Caro Higgs – Book #2
Wind in the Willows
My second piece is the Wind in Willows, by Kenneth Grahame, and in particular the opening chapter where Rattie introduces Mole to the pleasures of boating on the river, inspired by illustrations by Ernest H Shepard.
I have memories of the book as a child, but in particular the pantomime Toad of Toad Hall which was a family favourite and based on the book. Some of the later scenes frightened me due to the fierceness of the woodland creatures but the riverside folk touched my imagination. I loved the idea of a mole exploring the riverbanks and finding the water rat who was all too happy to show him around. Amongst others there were also notably the Badger and the notorious Mr Toad who was somewhat accident prone.
In creating the piece I thought of river banks I know and decided to depict pollarded willow trees along the river bank and a larger alder tree in the foreground, the leaves are all made in the confetti style under netting. In the background are the darker wild woods. Mole and Rattie are exploring the river with their picnic basket accompanied by dragonflies. Predominantly home dyed and painted cottons with commercial fabrics for the tree trunks. A few of the relevant sentences are simply written in the grass in the foreground. Mainly machine stitched with a little hand stitching of the grass and animals.
FIFTEEN BY FIFTEEN 
Such and interesting story! It made me think of my childhood and the stories I grew up with. Abundance of details, and especially textures, make your story visual and even more interesting. Well done!
Everyone has fond memories of childhood books. They were part of our imagination and creativity as we had no televisions or other distractions. I really like your work, which is full of details, textures, and techniques. In particular, I like how you worked on the bark of the trunk in the foreground and the confetti for the leaves, which make the landscape almost real. Bravo, well done!
Once again so many details in your piece ! you depicted so well the atmosphere of the book in this scene with Rattie and Mole !
The way you made the tree trunk and the foliage of the trees with netting are very effective ! The water under the boat is very interesting too !
This quilt is so darling. I love all the little details in the quilting and bugs, trees, little flowers. Great colours. Bravo!
Caro this is a delight, I never read this book as a child we had Australian stories so I guess my parents did not introduce us to English authors. I can see this on the wall in a child’s bedroom. Bravo
I don’t know the story but I enjoy your description of the characters and the scene. The trees are perfectly made.
A sweet and playful composition with so much texture and detail. Your interpretation of the little friends on their adventure is so whimsical. Well done.
Did not read this delightful book as a child but much later in life (understanding that it is a classic) I did. What a lovely quilt – cuteness overload! So many details, grass, bugs, flowers, trees, leaves, water, Rattie and Mole. Lovely textures as well. Lov’it!
What a lovely peaceful scene of mole and ratty gently drifting along the river. I love the way you have depicted the riverbank, including the text, and included the darker element of the wild woods lurking in the background
A portion of a childhood favorite story that I remember with great nostalgia. My mother read to us every night from children’s’ classics. The detail in then wall is intriguing and the confetti technique created some beautiful trees.
A lovely illustration of a classic story. I love the figures of Ratty and Mole – you have really given them appealing characters.
What a wonderful piece. So many details and so beautifully executed.
The almost hidden sentences in the foreground are so nicely stitched and the “confetti” trees makes a wonderful frame. Awesome.
Such a cute quilt. I also love the confetti technique. I really like the quilting of the background between the trees.