The 2-week Clarissa Callesen workshop concluded at the end of last week, and the Stitch Club schedule has moved to a Vinny Stapley workshop. It all looks lovely, but I have put it aside for a while, as I’m more focused on a project of my own right now. One of the terrific aspects of The Stitch Club workshops is that you can download each week’s workshop video, project work book and Q&A sessions, and go into them later when it’s more convenient. Clarissa’s was terrific – and I completed two works, each in the 10cm x 15cm range.
This workshop reminded me of stuff I did years ago but haven’t pursued, and both of course decorated by hand stitch, which is one of the major themes of these workshops. In this pandemic, I am one of the fortunate ones who has extra time to spend doing hand stitch, which I love.
I’m helping on a committee that is organising an exhibition in conjunction with a SAQA Oceania Regional conference in NZ in May, 2021. It has a theme, “Oceania: Distance and Diversity”, and though I’m not a big one for themed exhibitions, this one is broad enough that I can continue on with art I enjoy making and have it fit into the parameters of this entry call – 40cmh x 60cmw, while obviously being an ‘art quilt’ under the accepted SAQA definition. I’m planning a piece that includes tiny pieced landscapes against background, inspired by a line in our national anthem – “Our home is girt by sea…” (which could apply to all 14 nations in the Oceania region)
I love working this way, as there’s something very zen about sifting and selecting colours and textures, strip by strip, to compose a tiny landscape. There is no pattern for this kind of thing – it’s what I refer to as freehand piecing , better known as improvisational piecing. Basically for every seam select two pieces of fabric, place one on top of the other both right sides facing upwards, and rotary cut through both at the same time, sew, iron and repeat, seam by seam v- detaild instructions + diagrams are in the above link to my textile art related blog. My iron’s within reach, just beyond the RHS of the photo. At this scale it is certainly fiddly, but listening to an absorbing Harry Hole mystery (Jo Nesbo’s “Knife”) I really don’t notice the time passing.