I had a great weekend at Hylands House at Keene Quilters Patchwork in the Park exhibition. There were hundreds of quilts of all shapes and sizes decorating this beautiful venue. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take photos, but I can assure you they were stunning! 

The Woolmarket, Horndon on the Hill

This coming weekend is another 'awayday' for me - well, two days this time - at the Material Girls ' Textiles on the Hill' at the Woolmarket, Horndon on the Hill. I've driven past this wonderful old building several times, but have not been inside. I haven't had a chance to see the Bridging Waters Exhibition before, which is a collaboration between the Material Girls and Articulation, a textile group from Canada and I'm really looking forward to it. There will also be demonstrations by some great textile artists like Lynda Monk (who is coming to do a workshop at Craft Arena later in the year - watch out for more details), Sara Impey, Janetter Bright, Juliet Bryson and others. There will be light refreshments available and the event is open from 11am to 5pm on Saturday 26th May and from 11am to 4pm on Sunday 27th. I hope to see you there.


I love books. Love reading them, holding them, possessing them. Just because I have a Kindle, doesn't mean I'm going to stop buying them! I also love making them, and the second issue of Pages, the creative guide for Art Journaling and Bookmaking, by the publisher of Cloth Paper Scissors will certainly help. The first issue proved so popular that the intended annual publication has been brought forward.  This issue contains not only articles and projects on bookmaking but books as art, book covers, binding, art journaling, creating and decorating the pages once you have made your book and even wearable books! Can't wait to get stuck in!!


Now back to sewing beads onto my butterfly wing!


Denise

Economising

Well, that was the plan. I emailed a small order over to Craftynotions on Friday, then got an email back from David Lawrence telling me he had some new Sari Ribbon colours in. They arrived yesterday and are now on the shelves! Beautiful colours; violets and indigo, pinks and blues! There are also two new pastel colours of recycled silk yarn. Add to that more Valdani cotton in 35weight and perle 8, including some colours I've not had before, and the small order turned out a little larger that I'd been anticipating!  I'll be bringing a limited supply to Patchwork in the Park at Hylands House this weekend - more on that later. 

Two new Stampington magazines arrived today. Firstly Sew Somerset which features cutting-edge paper, fabric, and mixed-media projects transformed by stitches of all shapes and sizes. Be on the lookout for a vivacious fabric book by Roxanne Padgett, colorful mixed-media tags by Dina Wakley, freehand embroidery wall art by Danielle Daniel, and exquisite botanical collages by Caterina Giglio. Sewers, paper crafters, and collage artists alike will be in awe of the stunning stitched projects highlighted in our latest edition. Also Art Quilting Studio - articles include Miriam Nathan Robert's Artist Showcase, B.J. Adam's Series Showcase, and a special lettering edition of On the Surface with Lisa Engelbrecht. Enjoy a gorgeous quilted set by Sumi Foley for All by Hand and a clever and quirky take on well-known idioms by Kathryn Clark for Quilting the Odd and Unusual. The latest issue is lined with great articles that feature quilts incorporating chalk, paint, portraits, and more.

It's business as usual in the Studio this weekend, but Craft Arena will also be at Keene Quilter’s Patchwork in the Park exhibition which is being held at Hylands House, Hylands Park, Chelmsford CM2 8WQ from Saturday 19th to Monday 21st May.

We will have our usual supplies, plus lots of patchwork, quilting and sewing books. The exhibition is open from 10 am - 5pm on Saturday and Sunday and from 10am - 4pm on Monday. Entrance is £3.80 with Concessions £2.80. There will be other suppliers including Tyler's Patch from Barleylands plus refreshments, so do come along to see the wonderful quilts on display in this beautiful venue.

Plans for our Tantalising Textiles Competition continue. I've had our first entry, so there will be at least one piece on display! You can find out more in my previous post and on the Craft Arena website where you can also download an application form.

I've been continuing to work on my butterfly wing for the Minerva Group exhibition in September. I'm currently sewing hundreds of beads on! I'm really pleased with it so far. Only two more pieces to go!

More news soon.

Denise

How Long?

It can't really be the beginning of April since I last blogged can it? And five years since I opened Craft Arena at Barleylands? How time flies when you are enjoying yourself!


Those of you on my mailing list should have received a newsletter at the beginning of May with details of our birthday celebrations, our Knit & Stitch Club, Brother sewing machine specials and the events that Craft Arena will be attending over the next few weeks - more of those later. If you didn't get a copy, you can download it from the website and also create a customer profile for inclusion in our next mailing.

I've added some new workshops to our programme; Embroidery Design, Working with Dissolvable Fabric and Friendly Plastic for Beginners. If you would like to find out more about these and other workshops, ask in the studio, email or take a look at the website. You can see here some of the samples that could be made in our Friendly Plastic workshop.

Our first Tantalising Textiles Competition is being held in recognition of the events taking place during the summer; the Queen’s Jubilee and the Olympic Games. We are encouraging people who have never displayed work before, as well as established textile artists, to submit their work for entry into the exhibition.

The theme of the competition is ‘Celebration’ and judging will be by members of the public. The artwork with the most votes will win a prize, with a separate prize draw for the voters. There will be a nominal £5 charge for each entry with the monies raised being divided between the prizes and a donation to St Luke’s Hospice in Basildon.


Entry forms and fees must be submitted by Sunday 17th June 2012, and your work must be handed in by 31st June 2012. All entries submitted will be displayed in The Gallery at Craft Arena from Tuesday 3rd to Sunday 29th July 2012. Entries can include any type of Textile Art; Mixed Media, Fabric Collage, Embroidery, Cross Stitch etc., but must not have been exhibited before. 3D items can also be submitted. The maximum finished size should be A2 (594 x 420 mm) for hanging items and 400 x 200 x 200 mm for 3D items. The Entry form can be found here or contact us for more information. 


Next weekend I'll be at Keene Quilters Patchwork in the Park at Hylands House, Chelmsford. In a bit of a departure, I'll be bringing lots of books with me, mostly patchwork and quilting, but a few other gems too. The following week is Textiles on the Hill at the Woolmarket, High Road, Horndon on the Hill. This should be another good weekend, with textile work on show and for sale as well as demonstrations, refreshments and shopping opportunities!
I look forward to seeing you at one or both of these events, or in the studio.

Denise

Catching Up

It's amazing how having a couple of days away can really put you out of kilter. I've been trying to catch up with everything ever since I got back from Birmingham! I had a great time though, the show was excellent, I think Ray got something out of if too, even if it was a sit down watching the fashion show! Caught up with some friends and managed to sort a date out with Lynda Monk to come and hold a workshop at Craft Arena, so look out for more details soon once we have finalised things.

We went to Forge Mill Needle Museum at Redditch on the Sunday. Very interesting to find out more about how sewing needles were made. One of the guides told me that they are having a textile exhibition by the Kemshalls later in the year, couldn't find anything on the Forge Mill website, but I had a quick look at Linda Kemshalls site and there is a bit more info there.

Monday was spent in Stratford on Avon. Hadn't been for ages, and I'd forgotten how pretty it is. Lots of lovely archaeology!

I'm currently working on a piece for our Minerva exhibition later in the year. I can't show you exactly what I'm doing (although if you ask when you are in the shop, you'll probably get a sneak preview), but it is based on a photograph of a swallowtail butterfly wing from 'Life on Earth' which I've been hoping to work with for years!

Back to work; a new Interweave magazine arrived this morning. I wasn't expecting this, but on a quick skim through, it looks good. It may even tempt me to do some quilting!  I've also had some interesting books come in, with more to follow so do ask about the latest arrivals next time you pop in.  I've also had the latest issue of Quilting Arts, which itself is very patchwork orientated, and the new Stitch with the Embroiderers' Guild has some great projects.

Denise

Sewing Special and Special Weekend

I'm off with Ray for the weekend to Birmingham to visit the Fashion and Stitch show at the NEC. This is a great show if you haven't been before, with lots of textile art on show, plus demonstrations and goodies to buy. I'm hoping to catch up with Kim Thittichai and Lynda Monk amongst others, and see lots of lovely things!

To celebrate the show, Brother are offering special deals on some of their sewing machines.

·      The Innov-is Ie which is usually £5,499 has been reduced to £4,999

·      The Innov-is 5000 is usually £3,499 and has been reduced to £2,999

·      The Innov-is 1250 is usually £1299 and has been reduced to £999

·      The Innov-is 750 is £799, and comes with a free copy of PE Design lite which normally retails at £249.

Do let us know if you are interested in any of these - the offer is only available until 25th March.

 Denise

Newsletter

A little later than planned, but you should have now received the latest Craft Arena newsletter. I've mentioned in the email that accompanies it that I'm thinking of changing the newsletter format. I've posted a poll (to the left) to gauge your reaction, so do take a few seconds to register your vote.


The newsletter will also be available online shortly.


Denise

Books and more books

Craft Arena bookshelf 2007

Craft Arena bookshelf 2012

If you've been into the studio, you know I'm a sucker for books. I started out with half a shelf in 2007 and now have two shelves of a huge unit plus a book spinner which you can just see at the end of the row in the second picture. 

This week has seen a large order arrive with books I ordered at the trade show in February. There have been some lovely titles, including more of Sarah Lawrence's book Stitch, Cloth, Shimmer Shine; the first batch I received sold out within a few days. My favourite of the new batch is a book by India Flint called Second Skin: choosing and caring for textiles and clothing. It contains beautiful photographs and presents information and inspiration on selecting, acquiring, wearing, caring for, making and repurposing textiles and clothing. Usually something I aspire to rather than achieve, but this book will help me on the way. It is stunning!  

Catching up a bit, a fortnight ago saw Diane, Sarah and Elspeth in the studio for my Mixed Media Book cover workshop.  We used Pelmet Vilene, painted Bondaweb, organza, transfer foil, cord, buttons and stitch to construct a cover for a sketchbook. I was most impressed with the results!

I've received my certificate for being awarded runner-up in the Retailer of the Year - East Anglia Region category of the Origin Craft Awards 2012. This is now displayed proudly in my window. Thank you again to all those who voted for Craft Arena.

I'm hoping to get a newsletter out this week with more news, so look out for that winging it's way to your inbox.

Denise