Film Shoot

Emily and Thomas dancing to 'Beyond the Sea'

We had a film shoot today for the new Line Dancing DVD. We were really lucky to catch a brilliant dancer, Thomas while he was home for the holidays. We were also delighted to be able to use the Kinema in the Woods as our venue.

The Kinema in Woodhall Spa

The Kinema in Woodhall Spa is the last remaining back projection cinema. Going to the Kinema is like entering a time warp. The amazing 1940's ambiance makes it the perfect backdrop to feature a Line Dancing DVD designed around a Bobby Darin song. We think that the stills are brill! But the moving version is even better.We apply the same techniques that make the dancing fun and fab to machine quilting!

Our new 'Beyond the Sea' Line Dancing DVD uses the repeated movements of scalloping and echoing to maneuver around our available machine quilting space. The curtain captures it all! Beyond the Sea, our next Lind Dancing DVD will be out soon!

About the Dress

1940's swing dress created by Pauline Loven

Need a period costume for your film shoot? Ask Pauline Loven! Pauline usually does much older stuff, so a 1940's dress was just a little hop back in time. Pauline creates period costumes for museums and film and often just for sheer pleasure. She has the uncanny ability to grab hold of the idea in your  head and make it happen. Amazing. This dress is perfect. Just what I was imagining. I found the perfect fabric at ZandS Fabrics,  an online fabric shop based in Pennsylvania, USA. They have lovely collections and send them beautifully wrapped, ever so quickly. This fabric is a reproduction of a 1945 print, just what we were looking for!

 Among her many projects, Pauline is also working on a 1940's swim suit collection to be featured in the Beyond the Sea DVD.So stay tuned. Meanwhile you may like to visit some of her online sites.

Martha Milne, Pat Roberts and Pauline Loven

Dawn Dancing

Today  we did a film shoot for the next DVD in the Line Dancing Series. It's called Beyond the Sea  and will focus on adding variations to the basic steps. Beyond the Sea will have a post-war 1940's feel and we're using the fox trot as the basic dance. We wanted to shoot a dance sequence to set the tone and mood for the film.I've been working with Emily and Ryan on other projects. You may have seen them in Victorian costume as they danced the waltz for the Gainsbourough Old Hall film. They agreed to join us for this project. We had a couple of sessions over the summer, learning the steps and adding variations. Then we  headed down to the seaside at 4:30 am this morning to catch the dawn light. 

It was a perfect morning, no rain , no wind just a beautiful sunrise! All that lovely light made the film guys so happy. We've included a few stills to give you a sneak peak. The moving images are even better!

Skegness has never looked so good!

Having a preview peak. The photos are by Nick Loven, Chris Roberts and Pauline Loven.

Progress Down Under

It’s always a pleasure getting feedback from exciting places. I’ve blogged about Brenda in Australia before. Brenda’s the one whose husband can’t stop singing La Mer! Here’s a photo of Brenda’s stunning Australian Flag Quilt. As I’m busy beavering away on my English flag blocks for the next DVD, I was really keen to see how this flag quilt turned out. I love it! And I think it’s a brilliant idea to make it double-sided. I've included parts of an email from Brenda and another photo which shows the ripple stipple stitching close up.Thanks for sharing Brenda. I think your quilt is gorgeous! I can’t wait to see what you do next!

Hello Martha,

I thought you might be interested in my progress. WOW, what a great time quilting I’ve been having! Thanks to you and your DVD, I’ve completed several of my projects, including Ben’s Flag Quilt. Ben lives with us and is so pleased to finally have his quilt. Ben just turned 21 and when he requested a flag quilt, for his 21^st, my dilemma was how to make a flag quilt that he could continue to enjoy as he got older.

The result was a double-sided quilt, flag one side and stars the other. The next problem was solved with your DVD, I used the Ripple pattern. It was ideal, for me, and the project. I am looking forward to your next DVD, when can I expect to see it??? The best news of all is, Dick has stopped singing La Mer!

Thanks once again,

Brenda XXX

By the way Brenda, you need to prepare yourself! The theme tune for the next DVD in the Line Dancing Series, is a song by Bobby Darin called Beyond the Sea. Your husband's going to love it!