Skip to main content

A week of #SeptTextileLove Days 4-10

 

Another week of  sharing love for textiles with the Seam Colelctiv'es social media cahllenge #SeptTextileLove.... 




Day 4:  PLAY 

Most days , I play with materials , but I do love art and craft play dates with my grandchildren. All four of them and I have enjoyed creative play - these pics are ten years apart(2022-2012), so they suggest I am still playing and fabric dyeing has obviously been a ‘messy’ favourite .

The tie dyeing kits are great for easy play - the squirt bottles can be managed by all ages. and the results are instant!





Day 5 : PATTERN

Over the last couple of years I have been experimenting with a technique which uses the decorative pattern stitches on a sewing machine. Using overlapping and layering different colours and patterns on scraps of fabric, with varying distances between the rows of stitching, a completely different patterned fabric is created. So, in a sense I use various tiny patterns to create a whole pattern . I am using this technique more and more to create unique textured patterned backgrounds.





Day 6 : LOOP
One of the first things I think I learnt with wool was to make what I called chains of loops . The idea was to practise until the loops were the same size and the same tension … from the ‘Basics of Crochet’ … ‘every single crochet pattern that you will ever try to follow will include the phrase "draw up a loop" so it is important that you learn what this means and how to do it early on in your crochet journey. ‘ Getting the loops just right seems to help with these quirky birds





Day 7 : COLOUR Red has power, the power to change the story


Day 8 INSPIRATION/INFLUENCE

‘ What surrounds us is what is within us’ . Most of my work is influenced by my surroundings , where I live … the trees and plants in my garden and my own beautiful neighbourhood .


Day 9 : ‘THREAD’

Temari (hand balls, sometimes called thread balls ) … ‘Temari are a form of folk art that originated in China and were introduced to Japan in the 7th century. Originally, they were made from herbs and leather, and noblewomen of Japan developed theirs from silk and kimono scraps. The temari is a symbol that represents great loyalty or a valued friendship. In modern day Japan, mothers make them for their children as part of New Year's celebrations…’




Day 10 : DRAWING

Drawing … I don’t think you need a reason to draw … some days it’s with a pencil and some days I use my sewing machine to doodle - just for fun.




Watch this space for further updates as the month rolls by.... Next week Days 11 -17





Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Meditations on Mercator

‘ The Timelessness of Stitch’ was an invitational group exhibition at Timeless Textiles Gallery, Newcastle NSW , 1 April  – 10 May 2026   ….  Across generations and cultures, the act of stitching has woven together stories, traditions and identities. Each thread carries not only aesthetic value but also the memories and emotions of those who crafted it, demonstrating how this simple act transcends time and place. I was honoured and humbled to be amongst the twenty-three artists (national and international) participating in this exhibition. My small installation took some time to develop…. Although I knew about this exhibition for some time, I kept procrastinating, going from one idea to another and not settling on any. Recently, I came across the word “mercator” and while a vague notion of maps was recalled, I really needed to research. Besides the modern commercial connections, Mercator has its origins in cartography, which Is often a source of inspiration for my ...

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks ....  The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and  message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or  my husband or from off cuts gifted to us  from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks.   Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt  or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as w...

Fragments

 Some days are just your lucky days - today I was very fortunate and privileged to open the first ever Australian exhibition "Fragments" by  UK  Fibre Artist  Sue Hotchkis .  Here is a little about the techniques of this amazing textile artist from her own website  ...  Working intuitively with print and stitch, marks, textures and colours are exaggerated, intensified to reveal the detail and complexity within the images. Materials are deconstructed using modern methods, ripped, burnt and dyed. Time is invested in their reconstruction; pieces can take from a week to several months to create. Whilst being aesthetically pleasing the work can also act as a metaphor for deterioration and ruin, associated with urban decay and ultimately death and loss. They evolve organically, built up with layers of print, cloth, paper, and stitch into three-dimensional abstract forms that hover between object and image; to create a unique, visual and tactile lan...