Firstly I would like to wish everyone a merry christmas!

I know its been a couple of weeks since i last updated this but I have had the pleasure of moving, college deadlines and getting ready for christmas!! This is the first time I have had the chance to actually sit down and stop, its been a whirl wind but its all been worth it! I was previously stuck in a room, which was a good size but with all my stuff in it there was hardly room to swing a cat (not that I would do that being an animal lover) and not much room for creativity to flow. Now I am in a house where I have plenty of room to be able to get the creativity flowing. I have a project called Fibre Arts and on our last day before christmas we learnt how to knit. I have got some needles and wool together and this afternoon I plan to knit. My boyfriend Paul bought me a lovely book called 'Stitch and Bitch', it gives step by step instructions and patterns. It even shows how to knit for left handers like myself, this is called continental knitting (I quite like the sound of that). Knitting has come back into fashion and I recommend everyone having a try. Its very therapeutic and at the end of it you have made something which is very rewarding! It takes a little while to get into the memento, so dont give up straight away! I found it a little difficult as Im cack handed but I am determined to master it so everyone will be getting scarfs next year for christmas!! 

This time of year can be difficult for some people. With family and loved ones passed I would like to send my thoughts to those who have lost and for everyone to take a minute just to think about these people. 

We must also cherish the time we spend with our family and friends and celebrate with a spot of knitting!

Embroidery

I would like to thank Denise for her supportive comment and for the support from my first followers Helena and Vicky. If you are feeling that you are relating to any of the symptoms I mention then its always worth talking to someone and getting it checked out. 

So far I have had 5 weeks in ceramics, which was amazing,there is nothing better than getting your fingers into some clay and throwing pots on a wheel. But I had to leave that behind and move on into embroidery. The fabrics that are available to experiment with are just stunning and the colours are just as amazing. Putting it all together for me...not so amazing!! I find the cupboard with all the fabrics in sooooooo confusing, mixing the textures and the colours is not always that easy.  I had been experimenting though and felt a little down because I thought I wasn't getting anywhere.  My tutor had to pull the reins on me a few times because I was heading in all different directions. Thankfully she did because it has helped me to push a design i didn't like to something that is actually ok. Its a test of perseverance but im glad that i have stuck with it. Thats how life works sometimes....things that we want are not always going to be handed to us on a plate. Damn....why not I ask?? But a test to make sure we are heading along the right path, thats my theory anyway. I have had to finish writing an evaluation as well which has been horrible. Its one of my worst areas but I have given myself sometime to write it but I still need to proof read it again. I get so frustrated because I get a block when Im trying to write. Every word goes out the window and its hard to find the one i want. Its like, I know what i want to stay but cant find that word. Its a long and grueling process to do these things but by giving yourself PLENTY of time and doing it in bite size chunks it takes the pressure off! Well all has to be handed in on Friday, not feeling to stressed tonight and I have done what I can. Im going back to watch xfactor the final, sad I know, wonder who will win??x 

It was only last year when I was studying on an access course in Art and Design at the University of Cumbria that my Dyslexia was picked up. At school is was never noticed, my understanding of dyslexia then was spelling or reading problems, I was ok at it but not brilliant, maybe the teachers just thought I was a bit stupid. I vaguely remember the reports coming back, 'Nicola has potential if she tries harder'. Maybe that was the problem, I was but things were not being picked up. This is very common for many people and if you feel that you are having difficulties I recommend getting it checke out. There is so much to Dyslexia and I understand that there are so many people it effects. How it effects me is my working memory, so retaining information is a problem. Someone could say something which would appear simple to understand but it will take my brain a little while to digest and understand what is being said. Also reading can be a pain, it can take a long time to read a book and especially now I have these art books to read it is very scary! At the University there is the SIGN centre, the people here are fab and help with any problems I may have with my work. I decided to continue into Higher Education at this Uni, the course i am studying is Contemporary Applied Art. I am fortunate enough to have the support at the university to help with any issues I have relating to my dyslexia. I also suffer with depression on occasions,  I am aware that so many people do and this brings me to why I have set up this blog. I want to be able to help people who are suffering any kind of issue by either expressing themselves with art and getting creative or just by giving comfort by reading my blog. When you are feeling down you sometimes fee very alone and I hope by reading this you wont. I will update it weekly and cover various issues and speak about my time at the University of Cumbria. It also for you to make any suggestion or comments. It can take me a while to write so I will be back in the next day or two to really get the ball rolling. See you soon x