This textiles course offers you the chance to discover the fascinating word of experimental textiles. Techniques will include, bonding layers, layering up fabrics and cutting away, simple print methods, ripping and slashing, hand and machine skills, including sketchbook work and many more skills. All to help you complete a series of projects over the term. Most tools and materials will be provided, I will advise you if you need to bring anything else.

10.00am to 2.00pm

Price £130 for 5 weeks (to run alongside school half terms).  All abilities welcome.

Layer up bits of handmade paper, tissue, magazines, and lace onto a calico base. Complete your design with hand stitched flowers, birds or butterflies. Finish off by attaching to a calico cover for a small notebook. All materials and notebook provided.

Saturday 9th November 10.00am-3.00pm

Price £55

The trapping technique is worked on two layers of calico, the bottom piece pulled taut in an embroidery hoop. To create a raised surface, items are trapped between the two pieces and worked with hand stitches to complete the design. Please bring a 7 or 8 inch embroidery hoop, small scissors and sewing needles.

Saturday 30th November 10.00am - 3.00pm

Price £55

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Learn how to build up backgrounds with different types of mixed media.  Using assorted papers and stamps on a calico background. Then using packing tape, lift images from photocopies, magazines and books to add to your piece. Finish off using tea bag paper to transfer images and build up an original piece of work. Please bring images (not too large) on a theme you wish to use, pictures, magazines or photocopies.

Saturday 7th December 10.00am - 3.00pm

Price £55

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Spend the day experimenting with hand stitches and what happens when you use them in an abstract way. Take your samples away in a small book. All materials provided.

Saturday 14th Dec 10.00am – 4.00pm

Price £55

Create a beautiful layered felted landscape, using a summer landscape image as your inspiration (you may bring your own images). Felt will be supplied, but please bring along any beads and fabric scraps that you might want to incorporate into your design.

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Using colourful felt, decorate with stitches, beads and sequins, make up into a beautiful 3D bird. The humble cotton reel, covered with felt makes a lovely base for your bird to perch.

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Working with dyed teabag paper, coloured net, sheer fabrics, beads, sequins and hand stitching. Layer them up in bands of colour, a good way to learn new hand stitches and end up with a lovely colourful collage. Please bring fabric scissors, pins and needles.

Be inspired by nature and take home a unique piece of work created on calico using lino cut printing, decorated with hand stitching, to recreate teasels, seed heads and more. Sue will show you how you can have one print block but produce several different looks.

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Experiment using everyday objects to print with, to produce a background to embellish with different hand stitching, sequins and beads to make a panel for a calico bag (bag included in workshop). Please bring scissors, needles and bits you would like to include on your bag.

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Spend the day dying with indigo dye to make samples of dyed fabric that can be used for further projects.  You will need 1 to 2 metres of white cotton fabric and white cotton thread to dye.  You could also bring cotton lace, white string, cotton rag paper or a white cotton top-shirt to dye. Or you may bring items of clothes to dye such as white jeans, T-shirts etc. Please bring rubber gloves, apron and plastic bag.

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By recycling the humble plastic bag, wonderful textures can be created in this experimental workshop. By melting the plastic in different ways you will create patterned 3D surfaces to embellish and decorate. There will also be an opportunity to explore bead making with the recycled plastic. So raid the cupboards and recycle your plastic bags into something crafty and creative. Please do not bring any black plastic bags or long life plastic bags.

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Using one piece of paper, carefully folded and cut, to make an eight page book. Decorate the pages with collage, printing, mixed media, stamping inks and paints, to make a unique book of your own.

Price £55

Explore making your own blocks to print with. In this session Sue will show you a quick and easy way of how to make blocks for simple image printing or to explore repeated printed patterns, on paper and on fabric, embellish with stitch. Your blocks then can be used to print fabric for your own creations. Please bring simple images no bigger than four inches, ie birds, fish etc (I will have some images you can use if you are stuck for ideas). Please bring an apron.

Price £55

Using festive chequered and shabby chic fabrics, felt, beads, sequins and bells, make birds, stars etc and combine to make a garland to hang up for Christmas.

Price £55

Use your lovely stash of blue dyed samples and turn them into a memory cushion, or a fabric sketch book to show off your indigo samples

Price £55

Using the techniques of rag rugging, make a heart or flower shape rug to be used as a chair seat cover. Bring lots of colourful fabrics, net cutains, ribbons and bits of lace to posh it up for your home. Backing and tools provided, please bring fabric scissors.

Price: £55

Make your own mixed media sketchbook, using papers, paints and printing techniques, alongside creating mini rubber stamps, hand stitching and trapping things between layers of tissues. This will be a day of creative experiment. Board book provided.

Price £55

Wonderful textured surfaces can be achieved using this technique. You will be layering up fabrics, stitching them down with a sewing machine, before cutting through the layers to reveal new textures and colours. Please bring fabric scissors and any fabric you wish to experiment with.

Price £55