It's nice to be appreciated!

Embroidered tree pipit

A couple of weeks ago I had one of those emails that brightens your day and makes you feel all inspired again. It was from a lady who had been bought one of my embroidered bird bags from Folksy a few years ago, a damp flat had sadly ruined the bag but she liked it so much that she got in contact to ask if I could make another.

The original bag

I made a few of these bags (about 5 or 6 I think) but I didn't continue making them as although people liked them they took a lot of time and effort and I couldn't justify selling them at a price that would make it worthwhile for me. However, flattery will get you a lot of places and I was so pleased that my work had meant enough to someone that they would take the time and effort to contact me and request a replacement that I agreed straight away.

The new bag

If you've been following this blog you'll know that I've been struggling with my creative mojo recently so this little project has been great for me. It's given me a nice confidence boost (someone likes my work, can't be all bad) and given me a reason and focus to not only get into the studio but to do something more productive than sort out my threads whilst I'm in there!

Tree Pipit line drawing, pen on paper

I began as I usually do by drawing, just quick line drawings to capture the flighty nature of birds. I did this sketch of  tree pipit and really liked it and decided it would work well so I used my sketch and the photograph I did the drawing from as a basis for the embroidery. I used three shades of purple and free motion embroidery to create this little guy, I like his inquisitive look and I hope that he'll be as loved as his predecessor (and not succumb to damp!)

Detail

I really enjoy free motion embroidery, it is very like drawing and I like the quality of line. I was so inspired by working on this piece that I went straight on to another stitched bird, but more about that in another post...

Owl Embroidery

Owl Embroidery

I started this owl way back in the year as a 'working sampler' for some embroidery workshops I was running. I used a wooden hand carved printing block to take a rubbing using fabric crayons and then I began embellishing the rubbing with stitch. Over the year the sample has grown as I've done various workshops and this week I got it finished off. I always like to have a work in progress when I'm running sessions so that I can use it demonstrate techniques on a piece of work rather than just a plain piece of cloth.

Ear detail

Head detail

I really love the block that I used and have made several prints and rubbings from it for other projects. This is probably one of my favourite things I've done with it though as I think the stitching adds to his quirky and slightly scruffy appearance. I used my favourite colours and the stitching is mostly chain and feather variations.

Body and wing detail

Body and wing detail

Body detail

Hearts and Roses

Brooch detail

It's been another busy week; I've been painting backdrops and plywood ovens with the guys at Heathlands as well as making pieces of steak out of fabric and sewing up a severed princesses arm (fabric again, don't worry.) All in the name of theatre, but more of that in a later post. I have also been working at James Rennie School this week where I have been tie dyeing with KS4. I really enjoyed my day with them, they were eager to learn and really got stuck in. And I once again ended up with blue hands, it's becoming a recurring theme. I will be working with them again in a couple of weeks when we will be using our tie-dyed fabric to make the sea!

Crochet brooch with fabric rose

Today, as a bit of a diversion from the madness of the week, I have been making some pretty crochet brooches for my Folksy shop. I've been playing around making some crochet hearts and I've been combining them with crochet flowers and buttons to make these pretty brooches. I was aiming for a romantic, vintage feel but with a modern twist, hence the colours. I'm really pleased with how they've turned out.

Crochet brooch with rose button

Small crochet brooch with rose button

No resolutions, just some crochet

Crochet Collar

Rather than bore everyone with a post about new beginnings, resolutions and so on I've decided my first post of 2013 shall bore you with pretty crochet instead. At least there are nice photos.

Back view

Front detail

Over the holidays I like to make more frivolous things, especially for myself. So, this holiday I've made myself a pretty crochet collar and a dress (potentially to be worn together.) Before Christmas I tend to spend a lot of time making stuff for other people which is great and I enjoy it but afterwards I like to be a little bit selfish!

Indigo dress

Dress sleeve detail

I really enjoyed making this collar. I got the pattern from Ravelry and it's simple and easy to follow and I'm really pleased with the results. I used a 4 ply cotton yarn in a plum purple colour and a 4mm hook. The dress was from a New Look pattern and was an interesting make as there were lots of darts and shaping bits involved. I used a denim type fabric in a dark indigo and as a consequence my hands looked like smurf hands afterwards!

Cool shadows

Pattern detail

More cool shadows

Crochet hearts

I've also been playing around with making some crochet hearts, ready for Valentines day maybe?

Happy New Year everyone!

Weaving Wonders

Mixed media piece woven on a simple frame loom

Materials include ribbon, plastic, trim, button bands from a shirt and fabric

Starting on Wednesday I am running a series of textile workshops for Prism Arts. One of the things the group wanted to do was weaving so I have been busy refreshing my skills (and learning some new ones!) I've really enjoyed playing about and am looking forward to working with the guys to see what they come up with. For now, here are some pictures of my endeavors.

Detail of mixed media piece showing button band

Bead detail

Button detail

Strips of fabric woven on a cardboard loom

Detail

Detail

Woven pipe cleaners (detail)

Woven pipe cleaners. This piece is fun to play with as the pipe cleaners make it very pliable!

Magik Quilt 2012 Complete!

The finished Quilt

I'm so proud of my textile group at The Heathlands Project for all the work they've put into this years quilt. It's fantastic to see how far they've come, their level of skill and patience has improved dramatically over the last year and we've produced a really beautiful piece of work. The quilt has been a great opportunity for me to teach lots of different textile processes and I'm really impressed with the finished project. A special thank you to Susan for all her help sewing all the patches together!

Detail

Detail

Detail

Detail

Detail

Method of quilting-Cross stitches

Stitch detail

Star stitch detail

Stitch detail

Magik Quilt 2012

Some of the patches

Last year I made a quilt with my textiles group at The Heathlands Project. It was a really great project but very hard work and quite stressful for me so I when I asked the group earlier in the year if they wanted to do the Festival of Quilts again or if they wanted a break for a year I was kind of hoping they'd say have a break! However, they didn't. They were adamant that they wanted to make another quilt so since March we have been working away on a patchwork quilt. Our theme is 'Magik' and I have taught tie-dye, batik, block printing and hand embroidery. Because we chose to make a patchwork quilt this year we wanted to make sure that even though each patch would be made by different individuals the quilt would still work as a whole so we chose a limited colour scheme of blue, purple and green. We tie-dyed our base fabric these colours and then made print blocks which we used to print on top of the tie dye. We've then used hand stitch to complete the patches.

Adding stitch to dyed and printed fabric

It is all starting to come together now and I'm really proud of all my students, they've produced some fantastic work and it's great to see the progression and improvement since last year. We're currently finishing the last few patches and starting to get it all sewn up, then it will be down to me to construct it and get the quilting done!

Learning to couch

Block print with embroidery and sequins

Block print and hand stitch

Work in progress

More patches