I’ve been busy making samples for a Nuno Collar Workshop which I have been asked to do at the Thomas Garrett Rooms in Heighton in the Autumn. I deliberately steered myself away from my usual pallet of greys and muted colours and I’m really pleased with the results. These collars are incredibly lightweight (approx 35gms) making them very comfortable to wear. Each one is held in place with a Tyvek brooch.
I’ve done it again….too engrossed in “doing stuff”to remember to log my recent activities so here we go with a catch up of my creative adventures in the Scottish Highlands, early June.
I had booked a place on Jan Kilpatrick’s textile workshop, A Sea of Stitches, which would take place in her studio in Elphin. I took a leisurely drive up, stopping the first night near Loch Lomond and the second in Drumnadrochit on the banks of Loch Ness.
On the third day I reached my base for the five day workshop, the Eileen Donan guest house in Ullapool. The B&B was lovely and the town itself turned out to be very unspoilt, quiet and peaceful. For the first two days I was there it was also very grey, wet and chilly but that did nothing to dampen our spirits.
The following day at 10am I met Jan and the 6 other participants in a park down by the beach. After introductions and a brief overview of the workshop Jan sent us off to make personal records of the images, colours, textures and patterns from Ullapool’s beach and harbour and from the open and sweeping pebble beach at neighbouring Ardmair.
After about an hour of beach combing in torrential rain we moved up to Ardmair Beach, still pouring with rain, where Jan greeted us dispensing much appreciated flasks of hot drinks and home-made cake from the boot of her car. I had to stick to using my camera as, by this time, my hands were so cold I couldn’t grip to use my pencil!
This image will become a textile piece when I get the time!
I just love the varying shades of grey…..
The rest of the week just flew by. Each day we began a new piece of work, inspired by our research on day one, using a different method of mark making on fabric. This included painting, dyeing, burning, hand and machine stitching.
The outdoor “messy” area
Some of Jan’s work on display
By the end of the five days we had all amassed 100’s of photographs, a stack of small coloured fabrics and a head full of ideas for future projects.
Show & Tell…..Jess
Show & Tell…..Anne
Show & Tell…..Carola
Show & Tell…..Margaret
Show & Tell…..Sarah
Show & Tell…..Jane
Some of my samples
All in all it was a very inspiring week with spectacular scenery and excellent company.
Tyvek leaf with metallic thread and beading.
I’ve just got back from spending a wonderful day with Jacky Hopkin and her group of ladies who meet at Waltham Windmill on the outskirts of Grimsby. I was invited over to teach them the technique of making a Tyvek Leaf using coloured fabric Tyvek and a wire armature.
Once again we ended up with a variety of different shapes and colours, each one very different to the next, and each leaf will look beautiful when the stitching and beading has been added. The ladies will finish these off at home and bring them back to their meeting next month for a “show and tell”.
Many thanks to Jackie and the group for inviting me over and thank you to Brenda for providing me with a delicious lunch! I shall look forward to seeing you all again.
I’m really pleased to be announcing that I will be holding a two day workshop in August to recreate one of my favourite pieces, the wet felted wall hanging I call Yellow Poppies. Since my quilts started touring with Grosvenor Shows earlier this year I’ve received more email comments about this piece than any other, which is really nice, with several ladies asking when I will be running a workshop.
The venue will be the beautiful light and airy Simply Stitch Studio at East Keswick owned and run by textile tutor Nicola Hulme. The facilities are perfect for encouraging creativity and with over 400 bolts of patchwork fabric from Makower, Lewis & Irene and Cloud 9 as well as Hobbs quilt wadding you can take the opportunity of a little retail therapy if the mood takes you! Nicola offers an extensive workshop programme so it’s well worth taking a look at her website to see what’s available.
This morning I travelled down to Pode Hole, in the Lincolnshire Fens, to deliver a needle felted toadstool workshop for the Spalding Embroiderers. The ladies had expected to be doing a beading class but unfortunately the tutor couldn’t keep the booking and I was asked if I could step in at short notice, which I was only too pleased to do.
We began by making the three main components, the stalk, base and top of the toadstool using white Cheviot wool from World of Wool. Cheviot is a good choice to use as ‘core’ wool as it is inexpensive and needle felts quickly. Once we had joined together the three elements we covered the top of the toadstool using WoW’s carded Corriedale in sour cherry (Tutti Frutti collection) and Pinwheel (Galaxy range). The base was covered in a combination of Tadpole and Sombrero, again from WoW’s Galaxy range.
For a lot of the day you could have heard a pin drop….the concentration was so intense!
Detail was added using small skeleton leaves and tapestry wool for grass.
Once again it was a really enjoyable day in the company of a very creative group of ladies. My thanks to Liz and Mavis for inviting me back and I’m now looking forward to our next workshop!
The Spalding ladies with their toadstools
Chunky Bergschaf Necklace
I’ve just finished an experimental piece which was started during Mandy Nash’s workshop in Belchford last weekend. It’s a chunky Bergschaf necklace made from shades of grey and natural Bergschaf wool with yellow, pink and orange spots and hangs from a thin cord.
Tyvek Leaf made Josie at the Louth Textile Group.
This gorgeous Tyvek Leaf was made by Josie, one of the Louth Textile Group, at my Tyvek Leaf Workshop last Friday. The addition of stitching and beading has transformed it……absolutely beautiful! Please keep the photos coming in as and when you finish your leaves.
Tyvek leaf
Last night I was invited to deliver my Tyvek Leaf Workshop to 24 creative ladies from the Louth Textile Group who meet once a month at the Conoco Rooms above Louth Library. Time was going to be a little tight with 24 participants and less than two hours to make our leaves but all of the ladies rose to the challenge knowing that they would have to complete their project at home.
We began by colouring our Tyvek using our chosen medium, either felt markers, fabric paint, acrylics or watercolours. While this was drying the ladies made their wire leaf framework.
Every leaf was a different shape and there were some interesting colour schemes taking place………
Selection of Tyvek Leaves painted and distressed and ready for embellishing
It was a fun night which went all too quickly…..I wish I had made the time to take more (and better) photos! With no time at the end for a “show and tell” I’m hoping to receive images of the finished work, complete with stitching and beading, when the group meet again next month.
Many thanks to all the ladies for making feel so welcome.
My little group, Felt Inspired, have just played host to a wonderful wet felting weekend workshop with felt maker Mandy Nash. The four “Inspired” regulars myself, Rosie, Dreda and Pat were joined by Jane, Enid, Joan, Helen, Sandra and Robyn (Feltybits). As well as being an inspiring tutor, Mandy, who travelled up from Llantrisant, is Vice Chair, exhibitions officer and a regional co-ordinator of the International Feltmakers Association.
Mandy Nash
The morning began with Mandy showing the ten of us examples of her wonderful wet felted objects, including hats, bags, funky fish and vessels, mainly created using Bergschaf wool.
A small selection of Mandy’s work
Some of the ladies were keen to experiment with the “book” resist technique with five of them making vessels while Robyn decided she would like to make a fish.
Sandra working with a book resist
Robyn’s fish & bowl, Rosie’s festival hat, Sandra’s coastline inspired vessel (centre) and Pats four-sided vessel (right)
The rest of us chose to make a hat using a flat resist and added embellishment. In addition Mandy talked us through the various surface design techniques she uses and demonstrated how we could achieve these effects using Bergschaf wool batts.
Rosie working on her festival hat
Joan made a beautiful bowler hat with slash detail
Enid’s 3 sided two-tone grey vessel, Jane’s dark blue & Dreda’s light blue vessel.
Helen and I were both smitten with Mandy’s “fern” hat so chose to make that……
Helen’s “fern” hat
My fern hat
Many thanks to Mandy for an inspiring two days and thanks to all the ladies who participated. If anyone would like to join our group we meet on the second Wednesday of the month at Belchford Village Hall. For more information please use the contact form.
Back in the Summer I read a post on the Felting & Fibre Studio about a concertina hat workshop being run by Teri Berry. It sounded really interesting but at that time I couldn’t commit due to holidays and other workshops. Fortunately Teri’s first workshop was such a huge success that it is being run again this month. As a result I’ve just finished my first wet felted Merino concertina hat and I’m really happy with how it turned out. I’m now looking forward to trying out the next design which is Teri’s wacky but wonderful “Snail Hat”…….watch this space!
Lincs In Stitches 