscape there. Rolling meadows with lots of grazing animals. One meadow had impala, warthogs, giraffes on it. When it gets dark, the driver's helper uses a powerful light to search for night animals. And we saw a couple of leopards. We watched a male leopard first as he searched for food then after 20 minutes or so, there was a ferocious snarling and a lot of movement which turned into the male chasing a female leopard up a tree. He sat at the bottom of the tree waiting for her but she was not having it. So he wandered off. After a while, she came down, had a sniff around and a hyena arrived feeling hostile at which our hero returned and the hyena retired rapidly to a great deal of snarling. All of this drama was lit up by a search light from our vehicle. I don't see why the animals ignore the light but there you are.

And I had a few textile thoughts this morning, to do with dead. white tree skeletons seen against a dark green background. I have not quite worked out how to do this yet. Weave the background and discharge it with a screen print of a tree. I will have to check but I have a feeling discharge paste rots silk. I wonder if a screen print using Seta colour would work or possibly that would run too much. Watered down acrylic paint. It sounds as though drawing is required as a start. Fortunately the current warp on the Megado is long enough for experiments. Manutex?

Off for tea now. The food is exceptional. I particularly like the salads at lunchtime. Anne and I have taken to writing down how we think the more interesting dishes are made.

 

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I am weaver and - -. I dye my yarns with acid dyes, I paint my warps, put fabric collages and stencils on my weaving. I have three looms, a 12 inch wide, 12 shaft Meyer for demos and courses, a 30 inch Louet Kombo which is nominally portable but has a stand, two extra beams and a home-made device containing a fan reed. And last a 32 shaft Louet Megado which is computer controlled, has a sectional warp and a second warp beam and I am the proud owner of an AVL warping wheel which I love to bits and started by drilling holes in. I inserted a device for putting a cross in. I have just acquired an inkle loom and had a lesson from an expert so I can watch TV and weave at the same time. I am interested in weaving with silk mostly 60/2 although I do quite a bit with 90/2 silk. I also count myself as a bookbinder with a special interest in Coptic binding.