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. 

6 Week Pottery Course - loam.

 

So after the success of the 8 week pottery course at loam. I went back for the 6 week summer term.

Where last term I was given projects to do each week, this term it was up to me what I wanted to learn.  I'd had plenty of time to think about it so had a fair idea of what I wanted to achieve.

Week 1 and I made 4 plates.  They aren't my favourate thing to make, but I have a plan for these plates.  More about that in a separate post later in the year.

At the end of the last term I had also made a 'bead bowl'.  I've got a crazy idea about making some clay beads to go with some of my glass beads.  While they can be bisque fired anywhere in the kiln, when it comes to glaze them they need to be 'hung' so they don't touch anything while they are firing, otherwise they will stick to whatever they are touching.  So I made a bead bowl so I can hang them when firing.

Having thrown my plates, I turned the bottom of my bead bowl, just to tidy it up - it doesn't need to be pretty.

 

Week 2, I turned my plate bottoms, then I started glazing some of my things from last term.  One plate, and two of my vases.

In week 3 I asked if I could make some lidded pots.  I'd watched a couple of ladies do this last term and really wanted to have a go myself.  Jack spent ages with me showing me what to do.  It starts very like making a mug.  But then you have to finish the top with a lip for the lid.

 

With two pots thrown, I then had to make the lids.  A bunch of measurement is needed here to make them fit.  And I actually made four, in the hope that at least two would fit.  It was fun making the lid and handle as one piece.

 

In week 4 my lidded pots were ready to turn.  I started with my pots, keeping them nice and square.  Then I had to decide which lids I wanted to keep.  I turned one of the spares first as practice, before turning the ones I wanted to keep.  I was very pleased with the fit.  However, until they've been fired you don't know if they will continue to fit well.  Nail biting stuff!

 

With my pots sorted I then contined glazing.  I started with three plates from week one.  (I'm not sure what had happened to the 4th, it caught up with me later.) And one plate from last term.

I've got a bit of an obsession with leaves and I'd been talking to Jack about how to include leaves in my work.  Once the clay has been fired a live leave won't stick to it.  So I'd made some paper templates out of newspaper at home based on a liquid amber leaf.  I now used one of these on my plate, so I could paint glaze over it and leave a leaf shape when it was dry.  I also used two of my paper leaves on one of my larger vases.  A course like this is the perfect time to experiment.

On week 5 I threw vases.  I ended up with 4, but I know I threw more than that.  Several of them crashed.  It's all good practice.  Part of the issue I think, was because I was trying to make them small and I wasn't sure what shape I was aiming for.

This time I had bought small leaves picked from the garden - feild maple and hawthorn, which I then pushed into the wet clay of two of the vases and left. 

 

Then in the last week I started by turning the bottoms of my vases.  I can't say I'm that impressed with the shapes I managed except for one of them.  

One had four leaves stuck to it (now mouldy!) which I painted over with blue slip.  Once it was dry I peeled the leaves off.  They left some great imprints, so hoping they will still show up once fired and glazed.  

The one with the good shape I carved lines into and also painted with slip.

While these dried I did more glazing.  This time another plate from the first term and the 'missing' plate from week 1.  I also glazed one of the lidded pots.  The fit is really good for both of them right now, so I need to be careful that the glaze doesn't mess this up!  Fingers crossed.

 

I then went back to the now dry vase and worked off all the dry slip that I didn't want.  

If you've been paying attention, you'll know that this isn't everything glazed!  And the last 4 vases haven't even been fired for the first time yet!  So yes I'll be going back to finish things off - hopefully in mid August.

Over the course of this term I bought home 5 plates and 3 vases.  I am extremely pleased with the vases.  All very different but lovely in their own ways.  The newspaper leaves worked so well and I love both the plate and vase!  It's so nice when things turn out well. 

 

I won't be going back in the autumn, only because I don't have a massive desire to throw anything else right now.  However, I do think I'll be trying some hand building at home to see what I can make that way.

So if you are in the area and want to have a go at pottery, I would definitely recomment loam.  I may well go back in the future.

Once everything has been glazed and fired I'll post again with proper photos of all the finished work. 

Wild Creatives Coaching

 

Over the last 6 months or so I've been learning how to coach.

Not coaching a sport as my mum thought, but business coaching for work.  The sort of coaching where you help someone find a new job or grow their confidence.

 

I wasn't sure if I'd enjoy it or if I'd be any good, but I loved it!  So I've carried on from my first certificate to a diploma which is more focused on coaching for creatives.  Basically helping creatives who might be struggling to find their voice or with creative block, or maybe they don't know how to start their project or end it!  I adore helping people.

I've enjoyed this so much, although I've still got much to learn, that Wild Creatives Coaching has been born, with the aim to make a business of it.

So while I continue my diploma, I have created a Substack for my thoughts on creativity to help people, and spread the word a bit.

 

A friend helped with the beautiful logo and branding, but I knew that the Substack posts would need images of some kind.  While I could have used one of those free photo platforms or even AI, I decided to shoot my own.

So I went through the house and collected up all (OK, a lot of) my creative tools and materials and did a photo shoot one afternoon.  I had a so much fun setting up each selection and finding the right shot. 

 

Then of course came the editing of each photo to make it fit the header slot.  A few sets didn't make it as I'd taken them too tight or something was wrong which I didn't spot at the time.  So I'll be going back to retake some, which is fine as I've had ideas of things I'd missed.

But what I'm really pleased with is a set of photos that are relevant, very much in my personal style and are ready to use whenever I need them, without having to search for an image each time.  And a very satisfying use of my own creativity.

 

These are just a few of my favourites.

And if you are interested in any coaching, let me know.

Grow Your Own Clothes: Flax and Nettles

 

In 2022 I attended a nettle fiber workshop at the Weald and Downland Living Museum.

It filled my head with ideas, but I hadn't really had a chance to do anything about them, although I had foraged my own nettles from the woods behind the house.  So when I saw the 3 day course at West Dean (right next door to the Weald and Downland) covering both flax and nettles and taken by Allan, the chap who made The Nettle Dress, I had to sign up. 

Flax

 

Over the three days we followed the process of growing flax and foraging nettles, before extracting the fiber from them and spinning it ready to use in making fabric.

We started with flax.  It is grown for 100 days then pulled up and left to ret - this can take up to 7 weeks!  You can then break the storks to release the fibers before scutching, hackling, carding and spinning.  As we were only working with big handfuls we were able to complete the processing in a day.

Spinning flax

 It was hard, dusty work but satisfying when you end up with this lovely soft yarn.

I've not really done any spinning before and it came out lumpy and rough.  But under Allan's tutorage and having had a break for dinner, when I came back to it, I started to get a thinner more consistance yarn.

Spinning flax - getting better

 

On day 2 we started on nettles.  First we went out into the West Dean grounds to forage some nettles, before coming back to work on some that Allan had already retted and dried.

I already knew this would be harder work than the flax from the workshop in 2022, and I was right.  While the flax broke apart quite easily, the nettles didn't want to help us in any way.

 

Interestingly, Allan had us roll the nettle fiber between our hands before we scraped them, and I did find this made them less prone to giving me splinters which was welcome.

By the end of the day I had a small roll of nettle fibers ready to spin, but wanted to practice my spinning a little more on easier fibers before doing the nettle.

Day three was a little more chilled as we practiced our spinning.  While most of us were using drop spindles a couple of ladies had bought spinning machines with them.  It was facinating to learn more about how these machines work.

Spinning nettle

 

By lunchtime I had spun some of my flax, some wool and my nettle fibers.  Still lumpy in places, mostly where the line had broken and I'd had to rejoin, but getting better and better.

So after lunch I tried weaving my nettle yarn.  I started with a plain pattern then added a twill.  This was fun as you could get into a rhythum and just crack on.  But I have to say I was surprised.  I didn't think that in 3 days I would be able to process nettles and make it into fabric, even if it's quite a small piece.

This was a super learning experience.  Allan was so friendly and pactient and ready to share all his knowledge.  The other ladies were lovely too and everyone was happy to roll their sleeves up and get hands on.

Nettle ready for weaving

 

But I did find three days a bit full on and I'm glad to have a weekend to recover.  There was so much to take in and learn and it was a bit more physical than some of the other courses I've done. 

I enjoyed the spinning and the weaving but processing the fibers was hard work.  I do think that everyone should have to have a go at this before they are allowed to buy fabric of any kind, to get a real understanding of what goes into it and why we shouldn't be so quick to just discard things.  If I knew I would have to do all of this again to replace something I was thinking of throwing out, I would be having second thoughs.

Hackling flax

Tins With Lids

 

 

You might have seen that I've been learning how to blow hollow beads recently.

Sometimes they go well, sometimes not so much.  And having had a whole batch crack I decided something needed to be done and bought myself some cooling bubbles.

 

The idea of cooling beads is you can immerse your hollow bead in the cooling bubbles and it will cool slowly without cracking.  Hollow beads don't have to sit in the kiln like my solid beads as you're not trying to bring the centre and outer of your bead to the same temperture before cooling.  

But once my cooling bubbles arrived I realised I had nothing to put them in.  Doh!

 

The website suggests a metal sweet tin, which would be perfect, but all the 'tins' we had were plastic (not so good with very hot glass).  I did ask my parents and my in-laws if they had any, but they only had shallow biscuit tins.  No good to get good coverage.

So I went into town after pottery class, and had a look in the charity shops.

The British Heart Foundation had a set of 3 odd shaped cake tins - perfect!  And a steal at only £5.

 

Then I started wondering if I needed some lids.  I asked 'im outdoors if he could make me some very simple wooden lids to stop dust and dirt getting in.  And just look at what he made me out of scrap.

So this is just a reminder, that you don't have to buy brand new to get the things you need.  

 

 

I have used them and they were prefect.