Carrier Bags - Recycling the Embroidery

One of my outstanding tasks to work on for my C&G course before July was experimental embroidery. I understood this meant I needed a sketch book / workbook detailing samples where I have used non-standard items to create embroidery. I have asked my tutor to qualify this, but in the meantime I have started to get excited about carrier bags !

On Tuesday I had the day off work mostly so I was ready for a talk I gave to the local Embroiderers Guild (more that later) but used the morning to go shopping. I needed shoes for work as the current pair had died and a few few other bits. On the way home I was staring at the Evans purple bag and was thinking what a nice pattern also had a second bag from Lakeland Leathers (don't get excited bought a handbag) which was covered in flowers and butterflies. A plan started, could these be used as if they were fabrics to create an applique designs ??

Well as you can see above the answer is YES ! I have used standard embroidery thread to attach the pieces together. The bags are great, being plastic they hold a firm edge when you cut them =) This means if you could touch the piece above the butterfly wings are loose, only the central body is stitched down.

Then I thought, can I use the plastic for other things. So I tried a few samples of where I gathered or moved the plastic around. After leaving space in the sketch book to add in machine stitched samples, I then remembered attending a day school a few years back where the tutor said that plastic bags could be ironed.

This is what happens when you iron a Sainsbury's bag. Shrinking down... Its amazing to watch. Depending where you place the iron first depends on the effect you get. Played with doing the top edges first so that a little air was captured in the bag. This gave a slightly bubbly effect on the lower surface.

So the material shrinks, does it matter which was it is laid !?!? I mean is there some type of grain? Does it shrink more in one direction ? So tried creating a weave from two different bags and then shrinking one sample. After ironing you do get a solid sheet, where the weaving at first has no body.

OK - this is fun and I have a small pile of shrunk bags to try working up as machine samples , quilting with them or creating 3D items (box/bags) from them which are strong enough to use.

Now I find myself looking out for different coloured or printed bags. Yesterday bought one of Waitrose's bags for life coz is was covered in roses =)

So what happen on Tuesday your thinking?

My local Emberoiderers Guild ask me to give a talk on my 'adventures' working with City & Guilds. I was a little worried as I hadn't given a talk before... What would they want to know ? What should I show ??? So I took EVERYTHING with me. So all my part 1 pieces and everything I have so far on part2.... I tried to make the talk more about what it is like to do a distance learning course rather than explain how each piece was made, although that came into it too. It seems to have gone OK. There were lots of questions and the members seemed happy. Our ladies can be a hard audience and I knew I would get a real reaction from them =)
There were a few things I forgot to say or thought afterwards I should have said. Our chairlady said I should do more talks so perhaps this is something I will think about once part2 is over.

The next challenge , I am running the next day school explaining how to make the art fairy dolls I've shown you on here before.

In between all the recycling my first Spot Sampler RR arrived from the states. I like this as I was the first to add to the virgin fabric ... yumm... The owner has asked us all to add our initials somewhere near the spots we have added . =) Well I hope she likes this. I have tried to use natural colours as she plans to use this as part of her costume for re-enactment =)
The pattern these spots came from is so nice I have order fabric and silk threads to stitch for me =)

Mapping out Liss

My local embroiderers Guild have been commissioned to create a stitched verion of a map of the area. The final piece will become the cover of the next issue of the Local Plan, although this will be a photo. The original will be hung somewhere ....

The members have been asked to stitch an area each onto canvas. We were each given a pack with the canvas, some threads to which we could add and map pieces to help us.
Below is the Ordinance Survey map of the area I have worked on.

We were also give the picture of the same area from above.

And this is what I have created.

My C&G work is now on a go slow.
Still writing and developing the Research eassay, plus been writing up details on three comtemporary textile artists. I have a few questions outstanding with my school before I start to work on the research/sketch books on other cultures. I have selected American Indians and Inuits so far. So at the moment just collecting information =)

Friday a whole pile of round robins arrived. Halloween (last round), Xmas Ornie and Spot Samplers. Stitched up the halloween one over the weekend and have started the Xmas one. As the Halloween RR is on the last round - I guess it is time to share with you all the set =)

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A quick bit of 'show and tell' from my Mum. She stitched this elephant for Dad. It has come out so well.

Weekend Work on the Rose Hanging !

This weekend I spent time finishing off the rose hanging. It is now over 1 m in length, although I may add to its length in the nex few days !

The first thing I played with was a packet of ExtraOrganza !! WOW brillient stuff. I printed onto one sheet a set of four postcards I picked up in London with roses and rose petals on them.
As you can see from the picture below the effect is very delicate. I had to hold the back of a box behide part of the fabric so you can see the image but if you look carefully you can see the barcode from the box.

Below is the hanging as I finished it on Saturday evening both full length and with a detail shot of the end. The detail shot was taken with a flash so the fabrics are shining a little more than they really do !

On sunday spent time making prints from a set of colour positive slides Mum had sent me. Been having a good laugh. Sorry only printing them and not scanning to share =) Have the day to myself as DH is at an exhibtion. Had his birthday on Friday. So this morning he went off with his new camera I bought him. At last we both have a digital camera.

The paper work for our Augst holiday to Germany arrived too. We will be going to see the Rally racing round Trier.