New samples by Margaret Beal. Well we have had two great days so far at the SECC in Glasgow and we expect to be even busier tomorrow. It is great catching up with friends and meeting all the interested visitors.  I haven't seen Margaret Beal for a while so it is good to catch up with her and hear about her new book that is out this year, which I totally forgot to ask the title of - Duh! Margaret on her stand. Helen McKenna has a very colourful stand full of recycled delights. Helen's new recycled felted dress full of strange and unusual delights . . . Pat Archibald had a beautiful stand full of beautiful quilts and sparkly delights. Caroline Earl is local girl and it is so good to her again. Val Hughes is here with her beautiful felted pieces and an amazing felted dress.   Wendy and Rob  Dolan are here too, I seem to Wendy at more shows around the country than at home and we live in the same town! We are both always travelling. W

Beach huts on Seaford beach front. I had a rare weekend off this weekend and spent a lot of it at my sisters in Seaford. We had a great time together with lots of food and drink and a good walk on Sunday morning in the freezing cold. These modern beach huts line a section of the front and are very cheerful. I have been trying out some techniques for my workshops at the NEC this month. I will posting more information next week. I want to show how versatile the Decovil 1 iron-on interfacing is and one way to work with it is to texture it. At the moment I am using 5" texture pockets which aren't really big enough. Sissix were bringing out 12" texture pockets but they still haven't materialised. If any of you know of any 12" pockets I would be grateful if you could let me know. I cut an 'envelope' style bag out of Decovil 1 with my Big Shot Pro die cutting machine.   I then foiled the sticky side with transfer foil.

  Transfer printed satin covered with hand knitted wire embellished with hand stitch - by Sally. It is sad when a long course comes to an end - it is also a time to celebrate all the hard work of the past year. Friendships have been made amongst the group that I hope will last for years to come.     Sally stitching in to the sample above.   We started off with eight students and lost two along the way through broken bones and pressure of work. I am hoping that Liz of the broken bones will be picking up the course again some time this year and hopefully Emma will feel more able to work with the group as they go forward into new ventures.     Claire and Shaun appear to be working hard but were definitley feeling slightly hysterical and mucking about. Claire blamed the caffeinated tea she drank at lunchtime for her extreme fit of the giggles. (Claire normally drinks decaffeinated). Heidi working hard on her wall piece.     Jo creates the most beau

Kathleen Laurel Sage's first experiment using a soldering iron with Vilene Spunbond CS500 - she has now developed a very exciting new workshop. This time next week we will be exhausted after the 3rd day of Fashion, Embroidery and Stitch at the NEC. F,E and S as it is known, is one part of a three part show. It is the more creative and mad side of the show with all the college stands, the amazing fashion shows and of course - wonderful textile artists and the best traders. The two other parts of the show are Sewing for Pleasure which includes all the beautiful dressmaking side of textiles and then there is Hobbycrafts - all the traders you could possibly desire to supply your every need. There are free demonstrations and workshops and lectures and some stunning displays. It is going to be an amazing show . To find out more go to - http://www.ichf.co.uk/fashion/ I will be running the free workshops again on the Vilene Workshop stand no Y01. We have an exciting list

Fabulous shoes decorated by Helen McKenna Well I made it back from Glasgow on Monday, I am very glad I went. Everyone was very supportive and helpful without making a fuss, particularly Wendy and Rob Dolan. It was great to be surrounded by so many friends. If I had stayed at home and had had to cope with the new round of delights from the shingles I would have been very miserable indeed! The show was very busy and everyone I spoke to seemed to think it was the best show we have done at the SECC. Jennie Rayment was across the way from me and kept an eye on me all four days bless her, she was very busy as she was doing a 'Quick and Easy' workshop everyday and also featured in the fashion show - what a star she is. Jenni had only just returned from teaching in Spain for Castanea where I will be in October - Oh how I wish I was there now . .  http://castanea-craft-courses.com/ Val Hughes was also at the show show demonstrating felt making and her beautif