Final offerings.

There are not so many photos as usual,partly because I sat through the show and tell ,and partly because there were not so many present.

Liz had a stand at South West Quilt show at UWE.She had a really wonderful display ,it showed her colourful side with the vibrantly dyed strip cloth.

Above are some examples.She had added more stitch to these.In addition she had some neutral works which offered a real contrast,but nonetheless beautiful .No pics,I forgot to take my camera along to the show.

Ira,meanwhile had a very successful exhibition up at Slimbridge.She sold many pieces.One of her offerings this month was this piece of embroidery in progress.It displays her painted fabric

Embellished with machine and hand stitch and beads.

I forgot to post Jane's little brooches,she has used the stitch present on the Bayeux tapestry.

Such a lot of work but very desirable.

New machine.

Jane has a new embroidery machine that she has been exploring.She is an absolute wizz at creating designs to stitch out .She has an Etsy shop 'jane at number 13' where she sells some of her creations,especially badges and accessories for Irish dancing.

 However ,it is using the machine creatively where she shines.

This is a flower design partially stitched.She is also working on designs based on Thornbury  castle.

She has to size and fit them to the hoop,often moving it very many times.It is precision work that requires a tidy mind.The machine may do the stitching but it is Jane's eye that creates the designs.

These are by no means finished,she will tweak and experiment until they are just right.we await the outcome with interest.

Workshop.

Several of us attended the Embroiderers Guild workshop with Cas Holmes in October.This month Carol and Debby remembered to bring what they had done.

These are some details of Carol's ,she does not like what she did one little bit.I can see possibilities if she stitched into the leaf shapes,and the dark blues remind me of birds.

       We had to take along some objects ,papers etc. for a theme. Cas then got us to set the objects up and draw,only we passed the drawing along to the next person who drew into it and so on around our table.Then we chose an area from our drawing to develop into a collograph. We printed onto teabag paper and used our papers etc. to create a piece which would be stitched into and further developed. Another' little spanner in the works  'was  we had to give something of our work which we disliked to someone in the group.This had to be incorporated into our piece.If you weren't happy with what you were doing this only made things worse!

This is a little of Debby's.

Carol also brought along this.     

An original appliqué and stitch panel ,she could use these delightful designs of hers to have some cards printed.

Debby ,as usual, had been working on a variety of projects.One was using these to dye blankets.

She brought them home from America,they are drinks but can be used to dye.As they are foodstuffs they are safe in a microwave,the background shows some of her results.They can be found here if you google ' Kool-Aid'

She also brought along this sweet little bird,

lino  printed then stitched.

We liked the back as much as the front

Sian Martin said the same at her talk at EG last Friday.

World textiles.

Viv and Sally are well known for their illustrated talks about the Miao.Several of us had gone along to World Textile day in Saltford a few Saturdays ago. This prompted a showing of some of the collection they still have.

Viv brought out this thread keeper.It is hand made in paper and decorated by the needleworker.

It has an ingenious folding box system.The threads and sewing notions can then be kept safe.

It folds quite neatly into a book shape.

There were other items but they were put away before they could be photographed.

Sally,meanwhile is continuing her river journey.

These will be shown in Nature in Art next Easter.

 

November.

Jenn had spent the weekend at Ammerdown with Stitch Textile Artists.This time they were working individually ,preparing for next Summer's exhibition at Ilminster arts centre.Jenn's work is looking at the patterns found in man made barriers.

She has started to put the various samples together to create resolved pieces.

These will then have more stitch added ,be attached to a better ground than this old blanket,and be worked into two final pieces.

Patricia had been revisiting some of her watercolour paintings with a view to using them to create some pieces for Nature In Art at Easter.

These have been torn then dipped in wax,and will have some stitch added.They are lovely fragments in their own right.

As she works she tries out her colours on some waste strips of paper,above,they are reminiscent of the glass she brought last time.These also led to some more experimentation with transfer dyes

Present ideas ?

These two books were brought along this month.

A feast of textile loveliness to drool over and offer inspiration .

And a  'how to' for those who like making books.

Maybe some new techniques to try.

As useful as a teapot?

Kirsten had spent three days doing a workshop with a fellow felter.Look what they were making......

...fabulous felt teapots. Fabulous shapes,not for tea perhaps but so quirky.

With lids that fit

A close up of  the lid,such attention to detail.

She also brought along these characters,can't remember who they are,but made for her children.You can just see behind the teapot another piece Kirsten brought a few meeting back,but it is now complete.

All hand pieced from Liberty lawn .

Glorious colour.

Both Sue and Patricia brightened this gloomy Tuesday with amazing 'pops' of colour.

Sue had lots of embellishing samples influenced by the changing skies she sees from her home in Portishead.They ranged from sunrise to summer day to storm ridden.Her skill in choosing snips of thread,yarn and fabric and putting colours together can be seen above.What might look unpromising in a random pile becomes something delicious .

Patricia had spent a lovely day with a friend who uses glass and the above was the result.She said she had just added pieces at random as she had no experience.The fusing in the kiln had created this,an explosion of lusciousness .The colours glow and are vibrant.

We also saw a neckpiece and two necklaces glowing with the same vibrancy.The green necklace was passed among us and every single one of us could have matched it to what we had on,they are really versatile.