December 2016

We had a lovely Jacob's Join lunch at out Christmas meeting on Monday. Gorgeous food and such a variety enjoyed by all - thanks everyone!
Congratulations to Susie for winning the competition with a gorgeous silver piece. Members also brought some lovely work into show and tell.

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 🎄

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Travelling Books

Many thanks to Joan Welch and Sue Sissling for talking to us about Travelling Books at Monday's meeting. Also, a huge thanks to the talented ladies of Pendle branch for loaning their books for us to look at - they were amazing and very inspirational! The photos are just a very small sample from their lovely books which had a variety of great themes and were all so different.

Travelling books were started by the Oxford branch and then taken nationwide by the Embroiderers' Guild as a way of sharing inspiration. Each person in the group chooses a theme, makes a cover for their book and then starts it off with a source and piece of embroidery; the book then passes to the next person in their group who makes a contribution to the theme and so on until you eventually get your original back full of beautiful pieces of work. The hardest part, so far,  for those of us who decided to take up the challenge seems to be picking a theme we would like! Joan very kindly provided us with some suggestions and detailed information on how to organise the project. I'm sure many of us are busy thinking about our themes and gathering source material in preparation for the launch after the New Year!

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Joan Welch & Sue Sissling on behalf of Pendle Branch. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Water theme

Flight theme

Hedgerow theme

November All Age Workshop

We were pleased to be able to join Christ Church Primary School Skipton for our workshop again this year. It was lovely to see so many people, parents and children participating. We had almost 40 visitors come and try one or more of our activities.

We had something for everyone: pretty linen brooches embellished with beads and stitch; little felted blanket purses with sari silk patches and kantha stitching proved popular. We had sweet little felt Santa and angel decorations and Christmas wreaths embellished with buttons. For those wanting something quick with only a little stitch we offered pom noms and tassels with beading for the adventurous! A busy day but great to take part in a community event again. We're already thinking up ideas for the Spring Workshop and hope to see everyone again.

All Age Workshop Saturday November 12th

Once again we will be joining in Christ Church Primary School Open Day for our Christmas All Age Workshop; we had a great time last year and we're looking forward to another successful day again.

Sketchbooks with Diana Holden

Monday 17th October
Sketchbooks with Diana Holden

Firstly, welcome to the new members who joined us on Monday, it was lovely to see you. Also thanks to Diana Holden who came to talk to us about sketchbooks and brought her beautiful work and shared so generously with us. Diana is an embroiderer at St Peter’s Burnley and part of the Diocesan Needlework Group. She encouraged us all to use sketchbooks to help us communicate about our stitch and ourselves. They’re a place to develop ideas and try things out and are not intended to be perfect, they are for us and not other people. She showed us lots of examples of how to start with the dreaded blank white page by adding colour in various ways, and then how we could add drawings, quotes, pictures and samples. We looked at a variety of beautiful sketchbooks she has created and I’m sure that we will all take her practical advice to heart. For those who don’t really use sketchbooks, I hope they feel more confident and inspired to do so; for regular sketchbook users, there were lots of ideas to inspire us to develop them further.

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Diana Holden. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Ribbon Embroidery Workshop

Saturday 15th October

We spent a lovely day with Nicola Hulme learning the art of ribbon embroidery, something that was new to most of us at the workshop. We started with cabbage roses woven on wheel spokes and progressed to buds and calix followed by further 'sweeps' of filling flowers and leaves all with beautiful silk ribbons. Highlights with embroidery threads were added to finish the pieces. Thanks to Nicola for making the workshop so enjoyable, it was fascinating and we were all delighted to see how our embroideries developed through the day. We even had birthday cake! 

Some of Nicola's work to inspire us.

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Nicola Hulme. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Our work in progress

XL Exhibition

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

7-8th October 2016

It has taken two years to plan our 40th Anniversary celebration and exhibition but it was definitely worth it!  The new work produced in response to the themes of Ruby, 1970's nostalgia, and canvaswork  was stunning.  The Inchies project displayed in a compositor's box was a brilliant advertisement for the diversity of skills within the group.  Also on show were our big community projects:  StArt in the Dales, Broughton Road Story Cloths and Capability Brown.

Apart from well-deserved praise for the standard of work, one of the most frequent comments I heard was from our own members who had discovered a few hidden talents within the branch.

In total, 155 people visited the exhibition over the two days including special visitors: Christine Poole and Chairman of Yorkshire and the Humber Region, Pauline Heywood.

None of this would have happened without Gail Marsh and Margaret Laycock and the rest of the XL committee.  Thank you so much, all of you, for your hard work and dedication, it was truly XL-ent (pardon the pun!)

AGM & Yarndale

 (Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

September 2016

Welcome back after the Summer break!  It's a very busy start to the month.  Our AGM held on 19th September saw a new committee elected:  Claire Ketteman takes the role of Chair with Jill Maloney as Vice Chair.  Sally McGonigle is our new Secretary and Jane Filby and Jan Haigh have agreed to share the role of Treasurer and Membership Secretary.  Clare Hutchinson is taking responsibilty for the 2017-18 programme and we are all looking forward to some great speakers and tutors!  Enid Pyrah and Elizabeth Johnston remain in post as Publicity and IT reps respectively.  Other members of the committee are Sue Ingles and Sue Sissling.  Thank you to Brigida Martino for all her support as Secretary over the last 3 years.


Almost without pause for breath, we set up our stand at Yarndale 24-25th September.  Our large-scale community projects drew lots of admiration and provided the perfect starting point for a conversation about the Guild.  It was lovely to have the space to display the Broughton Road Story Cloths, the StArt in the Dales map and the Capability Brown picture all together.  On a much smaller scale - the "Inchies" project was fabulous display of the range of talents within the group.

Saturday was so busy that most people didn't have time to stop and sew, but Sunday had a more relaxed feel and we were busy for most of the day with our drop-in workshop making Paisely Pickles.  Some people even asked if they could buy the samples we had made for the show!

Thank you to everyone who helped prepare, set-up and volunteer on the stand.  It was a fantastic advertisement for the Embroiderers' Guild.

National Day of Stitch

Rev. Veronica James joins Jill, Jan and Marjorie stitching leaves

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)
Saturday 6th August 2016

We celebrated National Day of Stitch in Holy Trinity Church in Skipton.  It was an ideal venue with a good footfall of locals and tourists visiting the lovely cafe and excellent bookshop within the church.  We had lots of interest in the paisley leaves that we were stitching and one gentleman even wrote a poem for us! 

Rev. Veronica James took the opportunity to create a whole display and Sunday sermon about textiles entitled 'From Fleece to Fabric' complete with a whole fleece from a local farmer. 

Kicked out of church for a wedding!

Loop Braiding for Beginners

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Gail Marsh. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Monday 18th July

I'm always astounded by the breadth of knowledge of our members and Monday's 'skills sharing day' did not disappoint!  Gail Marsh led a mini workshop teaching The Secrets of Loop Braiding.

Finger loop braiding was popular in Europe and Medieval England from the 12th to the 16th century but is still practiced in isolated areas of Europe, Middle East, South America and Japan.  The resultant braids are used as fastening cords or trimmings.  Gail has studied the technique in depth and has produced her own fingering diagrams to explain the method.  Her instructions are set down in detail in a lovely book which is a replica of household management books of the day. 

The rest of the day was spent collecting items for the XL Exhibition and judging by the entries so far, it's going to be a stunning show!

Capability Brown Exhibition at Fountains Abbey

Monday 11th July 2016

A day trip to Fountains Abbey to see the Embroiderers' Guild and Capability Brown Festival.  The exhibition is part of a countrywide initiative to mark the 300th anniversary of the birth of the designer who changed the national landscape and created a style which has shaped people's picture of the quintessential English countryside.

Skipton Branch decided to create a composite picture of a temple in the grounds of Fountains Abbey to reflect the many and varied styles of stitching that exist within the group.  It is a stunning piece of work and truly represents the skills of the group. Special thanks go to Sue Ingles for her artistic direction and organisation and to Enid Pyrah for quilting the final piece.

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)
Members of the Harrogate, Nidderdale and Grassington branches took a more individual approach, responding to the challenge with exquisite stitching and imaginative work.  Some examples are shown in the collage below. It's not possible to record all the work in this blog but the exhibition is a great showcase for the Guild.

Turning Japanese

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Katie Chaplin. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Monday 20th June 2016

This month we had a treasure trove of garments and fabric from Japan, thanks to the fabulous Katie Chaplin of Japan Crafts. 

Katie has been addicted to all things Japanese since she read Memoirs of a Geisha as a teenager.  Her love and enthusiasm for traditional Japanese textiles is infectious.  Rather than show us photographs of her treasured collection of kimonos and obis, she generously allowed us to handle the fabrics.  Only then could we appreciate the quality of the materials and the skilll and craftsmanship that went into making them: a shimmering obi of gold, green and orange silk, tiny knot patterns in a shibori fabric, a hand-woven piece of silk fabric made by a grand master and a sumptous wedding kimono.

Katie visits Japan around 4 times per year, to source new fabrics and to top up her collection of vintage garments.  She takes the opportunity to learn a new skill or craft on these trips and talks knowlegably about them and how they relate to her samples.

At the end of her talk, we had the chance to buy fabrics, kits and sashiko threads to practice at home.  Who could resist the temptation?

East Riddlesden Hall Inspiration

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Monday 16th May

A lovely day out at our local National Trust property, East Riddlesden Hall - full of inspiring images of ornate 17th Century plastered ceilings, tapestries and embroideries.  In the afternoon we had a brilliant behind the scenes tour of the grounds by head gardener, Jill Sanders.  Jill has worked at the Hall for 22 years and has been responsible for designing and planting the sensory garden and the innovative children's secret garden - full of dens, fairy-tale doors and a mud-pie kitchen as well as the day-to-day upkeep of the herbaceous borders and orchard.

But for us, the most interesting development was the new dye-garden.  Jill told us that this was very much, work in progress and she hoped that some time in the future there would be a washing line with fabrics dyed with each of the plants.   There is lots of scope for a collaborative project - maybe next year!

Thank you to Sue Ingles for arranging the visit.

Crafter's Apron Workshop

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Monday 9th May

By way of preparation for all the summer schools and workshops that are up and coming, we spent a lovely day in the company of Charlotte Meek from The Stitch Society learning how to make her fabulous aprons.

Charlotte understands the needs of a crafter; she is an accomplished designer-maker herself and knows that having a comfortable and practical cover-up is an essential whilst working on projects.  The apron features a roomy pocket at the front and cross-over straps (no messing with apron-strings that constantly come un-done!).  The workshop was so poplular that we had to run two sessions and one person even came back for a second apron.

The Stitch Society website features a range of apron designs including smaller versions for children and they will also be on show at Yarndale and the Country Living Christmas Fair at Harrogate.

Our thanks to Charlotte for a thoroughly enjoyable day and some beautiful aprons.

From Catwalk to Cassocks

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Veronica James. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Anything is possible - Veronica James is the complete embodiment of this phrase. With her red velvet coat worn over her regulation black shirt and dog collar, the Reverend Veronica has many sides to her character.

She originally trained at the London College of Fashion where she studied Fashion and Business Management and after internships with premium clothing brands she secured a full time job with Wallis Fashion Group. In parallel with the rather superficial world of the rag trade, she was exploring her spiritual side with her local church.

When God's call could no longer be ignored, Veronica started training for ordination in 1997 (before women were accepted into the priesthood). The course demanded a 3000 word essay every 3 months but Veronica went the extra mile and challenged herself to paint each assignment too. This was the perfect way to combine her artistic character with her spiritual side.

When ordination eventually arrived, the question of suitable robes arose. There was only one solution and that was for Veronica a make her own. The result was a highly individual garment (with a delicious cerise lining!) that even the Bishop noticed it had a nice swing to it!

Her stoles are quite literally works of art. With the help of a good friend and embroiderer, she has transcribed her paintings into motifs to adorn the traditional vestments.  The result is both unique and beautiful.

Veronica's talk gave a fascinating insight into her life, her art and her beliefs.

Spring Stitching Taster Workshop

(Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Saturday 2nd April

Our all-age workshops have become a regular fixture in the calendar and it's a great opportunity to teach new skills to both children and adults.

This time we had some lovely felted pencil cases embellished with blanket stitch, cross-stitch on paper, fantastic bookmarks and seasonal decorations.  We try to provide activities to suit all levels and a simple doodle stitch picture of a hen offered a great starting point for those who wanted to be more adventurous.  We saw some really creative stitching which made the most of the resources we offered.

Thank you to everyone who came along to help.

Captain Cook's Waistcoat

 

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Alison Larkin. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Monday 21st March

Living history is an often mis-used term but for our delight and delectation, Alison Larkin became Elizabeth Cook, wife of Captain James Cook, navigator, explorer and hydrographer.  She dressed in a hand-made replica costume and told us about her meticulous research to recreate and complete an unfinished waistcoat started by Elizabeth Cook.  The garment was never finished because Cook was sadly killed during his third voyage and the original is now in a museum in the State Library of New South Wales.

The waistcoat is unusual for the fact that it is stitched onto tapa cloth, a traditional non-woven bark cloth from Polynesia.  The cloth that Elizabeth used was a gift from a Tahitian king that was brought back by James from one of his previous journies but Alison had to track hers down from a supplier in Hawaii.  

Whilst Alison had the original but unfinished waistcoat as a guide to the threads and stitching used, the pattern for the garment was part guesswork and part research from another of Cook's waistcoats that is on display at Te Papa museum in Wellington, New Zealand.  Fortuntately, Alison received two grants for her research which allowed her to study both waistcoats first-hand in Australia and NewZealand.

The result is not only a beautiful piece of work, but a historically accurate recreation of how the original would have looked if it had been completed.  We were lucky to be able to handle it - something that would never be allowed in a museum.

Alison also brought with her all her research samples and trial pieces along with some of her exquistite minuture embrodieries.

 Capability Brown Update

Well it was 'hand-in' day for all the pieces of our Capability Brown composite!  Sue Ingles pinned each piece as it arrived and we got our first view of how the whole picture will look.  What a stunning piece of work!  Thank you to Sue Ingles for coordinating this project and to everyone who has contributed.  There will be a small working party to assemble the piece ready for display on Monday 25th April 10am-3pm.  Anyone interested in helping should speak to Sue Ingles.

Medieval Silk Paper

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Wyn Ingham. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)



Saturday 12th March

It's always a pleasure to be in the company of Wyn Ingham but none more so than when she's teaching a workshop!  Her meticulous research of any subject is peppered with funny anecdotes of family life and holiday travel adventure which makes for thoroughly enjoyable day.

Wyn demonstrated how she makes silk paper using cocoon strippings.  She uses this as a background for painting and stitching, creating textured book covers and beautiful wall hangings.  The workshop was thoughtfully planned and Wyn had made up packs of pre-prepared paper so that people could make stitched books whilst their own paper was drying out.

A fantastic day!

That Darn Stitch!

(Photos taken and reproduced with the permission of Patricia Barratt. Images are the property of Skipton Branch of The Embroiderers' Guild)

Monday 15th February

Patricia Barratt comes from generation that have darned holes in socks and jumpers for practical reasons but she has turned this skill into an art form, creating the most wonderful, textured and colourful pictures using simple darning stitch.

We were treated to her workshop at our regular Monday meeting.  Patricia brought a huge selection of yarns and design ideas to help get us started and encourged us to mix up the warp and weft threads to develop a variety of surface textures.  Her own pictures are delightful and my personal favourite was a brightly coloured bird inspired by Polish paper-cut art.

Building up the pictures section-by-section takes time and I don't think anyone finished during the workshop but I'm looking forward to seeing the final results at the next meeting.

New Year, New Challenge

Monday 18th January 2016

An old composititors box - used by printers to store typeface - will be repurposed to display 96 miniature works of art.  Here is the latest challenge for our XL exhibition!

Gail Marsh salvaged the box many years ago but only recently rediscovered it and thought it would be the perfect foil for INCHIES - those little pieces of fabric, embellished with stitches, buttons, found objects - in fact anything that fits in a one-inch square.  There is a slight difference with this project in that not all the boxes are the same size.  Gail has helpfully produced a map of the box and has asked members to sign up to make at least 2 squares.

We will be working to a limited palette of colours so that all the pieces coordinate:  Neutrals (cream, black, dark grey to palest grey), Colours (dark rust to peach to pale peach, dark slate blue to turquoise to pale turquoise), Contrasts (mid yellow and gold metallic).  Any technique, materials or designs including 3D, in fact the more ideas the better the final display.

All items to be finished by the April meeting.  Please see Gail to sign up for this exciting project!

Florentine canvas work pieces are now complete and work is progressing on 1970's pieces, ruby themed work and not forgetting the Capability Brown project.  It's going to be a busy few months.