Vilene Spunbond (Lutradur) with Bondaweb on the back, cut with a soldering iron, then ironed onto a background. I teach a lot of workshops to a lot of Guilds, both Embroiderers and Quilters. Every now and then you come across a rather special group. Don't get me wrong, all groups are welcoming and great fun - but this group was FAB! The Malmesbury Guild are one of three Embroiderers Guilds in Wiltshire. They are a  small group and as with all small groups they could do with some more members. If you live in the North of Wiltshire, I highly recommend you consider joining them. This is their blog - malmesburyembroiderers.blogspot.co.uk with contact details.    Painting Bondaweb. Hot Textiles is the first workshop I wrote after my book of the same title was published. I hadn't taught it for a while, then two or three bookings come along at once. It is the basic sampling workshop, teaching how to use heat tools safely - Soldering irons, heat guns and...

It used to be an apple for the teacher . . . . So - we have had the fourth session of Experimental Textiles already - time is flying. I save the still life until the fourth session as by then as the groups are feeling more comfortable with each other and friendships are starting to form. The girls are all starting to support each other. Drawing and painting in front of other people is always uncomfortable. Few of us are naturally talented, but the exercise of looking and recording what you see is very valuable. I find that asking the groups to draw and paint a large scale still life is a bit less scary for them than a smaller scale one. The weekend group concentrating hard on their drawings. We spent the whole of the first day of the two day sessions making various drawings and paintings, using a range of media. Several of the drawings/paintings will be torn up the next day to create a collage. Telling the students that their work may well be torn up makes them place l...