A Collection of Canvases - Highlights from the 2019 Exhibition

As I was curating the photos taken at our Bi-Annual Exhibition into 'Posts', I was wondering what to call these attractive pieces - Canvases seem to fit the bill, however, one or two may actually be of the quilty kind, so please forgive me and chalk it up to 'artistic licence'...
Hope you enjoy this latest line up if you did not manage to see them 'in person'.

The first four began life on a Saturday Day School taught by Priscilla Edwards, read the posts here and here.

The painted lace is a good base for this flower, it reminds me of Sphagnum Moss, which I think is a very 'posh' thing to put on the soil and around delicate plants like Orchids.

Now where in Cornwall could this be? Padstow or St Isaac, perhaps? I would love to go to this pretty harbour!

The Cornish Harbour scene was inspired by a painting on a card bought on a visit to The Scilly Isles; by Bridget Wilkinson. See more of her gorgeous work here.

Lilac and soft greens set of this Hare wonderfully. Such a lovely colour palette. 
Sorry that the photo does not do the Doves of Peace, (below) justice but you can see the lettering and stitches in the flash version.

Artist Angie Lewin , the British Print Maker and Author known for her wonderful seed heads and natural flora; was the inspiration for this free machined 'mini-quilt/canvas' below. Wonderful colours.

The Kingfisher has been applied to a felted background of coloured scrim using needle turn applique before having his feathers free machined in metallic threads. Hand embroidery also appears here and there. The bird was the makers own design but the technique was taught by Annette Emms on a workshop at Creative Threads in Garstang.
Below, another workshop at Creative Threads; this time taught by Anne Brooke. The cheerful piece called How Does Your Garden Grow? uses wall paper and other paper bits including maps and sheet music that are machined on with some hand embroidery added later.

This pretty floral canvas, below, in gorgeous muted tones is called Shabby Chic and is the stitchers own design.

Thank you to everyone for allowing their wonderful work to be photographed for our Blog. If you would like to take any of the classes mentioned just click on the Artists name to be taken to their website. Creative Threads of Garstang also offer many classes through out the year taught be these and other artists. There is always plenty of lovely cake too!

Fluttering By with Cut Work Butterflies - Highlights of the 2019 Exhibition

Here is a lovely Flutter of Butterflies that started to come to life during a Cut Work Workshop in May 2018 led by Sue Bennett at Lytham St Annes Branch of the Embroiderers Guild.

Enjoy!

Pretty on Pinks; above and lime green fabric makes a striking background for the Butterfly edged in Purple, below.

Here is a trio of butterflies on Calming Blue backgrounds. All looking lovely and serene.

Many thanks to everyone who put their finished Cut Work Butterflies into the exhibition and to Sue Bennet for coming up with such a pretty design and easy to follow instructions to help us make our 3D butterflies.

Beautiful Blackwork

Wow! We are in August already - time has flown by this year. Time to slow it down with some relaxed stitching and what better than some Beautiful Blackwork; which was the subject of our recent July workshop at Lytham St Annes Embroiderers Guild.

For those new to this type of embroidery it has a long history. Whilst it has been called Spanish Work, as it was supposed to have been brought over by Catherine of Aragon when she came to marry into the Tudor family - she having been said to have been taught by her mother Queen Isabella of Spain and the work influenced by the geometric designs of the Moors - it has been around since the time of Geoffrey Chaucer, the English Poet and Author who was born in London in 1343.

Above, is a lovely Elizabethan inspired design of Cowslips by Paula Katherine Marmor of the Blackwork Embroidery Archives. She is inspired by historical needlework of 16th and 17th Century England but all the patterns are her original ideas. Paula says that she much prefers to design the patterns on the computer, than stitch them. (As always: Please be aware of Copyright, give credit if using one of Paula's designs and only do so for personal or educational purposes. See her website if in doubt).

When all things Spanish fell out of favour due to the conflict with Spain - this type of embroidery was renamed Blackwork and can be seen in the clothes worn in portraits of nobility painted by Holbein. Hence, the Double Running Stitch used came to be known as Holbein Stitch.
With Anne of Cleves, Henry VIII's fourth wife, the designs became freer as she favoured the patterns influenced by nature that had flowers and leaves filled with geometric designs. In time, Blackwork was used on household items and metallic threads were also used. 

These two designs by Elizabeth Almond - Cameo, above and Interweave, below, use Gold Metallic thread to highlight small parts of the pattern to great effect.

It was considered dull once coloured thread was invented and did not really become popular again until the 1960s when textures and tones were emphasized more than the strict Tudor designs.

A Persian Flower design by Elizabeth Almond has been worked in Black, above, and Colour Flower in pink and lilac thread, below. The patterns look the same but the eagle eyed among you will spot the subtle changes. Find both designs and more! on her website Blackwork Journey in the Freebie section.

Elizabeth Almond has plenty of Free Patterns on her Website Blackwork Journey. (Just click on the link but please, be sure to attribute the design to her when showing others your work and not copy or pass the designs on without permission).

Today all kinds of threads are used including Variegated Threads and designs appear on all manner of articles from linens and towels to Makeup Bags and Notebooks.

The Elizabethan Cowslip design by Paula Katherine Marmor, this time worked in coloured thread and adorning a Makeup Bag.

To start off your design, fold your fabric in 4 to find the centre point and using a Waste Knot to begin with, work out from the centre using straight stitches. You can use Back Stitch or Running Stitch and go back and fill in the gaps - aka Holbein Stitch or Double Running Stitch.
The Elizabeth Almond patterns use a single strand but you can use 2 strands if you like and your work will still look wonderful.

Here as three Gorgeous Butterflies, below. These are Original Designs by Linda Bedford; our Tutor for the evening, who has a reputation for very neat, fine work.

This next piece made up of Multiple Blackwork Designs is also an Original Pattern by Linda Bedford.

One more colourful flower design by Lesley Wilkins from her book Beginners Guide to Blackwork, below, is worked in Blue and Pink variegated thread that matches the blue cover of  the notebook it decorates.

The plastic wrinkles are from the cellophane covering the Notebook.

Last but not least, I could not resist posting these wonderful Cute Critters, below. 

The stylized creatures were designed by Lesley Wilkins and appear in her book Beginners Guide to Blackwork.

Many thanks to Linda for stitching all these lovely designs and for passing on her tips and trick garnered from years of embroidery. We were able to get started on our own pattern and find out just how enjoyable it is to sit and work the embroidery known as Blackwork.

Mad Hats and Lovely Things

What fun we had at the June meeting at Lytham St Annes Embroiderers Guild! We were intrigued and excited to hear the talk entitled Mad Hats and Lovely Things given by Heather Wilson an artist who has a studio above Innovations at Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire.

It was a laugh a minute as the flamboyant Heather regaled us with tales of her crazy creations such as the one below entitled 'Who are you calling a Lying Cow?' (Blogger was not happy with that and I had to rename the photo several times before it would upload it  - Green Hat just does not do it justice does it?)

Also on the Bovine theme the black and white hat below is called 'Mooella de Ville' and sports two happy Fresian cows sitting on top.

All Heather's hats are meticulously hand sewn - NO GLUE GUNS allowed in her shop! Even tiny beads are painstakingly hand sewn on all the Hats and Fascinators produced by Heather.

Here she is below, holding a portfolio of her watercolours and wearing one of her Fascinators. A lovely lady with mermaid coloured hair, Heather is also a skilled artist and produces Name and Memory Paintings that record special events and the people, places or objects that have a significance for the intended recipient. 

A huge amount of research and attention to detail goes into each A3 painting that give hours of pleasure to the viewer as they notice new things each time they look. 

Every picture has a unique story to tell and often amusing anecdotes to boot.

What do you think of this hat with a difference? It is called 'Prawn Marie Celeste' and has some cute shrimp earrings to match.

Heather also had some Lovely Things that she had collected on her travels in Dhordo, India, where she purchased interesting items on sale in remote villages. 

Here is a Wall Plaque make from cardboard, plaster and shisha mirrors. Despite being delicate the piece has definitely stood the test of time as Heather has owned it for 20 years!

This cheerful Toran, below, was one of my favourite items. The set has 2 pieces and the part with the pennants would hang over the top of the door frame with the long pieces hanging on each side.

Heather brought many other 'Lovely Things' such as Silk Saris and an Elephant Tea Cosy.
If you would like to see her work and maybe commission a special painting for yourself, visit Heather at her shop in Hebden Bridge or book a talk for your group here.
Meantime you can see more on her website www.hwilson.com

Many thanks Heather for visiting our group with your wonderful collection, fabulous watercolour paintings and entertaining stories.