City and Guilds Textiles Continues

City and Guilds Creative Textiles started again for the new year and

everyone was ready to start creating their own projects.

I have been teaching at least 3 techniques each session and everyone

has done some sampling in class to see which techniques
 they really like. 

A lot of the techniques we do some have never tried or they have always wondered how it is done so City and Guilds are the ideal way of experiencing this.

There are lots of changes within the City and Guilds set up at the moment and as a Tutor

I see them as very positive, bringing education right up to date and in the work place or real world as I call it. There are also students who just want to learn the techniques for themselves.

I will be continuing Levels One Two and Three in Creative Textiles, Machine Embroidery and Patchwork and Quilting in September 2013. If you are interested in City and Guilds visit their website or contact myself for more information. 

See an article of previous students by clicking on my portfolio website Art 2 Inspire

More Texture Textiles

Textured Textile classes are continuing@ The Gallery on Mixed Media Tuesdays as everyone is enjoying the techniques. You can see by the photographs above the surfaces are getting more textured and interesting with additional techniques and stitching layered on top of one another. I love watching pieces start as blank fabric such as calico( which many of these pieces started as) and develop into wonderful works of art. 

City and Guilds Prep

On a Wednesdays, I am now teaching City and Guild and course Prep

for those who want to come along and try new techniques

around textiles courses.

This includes getting to know your machine,

using different materials, Photo Transfer, 3D work

Embellisher Machines and Portfolios.

Above, are pieces that I have been helping Annette with

over the last couple of weeks.

The top picture is a mixed media piece with dyed and painted

papers, materials and lace.

Water soluble flowers and voile wired and machine embroidered flowers.

The bottom picture is a photo transfer of white flowers

and bamboo arrangement with lace and mixed media embroidery.

Lots of machine free machining and beading.

Annette is a florist and is wanting to use her Machine Embroidery

within her arrangements, like 3d sculpture pieces.

I start teaching City and Guilds Machine Embroidery and

Patchwork and Quilting Level One at the end of March.

Sketchbook Pages

Sara has been coming to the Textile Tuesdays since

September and she is preparing herself for

a Fashion an Textiles Course which she hopes to start next year.

You have to show that you can prepare work,

designs and sketchbooks,

before going on the course.

Here Sara is adding more layers of print, papers, textiles

and layers to her sketchbook pages.

See more of her finished pieces

HERE

Good Luck Sara!

Jeanette's Green Box Taking Shape

As you can see, Jeanette's Green Treasure Box has

taken shape and she is now putting the finishing

touches to the base.

To see how it began click

HERE

Jeanette's Green Box

Jeanette's mixed media box is now taking shape.

It's taken a while and a few trials and errors for

it to take shape. Over enthusiasm, with a heat gun

saw the first model being cut up but as you can

see it has been out to good use in the

'window' sections of the box.

Sometimes it is hard for people to see a

3D object come together when you have

to work on the 2D to begin with, so that

all the pieces come together. There is

lots of trialling of trimmings and techniques

before the right combination shows itself.

Jeanette and I have alot of patience so

Mixed Media pieces like the,

'Green Treasure Box', slowly

evolve over weeks.

There is alot of machine and hand stitching in this piece.

Lots of trimmings and snippets to add

the interesting details.

See more mixed media work by clicking on

the written labels below the post.

Purple Textile

Monday after some gardening with Stewart,

I got into the Studio for some creativity.

I used some tyvek fabric, added stitching

and lace.

This I painted and allowed to semi dry and

then with the studio door open, melted it with

an hot air gun! I added embossing powders and more paint and

melted some more.

I made several layers using the same technique.

I then machine stitched and I am now hand stitching more

details and beads.

Above are areas of the piece of work before I added

more stitching to it.

I will show you the finished piece shortly.

I must be working in a colour theme, Purple!

Jeanette is building up her picture with the mixed media

textile leaves now.

You sometimes get to a stage where you can't see where

a piece is going or how to move it on.

When she un wrapped it there was a wow! from those

in the Gallery but Jeanette wasn't happy with how the piece

looked. We analysed it and it was too flat.

and needed a focus.

Yes, it looked like falling leaves but it needed a focal point

and lift. Jeanette and I spent a few hours

working out focal areas and making the piece 3D.

Jeanette makes fantastic 3D textile artworks.

her most recent, "Bolliwood", was entered into an art show

and was well received.

Keep persevering Jeanette it is working!

Click on the bolliwood label below or the others to see some

of Jeanette's work.

Mixed Media Machine Embroidered Tree

Pat has also finished and had framed one of her Mixed Media

machine Embroidered Trees.

Isn't it wonderful?

Pat has transferred her skills as a painter beautifully

into mixed media textiles.

See more of her textiles by clicking the written labels below.

Cover Finished

Yesterday evening I finished the cover and added a few pages

to the mixed media 'Thou Art' Book.

One of the pages is made up of Italian Lace

that was in a bag of trimmings someone gave me

when they were having a sort out.

See work that I have created with vintage lace

by clicking HERE

I will keep making pages and then arrange and

secure them in.

See more of my mixed media work on my

website

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Thou Art Mixed Media Book

This is the start of the Mixed Media Book I have called

"Thou Art".

Base on a Scottish Proverb I found,

"What ev'r thou art,

act well thy part".

I began the piece of work by collecting the materials together

from around my studio and then began by

layering items onto an antique lace tray cloth.

You could use a lace handkerchief etc.

This I backed with Hobbs wadding (batting) and

then began sewing and sticking the layers of items on to

the tray cloth.

this is going to be the cover.

I managed to make a few pages and will continue to add.

I will take photos and post as I go.

See more of my mixed work on my website

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Collecting Together

On Thursday was my day in the studio, lovely.

I love being out and about sharing

and enjoying all the wonderful meetings and workshops

but I also like the time in my studio on my own,

playing and experimenting with 'stuff'.

I wanted to make a mixed media lace inspired book.

Something frilly, containing memories and keepsakes.

So my usual practice is to collect all the things

I can find in an short time. Often colour related too!

It keeps it project and idea based but I allow

for red herrings, lots will be rejected or

it will spark off where other items are while I am

making the item.

(I normally allow 15mins for this collecting otherwise you get lost

with all the lovely things and you don't get anything done).

So above are textiles, paper, trinkets, canvas and water colour paper.

The the process begins either with an inspiration via a picture, idea or

by the items I have collected together.

So many ideas then start rushing through my head

and I group items together.

in this case for the cover and the pages.

In the afternoon I had a visit from Chris who runs

Weeting Quilt Group. She brought her husband to see what a

studio in the garden looks like!

See more of my mixed media work on my website

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Mixed Media Autumn bark

This is my Mixed media Autumn Bark piece

which jeanette was following as inspiration.

It is made with a muslin base and the same method

I showed Jeanette.

Jeanette's pice will get more soft and 'Bark' like,

as she works on it. You will be able to see it as it progresses.

Thats if Jeanette lets me after me stretching her comfort zone!!!

See more of my mixed media work

on my website pages.

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Mixed Media Autumn Backgrounds

Jeanette is making a mixed media leaf wall hanging and

needed the background for her wonderful

embroidered leaves.

She really doesn't enjoy painting because like some

of us she was put off art by an art teacher who didn't like her

and told her she couldn't do it. That teacher was wrong!!!

Jeanette produces fantastic mixed media pieces,

one of which being 'Bolliwood Turrets'.

She was really out of her comfort zone when

I lay out a piece of plastic,

put a piece of calico on it and arranged, paints, PVA, cotton wool,

swabs, rubber gloves and an apron on the table.

After we all had a little laugh at her impression of a

mad surgeon she got to work through

'gritted teeth'!

It went outside the Gallery to dry with bricks and a flower pot

to hold it down, much to the interest of customers.

Forty minutes later Jeanette was at the machine

with wools and a machine that didn't want to play!

(they always know when you are trying something new!)

With perseverance the wools were zig zagged on to

form the bark layers.

As you can see above with the leaves on top with

the background showing through it is going to

look quite something.

To see Jeanette's 'Bolliwood' click the label below.

Mixed Media Card Making

Friday afternoon I had a couple of hours

making mixed media cards.

I like to mix large pieces of work which

take a long time to make with

small mixed media projects like cards or

pictures.

They are available from me or @ The Gallery Dereham.

See more of my cards on my website

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Card making with Chinese Inspiration

On Wednesday morning Kim brought in some Chinese stamps for

us to be inspired by. Using printing,card and the newly learnt

bleach techniques, we were experimenting!

The card directly above is one of Kim's for inspiration.

She embossed printed the fans and then

using concentrated bleach and a fine paint brush

painted the fan middles, as you can see

it removed certain areas of the red card.

Kim then used chalks and ink and printing

to finish the card.

I used the beach on the Peony petals to remove the

red card colour.

I would make the card slightly larger next time

to give the writing some room between the flowers.

I really enjoyed this colour combination.

See more paper techniques in my portfolio pages

on my website

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Stamping Background Papers

On Wednesday I went along to the Gallery as a student

for the Cardmaking class with Kim.

This week, we were learning how to make background papers

for our cards and other projects.

Above, you can see just a small selection of the inks, chalks and stamps

we had to choose from.

Kim is such a good tutor, she showed us postcard sized

backgrounds of her own and told us how they were made.

We then were let loose with our blank postcards

and you can see the backgrounds I came up with.

I knew I would be using the papers in the afternoon

so chose a similar colour palette

except for two!

See more cardmaking and collage on my website

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Mixed Media Trees

Pat is adding the texture to the background fabric, so her trees

become 'grounded',

(see earlier posts by clicking label below, textile trees).

She is sewing on threads and snippets in a circular motion

so there is movement in the piece.

The trees have just been pinned on at this point.

To see where to go next and how much depth

Pat needed to add, I got her to masking tape

the wall hanging to the wall and

then stand at the other end of the room.

Pat, could see, it needed deeper colour stitching, more

circles and where they needed to go.

As you walk nearer the piece you can pick up the details

and richness already there.

Pat worked on it all morning, many more hours to add

but this piece is becoming an outstanding one!

Well done Pat!

I will grab it for it's finish photo soon!!!

See more of what happens @ The Gallery

www.thegallerydereham.co.uk

More Mandalas Cards

Kim's class finished at lunch time so I went over to the Bead Shop

in Dereham that sells all sorts of craft items and

brought some card and of course a few pots of the

wonderful shimmer paints and Embossing Powders. Yum!

I had the quickest lunch I think I have ever had and

started stamping and embossing in gold.

Kim had given a demonstration of this earlier,

I always use it on textiles and in moulding plastics

so using it on paper is just magic.

Then to cutting out and figuring out what lines to choose!

Not easy when you get confused what line is what

and there is no tutor to hand!

The best bit for me was painting with the

shimmer paints, so iridescent, beautiful.

Above, you can see my second finished card,

completed all on my own with encouragement

from Haydn and Judy the Gallery owners.

I am quite pleased and Thank You to

Kim for inspiring another creation.

To see more of my creations visit

www.art2inspire.co.uk

Card Making

As some of you know I like making and learning different things.

I often learn a technique or skill at a workshop and

this in a way adds to my mixed media work as an artist.

I always learn something and find it humbling to be an

student. Different Tutors have their way of

setting out and using equipment that you would otherwise

never come into contact with or you have been doing

something the same way for years and you are

shown a new or easier way to do it, wonderful!

I am going to Kim's (a tutor @ The Gallery Dereham)

scrapbooking class and she mentioned that she does

different card making techniques too!

So I went along on Wednesday and

look at what I started on! these Mandala tile cards,

the rest of the group were already doing theirs and

I really jumped into the deep end.

I just loved it, the stamping and cutting out of the different layers

and then building them up again.

The shimmer paints are beautiful to use and so glossy!

I will be doing more of these.

See more of what goes on @The Gallery

www.thegallerydereham.co.uk