Tall vessel created from Decovil 1 decorated with torn painted newspaper, painted Bondaweb/Vliesofix and a gold print.         It will be wonderful to be teaching at the Geelong Fibre Forum in Australia again. I was due to teach this workshop in September 2020, but we know what happened then . .  So I will be returning September 2023- Hurrah! I think it will be my 5th time teaching at this residential Forum. There will be 11 tutors teaching groups of up to 15 students. There will be a mix of international and local tutors for the first time in 3 years. Have a look at the workshops here. https://taftainc.com.au/workshops I will be teaching 'A Workshop of 2 Halves', the first part will cover design and the next part, fun with print, all things sparkle and 3D. Sparkle is optional . . but I do find once the gilding flake comes out - it is hard to resist. We will be working with the heavier iron-on interfacings to create decorated boxes, vessels and/or a canvas. There will be tim

A very happy OAP!!    Well how did that happen? I am now a pensioner . . .  Getting older doesn't worry me in general, but I am more aware of the groaning joints and I am thinking about what time is left to get SO much done. I have more ideas than ever now. Textures to create, designs to develop and so much more stitch to play with.  When you get to landmark birthdays, I think it is normal to take stock, to see where you are and how you would like to spend your time. After the Experimental Textiles course finishes in June/July next year I will be having a break from regular teaching. I have booked a stand The Festival of Quilts at the NEC in Birmingham, UK. www.thefestivalofquilts.co.uk/ in August next year. It will be so very good to catch up friends and ex students at the show. It will be a change for me to have my own stand rather than working on a Vlieseline stand. I will be there to promote the new Experimental Textiles Video Library which should launch in January 2023 I

An amazing sunrise yesterday   Some days just start really well.  We have been enjoying torrential rain, hail and strong winds over the past day or so here on the west coast of Ireland. It was so good to wake up to the most magnificent sunrise. Because the land is reasonably flat on three sides of my house, the colourful light wraps around us. It's like light bathing. It was wonderful to see the colour reflected in the bay. The really deep light only lasted for about three minutes, you have to be quick, then it starts to fade. As we move into the shorter days, it is a great chance to enjoy the sunsets at a more 'civilised' time!   The wonderful light surrounds the house and reflects in the windows.     Time for my bus pass . . I am coming up to a biggish birthday - I am going to become a pensioner next month! I have started to think about just how much teaching I would like to do going forward. It would be good to slow down a bit and concentrate on my own work. There are m

  Sunrise on September 29th Another on September 2nd It's been a while. I was sulking, Yes!! I know it is unattractive at my great age . .  Having the new website built was fantastic. It is so exciting to be able host private groups, my online teaching and in a couple of months, the new online workshop library. There was just one problem, because of changing technology, I was told I couldn't link this blog to the website - Blogger was too old! Until last week when I was having teething problems with the new online program and I mentioned it the guy from Wix who was helping me. And he worked out how to link it to the website, and it refreshes every time I post a new blog - AND the search engine on the blog still functions.  I can't tell you how EXCITED and happy I am. I have been writing this blog since July 2010 - 12 years. Most of my teaching of the last 12 years has been written up on here so if you wanted to know more about Tyvek, Design, Lutradur, Heat guns etc - just p

Me with the girls in Nicola's front garden   Do you enjoy gardening? Discovering new plants? I have just returned from a few days with my great friend Nicola Brown who lives in Carlow, on the other side of Ireland to me. It's bit of a car journey, but always worth it. Nicola grows the plants for her natural eco print and dye practice. Nicola doesn't use any chemicals when she dyes, so the process is totally natural. The dye border was planted 3 years ago - and it is HUGE!!! I can't help feeling jealous of plants that are 8ft tall. There is no way I could grow such tall plants in the windy area that I live on the coast. Nicola's garden is quite sheltered, so in the warm weather, with a just a slight breeze, You can watch and listen to all the insects buzzing amongst the flowers. It is quite wonderful.   The very long eco print and natural dye border     A lot of the plants in the border are really tall - quite architectural. This Ligularia must be at least 8ft tall.