Stitch, Fold and Rust

I spent a fantastic day yesterday in Alice Fox's textile studio in Keighley. We looked at some of the techniques Alice uses in her work using found metal objects.We then had the opportunity to explore hand stitch and fabric manipulation techniques as a precursor to rust dyeing.We made a series of small textile pieces incorporating a range of textural elements and entrapment which we then rust dyed to develop colour and marks in the days following the workshop.

Below is some of Alice's recent work, incorporating rusty bottle tops,hair grips, ring pulls and much more. My modest samples are currently drying out after languishing in a bath of strong builder's tea.It's pure alchemy and I feel like the sorcerer's apprentice!

Meanwhile, if you would like to learn more about Alice and her work, google www.alicefox.co.uk  

Ancestral Gifts

ANCESTRAL GIFTS, QUILT MUSEUM YORK

I have just come back from visiting this exhibition and thought that some of you might like to see some the quilts which were on display. For the last two years, Kaffe Fassett has worked with the quilt museum exploring their historic collection and finding inspiration in the fabrics, designs and stitching. The outcome is 15 new quilts made by him from his own fabrics. The quilts in the exhibition are arranged in their pairs, showing the historic quilts alongside his contemporary designs. The latter are a loose interpretation rather than an historical copy in which he has tried to get the spirit of the original.

Do you think he has succeeded?  I would love to read your comments!