Hankie Dress

I have recently run a course based on up cycling old handkerchiefs and thought I would show what I did with the floral border of a handkerchief. It has been carefully cut and reapplied on to the surface of this little baby dress. Never be afraid to cut things up and use them to transform something else!

Pop up

If you are working in London or visiting over the next couple of weeks please pop up in to my daughter's pop up exhibition in the heart of Bloomsbury not far from Kings Cross and British Museum. Here are the opening times and address. Next door is Pentreath and Hall which is lovely and Persephone Books just across the road!

The Textile Retreat Company in the New Forest

For several years I have had the privilege of teaching at Chateau Dumas in France and working with Lizzie Hulme who owns the Chateau and is responsible for making it such a lovely experience when you teach or go on a workshop there. I have also worked with Lizze in Britain too and she has told me there are still a couple of places left on a luxurious textile retreat which I have been part of for the last couple of years. The full details are  HERE It is a chance if you are far away in the USA or Australia or wherever to come over to the UK and have a little dip into London life as well as relaxing at Heathfield House in the New Forest where Anna Corba and I run the workshops. You will be looked after well and I cannot recommend it highly enough!The New Forest is beautiful in the Spring ....

Place, Home,Loss and Legacy

I realise that many of you will not be able to see this exhibition but for those of you reading this in the North East of England then try and get to see it at Hartlepool Art Gallery.  Claire A Baker has been visiting the Chernobyl exclusion zone regularly over the last five years. She has been documenting the lives and textile  traditions of the self settler Babushkas who have chosen to go back to their homes. The stories are very moving and it was good to see textiles produced by the women earlier in their lives and also textiles retrieved from the exclusion zone. Here are some pictures to give you a taste.
If you are an instagrammer you can follow Claire at @claire_a_baker