Dogs

Today I have been constructing some little collages around a few dog cigarette cards that I have been meaning to use for sometime. These will be made into handmade cards and will be available at our Open Studios event on 7/8 May.

Winifred

Using Winifred Nicholson's paintings as inspiration for a set of Still Life Flowers teaching examples( for a course at The Hearth end of July). I love the little flashes of colour so the insertion of the red strip is intentional .

Wool Work

I teach several courses a week but often forget to photograph what the students are doing as I am busy trying to make the creative process happen. Today however I remembered. Here is the start of what will be wool embroidery  on to wool fabric cushions. Didn't they do well!
I f you want to do something similar then the next time I will be running this course is at Hope and Elvis on 1st October.

Inspiration from Kim Parker

The reason I don't quite get as much sewing done as I would like is that I work part time for an Arts Project in a secure setting for one of the biggest mental health and disability trusts in the UK.
The project works with service users  at the Trust’s Northgate Hospital in Morpeth and gives them an outlet for their creativity and imagination, resulting in a real sense of achievement and reward for their artistic endeavours.
Here is a piece created by one of our patients. I did the initial design work with him. We looked at  textile designer Kim Parker's book "Home" for inspiration and he drew simple flower shapes which we pulled into a design for a long footstool. I drew it up on to canvas and then left him to it and finally two years later he has finished! What a fine piece of work from one who originally had few sewing skills. Makes my job seem all the more worthwhile.

Happy Birthday!

Not you Elizabeth II…... but you my dear Charlotte Bronte. 200 years today since you were born! I have read Jane Eyre many times in my life and have never been disappointed. Here is my really lovely old Edwardian edition.

Someone has cancelled their place on my wool work course next Sunday 24th April. If you are interested in a place then full details are over on my web site and you can contact me there too. contact me through my web site  I am also running this course at Hope and Elvis in the Autumn if you live near Nottinghamshire and we will be doing stuff like below. I have just finished this piece embroidering with wool on to an old man's dressing gown.

Blue

Teaching an oriental inspired blue and white course at the Fat Quarters today. Here is a taste of what the students were up to. They had only just started the embroidery at this stage. The course booked up very quickly so I am running it again at the same venue on Sat 9th July so check out the details HERE

Red Cat

Continuing with workshop samples. I am always trying to achieve a naievity  that you find in old American appliquéd quilts. Cats  and dogs feature heavily in those old quilts . I think I may have over worked these a bit… but I guess  you cat lovers out there might appreciate them!

Brown Bear, White Bear

Been doing some new samples to show students on my "Animal Applique" course on Sunday May 15th. There are still places if you are interested. Info HERE

Wolf

I have been teaching an animal collage course this weekend in Halifax. It has made me revisit the themes myself and I have made this wolf in the last couple of days on to the base of a really interesting piece of shabby quilt. I will be putting it on Etsy soon.