New wooden flower baskets all along the perimeter fencing and all the silk flowers totally rewired and rearranged ...plus a huge amount of extra silk flowers added into the mix. A very substantial reworking indeed.
Really unusual for me to be up at the Heights of Abraham in April.
But I took the fencing up there to get the new flower baskets built.
Not only the correct size, but also with the correct angles : this could only be done accurately with the fence panels in their actual positions.
First stand rustic colours with diluted acrylic paint, then varnished.
Fourteen different sized flower baskets, numbered for easy and fast fixing to the theatre fencing.
To make the new flower arrangement really even and precise many, many, many sprigs of flowers sand foliage were arranged onto wires using weatherproof green electrical tape.
Another little job that needed doing for the 2024 Season, was changing my web address. This new Wix website has a much longer address. So just painting over the old one was not possible. It needed much larger plywood ribbons.
A huge deal for me, I can hardly believe it's been this many years.
So of course I am going to be putting lots of extra stuff into the Show itself.
But also revamping the Theatre and surrounding Bunting.
Using 'PROCREATE' drawing app on my iPad, I have mocked up this pre-visualisation of how I want the proscenium looking for this special year.
I shall be reusing the blue Pelmet form the first Heights theatre.
Even though it is huge, it's still not long enough for the new show.
Additional panels will need making in matching fabrics.
An expensive trip to Walsall for velvets and sparkly fabrics. But now I can start making the new proscenium Velvets.
When I use red velvets, I fall in love with the red and gold combo.
But every time I work in dark blue and gold ...I really feel it's the classiest and most plush a puppet theatre can look.
After this Season , I will be able to choose between Red and Blue whenever I want.
Even before the Summer 2024 season was over, I was sitting backstage inside the booth designing the Bunting for the following year.
Traditional Red & White Stripe will be the order of the day .
But all kinds of different width and style of stripe.
To unify all the bunting pendants, each will have a matching commemorative patch.
Once I had drawn my design it was over to my friends at ASPINLINE.
A wonderful Bristol based company who have done all my patches over the years.
Very labor intensive, and days and days of sewing!
Because this year there is going to be A LOT of Bunting.
I know Iv'e been busy when the rubbish bin by the sewing machine looks like this...
Absolutely neverending amount of cutting, sewing, turning insideout, trimming, steaming flat and sewing on patches.
Heights really don't understand the amount I work I put into a Season - but at least I know they do appreciate it.
