Our February Day School was 'Arsenic and Old Lace' with Suzanne Shaw. Suzanne brought us lots of her own work to inspire us ...
... and then took us through the various different techniques - dyeing, transfer printing, machine and hand embroidery - that we could try out to achieve similar effects.
Suzanne used an interesting variety of 'starting points' - old photographs and postcards ...
Choosing which materials and techniques to use made for difficult decisions ...
... a lot of thought went into it!
Fragments of old lace and embroidery were painted and dyed and joined together to give an antique look to the pieces ...
... which were then stitched by hand ...
... and machine ...
Beads, buttons, ribbons and silk carrier rods were added and an amazing variety of textiles were ready to be assembled into pictures, cushion covers, bags, purses and book covers ...
... which we hope will be brought in to our 'show and tell' at our March meeting.
We were left with many techniques and ideas to try at home.
Suzanne also brought a huge array of tempting products and materials - fabrics, threads, lace, etc. - for us to buy! Shop 'til you drop!
As well as our activities in the main room, we are lucky enough to have the space to accommodate a lively and productive group who 'do their own thing' ...
... with all kinds of talents being displayed.
Ask a question here and someone will happily share their experience with you.
And we have our own shop, run by Sue Shepherd, where you can buy lots of 'goodies' too!
Our next workshop - on 6th March - is run by our very own 'Queen of Wearable Art', ex-Chairman Beryl Carr, who is going to show us how to make wonderful buttons, which can be used for fastening or decoration. I, for one, can't wait!
A lovely informative and inspiring post.Looks like everyone had a good time.
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