Textile Tuesday: July

We are edging towards the end of The Stitchbook Collective year, in August we will receive our last kit. Was there ever a better timed project! There are 150 of us in the Collective and it has been a wonderful creative community to be part of over the last few months.

Our June box was all about Laid Work and Couching, including how to couch lettering.

Of course I had to include a bit of rust dyed fabric – Rust Dyeing has been my favourite process of the whole course – I love the magic, alchemy and serendipity of it.

The Laid Work was a real challenge for me

I like to be messy and abstract and fairly free with my stitching

but Bayeux stitch is not any of those things – keeping within the lines is what is required, (and as I am writing this, I am already creating a design in my head of a messy, borderless piece, but still using some of the Bayeux stitch technique…. ooo .. but no … I have to finish writing this post first – ‘inspiration’, a blessing or the opposite?! sometimes both)

I searched online for an Art Deco pineapple design (you might already know how much I like pineapples, here is just one post about them, but there are loads more and if you want to see them, just type Pineapple into the Search Box top right) and created the above from a wallpaper pattern.

After all that control, my inner rebel needed to get messy again so time to experiment with some eco-dyeing

An old calico curtain pickled with mould spots has found it’s time to shine. Soaked in soya milk, and then wrapped round a rusty nail, encasing leaves soaked in rusty water.

In they all go to be steamed

I like the look of the bundles as much as I like the dyed fabric. There is something intriguing about the mystery they hold. (Argghhh! another idea …. project of bundles as the art work themselves, on a theme, so wrapping pertinent pieces of memorabilia in a bundle and then working on the outside to hint at what it holds ……. noooo … get back to writing this post!)

To speed up the process of drying, I sat them on a wheat-filled heat pad that is heated in the microwave

But even that wasn’t quick enough for me, so I later put them under the grill on a very low heat.

I also tried printing the leaves onto paper

I was a bit disappointed with the results at first, but there are definitely marks to work with …. I wonder where inspiration will take me.

Although there is a tinge of sadness that The Stitchbook Collective is coming to a close, there is also celebration as our books are going to be exhibited at the Kniiting and Stitching Show in Harrogate in November.

Even better news! Anyone who would like to be part of the next Stitchbook Collective can be. Helen is running another one next year – I can highly recommend it! Suitable for beginners and experienced stitchers alike. You can subscribe for a whole year or buy the individual kits.

Must go, I have messy Bayeux stitch to figure out and a few bundles to make.

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If you would like to share any textile related posts in July, just pop a link in the comments below, current or archive, anything textile related,  are all welcome.

 

Patterns and Pineapples

….. continuing the story of my Sunny Sunday with Noelle and Alison

After meandering through the gardens Noelle led the way into the buildings of the Bishop’s Palace …. we were wowed by the way the sunlight played with the stained glass windows in the chapel

There was even a Stained Glass jigsaw

and more spectacular patterns in the wallpaper on the staircase

and then joy of joys – Pineapples!

Anyone who has been reading my blog for a while knows I have a bit of a thing for pineapples, you can see more here, here and here

Although the wallpaper in the photo looks grey it was, in reality, a rich blue

Seeing my delight in the pineapple pattern, Noelle hatched a plan …. and on her way home she popped into the shops to buy ……

a pineapple

Noelle then showed us this marvellous way of carving a pineapple to get rid of all the spiky brown bits AND to make the pinepapple look spectacular – a fabulous ‘Crafty Trick’ 

just see how spendid it looks

Alison and I were in for a treat

A delicious lunch awaited us in the oh-so-cosy conservatory

Home-made soup and foccacia. I felt thoroughly spoilt – it was a day to please all the senses.

I can’t leave this post without showing a close up of Noelle’s knitted jumper – her knitting is superb and in such soft yarn and gentle colours

It makes me want to get back to knitting again.

The warmth of the day stays with me – thank you so much Noelle for your wonderful hospitality.

Before posting I checked with Noelle that she was happy with my photos and she told me of more delights she has in store for you on her blogs:

Here is Noelle’s Pineapple Chutney

and

Pineapple Carving

Enjoy!

Passion for Pineapples

Have you noticed that lately, pineapples are appearing in all sorts of places, on clothes, as jewellery, on china ……….

I’ve had a ‘thing’ for pineapples for a while, and have a couple of them cheering up the doors of my dated kitchen cupboards, (along with a clown drawn by Miss E when she was 6).

They were painted by Raoul Speek, a Caribbean artist living in Solva, Pembrokeshire. Decorative pineapples have popped up in all sorts of places since they were first brought to the British Isles.

Origin of the Word
The word pineapple in English was first recorded in 1398, when it was originally used to describe the reproductive organs of conifer trees (now termed pine cones). When European explorers discovered this tropical fruit they called them pineapples (term first recorded in that sense in 1664) because of their resemblance to what is now known as the pine cone. The term pine cone was first recorded in 1694, and was used to replace the original meaning of pineapple

They are often found in and around old houses as a symbol of prosperity – like on these railings outside a house in St.Davids.

Raoul Speek’s pineapples inspired a cushion I made back in 2013

And more recently I ordered some smaller wooden shapes from Hazel Woodcraft for the grandchildren to decorate as presents.

A trip to the Caribbean fuelled my Pineapple Passion,

they were everywhere

on chairs

as wall lights

pool-side lanterns

balsa wood sculptures

on carpets

and can you spot them in this room?

yes, the tray.

I loved the atmosphere in that house – it’s name is Serendipity and you can stay there……

…….. and then……oh! …. oh my goodness! … my heart skipped a beat,  I saw a pattern for Pineapple Bunting on Etsy …….

and hey presto another mini-obsession takes hold ………

 

So many colour combos to explore!!! Juicy!

to be continued….