I\u00a0live in St Leonards on Sea, Sussex\u00a0where I\u00a0often\u00a0teach on a one to one basis to\u00a0focus on\u00a0 personal\u00a0interests\u00a0as well as teaching groups in\u00a0other venues such as museums, galleries and arts\/cultural organisations. The courses I run have small numbers so I am able to give lots of individual help and to create bespoke classes to fit to what the class wants to learn.\u00a0 Courses\u00a0are suitable for beginners as well as those with some experience of design and textiles.<\/p>\n
Please contact me to find out when I am\u00a0teaching a workshop, to book a place or to\u00a0plan a workshop or talk for your group. Also see\u00a0my news pages for more information.<\/p>\n
Types of workshop I offer-<\/strong><\/p>\n Tapestry weaving <\/strong>I enjoy sharing my passion for tapestry weaving with beginners and those with more experience. I teach colour blending techniques and I am now offering workshops on eccentric and 3D techniques.<\/p>\n Start to Embroider <\/strong>I teach workshops based on the projects in my book Start to Embroider<\/em>. Such as Magic Bags, Funky Book Cover and Lucky Charms. I work with adults and children for these projects.<\/p>\n Inspirations for embroidery <\/strong>\u00a0This course uses the collection\u00a0of a museum or gallery as an inspirational source for design. Spend time looking at and learning about the history of items in the collection, explore ways to develop designs and interpret them with embroidery techniques. Students will investigate pattern, colour and texture using a range of materials, threads and embellishments. The embroidery can form part of a\u00a0small item\u00a0or could be developed into a larger piece of work. Examples include; Indian Inspirations and\u00a0World Cultures.<\/p>\n Plaited Textile Baskets<\/strong> Plaiting can be much more than the 3 strand plaits that are used in hair. This workshop explores the use of multi-strip plaiting to create 3D woven structures with a variety of textile materials and stitch techniques. The simple structure opens up lots of possibilities for experimentation with materials, techniques and structures. It is the perfect combination of embroidery and weaving techniques. The resulting baskets are functional and decorative. They are easily made using recycled materials and the minimum amount of equipment.<\/p>\n Essential Skills<\/strong><\/p>\n Get to know your sewing machine <\/strong>A guide to your sewing machine Do you have a sewing machine sitting at home unloved and ignored? Come for the day and find out just how useful a sewing machine can be in our life. Sewing machines are all basically the same. Once you can work one make you can use your skills on any sewing machine.<\/p>\n Get to know even more about your sewing machine<\/strong> Do you have a sewing machine sitting at home that you would like to gain more confidence to use? Would you like to know what the different feet are used for? Also do you have lots of ideas for projects but do not know how to start? Come for the day and find out just how much more useful a sewing machine can be in your life.<\/p>\n Learn to draw using your sewing machine<\/strong> Free Machine Embroidery Course Free machine embroidery is a drawing but in reverse. With a pencil on paper you move the pencil to make marks whereas with the sewing machine the needle is the pencil, this stays still and the fabric is moved under the needle.<\/p>\n Talks<\/strong><\/p>\n Red <\/strong>Red has been a large influence on my work and life; my red shoes as a child, and\u00a0lipstick<\/em> as a theme for my work. This illustrated talk includes embroidered silk books, installations and\u00a0artwork\u00a0as well as some\u00a0facts on the colour ‘Red’. Delicious colours and tantalising textures!<\/p>\n How I wrote Start to Embroider<\/em> <\/strong>Writing my first book was an adventure into the world of publishing. In this illustrated talk I share the exciting process, along with all the samples\u00a0 and projects made for the book.<\/p>\n\n\t\t