Category Archives: Organza

Digitising meets my soldering iron. a new workshop for 2018

A new bow to my strings for 2018 and stimulating those brain cells big time

Digitised embroidery meets my soldering iron technique.
A day workshop running at Coles Sewing Centre, Nottingham on Friday 2nd March.

We will be loading and stitching out the elements required to make this layered panel with dimensional flowers. We will be removing layers to let other colours come through and then using a soldering iron to cut them out and put them together to make this beautiful see through flower panel.
For more details contact the shop @ www.colessewingcentre.co.uk

Organza flower pots

Here are some of the new kits for the fashion and embroidery show at Birmingham. These flowers will not need to be watered and will look good all year round. Just as well realy because I’m dreadful at remembering to water my plants and need hardy beauties on my window ledge. 

Organza Poppy Panel

Finally I have finished the last of the five new kits for launching at The Knitting and Stitching Show in two weeks time. The new kits are all long panels with added elements made that are arranged on top to give a dimensional appearance to the panel. The pieces can be arranged so that they overhang the panels edges or they can be arranged on top of themselves to create depth to that shape. Spent last night writing the step by step instructions so all I need to do today is print, pack and stack and that will be another job jobbed. To all the girls in New Zealand who had a copy of the poppies to take away home. This is what it should come out like. Have fun!

Quick and Easy Organza Flowers for Festival of Quilts (NEC Birmingham)

When asked to do two one hour slots on the learning curve at the Festival of Quilts I was stumped by what I could offer. This meant my brain had to gear up and extract yet another project from thin air and these simple flowers that are made to look quite complicated were born.

Based on what I normally do they are much simpler and the need for a soldering iron is an option for these as they can be achieved to the same standard with or without using one.

They are great because this is another project that uses up all my waste scrap organza and makes me feel good as every last bit of organza is working for me and not going on the studio floor or worst still in the bin.
The sewing thread is simple black machine thread and its colour acts as a strong contrasting edge showing off the simple flower design which is only enhanced by layering several shapes together and adding some beads to their centres and making some beaded and wired loops to splay out from behind. They make stunning corsages and are relatively quick to make. I tried them on quilted and appliqués squares and they looked stunning as they were in relief to the appliqué and instantly I had another project to further there use.
They would look lovely as decorations to evening bags and quickly make a fascinator with a few feathers added.
Anyway the ladies at the show hopefully were excited enough by my samples to take their stitched flowers home and finish them completely to see their potential.

I’m now off to make some more flower arrangements to decorate the quilt I am inspired to make for my stand at Alexander Palace and to launch these delightful flowers as a new kit.

 

 

Snowflake mask

With just over a week to go before I depart to the other side of the world I have got round to getting my mask made. No pressure involved you here me say. Don’t be fooled I am up against it but it will get done even if I have to sew snowflakes on the plane or when I get there.

Must confess that there will be no snowflakes in this house this Christmas as I will be snow flaked out. Lol
Anyway this is it so far. I’m now off to make the covered wire to give the mask some height and movement when I attach smaller flakes on to it that should wiggle around I little as I move about.

Quick and easy scrap organza flowers

Today I will be demonstrating these quick and easy flowers made from layers of organza v and machine embroidery. I am doing this at Tudor rose patchwork shop as part of their shop hop week . Four other shops are taking part and the idea is that you hop from shop to shop across the week buying different things from each shop whilst checking them out. 

If your in the area tomorrow do pop in and come and have a chat with me and I will show you how to create these flowers

Machine embroidered an soldered panels for New Zealand

As if I didn’t have enough to do. Have decided to design four new panels for my two day workshop out in New Zealand happening in July.
They are long panels rather than square and hopefully will also be my new kits for Alexander Palace Knitting and Stitching Show in October this year. Each design consists of making the background panel and then making extra elements to add and give relief. Some elements will be wired to the panel to give a 3D effect but as of yet I haven’t got that far as It all takes time and my time is always short and grabbed in between teaching. Just one mor panel to design and I’m thinking along th lines of hummingbirds and tropical flowers.

Organza floral butterfly panel

I have just got back from a long period of teaching and needed a fix with my favourite materials. ( organza)
I have spent a long time inspiring others over the last weeks and it was a real treat to find me time as nowadays it gets less and less.
This panel has been designed as one of four to be taught out in New Zealand this July.
I am going to make the panels flat and all the 3 D flowers and leaves desperately so that they travel and I can then assemble and demonstrate how to wire and attach them to the main panels at the workshop..In other words I’m going to do a textile Blue Peter Job

Machine embroidered dragonfly panels

13 lovely ladies arrived on Friday evening for a weekend course at Alston Hall overlooking the Pennine hills . We had a wonderful three course meal and then I ruined their day and told them they were going to draw their own designs. After the initial shock they all settled down and produced really good strong designs before retiring to bed to get over the shock, some having to go via the bar for a strong toddy to help.
Saturday morning we layered up the designs and went to work on the stitching . By late afternoon some really interesting pieces were well on their way and I was so pleased with the ladies. By drawing their own designs they had taken ownership of it and once we started to cut back some of the areas to expose the hidden colours beneath, life began to flow through them. After lunch and into the evening the soldering iron took over and my ladies were happy. Everyone loves it when we get to the soldering iron bi of the technique.
I was so mores see with their work that I could of pinched every piece.
Sunday morning flew past fast with everyone trying to finish up so that we could have a final show of everyone’s work just before the finish of the weekend and lunch
Check out the ladies work below its awesome