A Last Lesson

It is always a shame when a course comes to an end and yesterday was no exception. I have had a lovely group of students on the Machine Embroidery course and each month I looked forward to seeing what they had done with the starting point ideas and techniques.

They surprised me with this lovely card at the end of the day which Mark had made and they had all signed. It is now in pride of place on my ideas board in my studio.

Although the Level 1 Machine Embroidery has finished for this year, the Patchwork & Quilting will be starting on 20th October. There are still a couple of places on the course, please email me at rmcreativestitches@hotmail.com if you would like details. 

Mark also entered his first quilt into The Festival of Quilts this year.

Called The Festival of the Dead it certainly lives upto its name. 

With lots of wonderful embellishments it reminds me of the Mexican Dia de Muertos  celebrations.  

A great first quilt - congratulations Mark

The quilt room is slowly taking shape.

I have put some quilt tops which are waiting to be finished on the wall behind the quilt table, and will start to fill the shelves with lots of quilting things.

I am eager to get started and hopefully it wont be too long now before everything is up and running.

Bev

A Sketchbook Day

 Yesterday we had great fun in the studio. Two of my level 2 students, Julie and Tracey are finishing their Patchwork and Quilting course. We decided that it would be fun to start a new sketchbook so that they have a starting point for their own work.

You may have seen this photo from my Seville post a few weeks ago, Taken in the Real Alcazar palace. I love the textures and pattern in this tile and it was the focus for a sketchbook day.

We started by preparing pages by painting, adding scrunched tissue paper, salt and cling film to give different textures. This is a page which has tissue paper a paint wash and then highlighted with wax crayon.

When the pages were dry we made printing blocks using polystyrene pizza bases ( nothing gets thrown away in my house ) These are a great way of making a quick printing block. Using a sharp pencil you can carve lines and marks very easily. Don't forget to add a masking tape handle on the back. I have printed twice on this page which I think gives a depth to the print.

 The print had such a depth after printing that when I rubbed over the reverse side with wax crayons I got this lovely textured page.

This page was very uninspiring when it started. I had excess paint on a roller so I just painted a page with it. Over printing though has made it into a more interesting page. I really like the faded edges. Don't you love serendipity.

I have made this page the front cover of my sketchbook.. It has a line of tissue paper painted with a blue ink wash. The rest or the page was painted with an acrylic paint wash, printed and then wax crayon added

 

Here is a selection of my pages

And some of Julie's pages

And some of Tracey's pages

 We now have an exciting start to some new sketchbooks.

Bev 

A Parrot Post

Thanks for dropping by. Post will be a little sporadic at the moment as my mother was taken into hospital last week.

I did manage to get a sample for a new workshop started this week though.

It is based on a picture I took at the Real Alcazar in Seville just before Easter. One of my students came for a catch up day in my studio and it gave me the impetus to get started, thank you Mark.

This faded tapestry with colourful parrots and cockatoo's is the inspiration for a parrot panel. I have to also thank my husband for the wonderful camera he gave me for Christmas. The trip to Seville will be inspiration for many projects over the coming months.

A playful pair of parrots are for a workshop on Monday 28th September at Tudor Rose Patchwork. As you can see it is a work in progress at the moment.

Work that has been put on hold is my quilt for the Festival of Quilts this year. It will just have to be for 2016. It will be called Bluebells and blossom and is inspired by the walks into and around Ferry Meadows in Peterborough. And this year the cherry blossom and bluebells are putting on a wonderful show.

I have done a full working drawing and have started piecing the fabric but I know that I will not manage now to get it completed in time for this years deadline.

I also want to share with you this lovely book given to us for our Wedding Anniversary. Sue has spent many hours folding the pages of a book into a heart and I now want to give it a go. There are just not enough hours in the day for everything I want to do. Do you have the same problem?

See you soon

Bev

Sloe Going

I finally feel as if I am starting to get sorted in my studio. I have ordered new tables which should be arriving this week and then I can post photos of a neat and tidy ( but not for long knowing me ) studio.

I have been taking a bit of time away from sorting - how did I get so much stuff? to start experimenting.

This is an experiment to distort an image. I have made it slightly more difficult for myself by using diamonds. 

I have also been working on a small block inspired by a friends photograph.

I need to add some more stitching but am pleased with how it is starting to look, although scale seems to have gone out of the window.

 I have also found some time to go sloe hunting and make some sloe gin.

This large jar will be decanted into smaller bottles for Christmas gifts. I now need to start thinking of jams and chutneys.

Bev

Spirals

The Sketchbook was empty yesterday but now has a few pages in progress. 

I have chosen Spirals as the theme and I am very pleased with it. I just wish that I had more time to spare at the moment. Although grabbing a few moments here and there can take my work off in unexpected directions. 

Between packing everything away in preparation for the building work which will be happening soon ( I hope ) and my teaching there is a little space for random creativity. 

A cut spiral stitched onto a painted background 

Another spiral cut out 

Spirals in pen, paint and metallic rub

And two wax rubings of the stitched spiral

Spirals - Here I come

Bev

The Empty Sketchbook

Yesterday was the summer lunch at the Calico textile group. Biddy, the group leader, gave us all a summer challenge in the form of a small sketchbook.

I have removed some of the pages in preparation for painting, printing, sketching, not sure what yet. Can you guess that my hardest decision is, what is going to be the theme. Do I go for something new or do I revisit an old theme that I haven't fully explored. Decisions, decisions.

The first thing I will do though is get some colour on those blank pages. But that will have to be tonight as a exciting day of teaching comes first. 

Bev

Kaleidoscope Quilting Week

This froggy fabric (by Freedom Fabric) has been sitting in my studio for quite a while now, waiting for me to find some time for it. I enjoy this type of patchwork as I don't have to start to design until I choose how to make the hexagons. It is great fun. 

I started it as a demonstration for my Beginners class at Tudor Rose on Tuesday. The pattern repeat is quite large, and I have managed to get 7 strips from each repeat. This is providing a huge amount of hexagons to play with.

Once the hexagons are made it is time to start to design the quilt. I love putting them up on my design wall to get a feel for the overall look.

 But it is not going to be big enough as I still have 2 strips to make into hexagons. That's another 34 hexagons. Where are they all going to go?

Perhaps I should make 2 single bed sized quilts?

Bev 

Keswick trip and the Derwent Block

Gosh where is the year going. 

The month has flown by with lots of teaching, sorting rooms in preparation for a new studio space and a small amount of stitching. 

I did manage to get up to the Lakes to see my Mum who is in the process of making her first quilt.

Using the Moda Wintrgreen fabric she has made lovely log cabin blocks with a rail fence border. There is also going to be a flying geese border, and this week she told me she had made all those blocks. I think she has made a wonderful start and am so proud of her. She is putting me to shame as I am not being very productive at the moment. 

So I decided to take some time to finish the Derwent Quilt, a foundation pieced pattern. It is now ready for quilting. Which is the part I find most challenging. What pattern to use? Should it be quilted all over? What thread, variegated or not? Too many choices. I am suffering with quilting block. Perhaps like writers block, if I leave it alone for a while the answer will magically appear?
What do you think?

Bev

Butterflies and Stitch Samples

 Yesterday, one of my Machine Embroidery students, Barbara, brought in her folder of samples from the first two lessons. 

She has taken to machine embroidery so well and has given me permission to share her work here. 

From her first free motion embroidery sample, and through using colour and stitch she has made wonderful start to her machine embroidery. 

Her applique samples show good use of colour and stitch, and will be an invaluable resource for her future work.  

She also inspired me to get on and start cataloguing the stitches of my Brother Innovis sewing machine.

This is a job I have intended to do for ages and have now made a start. I encourage my students to do this but hadn't done it myself, now is the time to remedy this failing. 

I find that once I have started something there is a chance it will get done. These are the first two samplers and I haven't started on the decorative stitch setting yet. What I have learnt is that the stitches are not exactly like the diagrams. Much more variation is possible with by altering the stitch width and length and that will be yet another sampler. 

I now need to move away from the computer and get back to my machine. 

I hope you have enjoyed Barbara's work too

Bev

Back in the Studio

It's been a busy couple of weeks or should I say month. 

The level 2 Patchwork & Quilting class started at Bee Crafty and it was wonderful to welcome my students back. I started them off straight away with lots of design work. I love seeing what different interpretations are brought to the same exercises and can't wait to see what they produce over the next year.  Exciting times ahead.

I finally got into the studio and gave myself some me time. This means finishing half started/finished projects of which I seem to have lots.

I have pieced a back for a Kalaidoscope Quilt which has been hanging around for ages. It was going to be my first quilt on my Grace Frame, but I can't see it being reassembled for a little while due to decorating, so have decided just to get it finished. 

I have also been working on a new block "The Derwent Block" and this will be available as a foundation pattern this summer

 And I also added reverse appliqué 'frames' to the crazy nine patch blocks.

A good days work but there is still a little time today to do some more, so back to the studio I go.

Bev

Crazy Nine Patch

 I must learn to blinker myself when walking to the workrooms for day schools. 

 But Moda's "Vin de Jour" layer cake caught my eye. In fact it jumped off the shelf and said buy me!!!
It is a lovely fabric range with mulberry, mustard yellow, muted rose and olive green. Really scrumptious.

I have cut it simply to make some mismatched nine patch blocks. I intend to inset these when I have a moment. It is an experimental work in progress, but my deadline is Christmas so I feel as if I have loads of time. When I get to November and realise that it is no further on I may have a panic. 

Mid Year resolution - Finish some projects

Bev

Nearly There

 It's a miserable day out there so just right for putting the radio on and finishing the embroidered panel.

This is where I am at now and I'll see how far I get by the end of the day.

(I'm afraid the artificial lighting does nothing for the colours )

Let's see if I can finish it

Bev