Ailsa Craig Workshops

Over the festival week all of the British tutors taught a wonderful range of workshops. As well as myself the wonderful Jennie Rayment, Paula Doyle and Gillian Travis taught and lectured.

I of course had to teach some woad workshops and the woad fabric successfully found its way over the ocean. These lovely and talented ladies (who were brave enough to stand before the camera) made up some large blocks (32" square) after considering the many design possibilities of half square triangles.

Maria made her block to measure 24" but still as effective. 

On the only rainy day of the week I taught a dyeing from the kitchen cupboard workshop. We did this in the picnic area which was under cover. Thankfully everyone was well bundled up against the cold. It was a bit like camping though as the closer you stood to the camping stoves the warmer you got. We did have a good time dyeing fabric and threads a range of colours. 

The results of a tulip petal bundle are below

The talented and brave ladies below signed up for a half day paper bird workshop.

This is a fun workshop and most people get to finish a wall hanging in a half day. You leave without a UFO!

Finally my favourite photo - a selfie take by Paula Doyle with Jennie in the middle and me on the left. 

Ailsa Craig Community Quilt Festival - part 1

This past week I have been honoured to be teaching at the Ailsa Craig Community Quilt festival in Ailsa Craig, Canada  which has featured stunning quilts and teachers from Great Britian. I was joined by Paula Doyle, Jennie Rayment and Gillian Travis alongside Quilters Guild of the British Isles trustees and presidents past and present (Tina and Vivien)

The organisation has been fantastic and we have been treated like royalty. The whole village support the quilt show and quilts are hung in all the shops. The day before the show opened they have quilt airing which is quilts hung outside houses. 

I taught a full week of workshops including one outside which despite being on the coldest and wettest  day went really well. 

I may have it written into my contracts back in the UK that limo transfer is preferred. This was the British girls by the limo before we headed out to Lake Huron and a talk by Jennie at a local Guild there. Visits to Quilt Shops are essential when in a different part of the world and the image below is The Marsh Quilt Store which is an amazing building. 

I will finish this post with an image of the "Man Cave" , this was just outside the quilt venue in the car park for ladies to leave their men with magazines and hot drinks. There were however lots of interested men walking around the show. The covered picnic area where I taught my dyeing workshop was just behind this. 

Swimming along nicely

 I feel a bit like a swan, I am gliding along and under the surface - the part you don't see is paddling furiously to keep up! Lots has been happening here since my last blog post some good, some not so good which has meant some things have had to be put on the back burner. I'm not making any promises to blog every week but will at least try and keep the blog up to date. 

Two really exciting things are happening this year. In May I am off to Canada to teach at the Ailsa Craig Community Quilt Festival. I am really looking forward to this and have started to dye up all the woad fabric ready for  the workshops. I am teaching two woad workshop using the versatile half square triangle block. I am giving a lecture in natural dyeing and teaching some mixed media workshops combining magazine papers and fabrics for small wall hanginging. I am also teaching a natural dyeing workshop outside so the heavy snow and freezing temperatures will have improved by May. 

This year the talented Linda Seward is launching her new book. The Ultimate Guide to Art Quilt Techniques. I was happy to advise on the section about natural dyeing and will have a piece of my work in the book (how exciting is that) I believe that it is being launched in England at Festival of quilts in Birmingham in August 2014. From the limited pages that I have seen it is going to be a fantastic "how to" manual covering so many techniques. 

In a shameless plug there are just two paces left for a procion dyeing workshop I'm teaching next month at my studio (12th March) It is aimed at all levels and all dye and dye chemicals are provided. Anyone want to join me? Check out the website for more details.