Am working with stitch and collage onto a black Edwardian skirt. Not sure it's working but suspect it just needs hours more of input with the tiny stitches 

Woad Wallet

In the summer at Chateau Dumas I showed students how to make beautiful fabric diaries within old leather wallets. We had had a fun day dyeing everything in sight in the woad vats and here is the book I have eventually finished of pieces that I dyed myself and little bits from some of the students.  The photographs are in the exact order of the pages ( I think!) I enjoyed using the red/ woad combination. Just love doing these……….

Selvedge

It has taken a while for me to pick up that Selvedge wrote a nice post about me. Here's the link
I will be teaching for Selvedge again next year 12- 17 August at Chateau Dumas

Mary Francis Heaton

For a couple of days a week I work for an Arts Project in a Mental Health Trust. Last week I went to see the Bedlam exhibition at the Wellcome Institute in London as I am always interested in mental health matters. I am not going to review the exhibition but if you are near Kings Cross it is worth walking up the road to see the free exhibition which features 4 embroidered  letters by so called mad woman Mary Francis Heaton in 1852. Stitching words was the only way she could be heard. Very powerful work.

Also went to see We are Human at the SouthBank Centre. This is the annual Koestler Trust exhibition and I was pleased to see three pieces by patients I work with displayed. If you are interested in Outside Art then this work created by people in secure settings is always a worth a look. Just along the Embankment  from Tate Modern.

Winsome Douglas

At Ally Pally to promote my book today. Favourite thing I have seen today are these embroidered panels by Winsome Douglass 1953. Love the colour combination and use of trad embroidery stitches

Bright Flowers

I am really busy teaching and working and off to Knit and Stitch to promote my book tomorrow. I will soon be putting images up of what ~I am working on but here is one of some flowers  on to an old bit of log cabin quilt. I sold lots in this series at the weekend when teaching at Hope and Elvis. Love responding to the colours in the quilt and the whole appliqué thing…. This piece sums what I feel about this Autumn with  bright dahlias and zinnias still enjoying the sunshine on my allotment, the sun seems to appear without fail every day even in the north east!

Knit and Stitch next week

I will not be having an exhibition or a stand at Knit and Stitch at Alexandra Palace next week but I will be doing a short demonstration of how I made the fox that graces the cover of my book, something like the one below.

It will not be EXACTLY the same as every piece I make is unique but you will get the idea if you come along between 12 and 12.30 to The Creative Living Theatre next Friday 7th October. Information about this event is  HERE.
I will also be doing a book signing at Stand H32 from 10.30 - 11.15 if you want to come and buy a book and get it signed. I can not sign books that have been bought from other sources at this event which is hosted by Guild of Master Craftsman. There will also be signed copies of my books available at the Pavilion stand TGM15.

Might see some of you there!