We had wonderful weather on Jersey - bright and warm - just wonderful after all the rain. This is the harbour wall at St Aubin. Such gorgeous textures and colours. The last workshop I taught at the Showcase was a 3 hour version of 'The Journey'. It is a workshop that is very close to my heart, from what appears to be a rather formulaic start, totally original designs are created. By taking sections of the work, designs can be isolated that can be developed . . . . into anything . . . We got stuck in straight away with my way of mark making - a dreaded phrase I know - but this way is very simple and even enjoyable. Students use 5 different widths of paintbrush to describe a journey, it could be imaginary - a walk on the moon, through an enchanted forest - or the trip taking the kids to school or trekking through the Himalayas - or any combination of these.   The group were fabulous, we had a great session, there was such a party atmosphere at the Showcase....

 Painted Bondaweb ironed onto black cotton decorated with transfer foil and gilding flake.  The third workshop I taught was 'On the Surface', a fast paced 3 hour workshop that was great fun and full of very naughty students - the main protagonist was Denice Walker who attended all my workshops - we had a great time. The entire time of the The Jersey Textile Showcase felt like a fast moving, most enjoyable holiday. On the Surface is a painted Bondaweb based workshop where all kinds of glitter and sparkle is allowed.  This was the main table of naughtiness . . . there was quite a party atmosphere!  Here are just a few of the samples -      As you can see the group were prolific - and talented. There were several functions in the evenings - one of them being a rather splendid 'do' at the local posh hotel. My it was fabulous.  This is a photo of, from the left, Val Holmes, Pat Robson, the very glam...

A fabulous print by Muriel. I had forgotten just how beautiful Jersey is - and what weather we had - my goodness it was wonderful. Not that we saw an awful lot of the sun as we were tucked away teaching, but it does lift the soul. The Jersey Textile Showcase has become a very large event with something like 40 workshops over the seven days. I met new tutors and several tutors I knew but hadn't spent much time with. www.theharbourgalleryjersey.com      The view from my bedroom window. The tutors all stayed in a B & B called The Harbour View and it certainly lived up to it's name. Lovely clean and modern rooms and a remarkable breakfast. If you ever need to find somewhere to stay on the island - I can't recommend this enough . www.harbourviewjersey.com So - to the workshops. My first one was Transforming Transfers. We had 20 in the group - luckily I had taken my heat press with me. We painted disperse dye (transfer paint) onto paper....