Blog Give-away.

This is my first give away. Firstly, it’s aimed to thank all the people who have joined my followers list to keep me Blogging, especially those who have said ‘hello’. If I don’t always get back to you it’s usually because there is some problem in finding your site or other hang-up
Secondly, it is hopefully to promote the Hand Embroidery Network’s new on-line courses. I have had fun and some hard work writing two of these and there is already quite a variety from which to choose. They are live now and start on November 21st.
There will be a forum area where feed back and discussion can take place.

If you want to take part in the give away, which will be a small piece handmade by me, please say ‘hello’ and even better also take a look at the HEN site.
I will make the draw on December 8th and you will need to check back then to find out if you are a winner, of which there will be two.
I will be using a random number generator, so no favourites.


I promise it will not be Baked Beans.

Felt

I made another piece of felt last week using pieces of sari ribbon and banana fibre for texture and colour. I enjoyed watching the texture develope as I machined.

It was a really busy week as I had a stall at two craft fairs. I always think I will stop doing these but usually say ‘yes’ when asked; I do have a different outlook now which is just to enjoy the day and hopefully chat to a few people who are interested in the techniques I have used, of course, I hope at least to cover the cost of being there. Its also funny how something you have decided must be awful as it has been around for so long, suddenly finds the right person, who likes it enough to want to give it a home.

I also went up to London on Friday evening to a five week course run by Louise Baldwin on ‘Structure with Paper and Fabric’. I think it will be good, but tiring as I’m not good after 10pm and got back about 11.30pm, partly due to a tree down on the line.
We machined different textures of paper and made samples in neutral colours. I’ll post some of them later on.

Exciting News

As two of my courses are included in the Hen tuition section.

Today, finally the HEN online tuition has gone live! This is the first wave of creative embroidery and textile courses available through the HEN. Over the next few months and into the New Year we hope to be adding to these courses. All courses are provided with online tutor feedback which you can choose to take part in or work on your own, at your own pace, in your own time. Courses include; creating an Embroidered Journal with Victoria Payne (Freedom of Stitch), Painted Kantha with Jackie Bowcutt (Stitchworks) and Customising Clothing with Rebecca Hywel-Jones. As well as courses on stumpwork, ribbon work and creative sketchbooks.

For further details and to purchase a course please visit: Hand Embroidery Network Tuition.

THE ZEPPLIN SHELTER

THE ZEPPLIN SHELTER
Originally uploaded by DBO PONDERS

This is part of the work which was done by my son; he worked really hard, and both designed and painted the whole area all by himself. It is in a pub called The Zepplin Shelter because it is in an area of London where there were actually attacks by Zepplins in the First World War. If you go there be sure and tell the owner how great the art work is and ask him if he thinks he may have ripped off the artist by paying him exactly nothing! Click on it to see more on Flickr.

'Mark Making and Stitch'

I had a very enjoyable day on Saturday as one of the workshops I had organized actually ran. There were seven students for the five hour workshop. It was really satisfying to see them get pleasure out of the plan I had organized and to be so enthusiastic. We started with mark making, then basic monoprinting and then interpreting parts of their design work in stitch.
Above is one of my samples from my City and Guilds course and the other samples are from the book I worked on to go with the workshop. Click on the first pictures to see more detail.

I hope more workshops will follow in 2010 and if anyone is interested and doesn’t live on the other side of the world, the contact number for The Hurst, Tadley is
0118 9812918 or email to marie.rodwell@hurst.hants.sch.uk

I also ran a short introduction to wax resist last week at Doodles a local craft shop. This was by request as I am in no way claiming to be an expert at Batik. It went well but there were only two people there, and it is quite a lot of work for such a small uptake.
By the way I learned a lesson – don’t try carrying a pot of melted wax in your car because it slops all down the sides. We live and learn. I have started using Soy wax which is excellent as it is workable for longer and environmentally friendly.

Felt Jewellery

Just for fun and because I had seen the tutors’ work at Art in Action I went along to the City Lit in London for a one day introduction to felt jewellery. It was enjoyable but I was slightly disappointed as we were told there was not long enough to learn how to string beads which I had thought was on the course details. The tutor was Heather Belcher and she is very keen on carding wool prior to use. She showed an examples of two pieces of felt one carded and one not; certainly the carded one had much more visual texture. I think I got the hang of it better than previously and it seemed much less arduous. There is plenty of information about how to string beads on line- even videos.

We made felt tubes and felt balls and use elastic thread to make them into bracelets.

Here is a link to the work of Angela O'Kelly who makes some interesting pieces. One of my favourites jewellery artists is here, I particularly like her brooches.

Everyone seems to have different ways of making their felt. The tutor used a piece of calico to rub the wool inside rather than net, which is probably better as it doesn't get so stuck in the material.

A day out in Winchester/Japan

It was a lovely sunny day in Winchester yesterday and I tried to appreciate it in the way a visitor of mine recently did. Firstly I went to the University library to see the touring book art exhibition ‘Micro-Pages. Well done to Abigail Thomas for organizing this; its travelling around so do go if you have the chance. See my previous post for venues.
I then went to the Discovery Centre to ‘Quilt Secrets' a collection of quilts both traditional, from the County Council’s collection and contemporary work. I enjoyed the glimpses into peoples work boxes from the past and the work of Diana Harrison .Then in the same building ‘Tradition and Transition’ an exhibition of new work by the Winchester Embroiderers’ Guild.
What a feast but not finished yet – there are lots of charity shops in the city. Sometimes I wonder why I keep on looking at what is sometimes a lot of samey junk but this is what keeps me looking!

Priced at £2 because they couldn’t work out what it was – a lovely silk hankie and two face flannels, each velvet on one side. I looked up Wako/Japan today to find it is an exclusive department store in the ‘sophisticate city of Ginza’; specializing in luxury items. ‘Built in 1932, the curved building with a clock tower faces the Ginza Yonchome intersection and adopts a Neo-Renaissance style to its design.

The latest high-precision Seiko Quartz model is used as the clock for the clock tower and the Westminster-style chime of bellsring to tell the time on the hour every hour.' So two cities for the price of one!