Rag Rugs in Landscape Magazine

Rowantree featured in the Oct/Nov edition of the new Landscape magazine on pg64 with a great article on Rag Rug making.

For Make a Rag Rug instructions click here

Our next Rag Rug Workshop is on this coming Saturday 10/11/2012.

The garden studio!

  

We are now in to our second working week in The Rowantree Garden Studio and the sun has been shining nearly every day! The garden is still looking fantastic! Even though we haven't got the colour we had in June and July, it still looks vibrant!

The students are all very happy with the new studio, some remember working here a few years ago and love the new improved space. It feels even more relaxed and is proving to be a very creative environment to learn.

 The garden is full of colour and inspiration for our creative projects and is also home to my little chicken, who seems to be enjoying the coming and goings up and down the garden path!

Festival of Quilts at the NEC

 I am still buzzing with excitement from being surrounded by incredible textiles and amazingly creative people for four whole days at the NEC.  I had been working for Coats and Cotton Patch and am now calm enough to tell you about some of the amazing people i have met and the fabulous quilts i have seen.

Two of Kaffe Fassett's stunning quilts

If you have never been, then i strongly suggest that you go next year. This is my third year and each year surpasses the previous years. I am also beginning to remember faces and names of women that i have only ever met at the Festival, some are  German, there are Danish, French, Portugese in fact from all over the world - well it is an international festival!! These wonderful, creative ladies come every year to exhibit their work and visit the show, some are there every day, for four days. One particularly lovely german lady, wore a different skirt and had a matching bag from two of Kaffe's fabrics on the first two days of the show. She looked amazing!!

On the Friday evening we attended the Designers Dinner and were delighted as Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably introduced all the designers and entertained us with stories about there quilts, fabric designs and photography locations, later on Kaffe was obviously delighted to answer questions from the audience.

The very lovely Nel Whatmore

I first met Nel three years ago at the Festival of Quilts and also meet up with her at the Knitting and Stitching show at Ally Pally and Harrogate. What a lovely calm and amazingly talented designer.

Nel uses pastels on sand paper to achieve a unique velevty finish to her work, which she uses as inspiration for her textile designs 

She has had three collections now for Westminster fibres - Happy Go Lucky, Sleeping Beauty and Katharines Wheel. I love her latest collection, fantastic colourways and a beautiful mix of small and large prints.

Amy Butlers's beautiful collections


 Which ever collection of Amy's you are looking at, it is always very difficult to choose a favourite as they are all delightful!
Her collection of bag designs are great! Smart, very functional projects to make yourself.

There were quilts of every type, shape , construction but the ones that took my breath away were those of pauline Burbige, a textile artist, Designer and Maker from the north of England. Incredible stitching by hand and machine, then on some areas she had coloured the fabric. So many different techniques, all perfect in every way!

The Fabulous Tula Pink!


Maybe i have left the best to last! Tula you are an absolute inspiration and very enjoyable company! We all enjoyed talking and laughing with you. Your fabrics are incredible and your quilts even more amazing!! Please come back next year!!!


Why not try making a small Hand Patchwork project yourself at the Rowantree Workshop on the Thursday the 13 September for a first taster of Patchwork and Quilting!
Look on our website for details of this and all our other workshops and classes.

Help from the workroom! - Remember to look after your machine!

·        Always ensure that you have the correct needle for the fabric and thread you are using.

·        Change your needle after every project, a blunt needle can put extra pressure on your machine if using heavy fabrics and will push lint in to your machine with every stitch.

·        Before packing your machine away, or once a week if your machine has a lot of use. Remove the bobbin case and remove any fluff and lint with a small brush or a cotton bud and use a vacuum nozzle to suck up the fluff or a can of air to blow fluff away.

·        Oil your machine if required. Not all new machines need oiling. Take a look at your maintenance guide and remember to place a piece of cloth under the pressure foot to mop up any excess oil while it is not in use.

·        Cover your machine when not in use. They are dust magnets!

Garden Inspiration

With all the extra watering the garden has had this year, it is looking fabulous!! So tall, vibrant and with the late start it seems that everything is flowering much more closely!

All of the Irises came out together, what a wonderful sight, and instead of the normal steady progression with small breathing spaces for tidying up the borders. The Lupins, Foxgloves and Roses have joined them.

My garden usually changes colour gradually from early Spring, from Snowdrops, Daphne Odera and White Honestey, Bluebells and Forget me Nots, Irises then my beautiful blush pink Roses, Cecille Brunner, New dawn and wonderful Margaret Merrill.

All of this stunning beauty is great inspiration for Embroideries, Appliques and Quilts. Think of Kaffe Fassett and Jane Brocket's amazing vibrant quilts, bursting with colour themes taken from flowers and gardens. Imagine turning your photgraphs, sketches and paintings in to French Nots, Satin and Laisy Daisy stitch.

Start looking at your garden for visual inspiration, keep your camera or a sketch book handy it won't be there for long but it will be back again next year!

Help from the workroom - Celebration Bunting!

Not just for Jubilee Celebrations and Parties. Bunting will cheer up any corner of your home or garden, all year round.
It doesn't have to be triangular in shape either, Bunting comes in all shapes, sizes, textures. Knitted, appliqued, embroidered and i recently saw some beautiful crotched granny squares blowing in the wind.
I like to see bunting made from recycled fabrics and trimmings, it looks much more appealing when the fabrics has been through the washing machine regularly. It floats on the breeze rather than hanging stifly to attention, with neatly pinked edges.
Edges are important! Does it really matter if they fray? Those little extra bits add more charm and you can always tidy them up with a sharp pair of scissors if you find its too much!. Definately not worth sewing two halves right sides together, turning through and pressing before sewing on to the tape!!
Make your bunting fun, quick and 'more' is definately better!!

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN BUNTING

You will need:

Lots of fabric It will take more than you think, you can recycle old clothes, curtains, anything!!!

1" wide cotton tape, or ribbon -  as much as you need.

Scissors and or pinking shears.

A sewing machine.

Thread.

A template - fold a piece of A4 paper in half down its length. Decide on half the finished width and length and draw a line, cut both halves in one go to make a symetrical triangle.

Choose a theme or a colour.

Time! Enjoy an afternoon with friends making bunting together with plenty of tea and cake!!!


Method:

Using your paper template and keeping your theme or plan in mind cut out all your triangles first.



Arrange them in the correct sequence to assemble them, this will save time later.


Thread your machine, making sure there is plenty of thread on the bobbin!!

Mark where the beginning of each triangle will start on the tape, do this with a pencil mark or with pins. decide how much of a gap to put between the triangles.

Fold the tape or ribbon in half and stitch 30cm without any bunting attached.

Start sewing your bunting in, placing the corner of each triangle on the mark and folding the tape exactly in half enclosing the top edge of the triangle.

Enjoy your bunting along with your family and friends!!!

Help from the Workroom - Casting on Cable Style!

Learning how to cast on using the Cable method will give you a beautiful firm rope edging whether you are a beginner or have been using another method for some time. It will not stretch and go 'baggy' and looks great with a rib, stocking or garter stitch.

The first step is to make a slip knot. I tend to hold the tail end of the yarn between my thumb and index finger and wrap the yarn twice around my first two fingers, crossing over the top of my fingers.

The next step is to pick up your knitting needle and place it under the lower of the two yarns.

Flip the needle to the other side so that the yarn crosses.

Remove your fingers and pull the loop on the needle until the knot tightens.

Holding the yarn attached to the ball, pull the needle and the slip knot will tighten. Pick up the other  needle and wrap the yarn around your fingers.

Holding the tail between your left thumb and index finger, place the needle behind the first stitch. Not into the first stitch, as this can create a loose, baggy stitch.

Wrap the yarn around the right hand needle, moving in a clockwise direction, under the needle, up and over the needle.

Bring the new loop through towards you and place the left hand needle into the loop from under the stitch. This gives a nice twist to the stitch.

Place the right hand needle behind the new stitch before you tighten the yarn. This will give you nice even stitches that are the correct tension. Repeat the previous four steps to cast on your required number of stitches.

As you can see this method of casting on gives a beautiful foundation to your knitting.

For more information about our knitting workshops click here

Fabric Coil Bowls and Baskets Workshop

We had a fantastic selection of beautiful fabric coil bowls at Saturday's workshop.

Silk Stripe and Cotton Bowl by Marie

Cotton Bowl by Jo

Cotton Bowl by Jenny

This amazing technique uses thin strips of cotton dress weight fabric. I'm really looking forward to teaching this workshop in Libertys soon!

We are running our next Fabric Coilwork Baskets & Pots Workshop on 11th October 2012. See our website for more information. 

New Website is fantastic !!!

Our beautiful new website went live on Saturday morning, amidst much excitement and joy!!

 James, you have created a fabulous website. Thank you so very much!

 You will find up-to-date information on Workshops, Classes and Craft Clubs for children and adults of all abilities. We would love you to sign up to our Newsletter so we can keep you informed of upcoming classes and course. To subscribe simply enter your email address on the 'Subscribe' section of our homepage.

Please let us know what you think and if there are any subjects you would like to learn more about, that we do not cover at present!

Fantastic Cushions Ladies!



Three of our Boxed and beautifully Piped Cushions.

  

We had a brilliant day in the workshop yesterday, making Boxed and Piped Cushions.
Starting at 10am with makng patterns for the cushions and then cutting and covering a foam pad. The ladies then went on to learn how to make piping cord and insert zips in to the welt of the cushion.

All expertly done too!

Well done all of you!!

"Very professional instructions, producing an excellent cushion"
"A very enjoyable day again, excellent tutoring"

Help from the Workroom - Ladder Stitch

One of the most versatile stitches I have ever come across is Ladder Stitch. It has brought a smile to many a face, as the stitches disappear in to the seam. It is definately one you should have in your sewing box!

Ladder Stitch is great for invisibly repairing a split in a seam and is my stitch of choice for sewing the sides of curtains and blinds. Upholsterers use this stitch for re-closing seams and knitters use a similar stitch called Mattress Stitch when sewing up their knitting. The joy of this stitch is that it is worked from the right side of the fabric, so you can easily match any patterns or stripes.

Once you have the seam allowance pressed back and the folded edges are lying next to each other, take the needle with a knotted thread and slip the needle under the fold, bringing the needle out right on the edge of the fold.

Now holding the thread at a right angle to the fold, place the needle in to the opposite fold - to the right of the thread.

Repeat this each time you make a new stitch. Moving the thread across to the opposite fold, at a right angle each time.

As you become more experienced in knowing at what point to place the needle, you can refrain from holding the thread at a right angle. It is just to get you in to the habit of making the stitch slightly behind from where the thread appeared on the opposite fold. If you place the needle ahead of this point, the stitching will show.

This is a great stitch with a multitude of applications including sewing up seams in cushions and stitching up mitres on curtains. It is more versatile than a slip stitch and creates a stronger seam.

In the next 'Help from the Workroom' I will show you how to make a great little pin cushion that slips on to your wrist!

Spring Flowers and Nests of Yarn

I am always as excited as my students when they suddenly realise that they can make anything! They have the imagination, the skills and then they gain the confidence to wing it, like a fledgling bird on the brink of the nest ready to go solo.All the nurturing of ideas, learning skills and delight on their faces when they arrive at a class with a project they have made entirely on their own!



Sometimes they arrive with a brand new sewing machine that has never been out of its box, by the end of the morning they are getting familiar with the gentle hum and remembering how to thread the machine and to wind the bobbins!

Some arrive with greater expectations than ability! Some are happy to make a steady progress each week. The joy is the same when they present their latest creation to the class. This past week we had one such moment when Sarah finished her quilted picnic rug, she is quite amazing, determined and has tackled many challenging projects, knitting and sewing and I know she will put it to good use this weekend, as we enjoy the sunshine!

Absolute Beginners Sewing Workshop

Our Sewing Workshop for Beginners is always exciting! The beginning of a fantastic creative journey is about to begin for those who take the plunge!

By the end of the day all those fears about cutting fabric, threading sewing machines and what to do if you make a mistake are completely dispelled.

The first of many sewing projects

Beverley's Tote Bag

Workshops in Cullybackey, N. Ireland

At half term I returned to Cullybackey in County Antrim to take a couple of workshops for Frances and Marilyn at the Glen Gallery.

The Glen Gallery, Cullybackey

A whole year has passed since my first trip to Northern Ireland and as Doreen and Elma greeted me at the airport the laughter began! Doreen has an amazing sense of humour and her driving kept us on the edge of our seats. We laughed all the way to Cullybackey! This was all before 9.00am in the morning!

Friday's workshop is a favourite of mine - Hooked Rag Rugs. I love the way you can draw and paint with the fabric using this amazing technique. Drawing the fabric strips through the hessian and gradually building up areas of colour and texture always delights me and delighted the lovely Irish ladies who left at the end of the afternoon buzzing with enthusiasm for their new found skills.

Hearts and Flowers

The Saturday session was a beginners workshop on Hand Patchwork. Twelve lovely ladies, half of them had been to my quilting workshop the year before and it was great to see them all.

We were using Amy Butler fabric to make the patchwork projects and they all looked stunning as each one was completed.

Hand Patchwork at the Glen Gallery