A delicious combination of colour and glitz. Apologies for the lack of posts recently - I seem to have run out of steam . . .  I will be catching up over the next week or so as I still have some fabulous work to show you from my Experimental Textiles group and a class I taught at Denman College earlier this month. The workshop for the Cotswolds Guild was A New Starting Point - combining the heaviest iron-on interfacing S133 with layers of torn newspaper, painted Bondaweb and all kind of glitz. Using the heavy interfacing as a backing the decorated samples can be cut to shape with a die cutting machine.   Brooch blanks cut from this sample. Some of the layered samples before they were cut to shape                  . . .  and here are some of the layered samples before and after they were cut to shape.                      Faux chenille is also a part of this workshop, it always amazes me just

  One of the many beautiful views from Foredown Tower  So . . .  onto part 2.   A New Starting Point includes making faux chenille with newspaper. The group layered eight sheets of A4 newspaper with polyester organza. Using contrasting colours of paper and organza can create some very colourful samples. The layers of newspaper need to have some support otherwise your work will fall apart. Adding a sew-in interfacing such as classic pelmet Vilene (S80/239) or the 'pelmet Vilene light' to the back of your work - Vilene interfacings will re enforce your work. Once you have stacked your layers up you then machine stitch 'tramlines' across the whole sample, your 'channels' need to be at least 1/2 inch apart. If the 'channels' are too close together you wont be able get your scissors down the 'channels' to cut them.   Another tip when stitching newspaper faux chenille is to use a long stitch, the longest your machine will do - usually no

   A finished brooch. Decorated , layered newspaper ironed on to S133 (heavy iron-on interfacing) and cut with a die cutting machine. My first workshop at Nadelwelt was a newspaper based one - the idea was to make brooches and bags or boxes. The workshop was for four hour s . I had pre-painted Bondaweb and dyed up loads of newspaper as we wouldn't have time for the students to paint anything and have time for it to dry. As it happens it was VERY hot on the day - 28 degrees. So we could have painted Bondaweb, but there was no way of knowing that in advance.    There were nine stude nts in the group - the lady on the left looking into the room was my Quilt Angel, she translated and helped me during the workshop. S he was great fun - we had a really good time with her. So - you know the drill by now - we layered painted Bondaweb with newspaper, gilding flake and glitter. T he group also had a go with transfer foils. T here is somet hing about be ing giv