Here are some photos of students work from some of my indigo dyeing workshops. These are great classes and mostly held outside so there is great ventilation! In the next two months I have three workshops booked. I only run these classes in the warmer months so book in now if you are interested as it will be a whole year before they are offered again.
Textiles on the Edge... (of the Planet)
Clare Smith - textiles, art and travels
Thursday, January 26, 2023
Indigo Dyeing classes in Wellington, New Zealand
Here are some photos of students work from some of my indigo dyeing workshops. These are great classes and mostly held outside so there is great ventilation! In the next two months I have three workshops booked. I only run these classes in the warmer months so book in now if you are interested as it will be a whole year before they are offered again.
Textile Classes in Lower Hutt , New Zealand.
Hi everyone
I'm teaching multiple classes at the Hutt Art Society rooms in Lower Hutt. There are very few places which offer evening and weekend classes in the Wellington area since a previous government removed subsidies for adult education. So Sue Swann (Embroidery) and I (surface design, quilting, bookmaking) started offering classes at the Hutt Art Society Rooms. Each year we have expanded and this year have brought in a number of new tutors. Here is a copy of our newsletter.
Welcome to 2023
- Mary Self - Mary is teaching a beginners stitch class as well as a couple of classes that will develop your creativity and teach you new techniques,
- Cherie Gurney - Cherie is teaching a piece that gives you the opportunity to use those precious scraps in your collection and create something memorable,
- Katherine Pepperall - Katherine has created a wonderful doorstop incorporating native New Zealand clematis flowers in reticella,
- Anna Hicks - Anna is preparing some classes from her "Mending and Design" series and
- Marilyn Moran - For those of you who requested a class in needle felting, Marilyn is designing a small creature to tempt you to 'have a go'.
Heads up - there are a couple of groups starting at the end of February and a shibori dyeing class in early March, so don't delay in getting enrolled for these classes:
- A monthly stitching group on the 4th Sunday of each month - this group is for those who need a bit of help getting an old project restarted, want help with a new project or just want to stitch with a group of like minded people - it's a great way to keep a project moving.
- Design your own "Kutch" Dowry bag. This group will also meet monthly and by the end of the year you will have learnt a bit about the design process, some new stitching techniques and have a handy little bag.
- Clare is holding an indigo / shibori dyeing day in early March, so be quick to enrol for this popular class and create some interesting fabrics for other projects.
Sunday, April 4, 2021
A New Venture - new textile classes in Wellington.
I've been teaching textile classes at Nancy's Stitch Studio in Wellington for quite a few years but the shop has recently changed hands and at this stage the owners are not ready to run a big list of classes. So three of us are starting to run classes at the Hutt Arts Society Rooms in Lower Hutt (New Zealand).
You can have a look at the classes in more detail by going to the Hutt Arts website.
My classes are
Boro - making a layered, stitched fabric panel.
31st July 10-4pm.
Monoprinting.
Monoprinting on fabric or paper to make fabric for quilting or papers for bookmaking.
Saturday May 29th
10-4
Machine Quilting
Learn how to prepare a quilt for machine quilting then draw with a sewing machine. After machine quilting a sample, you can then colour the design in , using fabric pens if you wish.
Sunday July 18 10-4
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
A new decade 2020
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Wearing my Hieke |
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Pake (pronounced packay) |
Sunday, April 7, 2019
Ailsa Craig Quilt and Fibre festival
I'm starting to think about which quilts to take with me. It's a choice between having enough clothes for the festival and for 3 weeks travel in Canada afterwards, and having a good selection of quilts for people to see in class. Maybe I don't need clothes!
I'm teaching my Spiky Trees class . Here are some of the quilts I've made in the past. Past students have made quilt tops of plants such as Aloe (South Africa), grass trees and palms (Australia), agapanthus and cacti (in the UK). Its always interesting to see which pictures people bring with them to use as inspiration for their quilt top.
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The New Zealand Cabbage Tree (Cordyline Australis) |
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Cordyline Australis |
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New Zealand Lancewood |
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New Zealand flax bush (Phormium Tenax) |
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Spinnifex on a New Zealand beach (our sand is grey ) |
Wagga were made from discarded clothing often covered with a final layer of cretonne curtain fabric. When the top layer of fabric is removed, the layers of clothing can be seen. A childs jersey, a mans overcoat, a wool skirt - anything to keep warm. They are like a history of a family in discarded clothing.
I've used this layering of clothing to signify 'layers of lives'. Sometimes I embroider genetic symbols on top of the clothing, sometimes I have screen printed on the fabrics. I often use this method of laying out fabrics or clothing as a background and then add something else on the surface.
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3 layers of lives quilts displayed as 'genetic history' cloaks |
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Granny Smith (using doilies and household linens as the background) |
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Layers of lives (inspired by the book 'the seven daughters of Eve' |
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Wagga quilt over printed with genetic information |
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layers of kimonos (after the Tsunami in Japan) |
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crossover wagga/japanese boro |
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Layers of Lives - white office shirts (and DNA image on the surface) |
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The way we cut the harakeke leaving the three central leaves |
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two kono (square baskets) |
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a selection of 4 and 2 corner kono |
Friday, November 23, 2018
Learning to weave Harakeke part 2.
here are a few of the kete I have made in the second half of the year. I have been exploring the use of dyes and weaving with flax that has been harvested and prepared then boiled and dried for 4-6 weeks before dyeing and weaving. I'm still getting used to the amount of time the flax needs to be soaked to get it flexible enough to weave with. Too wet and it dries with gaps, too dry and it cracks while I'm working with it.
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patterned kete pikau (backpack) |
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patterned kete Timata |
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Patterned kete timata with 4 plait shoulder strap |
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kete pikau with patikitiki pattern (the flounder) |
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kete pikau with patikitiki pattern (the flounder) |
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kete pikau with patikitiki pattern (the flounder) |
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Kete porowhita with whakapuareare (holes) |
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kete whakairo (fine weave) with holes |
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kete whakairo |
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kete porowhita |
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the poster for our student show |