Crochet and some.........

We are constantly amazed by the way Fumi is able to create such exquisitely small crochet .These above are tiny but so perfectly formed. She must have the most amazing eyesight and such dexterity. 

She has been using her Christmas present to  make the matchboxes which set off her creations and finds so well. Some sea glass pendants in the bottom right box ,again with fine crochet.

Some machine embroidery lotus and sunflower 'practise ' coloured with Inktense.

Above some block  printing experiments from sprouts, broccoli ginger  and Shreddies . There is also a little glimpse of her Stitch a Day stitch dictionary .Below some  closer views.

 

Challenge and prompts.

To begin a Found piece of fabric that Debby acquired .What will it become  inspiration for new work or incorporated into pieces .It looked as if it might be meant to sit above a door or window opening and has a range of colours and motifs that might be used to start off a train of thought .

As a member of Quilters Guild she , like other members , are sometimes given challenges to fulfil .This time it was to create a postcard sized piece based around a scrap of fabric produced by Shute Lane .She made two both with owls and feather . She wanted to create her own not just relying on the given 

fabric .She used Inktense wet with tea .We loved them especially the sparkling edge giving a lovely glint in the  light .A lovely touch to the  edge of  beads and a cord.

She fills a book each year with all sorts of drawings , sayings , media and ideas .This year she is using Artists Almanac who provide prompts for each day . They are meant to be a springboard or not, to develop and explore .It is such a good habit providing a resource to flick back  through .Maybe something we should all tap into .

 

Exciting possibilities.

Sally has begun to explore this glorious collection of kitchenalia .

She intends to work into a concertina sketchbook .There is such a wealth of inspiration here from colours and shapes to lettering and  pattern .She could be busy with ideas for some considerable time.

It might lead into collage, printmaking and even three dimensional work as well as a  nod to the work of artists such as Morandi and Cezanne to fuel more explorations .

 

Sketching ,stitching and teaching.

Sue had taken some inspiration from  Rita Dee and drawn some beautiful winter trees .

She is also  considering how best to work  the shells collected on  her American holiday.One idea is to  use some cotton rag paper to work on and portray a seascape in the holes.

Carol brought along her stitch piece from the Bristol Stitchers online workshop with Shelley Rhodes .

The idea is to use up lots of tiny scraps, throw nothing away , and add lots of stitch and just keep going Shelley provided a sheet of lots of ideas that she uses in her own work.We'll see what develops.

She had made use of a pattern on @sewing_schoolhouse to create this sweet little bag, there are lots of interesting ideas .This bag has a very clever construction that includes the lining ,no faffing about with cutting separate pieces!

Viv was excited to tell us about her invite to present a textile workshop to the 1904 Art Society 

She had given some thought as to what might be easiest to create ,especially as some of  the group wouldn't be familiar with textiles.She decided a layered landscape might suit. there were lots of suggestions from us and we are intrigued as to what ensues.

 

New enthusiasms.

Kirsten has found joy in different media which is getting her excited to try out new ideas.

She has joined a print group who meet each month to explore a theme. Next month is 'fish' so Kirsten has taken one of her drawings and turned it into a tetrapak print  block.Each participant has to create twenty prints and then give one away to each member of the group .By the end everyone has a complete collection of what has been produced . A clever and thoughtful way of keeping a record of ways of working.

She has also enjoyed the pottery group which ran for ten weeks ,so much so she has enrolled for another year.She talked about the research she had to do for homework in order to progress her ideas.

Having to keep a pictorial and written record of what she found added to the enjoyment of the making.We talked about adopting something similar to bring to meetings which would be a record of individual thoughts to be shared and discussed toward new work.

Looking ahead to our next exhibition she had found this lovely box in a charity shop It set off a train of thought about a Cabinet of Curiosities . She thought about the things contained in a sewing box and 

started to think about making them in the wrong materials.....a felt mushroom ,wood scissors ,paper thimble.It looks like an interesting concept which will bring her many talents together.

 

January 2024 -upcoming retail opportunity.

Our first meeting of the New Year 2024 and lots to think about and plan for.

First up was our new venture small ,but perfectly formed individual pieces by our members .The selection will include bags, amirugumi  ,jewellery ,small embroidered works and  books .

We will have a shelf full of our goodies at Studio 3, Clevedon Craft Centre starting in February. The selection will change and be added to as necessary over the three months.  If you are looking for a gift or wanting to treat yourself you should find something . we hope you will visit.

 

Kirsten

Kirsten has enjoyed all 3 of Suzannah Crook’s Earth Pigment Courses, one to make pigments and 2 to paint with them on Khadi paper.

Kirsten has machine stitched the circle, the Khadi paper takes the stitching well

She has also joined a spinning group and been on a spinning course at The Spinning Weal in Clevedon with Sarah Harris. The fine pale turquoise yarn was spun on Sarah’s reproduction mediaeval 5ft diameter spinning wheel that is used standing up. (Kirsten showed a photo of herself using it that she could send you…?) The cream and double stranded yarn Kirsten has spun on her Dad’s spinning wheel