Next Meeting

 10:00 am Wednesday Aug 4th, "Exchanging Ideas" 

The Expressive Stitch and Wet Felting

 Finally after months of zoom meetings we managed to meet up for an action packed day of textile workshops out in the open air!

Ann Barrans had sent our group materials for a workshop on "The Expressive Stitch". Each member received a tri-fold card, an image and a piece of fabric. We were advised to bring an assortment of pencils, scissors, different sized needles and an assortment of threads from fine to thick, matt and shiny, smooth and fluffy. 

We had to look carefully at our image and spend a few minutes sketching the marks that we saw. Were the marks straight, curved, round, crisp, hard, soft, fuzzy, thick, thin, heavy, raised, broken, wavy, zigzagged, contoured, geometric or varied?

Using a needle and various threads, we interpreted the marks from our sketch with stitch. By varying the stitch sizes, angles and density, and by making them regular, irregular, textural and raised, the completed piece would be an individual piece of textile art.

I hope to include a few examples of our work when they are completed. Well worth a visit to

Ann Barrans, Textile Artist website.

The second workshop was wet felting Alpaca, Llama, and Sheep fleeces.

The felting demonstration took place in the idyllic countryside of Grassington.

The fleece was carded, and laid down on a rough base mat before wetting and covering with soap.

By rubbing and rolling the wet soapy fleece, the fibres begin to felt together.

There was plenty of fleece and opportunity for us all to have a go at felting.

Finished pieces of felt were left to dry in the sun and we look forward to seeing some finished products next month.

Members have been busy with a variety of projects.

 Below are finished pieces from our workshop earlier in the month.