THE PERSONAL TOUCH FOR SAM & SOPHIE!

Last Saturday, I went to a wonderful family wedding in glorious hot sunshine.  Congratulations Sam and Sophie Thompson!  I made a card for the happy couple using my own handmade and painted papers mounted onto cream textured card stock.  The heart in the middle was created using my largest heart punch.  Sometimes the simplest ideas work the best!

The textile heart, with the added date which was taken from their wedding invitation, was made as a memento of their day.  I put everything in a hand decorated bag with matching gift tag to give a personal touch...

STAMP CUSHIONS!

In between the mixed media artwork, I like to get my sewing machine out!  I have just completed these two patchwork cushions, which have stamps as the main motif.  All the pieces of fabric were sewn by hand onto a background with large decorative stitches.  I then machined lines of parallel stitching all over the surface, before inserting the zip and making up the cushion cover...

HOLIDAY SEASIDE WINDOW FOR THE GALLERY!

Our latest window design for the gallery is with holidays and the seaside in mind.  We have map bunting, sun hats, felted pebbles, shells, starfish, paper boats, seaside artwork, textiles, ceramics, glass seagulls and an enormous textile one (see top right pic) - made by me!

HIGHLIGHTING OUR TEXTILE MAKERS!

Caroline and I have been using our recent window dressings to reflect different sections of the membership of the One Craft Gallery.  Our latest one highlights the textiles on sale in the gallery including hats, scarfs, garments, bags, cushions, tea pot covers, felted animals, toys, vessels, cards and even textile jewellery...

LATEST WINDOW IN THE GALLERY FEATURES BUGS!

The latest window dressing in the One Craft Gallery features bugs!  About 10 years ago I made them for an installation entitled 'Swarm'.  I collaborated with a fellow artist in the South West Textile Group.  It was for an exhibition at the Slimbridge Wildfowl Trust in Gloucestershire.  We hung loads of our insects - her's were a different, but similar design using wire and plastics as the main materials.  We hung them with fishing line from a grid attached to the ceiling.

My bugs were made from foam, polystyrene balls, pipe cleaners, straws, raffia, muslin, plastic and wire.  As they were languishing in my attic, I brought them out to use and sell! I did make quite a quantity, so I have packaged bugs which can be sold and not disturb our window design.  One sold to a young boy the day after the window was done.  He wanted to decorate his bedroom with a creepy bug!

HOT & SPICY!

I have just redecorated the window at the One Craft Gallery, together with fellow member, Caroline Tetley.  We were inspired to do a 'hot & spicy' Indian window, by the tunics made out of hand printed Indian fabric, by Lesley Hill, a more recent member, who specialises in textiles.  They have proved to be a popular selling item this summer with only a few left!

We used tissue pompoms, large white letters and the most  colourful items for sale in the gallery to create our festive window!

SPECIAL GUEST MAKERS

At the moment, the Guest Makers in the gallery, are from the Orchard Vale Trust.  This is a residential home for people with learning difficulties.  They produce wonderful handcrafted items in ceramics and textiles.

I always visit them every September, when they are open for Somerset Arts Week, and end up buying something!  I took the above photographs on my last visit...

ALL SORTS FROM KIRSTIE

Our guests artist in the One Craft Gallery, until the end of May, is Kirstie Perry.  She is a textile artist who works from her studio in Bruton, surrounded by beautiful countryside.  She creates handmade gifts and homewares using high quality linens and cottons.

Her designs are inspired by her everyday life and surroundings.  Each item starts with a pencil drawing which is turned into a fabric design using appliqué and free machine embroidery.  Her favourites are used on a range of products.  She also uses them to make into greetings cards, prints and notebooks.  Her unique style is proving very popular...

HATS TO TRY ON!

Today I had a treat - a visit to my friend Lizzie, who is a fellow maker at the One Craft Gallery.  I made it part of my early morning walk as my walking buddy was away.   It was great as Liz Oliva makes fabulous handmade hats and let me try some on!

I also had a chance to see her chaotic but so creative studio workshop and showroom.  My studio gets so messy so it is good to see that I am not the only one - it shows a lot has been going on!  She has a fantastic large noticeboard which is covered in inspiration and ideas - see below, top left.

Lizzie's hats sell well in the gallery.  She has a loyal following that buy them for every season.  Her hats are made from high quality materials which she sources from all over the world.  She is also constantly working on new designs for hats and accessories so that her work is always evolving and keeping up with current trends.  A visit to someone who is so creative always inspires me to get back into my studio and make a mess!!

IMPRINTS EXHIBITION

Last Friday I met up with some friends that I did City and Guilds Embroidery Part 2 with. We met at an exhibition entitled Imprints by the South West Textile Group - a group of textile artists that I used to belong to. It is being held at the Museum of Somerset in Taunton until the 2nd of January and is well worth a visit.  Firstly, the museum itself is located in the 12th Century Great Hall of Taunton Castle but is very modern and family friendly inside, with a great cafe!  And secondly, the exhibition is very interesting as the artists have taken an artefact from the museum and used it for inspiration for their pieces of artwork.

The exhibition hall is beautiful and the show really well presented. There are a great variety of works, and even some of the artists' sketchbooks on display.  All sort of techniques had been used including, stitching, felting, quilting, printing, dyeing, weaving and mixed media.  The visitors book is full of lovely comments and some people, as entry is free, have been back several times!  The pieces that influenced the artworks can also be viewed in the museum - there are notices on both to direct you.

Here is some work I particularly liked.  The tiny art dolls are by Lydie Gardner.  She took her inspiration from this Donyatt-Ware Plate in the 'Rebellion' Gallery.  As she says, "The Maids of Taunton depicted on the plate look as though they are having a great time!"  She made three sets of dolls out of wire and fabric.  Great fun!

SAMMY, THE SEAGULL

Having started my creative life as a textile artist, I do like to get my sewing machine out from time to time and make something soft!  I have just finished this seagull. He is rather big, measuring 21 inches in length!  I obtained the basic pattern from the book - the artful bird  by Abigail Patner.  She makes fabulous textile birds but they are somewhat smaller and more delicate than mine!  I don't know how she does it - this size was fiddly enough for me...

I enlarged the pattern pieces, provided at the back of the book, much bigger than advised and omitted the tucked up feet.  I also altered the size and shape of the beak and included stuffing in the wings.  I made up a rough patchwork fabric which I used for the wings and tail. One of the main fabrics I used was ticking - a favourite fabric of mine, leftover from curtains and blinds used in my home.

The eyes are a couple of buttons from my button box so the complete bird was made from materials I already had.    Once the eyes were added he took on his own personality!  So I felt he deserved a name...

SCARECROW WINDOW

Here is my scarecrow as the focal point of our latest window display in the gallery!

GUEST MAKERS

The guest makers in the One Craft Gallery at the moment are the wonderful residents of the Orchard Vale Trust residential home at Wookey, near Wells.  They have learning difficulties of varying degrees and produce lovely work in their ceramic and textile workshops.  The Orchard Vale Trust is a voluntary 'not for profit' organisation and is registered as a charity.

I have been a fan since I discovered their work during a Somerset Art Week some years ago.  I have bought their goods and written posts about them before.  Their work is so joyful and full of colour and character.  It has been selling so well that they have had to bring in more stock!

SCARECROW CHALLENGE

Yesterday, I challenged myself to make a scarecrow in a day without buying any new bits. You may ask why!  There is method in my madness.  We are doing a gardening, sowing seeds window theme in the gallery so I thought it would make a colourful talking point.

Here is the result.  I recycled old clothes, some prototype stuffed cushions, cardboard tubes, an old straw hat, some cardboard packaging and felt from my stock.  I decorated it with a scarf and a couple of my sunflower brooches.

STUDIO CONTENTS

Have you ever wondered what would become of the contents of your studio when you are no longer here?  A dear friend of mine, Rosalind Gregory, a prolific textile artist, teacher and maker, had terminal cancer and had a chance to think it through.  As nobody in her family wanted her enormous stash of textile and craft materials, she decided that, after she died, she would like it all to be sold and the proceeds go to the N.S.P.C.C.

Dolls and Quilts by Rosalind Gregory

Last weekend, a sale and exhibition of her work took place so her wish could be granted.  I arrived after it had started and the place was buzzing! Lots of the buyers knew Rosalind and talked about her while looking at everything. There was £1 entry fee and things were selling fast. I bought some craft materials, including some of the old fashioned wooden pegs, polystyrene shapes, pipe cleaners, beads, chains, feathers, felt etc. I also procured a tin full of printers letter blocks.  Not only will I find them useful, but they bring back fond memories, as I had borrowed them on occasions. Rosalind was in the same class as me for City and Guilds Creative Embroidery Part 11 and she was always an enormous fund of helpful expertise and information which she would willingly share.

Embroidery and Samples by Rosalind Gregory

Her work was on display, mostly not for sale.  There were the beautiful hand crafted dolls, hats, experimental work, garments, rugs, hangings and wonderful quilts.  She particularly loved recycling and used things, such as, the material from her husband's old work shirts. In one memorable quilt she used the smocked dresses she had made for her daughter when she was a little girl and had kept the full dress shape. It is exquisite and so skilful.  So is so missed by all who knew her.

MATTHEW HARRIS

Last weekend I went to a fascinating talk by textile artist, Matthew Harris.  I enjoy hearing artists talk about their work. You learn so much. I first saw his work at the Black Swan Gallery in Frome in 2008.  I love the way he interprets his drawings into cloth and stitch.  He often takes his inspiration from music, not his emotional response to it, but the actual musical scores.

Although it looks as though he has used vintage patterned and coloured fabric pieced together for his work, he has in fact created all the marks on four layers of dust sheet cloth. The cloth has been slashed, cut, brushed, stamped, folded, torn and pierced. The colour is bled, dripped, rubbed and printed into the surface, sometimes from the back so the marks are within the structure as well as on the surface. The stitching is a combination of machine and hand, with the emphasis on simple hand embroidery stitches.

I have photographed some of the cloth samples that Matthew brought along to his illustrated talk.  They don't do his finished pieces justice.  To see more check out his website.

SUNFLOWER BROOCHES

I made these brooches, using the same shapes that I used to make the paper sunflowers. It was, of course, on a much smaller scale and I found that 8 petals of each size worked best.  Instead of paper, I raided my fabric stash and instead of gluing and stapling, I deployed hand and machine stitching.

Although it doesn't show up much in this photograph, they all have green leafy backs which hides the stitching and the fact that I slashed through the base felt circles to stuff the velvet centres from behind.  All the petals and centres were cut from a variety of textiles and left with raw edges, as I don't mind the fraying.  Different coloured felts could be used if a sharper finish is required.  Beads and/or embroidery could be added to the centres. As the fabric I selected had spots, I didn't opt for that option.  I also fabricated a small cushion out of vintage sacking to display them on and made some special tags.

FUNKY DOLLS

Last Friday I had lunch with three friends that I had studied textiles with many years ago.  They had got together to make some funky dolls using Patti Medaris Culea patterns and brought the results to show me.  Here they are, each one with such personality!  Made me want to do one and reminded me what clever friends I have!

SUE'S SILK SCARVES

Giving a touch of summer in the gallery at the moment, are these gorgeous silk scarves by Sue Arnold.  Sue, a retired primary school teacher, mother of two and grandmother of four, only discovered silk painting three years ago. She lives in a Somerset village with her husband and spaniel Poppy. Her garden is full of flowers and that is where her inspiration comes from, although she also produces a range of abstract and geometric designs.

In her own words here is how she achieves these results. "The scarf is attached to a frame, stretched and held in place with pins. Then the paint is applied to the main body of the scarf using a sponge. Paint is then applied with a fine brush to the ends of the scarf where I add my flowers. The final detail is added using a special silver outliner and further depth added using a technique similar to that used with watercolour. When dry the completed scarf is ironed on the reverse side, the heat setting the colour so that it doesn't run when washed."

'LOVE ME DO'

'Love me do'  - mixed media on wood panel  (20cms x 20cms)

Still on the love theme, I am doing a few pictures for Valentine's Day to sell in the gallery.  With the first, I experimented in combining a large textile element with a collaged background, mounted onto a wooden painting panel using the sides as well as the top surface.

Paint was used to merge the elements.

I started by painting the panel and collaging on torn pages, from an old notebook that I was about to throw out, and bits from a napkin. A small heart shaped stamp and some punched out shapes were used to add to the background.

For the textile red/pink heart, I started with a piece of fabric onto which I ironed on some bondaweb.  I then peeled off the backing paper and covered up the area with snippets of fabric and a layer of laminating plastic. This was then ironed from the back and then machined stitched. I then cut the material into a large heart shape. At this stage I liked the colour but it looked a bit too plasticky, so I got out my soldering iron, which I haven't used for ages, and burnt into the top surface, distressing it until I was satisfied with the result.

To merge the two elements together, I used paint and some letters from an old word game.  'Love me do' is, of course, part of the lyrics of a Beatles song of the 60s.  Song lyrics of this era often pop into my head when I work as they are the background of my growing up!