Fibre Arts Winter School

Last week I was lucky to attend the Fibre Arts Winter School at Ballarat in Vic. The concept of Winter School is you get to work with the tutor of your choice for one WHOLE week while living in at Ballarat Grammar School in the boarders lodgings.

The class I took was 'Painting the Landscape with Materials' with Caroline Sharkey.  One of the best things of all was I actually finished my project!!!!  How often do you attend a workshop or class and never finish the article - it then gets put away and often forgotten until one does a spring clean of one's workroom/studio.

The class, tutor, other students, organisation was all fantastic.  No pressure - work at our own pace, all meals provided (and they were delicious); lots of fun with the students in other classes, mixing with some famous tutors - Helen Godden, Linda Steele, Jenny Bowker, Karen Goetzinger (from Canada) and of course Caroline Sharkey.  ps I even had Helen Godden in my car one day.......





This is my finished piece of work - a 3D piece - something I've never done before.  But Caroline was so, so helpful and excellent in showing us how to interpret our pieces and how to work and improvise as well as showing us various techniques.  It was one of the best classes I have ever attended. It is my interpretation of the new growth in the forests around Anglesea after the devastating bushfires of Ash Wednesday.

During the week each class gets to sit at the 'Top Table' for the day - and provide some decorations for the table which are then auctioned at the end of the week with the proceeds going to Breast Cancer Research - these bottles were our contribution. ps - they are empty!!!

This is the table with ours and some of the other decorations of the previous classes.

Next posting I will show you some photos of the progress of how I worked on my piece.

Also I hope to have some photos of some of the work from the other classes - am just waiting to hear if it is OK if I post here.  Have heard back from one person, but not the others as yet.

I have already booked into the next School in April 2014 week in Ballarat.  The class I'm doing then is with Kim Thitchaki from England. She works with lots of mixed fibres and heat guns, soldering irons etc etc.

Have you heard about

'Quilt @ Winter School'?  The wonderful Glenys who organises Fibre Arts in Ballarat each year and other week long fibre arts retreats/schools has put together a fabulous 'Quilt @ the Winter School' for next year - 2013.  There is a great selection of tutors AND the best thing is you work with the one tutor for the week, so you can complete your project, not take it home half-done and then put it away for another day.  How many times have you done that and then forgotten about it?

Plus, there is NO cooking or housework for a whole week (5 days).  To find out more click here or above - the link will take you to her website and all the information is there.  While there have a peek at some of the other schools she has organised - there is even one in Darwin!

In case any of you are interested(?) I have booked into the class with Carolyn Sharkey.  So I'm on the hunt for some fabulous photos and images that I can work with.  I will post some pics when I have the photos.

Please go and have a look at Glenys' site and really really think about joining the rest of us.

What if???.....A little experiment.

Not long ago I was wrapping a present with bright pink tissue paper and it was hot and my hands were a little damp - some of the dye from the tissue paper stained my fingers and a light bulb went off in my mind......What if......

I took out a small bundle of natural silk tops (undyed), put some water (only half cup) in a container and placed the threads in the water then put in a piece of the tissue paper (about a quarter of a sheet) - and voila - this is what happened within seconds.........beautiful pink silk threads.  My only wish is I had some more papers.  Will leave these for a few days and see if by ironing them with some Misty Fuse onto a backing they keep their colour.  I will let you know the result.

Don't you love the colour - you can see a small piece of the original tissue on the left and the threads next to it.  Think a trip to the $2 shops and see if I can pick up some more papers is on the cards to do.  Such quick and cheap way of dying.   No need to go down the mixing/stirring/measuring/wearing a mask way of dying little bits of stuff.  I will have to try it on some fabric next and after heat setting will see if the colour stays or runs.
(Again my apologies for the missing photos - when they are found I will replace them).

A blog for lovers of textiles

I haven't posted for a while - have been busy with family stuff - but I could let this one go by without letting you know - I have found a great blog for those who love doing textiles.  You may already know about it - has been going for some time.  Liz Kettle whose blog it is, is part of the team that have the website Textile Evolution - she also has a give-away going at present - so if you are 'biting at the bit' to get there here it is - click here - hope you like it as much as I do.

I'll be back soon,
Take care...Joy