A Few Textile Treats

 In March I was in Glasgow with Jeni, Swati and Murji, touring contemporary textile makers. One highlight was the showroom of Timorous Beasties.

In springtime a carload of us headed down to Farfield Mill near Sedbergh to enjoy a great display of contemporary quilters' talents - 
 including Pauline Burbidge and Lynn Setterington

 In July I loved a trip to the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham. Admired so many diverse styles and themes (and succumbed to some traditional kekfesto fabric squares which patiently await transformation any time now into...err...)

 In the summer I was able to do some indigo dyeing outside - what a treat!

 And stitch up a few block-print birds, inspired by cradle toys seen in Gujarat.

 

I've spun many yarns this year but almost the last I did was this one, which Pat Douglas of Carlenrig Farm (have you seen her lovely work?) knitted up to keep her Italian grand daughter warm this winter.

 

Hope you all keep warm and dry and merry this Christmas too!

11.12.13

 I like numbers - always happy when the odometer shows a pleasing figure, especially a palindromic one. And numerically pleasing dates are pretty fine too. Today is the last date this century with three consecutive numbers, (in this country at any rate - across the pond they will have 12.13.14)

But then I like irregularity too. Especially in my stitching, fortunately. This is the pantoran - wall or window hanging -  handstitched throughout - that I made as a sample to show Souter Quilters at the workshop a month ago.

 And you might remember I posted up some of the works-in-progress on the day.

Well Charlie's work looked like this - all planned out but still to be stitched.

 So I was delighted when she sent me photos of the finished work. Look at all that lovely kantha stitching highlighting the motifs she picked! I felt a wee glow of satisfaction that folk had such fun with needle, thread and hand printed fabrics.

Charlie Rutherford's work

As we head for mid-December, I have one fair left but this time I am simply arranging who goes where and then taking refuge in the hall kitchen to make bacon rolls and heat soup. Saturday's event is the little-but-lovely Christmas Fair in Southdean Hall - doors open at 12 noon and you can check out the hall's Facebook page to see some of the great makers we have rolling up on the day.