Mali mudcloth.

As always Liz had found an interesting workshop, but this one involved the River Niger! She has been interested in natural pigments for some time and this one used fermented mud sent all the way from Africa.The tannins the  make the pigment adhere to the cloth ,it is then mordanted and the white background painted.She used a variety of marks to patterns her cloth.It has to sit for a while to be permanent. The downside to the process was the stink of the mud.She suffers for her art.

She tried another experiment with a rusted blade and the mud as there was tannin present.She had good results ,below, but was disappointed that she smudged the image by moving the cloth.

She brought along some pieces she has been developing using her natural pigments 

and some rusted cloth which was dipped in the sea.

These have been embellished and stitched to create vessels.

 

Fiddling with this and that.

Jenn had been playing with a variety of things to keep herself ticking .She found an idea   so had created some fabrics from things she had around then made up some pouches.They gave her an opportunity to use her sewing machine and to use up some ribbon ,lace and old linens .She added some hand stitch too.

Using another idea found on the 'net she used layers of marks, painting in areas then drawing over with Posca pens  lines to build patterns.Then taking a viewfinder she isolated areas that seemed to work and cut them out .Ideas for this include maybe printing onto fabric before adding stitch or just using as they are to add to book covers.

She had also enrolled in the GELL PRINT SUMMIT .This was a group of fourteen artists chosen by Drew Steinbrecher to offer a video lesson imparting their way of working.Above are the prints Jenn produced based on the Tara Axford video .These will be used to make small collages .The course was inspiring and with lifetime access Jenn is keen to try out the variety of ways of working.

Last she brought along her Solar dyeing tryout based on the directions of Claire Wellesley Smith .She had used St.John's Wort ,Rose Leaves and Birch leaves in the first jars .They were very similar but have slight differences in colour She had some avocado skins and stones so tried them later,despite the jar looking very pink the resulting fabric was very pale .

Date for your diary

 

Foreign felting.

Kirsten had spent a week in a small village in Hungary about one and a half hours from Budapest.During Covid she had been in contact with many of the tutors on this Felt  Camp over Zoom. She said it was so good to meet people face to face.Each day was spent working with different techniques.This bag was very complicated as the lining was attached.The colours were primary but look muted as there was a prefelt layer underneath .You can just see the vibrant colour peeking through  at the bottom where the flap is .

Next was jewellery ,Kirsten chose  vibrant pinks for this deceptively simple neckpiece.

An amulet which are usually hung in doorways.It is customary to step over the threshold when entering a dwelling and doorways are usually small so the guest has to duck. A sort of submissive gesture .

A stained glass felt and silk fabric ,sort of nuno felting 

where the silk peeping through is painted after.

Then they made rugs ,inlaying pieces of felt .

This piece was very sturdy .Thin layers of prefelt were used in the construction.

Great selection but very complicated to the uninitiated .

A change of technique for her last but one  offering.Print making with a tomato puree box ,it was difficult to get the detail in the plate as the light was low.

But the prints speak for themselves ,including lettering which had to be reversed to print out the right way !

And finally a free machined teacup made on her junk shop find of  a 1940s treadle machine.She is delighted to find it  has a drop feed.There be no stopping her now.

 

October .....and almost a full house !

Fumi had nothing to show but was wearing a lovely Vietnamese jacket ,the sleeve was edged in red, white and blue and the cuff embroidered.There was also a panel on the back of the jacket. It was handmade and bought from' Tamay and Me' who trade at Frome market.

  

However ,we did make suggestions for her to present and display her exquisitely small weavings.These were all packed up ready for our exhibition in Prior in Cabot Circus from 6-10 th November . You'll have to visit to see them.

Debby had been teaching some workshops at Stoke Lodge .The first was flower pounding ,using a hanmer or mallet to pound a flower so that the colour transfers . She had sent the group outside  so the noise being made didn't disturb the other classes too much. They had  had then begun to add some stitch to enhance the images left by the pounding.

 

Next was using watery silk paint to create loose areas of colour and then adding stitch.She found an ingenious new tool to create the regular dots you see........a frixion pen and a fly swat!

 

She has joined Westbury Park Quilters and took the Chair's challenge of 'Flower Power ' She used fabric from a dress homemade by her Mum in the 70s.She enlarged the pattern then used the motif to create flowers adding detail with Inktense pencils and using fabric medium and water to make permanent.

Like others in the group she had visited World Textile Day and spent some time rootling out some delicious fabrics.A Japaneseselection  from either Susan Briscoe or Janice Gunner ,

 

and Kantha pieces and zipped pouches from Running Stitches.We thought they were lovely but wondered if we might use them or just look, admire  and put to one side. Debby will show us what she uses them for .

The robin panel we saw last time has been turned into a cushion ,and very handsome it looks too.

 

Pots or vessels ?

Jenn had continued selecting from her Lorna Crane fabrics .Little snippets she liked pieced together ,stitched and made into a variety of pots/vessels.

 

Chesapeake Bay shells .

Sue D. has had a very busy Summer with time away and grandma duties.

While in America she was able to pick up some beautiful shells on a walk in Chesapeake Bay .

She took some time to make some drawings

They are quite large 

with lots of interesting lines and textures.

The holes are giving Sue ideas that she might fill them with embroidery .

Sounds very interesting.

 

Japan adventure.

Fumi had returned from her Japan visit with lots of goodies.She said the two main islands which make up Japan are very different .The North Island is colder from the South island and the textiles differ .She had visited a workplace creating Shibori and bought a book ....in Japanese .The threads below are the remains from tying the fabric to create the patterns.

She had picked up a scrap bag of dyed fabrics.The patterns are so tiny and intricate and must take a tremendous skillet produce .

Fumi talked about the Boro exhibition on in London with some feeling .She feels very ambivalent to the way it is portrayed thinking there must be more emphasis on the Cultural back story to reference better understanding and to move it forward.Many original users and creators of Boro did so out of extreme poverty and necessity .

She had been working on tiny amirugumi ,developing her own patterns . The threads are stranded embroidery .

and adding more textures to her box lid.

This sample size gin bottle gives a good idea of the tiny size she works .

Her black and white sampler was taken to Japan and she was able to add to it as and when she could steal some time.Included and a reminder of her trip ,melon seeds ,champagne foil and an eye mask ! 

Such fun .