Graffiti on Hosier Lane, Melbourne.   Glenys Mann None of us work and live in isolation. As we go through life we make friends and contacts, some come and go, and some stick!! It is because of Glenys Mann that I traveled to Australia in the first place several years ago - I think it is 5 or 6. Since then I have made more friends and contacts down here in the Anipodes and I am building up a healthy teaching practice here.  I have taught at 3 of Glenys's events. Fibrearts Australia is a very exciting and thriving company that holds the most amazing textile workshop events featuring tutors from all over the world and of course fabulous Australian tutors. I am in Australia to teach - but more of that in the next post. I would like to show you what I saw yesterday. Glenys and I had arranged to meet at 11.30 on the steps of Flinders Street Station. I left my hotel early so I had a chance for a mooch around a few of the colourful and exciting streets of Melbourne.

 Gorgeous colours and textures. Greetings from Melbourne! I am writing this on my first day in Australia. It's a day of walking, eating and sleeping. Starting to get my body clock ready for my first teaching session in Geelong on Thursday. I will post more on Melbourne later in the week when I have caught up with this post from last week. The past month has been pretty hectic and therefore you have had a few posts in the last week, I hope you are coping with them. My last ever one day workshop was for the Chichester Embroiderers Guild on Tuesday 15th September. (I know only offer 2 - 5 workshops)   I had delivered a lecture to the group the day before and stayed over night with the very lovely Barbara Wright who is an ex student of mine. It was so good to see her again.  We had a lovely meal together on Monday night and we were joined by Margaret Fenner who I hadn't seen for ages. We had a LOT to catch up on. It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces b

I love how torn paper springs into a spiral. Experimental Textiles is a course I have taught in various forms over the past 15 years. It started as a 4 year course up to diploma level. I have now taken out the design core and deliver it over 9 weekends at the IDC studios in The Old Needle Works in Redditch. This works well as it is in the middle of the country giving students from all over the UK a chance to get there. We have girls traveling from the Scotland and Cornwall and all places in between. Redditch is well served with budget hotels close Btritten Street where the centre is. It is a big commitment to teach an ongoing course and I have decided to teach one more course after this one finishes. The last Experimental Textiles course taught over 9 weekends from June to March will start in June 2016 and finish in March 2017. I have other plans for the course which I will share with you later in the year. To see more about the course and next years dates - go to experimen