Eco Print on Paper

 

 This week I visited Sussex Prairies Wild to learn about Eco Printing with Amanda Duke.

I first met Amanda around Easter time when she came and gave a very interesting talk to the Arts and Crafts Society that I'm part of.  She talked about being an artist in residence at Sussex Prairies Wild (formally Gardens) so when I got home I had a look at their website and found she was teaching too and had to sign up!

So what is eco printing?  You could call it botanical contact printing if you wanted to be more descriptive.  Basically you take some leaves and flowers from your garden and using various concoctions use their goodness to print on the paper.  There's some heat involved too.

 

Amanda starting by explaining what we'd be doing and using and showed us examples of her work before giving us a demo.

We started by using iron water to help our plants release their colours.  After a good soak we arranged our leaves and flowers on our papers, folded everything up and clipped it all in place before they all went into the steamer.

 

While they cooked, she showed us how to use an iron and a copper paste to bring our more colours.  These pastes are brushed direcly onto the plant material then 'stuck' to the paper, which again is foldered, clipped and steamed.  We also added onion skin and chopped up wire wool.

 

Lastly we used the paste again, but this time rolled rather than folded our paper and tied it up with string.  Again it went into steam.

Taking each parcel apart you didn't know what you'd get, and of course the colours changed as the papers dried.

 

My first papers were quite pale.  My second and third had much more contrast and I loved the blues and greens that the copper bought out. 

I used leaves and flowers from: oak, liquid amber, hawthorn, field maple, ornamental maple, rosemary, golden rod, braken, smoke bush, current, eucalyptus, hazel, hop, cercis, coreopsis, and herbiscus buds. 

At lunch we had time to walk round the garden and visit the indian bazar which was filled with all sorts of treasure.  Although getting towards the end of the season I found the gardens very inspiring and left with many ideas for my own garden. 

The whole day was inspiring and interesting and I very much enjoyed playing with the different materials and plants.  Not only did Amanda share so much information on the day, she also sent us detailed notes after.  I really hope I can find the time to do more of this.  I keep thinking of other plants I'd like to try.

Finished Pottery Photos

 So after 14 weeks of pottery, what do I have to show for it?

Term 1: 

 4 mugs.  These were the first things I made.  None of them were the same so I decided to play with the handles rather than try and make them the same.

5 bowls.  Again none were the same.  This time I played with the colours and decoration.

 4 plates.

  

4 vases. Two big and two small.

 

 Term 2:

4 plates, but they will get their own post. 

2 lidded pots. Very pleased with how they came out.  The lids fit!

4 vases. All small.

 

And lastly a pot for firing beads covered in glaze, plus beads.
 

Needle Felted Butterflies

Peacock - Aglais io

 

Over the last couple of weeks I've been working on my submission for the annual Arts and Crafts Society exhibition.

Every August they have an exhibition for members in the local festival hall with free entry for all to view.  I love how inclusive it is - of different art and craft types and abilities. 

This year I have needle felted three butterflies and framed them up.

Large Blue - Phengoirs arion

 

I have to admit that they were kits from The Makerss, but while they might supply the materials and some instructions it's still up to the maker to produce the final thing.  For instance you have to mix some of the colours yourself.

They are fun and relatively quick to make, but I am still learning how to add details and make things look natural.

Small Tortoriseshell - Aglais urticae

 

I'm also submitting some glass, but that's for another post. 

Shrink Pot Making Course

 

 This weekend I spent a day at the Makers Barn learning how to make shrink pots.

So first, if you haven't come across the Makers Barn yet, then you really should have a look.  Based just outside Petworth and only open Friday and Saturday it is an old barn in the middle of a field full of the most amazing collection of arts and crafts from local makers.  It's a great place to visit if you have a birthday coming up or need inspiration for Christmas for instance.

 

Anyway, this year Rosie has started inviting local makers to come and run workshops at the barn.  When I saw the shrink pots course on the website, I just had to book.  I've been fascinated by them for years. 

The course was run by Chris Matthews, who was so generous with his knowledge and helped us all end the day with a finished pot. 

 

I say finished but mine isn't quite.  The idea of a shrink pot is you work with very green wood which is quite wet - you can feel this when working with it.  As it dries it will shrink sealing the bottom of the pot, but it does mean that I can't finish my lid until I know how small it needs to be.

I'm getting ahead of myself.

Firstly we had to cut chunks of wood from freshly cut branches to become our pots.  I went with Sycamore. 

 

Then you drill a hole down the middle, and chip away the excess leaving you with a hollow cylinder. 

Next I cut off the bark and gave it texture.  If I had left the bark on, it would have fallen off as the pot shrunk. 

 

Then you make a bottom for your pot.  I used red cedar, which smelt lovely.  This has to be cut and shaped to be just a little bigger than the bottom of your pot.  Then with some careful tapping you pop it in.  I was very pleased with how mine fitted.  At this point you should be able to see a little daylight round it, but this will disappear as it dries.

 

Then you can make a lid.  There are many options for this.  I ended up with some spalted beech with a cedar tenon which will hold it in place once the pot is dry and I know how big to make it. 

Some of the class made lids that twisted, or one like mine but with different details.   The options really are massive. 

It was a really lovely relaxed day.  Lunch was tasty and we were blessed with the weather.  It's a great location and I'll be keeping an eye on the website to see what other courses Rosie puts on next year. 

And I've got a lovely pot and the knowledge to make more, if I can find some green wood and convince 'im outdoors to let me use a corner of his workshop.  (I can't have sawdust in the studio!) 

New Kiln

Look how small the old bead kiln is compaired with the new one!

 

When I started working in glass I got myself a little second hand kiln so I could anneal my beads so they wouldn't explode as they cool.  When I say second hand I think I might be its third or even fourth owner, but it doesn't matter - it works. 💜

 

But it is tiny.  After all it's just for beads.  But I do sometimes use it for fusing glass.  If I want to do this I can do one coaster sized thing at a time (or more smaller things).  Which is a pain if you want to do a set of coasters. 

 

Then at the end of last year I received a bonus at work!

I could finally buy a bigger kiln!

But I couldn't quite bring myself to do it.  I don't have a lot of space in the studio so everything has to pull its weight, and I don't do that much fusing so was it really worth it?  And even with a bonus it was still a lot of money.

 

I liked the idea but kept putting it off. 

Then I started taking pottery classes which got me thinking about doing some pottery at home.  Could I use my little kiln to fire clay?  No.  Clay fires much hotter than glass does, even when casting.

Anyway, long story short, I found a kiln designed to do both glass and clay!  Wow.  It's a Kilncare IKON V46.

So after a lot of thinking I ordered one.  It's not that much more than a kiln just designed for glass and the ability to do both things makes it feel like a better resource.

Don't worry I'm keeping the little bead kiln.  I don't think beads would work that well in the new one, but it's great to have a few more options.

 

It does mean a bit of a reorganisation in the studio, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.   Watch this space to see what happens next!

 

Knitted Mohair Shrug

 

I have a very special event to attend this autumn and I've been thinking very carefully about my outfit.

My little sister is getting married in Santorini and I've got no idea what the weather will be like.  I'm assuming it will be warm, but the venue is on a cliff top and I'm thinking it might have a cooling wind in the evening.  I can hope.

So I decided that a shrug might be a good addition to my outfit, just in case.

 

I spend ages looking for something that was elegent, and not too thick and would work with my outfit.  In the end I came across this mohair shurg pattern. 

It looked just right, but then I needed some yarn.

I visited the wool shop in the village.  It's just been taken over by someone else, so I wasn't sure what it would be like now.  They'd moved everything around, but when I told them what I was looking for, they were very helpful and found me the most beautiful yarn.  Rowan Kidsilk Haze.  It's 70% mohair and 30% silk so is very soft and fine.  It was also the perfect pink colour.  The lable didn't have a colour name but I think its Shadow (653).

 

I've never knitted with anything so fine before and it was a bit tricky to start, but once I got the hang if it, it was OK.  And the pattern was super simple.  I really should have finished this earlier, but in the very hot weather I don't like knitting with sweaty hands, and so it didn't progress.

But its done now and I think it's just what I need for the wedding.  We'll see in September.