Coming up in May

A workshop on "Eco Printing" by Jane Hare

After this month's wonderful talk, Jane is coming back to teach us a few of her skills. The workshop is now fully booked. We are all looking forward to a very interesting day.

All those booked on the course will need to bring the following:

"Participants to bring along non waxy leaves they want to try out, those high in tannin usually work well. I have found the following leaves in my locality give reliable prints - Blackberry, Strawberry, Raspberry, Geranium, Geum, Acer (red), Rose, Heuchra (dark leaved), Alchemilla Mollis, Physocarpus and Cotinus.  I would avoid Eucalyptus, Fern and Ivy.  

Obviously it will depend on how we are getting along with Spring by Mayday but there should be something in the hedgerow.  I have some leaves I dried at the end of last year which I can bring along if it looks like folks might be struggling.  A friendly florist is usually quite happy to let you have their rose leaf and other interesting trimmings.  Rose leaves in particular will keep for a week or so before you use them, others can be picked the day before or on the morning.  If the rose leaves look as they are flagging then cover them in water to keep them hydrated. This can be poured away on the morning before travelling.

Onion skins and red cabbage are also good to try - one red cabbage will be sufficient for the whole class as it goes along way.  With regards to other leaves, it’s always good to experiment!  

All the fabric and paper will be provided and prepared ready to print. I will provide notes of the methodology and recipes on the day. 

Participants may wish to also bring an apron, notebook and pen and plastic bags to take home wet papers and fabrics".

On May 15/16/17 Grassington Embroiderers' Guild are hosting "Stitching in the Dales". The tutors will be:

• Shelley Rhodes "Extract, Fragment and Remake", this is now fully booked.
• Mary McIntosh "Life is a Bleach", there is one space left on this.

April's Meeting: "Collaborating with Nature" a talk by Jane Hare

I must begin the Blog this month with some sad news. Carol Brown, one of the founder members of the Grassington Embroiderers' Guild, slipped away peacefully on the 15th March after her battle with cancer. Carol was a proud and deserved recipient of a Trustee Award, and I know this acknowledgement from the Embroiderers' Guild gave her and the family a few hours of pleasure at this very difficult time. She will be sadly missed in Grassington. We send our deepest sympathy to Carol's family at this time.

"Although it's difficult today to see beyond the sorrow, may looking back in memory help comfort you tomorrow"

We will be remembering Carol with an exhibition of her needlework displayed in Church House, Grassington on June 23rd/24th as part of our annual exhibition and contribution to Grassington Festival.

On a much brighter note, a second member of the Grassington Embroiderers' Guild will receive a Trustee Award which will be presented at our monthly meeting, as yet to be arranged. What an honour for two of our members to be considered as worthy applicants.

The recipient is Sheila Gudgeon, who has been a member at Grassington for well over twenty years. She has been Chairman of the group and her name appears year after year on the committee member list. When I was elected as secretary it was committee member (tea lady), Sheila, with her quiet composed character that guided us in the right direction through those initial meetings. She checked we had covered matters of importance in a very unobtrusive way. It was not until I had begun to record the history of our branch that I realised that Sheila and one other member, were the next longstanding members of our group after Carol. In my initial year, I noticed it was Sheila who left last having completed washing all the cups up in the kitchen and it was Sheila who helped to tidy the room so we could leave it as we found it. Although Carol's and Sheila's contribution to the Branch were quite contrasting, I would certainly have been lost without the help and advice I received from both of them. Both are very worthy recipients.

Yesterday we had a super talk from Jane Hare.

Jane explained, "I was taught to stitch at a very early age but my real interest in textile art began when I inherited my mother's tin of embroidery threads. With the help of a bursary from the City of York Embroiderers' Guild, I completed a four year City & Guilds Diploma in Embroidery Craft and Design during which time, I explored the natural environment through stitch, looking in some depth at trees, leaves and bark. This is where my passion for working in collaboration with nature began; creating beautifully printed papers and fabrics using leaves foraged from the garden and local hedgerows."

Jane's slide presentation illustrated with fabric samples held us spellbound all afternoon. A fabulous introduction to "Collaborating with Nature".

For those who did not catch the title:
Wild Colour by Jenny Dean was suggested as a good reference point for natural dying.