TinkeringTimes

Secrets & Codes, an ending and a beginning

2012-01-07T21:24:22+00:00

So Secrets & Codes is nearly complete. After 8 or 9 workshops the pupils' works are almost finished. Soon I'll be framing all their textile pieces, and putting together some sort of interpretation booklet.

In the meantime a consultation event will take place, sharing the work of all the local schools involved in the project with their local community. Here's ours. I'm so proud of them all, they've found parts of it challenging in different ways and have all wanted, so wholeheartedly, to persevere and get it done.

But this isn't an ending, as my work comes to a close, the village will open a brand new heritage trail which all the children and teachers involved now own a piece of through their efforts and endeavours. The future and the past of the village are all theirs to look after, and a new heritage trail will soon be launched to commemorate the area.

Achievements

2011-12-21T20:00:00+00:00

*Disclaimer - the above is not my list but lovely Laura of Cupcakes for Clara...

I'm not one for looking back, or new year's resolutions and such. I try and be the person I want to be in small amounts ever day, and work out how to be better rather than deconstruct what's already done.

But I saw this and it stopped me in my tracks. How often do we stop and remind ourselves how far we've come? How hard we've worked? What difference we made? Recently I learned the importance of saying things out loud; and a certain group of friends around me have said many times this year 'look how far we've come'; and another certain group of ladies have said 'here's what we want to acheive for 2012'.

So I'm going to take inspiration from the lovely Cupcakes for Clara, whose list this is, and remind myself what I have managed to acheive this year, rather than beat myself up about what I haven't. Thanks Laura, for reminding me what's important.

Christmas Craft / art / something else stall available in Manchester this Christmas

2011-11-24T16:07:36+00:00

If you're an artist, crafter, maker, bathbomb baker or any other kind of creative genius, I just wanted to let you know there are stalls available to sell your fine wares in the run up to Christmas.

This is part of the Manchester Roller Derby* festive bout Mistletoe & Grime held at the Sugden Centre in Manchester City Centre (just near Oxford Rd train station and the BBC). Where else do you get to have a stall with a roller derby match thrown in for good measure?

If you're interested, the details are as follows...

Dec 17th
Doors open at 1 (get-in earlier to set up)
6 foot trestle table provided
£15

Ends 6pm

Contact: k8teen-at-hotmail-co-uk for more info or to book
*My team - very proud.

Top tips:
The last bout attracted over 200 people, mostly 20 and 30 somethings (women and men) but also some children and proud parents / grandparents too. A mix of alternative and professional types, so quite a broad audience.

My hunch is that lower priced items are going to go best here, under £20. Don't let that stop you with the big stuff, show off your grandeur proudly of course - but if you're after sales, that would be my instinct.

There's a pattern to the flow of the event - busy at open doors, then again in between the two bouts and smaller half time slots - so a good mix of hectic and giving you a breather.

There is a cash machine very close to the venue, so if people pull sad faces and tell you they have spent up, don't be shy to let them know it's less than two minutes away...

Lastly, sadly I think cakes and jewellery are out of the question because Manchester Roller Derby will be there with its own excellent cake stall and jewellery wares, and let's face it you don't want to get on the wrong side of a bunch of folks with names like Skulldozer, Psycho-Sis and McDie now do you?

ps or you could just buy tickets and come and watch the bout / buy things from the nice stall holders too, that would also be marvellous...

Sewing Suffolk Puffs / Yoyos with Year 6

2011-11-08T11:25:21+00:00

Last Friday's Secrets & Codes workshop was all about starting actual sewing, at last! After some prep for the children's artwork two days earlier, in which they began to draft their final designs, we finally moved on to cracking out the needles and thread.

Firstly I must say someone has done an excellent job of this with them already as they were able to thread the needles beautifully and knew what a running stich was, which saved us all a lot of time. They were very excited about being able to choose the colour of felt for their Yoyo (as it's known in the US - Suffolk Puff in the UK). I took along this little sample (above) which I'd prepared so they could pass it round and scrutinise it to give them some gist of what to expect; and a few of Jennifer Collier's paper versions to give them a feel for some more creative options.

It was wonderful to see the few who felt they couldn't do this at the start proudly finish their little works and ask to take them home, we did start off with a few 'I can't sew' murmurings, but I promised them they would be able to by the end, and they worked hard to see if actually they could. The teacher said she really enjoyed the session and found it very theraputic (which was also lovely, as the group is quite pleasantly excitable - I imagine a little injection of calm now and again is no bad thing for Miss!)

To make life easier for everyone I prepared a cheat sheet which we had up on the smartboard the whole time. I thought since I'd made it, why not make it available for any other teachers or stitchers who wanted to try it alone or with their class. So you can see it below or download it here You are welcome to make copies and use it as you wish, though please remember to credit the source if you do, thanks.

Yoyos Tutorial

A note to teachers or parents - we covered the health and safety angle of course. Pin cushions were placed on each table and children were told that the needle should only ever be in their hand or in the pin cushion at all times. It worked and we had no troubles at all. Also being 10 years old they were more than capable of using scissors responsibly though we did remind them to be careful anyway.

Sadly I didn't have time to take photos of the children's versions though many of them will be making more for their finished artwork so pictures to follow then. This week we're onto sewing buttons and embroidery, and there's a rumour the press will be making a visit...

Japanese Washi Tape

2011-10-29T16:13:57+01:00

I have a weakness for stationery. If you know me, you'll know this well. Come to think of it I always have. I was a prolific letter writer as a child and a teen, there's always been a treasured box of special paper and pens in the background. Now I'm older the lure grows ever stronger. I could write reams about the addiction and its finer points. For now, for those of you who have yet to discover it, let me introduce you to Washi tape. The gentleness of masking tape with the beauty of Japanese design.

Its uses are limitless. I've done the wrapping of parcels yes, but did you know you can write on it? Or that it sticks to glass? We've made paper chains with it and gently stuck children's tags to oversized maps with it in workshops. I've used it to tag the pages of diaries and twirl round cardboard tubes to make magical castle turrets which would rival any in the pages of a Grimms fairy tale book. (I have not - yet - stuck it to my keyboard, that's the work of Minifanfan Eng. But I'm not ruling it out...)

And I'll tell you a secret. You can buy it in the UK, you can, from perfectly packaged mail order companies nestled in nice big barns in the country. At perfectly packaged big barn prices. Or, you can buy it where I do, where it suddenly seems more affordable, like you might actually want to use it when it arrives rather than saving it for best (ie never, gathering cobwebs at the back of a drawer). Get your fill from Pretty Tape on Etsy. (Of course you could also go to Japan and buy it there, but for the rest of us...)

Still stuck for ideas?
Try this facebook page, or this Pinterest search,

Mapping stories: a school textiles & heritage project

2011-10-04T19:15:13+01:00

Session 1 of Secrets & Codes.
After looking at a variety of visual codes and coming up with as many different types of codes as they could, we moved on to the preparatory stages of mapping and pattern making. The children (year 6 / Age 10) got into the gist of the idea well and start mapping some stories by thinking of a special place in their village, writing a story about it, then hanging a corresponding tag on the map where there story took place. Their knowledge of the village geographically, their ability to read maps and generate ideas, and their pride in the things that are important to them were all hugely impressive. The children will continue adding their tags until I go back for session 2. It was really interesting that of those we got through, all but two were in a big long line down the middle of the village.

Next week, weather permitting, we'll be going for a walk to the local, abandoned church hall, which used to be the school, before the newer one was built. I'll be asking them to look at details of the landscape and architecture with the aid of viewfinders, and to use their imagination to think about what it would be like inside, and what the walk to school might have been like in the 'olden days'. I wanted to find a local guest, a member of the community who went to the school, to bring the place to life for them and talk about their experience of it. A quick chat with the headteacher soon revealed that he would be the very person. Serendipity...We might walk a bit further to look at the 1960s estate nearby and talk about why those houses were built; or the big old house on the corner which used to house the family who owned the village's mills. They'll have disposable cameras to photograph the things that are visually attractive to them, for when we start developing our abstract patterns via image transfer and textiles later on.

Secrets and Codes: a textiles and heritage school project

2011-09-23T15:58:14+01:00

Secrets and Codes is the name of a project I mentioned a few weeks back. I wanted to find ways to entice the children into becoming keen detectives of their local area, both geographically and historically. I'm employed as the resident textile artist for the project and will be working with them over nine sessions and curating an exhibition of the work involved (mine and theirs).

We'll be using session one to start thinking about the hidden messages carried in visual codes, and how pictures and symbols can tell us more than we first see.

I have a huge map of the children's village which I'll be asking them to plot events and stories onto, and we'll be exploring some specially made bunting, in which each flag shows a different code. We'll be talking about the use of codes and how they work, and what codes the children can think of themselves, which hopefully we'll have time to add to the bunting. I'm hoping that we will also be able to draw in the wider community by collecting stories from parents and grandparents so we'll be starting that process too.

I want the children not only to learn about thinking visually, but also to understand that heritage is a human thing, something to be connected to, proud of and inspired by. And so one of the flags of the bunting will use the piece above. At first glance its just a swirl of coloured lines, and this is what will be shown on the bunting. As we talk about what this might mean, I'll explain it's actually a map. A map of solar eclipses over forty years. It was charted by my grandfather in 1954. The coloured lines I've recreated are the movements of the sun in each of its eclipses. And I'll be taking the original map in for them to look at too.

I want them to feel the vibrancy of the project, but also to feel something precious all around them. I hope this simple felt tip line drawing and a shabby old special map will help them begin this journey.

A Brief History of Bobbins

2011-09-19T14:15:00+01:00

Tour of a Victorian Bobbin Mill, Stott Park, Cumbria from Richard Elen.

Whilst looking for a film about the cotton producing process for a school project, I came across this film from a museum in my region about the history of the beautiful wooden bobbins made for the textile industries of the Industrial Revolution and into more recent times. Despite having heard many many times about the intensity of life and work in those times, it's still an eye opener. Wonderful work from Stott Park Victorian Bobbin Mill in Cumbria.

Stott Park Bobbin Mill was opened in 1835 to supply the cotton mills of Lancashire (of which the Lake District was a part at the time) with bobbins to carry the thread which was spun into cloth. It was originally powered by a water wheel, later by a water turbine and then by a steam engine. Ultimately, electricity arrived. The mill finally closed in 1971 and then reopened in 1983 as a museum.

Today, Stott Park Bobbin Mill is in the care of English Heritage. The video gives a 20-minute guided tour of the mill by one of the English Heritage staff members to see the different stages of the bobbin-making process, including some of the machines being used by a veteran mill worker.

You'll see the steam engine and get a feeling for what life was like for the mill workers – who, in this case, came mainly from the workhouses of Liverpool and Manchester.

Free downloadable tote bag pattern

2011-09-15T18:30:00+01:00

People seemed keen on the free downloadable quilting patterns so I thought I'd point you in the direction of a couple of other new free downloads. Sewing with Oilcloth is a new book and a little different from the usual 'How To's. It focuses purely on how to get the best from oilcloth and having used this fabric myself a few times I know exactly how tricky it can be, especially without the right sewing machine foot. So I welcome it and wish there were more books out there that looked particularly at specific fabrics and how to make the most of their unique characteristics.

If the full book is too much to contemplate for now, try these two samples from it. A simple Farmer's Market Tote Bag which I really like because it looks huge and has extra pockets (we all need extra pockets); and a table runner. Being honest I have never and probably will never use a table runner so make your own mind up on that one, but what caught my attention was the chalkboard cloth used. I can see the potential for all sorts of things there.

Free Quilting Patterns

2011-09-11T19:45:00+01:00

It's got to be said. I'm not the world's biggest quilting fan on the whole. I have dabbled a little now and again, and there are a few folks on Flickr who blow my mind with their quilting skills - and essentially, the aesthetic judgement they use. My friend Lu Summers has accidentally introduced me to some of its better features and I'm more prepared to give it the benefit of the doubt than I once was. Reading the book Witch Child helped me appreciate the heritage of quilts a little better and that improved my understanding and appreciation a little more.

And so it was I found myself browsing the Moda fabrics website. Hidden away there, was a host of free quilt patterns - click on the black scissors on *this page*. Some of which demonstrated the things I don't like about quilting - I won't name them. And some of which demonstrated the ways in which my opinions are changing: bright colours, contemporary designs, alternative patterns. So if you're a quilting type go, rummage, download and stitch.

I would recommend:

Modern Workshop, above, and

Top left: Hullabaloo
Top right: Sugar Pop
Bottom left: It's a Hoot
Bottom right: Oasis

For more quality quilting have a browse of Lu's work, and do also click on some of the commenters on her photos - many of whom are truly taltented quilters too.

Elementals Birds

2011-09-08T15:30:00+01:00

Following up the Happy Work post, here's the finished product. One of them anyway, I'm making two more in slightly different colourways. The birds are for a project and touring exhibition called Elementals organised by Inga and Andy Hamilton, aka Rockpool Candy and My Tarpit.

When they sent me the invite to take part, here's what was explained to me...
"Elementals is a special experiment to see if artists, printmakers and craftspeople can physically embody feelings of peace, harmony and goodwill in their work and tangibly affect the environment in which it's shown.
Definition: Elementals - thoughts that once created become attached to their creator and are fed by further thoughts and actions"

Having let the idea mull around my mind for a while I began to think about clouds and summer and this song, whilst at the same time thinking about the small and big science and technology that I find so fascinating in relation to the potential for craft. I wondered if there was a way to include serotonin, the so called 'happy hormone' and began looking for a way to understand it visually.

I designed and printed some 'little fluffy cloud' fabric, then machine embroidered over it with a connecting pattern made up of the skeletal formula of the serotonin hormone. The wings, tail and beak were added and the bird made up into a stuffed soft toy style model.

There are 100 artists / makers taking part in the exhibition which tours from the...

Richard F Brush Gallery at St Lawrence University in Canton, New York State to
R Space Gallery, Lisburn, N. Ireland
Wharepuke Print Studio, New Zealand
And a UK gallery still being arranged.

Happy Work

2011-08-20T21:21:59+01:00

I've been asked to make something for an exhibition which is touring internationally, which is exciting! I can't say too much just yet but the general theme is about trying to communicate, and in turn spread, happiness, harmony and good will. It's taken me a while to find a way in to this in my mind, it's been mulling around for a good few weeks, but the ideas came this morning and I'm off...

So this is the first stage of my preparation, printing little fluffy clouds.

Textiles and the Trail

2011-08-08T14:06:00+01:00

I had an interesting and very exciting invitation out of the blue. Would I like to do some work in a rural primary school, working with children to explore a new heritage trail that is being produced guiding walks around their village and the neighbouring one. The school has worked with textiles before and think they'd like to do more in this project. That was pretty much all I was told, except for "oh, and we really like the QR project you do, could we incorporate something like that, maybe with QR codes?"

It was a lot to take in, and to be honest, a tad vague. So I went over to the village to walk the trail and talk more about it. I came away in a complete creative spin - so much potential, so many ideas. It's a stunning place and the school sounds wonderful. We may or may not stick with QR codes but I'm fairly set on codes generally, and some sort of wayfinding, trail marking, navigating, signposting type idea.

The photo above shows the disused church hall which is attached the church which is attached to the school. The more I look at it the more I feel there's something special in there waiting to break out - lost stories, pieces of missing architecture, changed usage. Like a secret waiting to be discovered. I hope it will feature a lot, though I want to work with the children to see what ideas they have and what they find interesting so we may move on from this. But it calls me.

Meanwhile a hundred textile ideas rush through my head faster than I can catch them. Exciting times. I'll be keeping photos as the work progresses right *here*.

Quietness

2011-08-02T19:00:00+01:00

It's been a bit quiet here, I know. What that means is I've been hectically busy out there in that other world, the one that sits on this side of the computer screen that you can't see. There are new and unexpected sewing and textile and project plans a plenty. There is exciting progress with this and some work with a school here and some things on eight wheels with these people and more than likely some more of these. There will be proper updates soon, including an explanation of the picture above.

Hanging Around

2011-07-07T09:41:05+01:00

You might remember a little while ago I mentioned this, and before that, this. Well the end result was this wall display shown above (You can see it in a bit more detail here). The image has been floating around Facebook for a little while and a few people have asked how I did it. So, here's how...

It's really very simple, and quite versatile. I wanted to use plants just because we don't have plants anywhere else inside, but you could just as easily use them to hang jewellery, toiletries and beauty products, or in a different room for pens, paintbrushes, haberdashery etc.

You just need some pots with holes in them. These were a mix from IKEA and handmade from Etsy.

Fill the pots with whatever you want and then, here's the clever bit, so you don't knock ten bells out of your wall, I used Command hooks from 3M. They're special hooks that just stick to the wall then peel off without a trace, as long as you use them properly. They all say exactly what you can or can't do with them on the packaging but the main things to remember are that they only work on clean, flat, smooth surfaces, and do check the weight each hook will carry. Follow the instructions on the back of the package to make sure the hooks are attached properly so that they'll do their job and come away cleanly afterwards (it's very easy). Mostly I used the medium hooks (they look like this - left, though there's a huge range of different designs and sizes).

Just play around with your arrangement before you stick and hang it all, so that the contents of your pot hide the hook.

Job done. And by the way I'm still interested to hear what else you'd hang on a hook...

Deidre's discombobulated

2011-06-04T14:30:00+01:00

I'm telling you this because you have one day left. Bidding ends Sunday evening.

This is one of 20 words being auctioned by textile artist (and all round lovely lady) Deidre Nelson. Exquisite little slices of embroidery, one word on a slither of ribbon, preserved in a glass tube and auctioned for a good cause. Ganet’s Adventure School is a small primary school in Malawi with big ideas. The school was founded in 2004 by its director Gertrude Banda, and has helped many children to complete their primary school education and to enter secondary school in a country where classes of over 100 children are common.

At last check words were raising anywhere from £6 to £40, I imagine they'll soar before the end time. Fancy a touch of serendipity or scarlet? A smattering of bibliophilia? Feeling bubbly or gooey? All these words and more can be yours. Go, now, bid. GO.

QR-3D

2011-06-03T15:01:00+01:00

QR-3D invites you, whoever you are, wherever you are, to create a QR code* in textiles form. Any kind of textiles, any size. As long as its three-dimensional that's all that counts.

Simply make your textile QR code : share it on Flickr here : and wait to see if your work is selected as an exhibit in the QR-3D show.

Everything you need to know is on the QR-3D website just *here*

And if you haven't tinkered with textiles before but appreciated the techy side of life then maybe this will inspire you to respond and find your inner stitcher (it's really very easy, I promise).

I'm very excited about this project (yes, it's one of mine, commissioned by Cornerhouse). Do join in I'd be so pleased to see what you can come up with.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*What's a QR code I hear some of you cry? Well Wiki will give you the full lowdown, but suffice to say it's one of those above, a visual code that hides information in it, and when scanned with a code reader (you can download them for your phone) it takes you to a website or a piece of text. So that when you see one out and about the theory is, it's easier just to whip out your phone and point it at it, than trying to remember or scribble down a long winded url.

Image: Pichu71: see QR-3D gallery for more details

Selvedge Giveaway Winner

2011-05-31T13:43:19+01:00

A few weeks back I ran a giveaway, to win a Trail Size Sample copy of textiles magazine Selvedge. It turned out I actually have two copies so I've picked one winner from the tweeted entries, and one from the blog comment entries.
And the winners are...

Tweet winner: Tina Peacock aka Mollimoo or @Mollimoo1
Comments winner: Little Cottage Comforts

Well done, and thank you everyone who joined in. Sadly I can't send you all consolation prizes, but as it happens Selvedge themselves are offering 25% off back issues of the publication so you could snap up a bargain sneaky peak for yourselves, but be quick the offer ends *today*. Click here

If you're too late or too broke to take that offer up fear not all is not lost. They also very kindly offer two digital issues to browse as well. It's not the same as holding the lovely paper in your hands, but it does of course still show the gorgeous contents in all their glory. There's the Paper issue (#22) or the Debut issue (#17)

Adventures in Resin Jewellery Making

2011-05-08T21:17:16+01:00

Cutting a long story short, I had the joy of attending a workshop in making resin jewellery this weekend. It was run by paper and textile artist Jennifer Collier at her gallery / studios Unit Twelve in the glorious Staffordshire countryside.

In the first half of the workshop we learned about how to mix and set the resin, and were set to work picking and choosing from all kinds of found objects - stamps, feathers, beads, buttons, jigsaw pieces - you name it... As it happened I'd brought some things of my own too - some copies of old family papers, a few rolls of washi tape, some packs of replica papers from a museum, some antique and new buttons, a few bits of fabric (and Mr Fort - who brought various Star Wars related bits).

After just two hours we had all our pieces in the moulds with the resin poured in. Feeling most pleased we headed off for the evening, ready to return for part two the following day. The workshop has to work this way, to allow time for the resin to dry. In part two we popped (and in some cases whacked) our pieces out of their moulds, got messy with some really hardcore glue and drills, and attached the jewellery findings of our choice. You can see all the pieces we made *here*.

Jennifer is a brilliant workshop host, incredibly well organised and attentive, with a wonderul range of 'stuff' to play with. She also has that rare talent of slowly and subtly building everyone's confidence throughout the session; recognising everyone's individuality and understanding how to help them get the most from what they're doing, confidently and happily. And she plies you with more tea and cake than anyone could feasibly squeeze in*. The workshops are running again in August - go to Unit Twelve and click on 'workshops'. Highly recommended.

*Ahem - tea and cake most definitely not at the same time as playing with wet resin. Health and safety nightmare apparently! Jennifer was very careful to make sure we enjoyed them both separately, she's good like that.

Eloise Renouf: 1950s style leaf and flower prints

2011-04-30T16:20:00+01:00

There isn't much I need to say about these 1950s inspired prints by Nottingham based designer, Eloise Renouf (not a very Nottinghamshire sounding name I grant you). Stunning patterns, sumptuous colour choices. Bloody good prices. The only difficulty is, I want all of them. Do visit her Etsy shop for a fine variety of beautiful designs.