Master Class

This week I have signed up for the embroidery masterclass with Stitchbusiness. It is distance learning but with four mentor days each year providing tutor and peer support. The first brief is mark making and drawing with aim being to create 'a working sketchbook filled with inspiring, inventive, imaginative ideas - a work of art in itself for reference and using' - gulp!! I have spent a couple of days thinking and looking at various books and today have finally put pencil and paint to paper. I've decided to start with circles and blue and have surprised myself by finishing two pages already and coming up with lots more ideas as well. I found a book I bought ages ago called 'Make your Mark' by Margaret Peot really useful and inspiring. It has lots of ideas and techniques for making marks with drawing not being mentioned until page 156 which suits me as I do not find drawing easy.

I have done some stitching as well, having finished a cloth figure, Pixie. Here is a photo of her and another cloth figure I finished recently. Don't be too critical - I'm a cloth figure beginner!

Hartlepool EG Branch Exhibition

I visited Hartlepool Branch of the Embroiderers Guild Exhibition a last month and spend a very enjoyable afternoon admiring the fantastic work and chatting to fellow embroiderers. Some of the exhibits had been started at two workshops I delivered for them last year and the year before and it was brilliant to see the completed work. These photos are of two stumpwork figures, both worked from my basic pattern, but each having developed her own attitude and both quite different from my original.