London again

Fabulous day in London for the CQ AGM, a talk by Elizabeth Brimlow and a visit to see Matthew Harris' show at the CAA!
It's such a joy to meet up with other CQers - this year there were many current "Red" JQs to see, a selection from the Suitcase collection and I finally met up with 5 of the Full Circle Group and can now put names to faces!
Over lunch I walked down to the CAA Gallery in Percy Street where 50/50 - Matthew Harris and Cleo Mussi's show was on its last day. Ever since I first heard of Matthew Harris I have followed his work. I love the texture, and the mark-making and was even more impresses on seeing them in the flesh.

Also exhibiting at CAA was Susie Gillespie, she weaves with linen and dyes her yarn and fabric with nettles to create a very co-ordinated colour palette with fabulous textures in her work. I had not heard of her before seeing these pieces, but will definately keep an eye open for her work from now on.

I am resolving to use bolder stitch-work on the next piece  as the texture created this way adds real interest.
Returning to GQ after this inspiring gallery visit was a pleasure as we had the pleasure of hearing Elizabeth Brimelow speak and seeing and handling her layered work. She spoke alot about the importance of drawing to her work and about the impact that many years university study has had on the way she works. She very generously brought completed work we could drool over and samples which gave an incite into the techniques she uses. fascinating!
I had a really stimulating day and explored a little more of ordinary London on foot.

Time away!

I've been down to the West Country to celebrate Dad's 93rd birthday and enjoy a few days in Dorset. After the Hockney exhibition I really notice the trees, and was struck by the number of rounded hills which have a small clump of trees on top, stark against the sky! We walked, but always to a pub for grub so not the healthiest of passtimes!
Now.... I have to get down to make some decisions and do some serious work!

• Do I make a quilt for FoQ?
• If so, which category and do I try and do one for the guild challenge?
• How do I finish my crossover quilt?  (tradition block with contemporary embellishments)
• What am I going to do with lovely collection of mauve and purple fabrics? 

Watch this space!

Planning new work

I have been so preoccupied by CQ10 and by a commission for a baby quilt that I've not had the time to devote to new work! Trying to put that right now.
I has a really useful day at the "Sewing for pleasure / Fashion and embroidery" shows at the NEC. Unlike the FoQ there was room to move in the isles, the exhibitors had time to chat and there were some interesting stands to browse.
I spent far too long on Stef Francis' stall, her beautiful dyed felts, silk, thread etc. just beg to be oggled over and stroked and I started to get my inspiration for a new piece  right there! I came away with a piece of space dyed felt, some dyed silk cocoons and some threads. With them in the bag I then went round looking for other things to tone with them. I bought some copper shim and some woven copper to stitch into the piece and on the "Silk Route" stand I found some chunky, woven silk which will be very interesting to work with too. Now all I need to do is draw up my ideas and get on!!!

I'm pinning these up on the wall so I see them all the time jog me into action!

Teaching curved piecing

I've been asked to teach the technique that Pat Deacon has invented to  make curved piecing simpler. I think she has invented a brilliant method which I thought I'd share here.

Keeping it simple with different degrees of difficulty.

1. The original drawing is reversed and the reverse image traced onto freezer paper. Register marks are added to the pattern to mark the point at which curved move from CONCAVE to CONVEX. Do this along the whole join.
2. Now cut the sections apart accurately.
3. Iron the freezer paper onto the WS of the chosen fabric and cut out, adding a 1cm seam allowance on the marked edge.

 

4.Where you have a CONCAVE edge you are going to snip the seam allowance from one register mark to the next.

5.Take one section. Look really carefully at the edge with the seam allowance. You are now going to mark where you will snip the seam allowance. This is the most important stage in making this technique work.

6.Snip the seam allowance on the CONCAVE sections

 7.You now need some spray starch and a paintbrush, iron and board.

8. Paint a little starch on the snipped seam allowances and press the seam allowance over the edge of the freezer paper. Do this at all points on this piece of fabric.

9. Now do the same for the other piece of fabric, if necessary putting the edges back together to check that the marks tally.

10. We are now going to put these two pieces of fabric together for stitching. Work with the freezer paper side uppermost.

 11. Start at on end. The snipped and pressed section will lie UNDERNEATH the unpressed sections.

12. Using masking tape, take short pieces and stick the visible seam allowance to the freezer paper, do this every 5-10cm so that the sections are firmly held in place while you machine. (if you are joining more than 2 sections, always machine one before taping on the next section)

13. Thread up the machine with either a matching thread or invisible thread.

14. Set machine to BLIND HEM stitch, 1/2 width and a medium stitch length.

15. Carefully check which way your blind hem stitch swings. Also check whether your machine allows you to flip the swing stitch direction as you stitch.

16. The idea is to have the swing stitch of the blind hem going into the folded edge of the fabric and the straight stitched running next to the fold on the unfolded edge. If you can flip your stitch, start stitching at one end and work all the way to the far end. If you can't flip the stitch you will need to stitch each section between the register marks separately, turning the fabric round so that the swing stitch always goes into the folded edge of the fabric.

17. Stitch slowly, leave the needle down to allow you to turn tight curves.

18. Neaten the machine ends.

19. Carefully remove the masking tape from the pattern.

20. Now gently pull the freezer paper off the fabric. If you have stitch over  it, use a pin to gently resease the paper and cut it away.

 21. Press fabric on WS

Finished piece

CQ 10 - final

I have been so under the cosh this last week trying to get my CQ10 piece finished. What anguish this piece has caused, it has really thrown up short comings in my initial designing, something I really must work on! I think I still have too much magpie in my approach with out the clarity of what I want to achieve.
But.....I have finished, there are elements I am really pleased with but on the whole this is not my best work, but I will submit it, as it has exercised my mind for so long!

This small section gives you an idea of how it has turned out. I shall now await the scrutiny of the jury and hope that I have done enough to be included!
Now all I have to do, very quickly, is decide if I am entering a piece for FoQ in August!!

Corby Open Exhibition

The two pieces that have been accepted for hanging at this exhibition are:
"War Torn" - made from African fabrics and mono-printed cottons, torn, heavily quilted and beaded.

 Expresses my sadness that there is so much strife, violence and unrest in such beautiful places.

"The Rocks of Petra" - made with my own hand dyed fabrics, with heavy machine and hand stitching and beads.

The design coming from the patterns in the rocks exposed as walked down the Siq and into Petra.

Exhibitions

I had been so looking forward to going to the Hockney exhibition, I hoped it would live up to expectation. Wow...... it certainly did.
I'm not sure that I have the vocabulary to do the pictures justice, but I found them almost spiritual in their homage to the English countryside. The Yorkshire Wolds are an area I have come to know quite well, traversing them to visit family over many, many years. His pictures really capture the feel of the area and the light. I could have wished for less people, to be able to stand further back from the pictures to see the full glory of the huge canvasses. Now I wish I had bought tickets for more than one visit!

Not quite sure how I have the gaul to write this in the same post, but.... I have had two pieces hung in the Corby Open Art Exhibition, now on. "The Rocks of Petra" and "War Torn". Its good to get some textiles hung in these events, just three pieces this time, perhaps more next time.