July 2017

The NSW Art Gallery was our meeting place this month. Four of us gathered in the park opposite, then moved on to morning tea and show and tell in the coffee shop inside the Gallery once it was opened. 

Sheila had been stitching this face design using her favourite stitch, raised chain band. The design is based on a  Julie Fei-Fan Balzer stencil, and will eventually turn into a bag front.

Both Jenny and Robyn were learning a new  pulled work stitch called 'Gros-Rose Stitch'. Based on a drawn background of cut 1, leave 3, the stitch gives a very open and lacy effect. The above sample is Jenny's.

This is Susan's  soon-to-be journal cover, with one of her small embroideries that was stitched about 4 years ago.  Susan has added appliques of scrap fabrics, and covered the raw edges with couching. The outer line is raised stem stitch which may change with further inspiration.

 Susan's  "Memory Quilt" is growing.  Made with 3/4 inch hexagons, mostly cottons, Susan thinks it will continue to grow to  fit the top of this bed and just over the sides.  It has been so fun and relaxing  to do, Susan thinks it may even get bigger still.

Jenny had finished a second small bobbin lace Christmas decoration. The pattern came from an old Anna magazine and and DMC Cordonnet Special thread No 50 was used. There are six designs in the series, and Jenny hopes to work at least one of each.

These finger-less gloves were also made by Jenny. One 50gm ball of 4 Seasons Merino 4 ply just didn't quite make a pair. So the second glove was finished using Lincraft Lullaby 4 ply in a different colour, and stitching was added to both gloves to bring them together .

Sheila has had a number of attempts at graduated dying from black to white. In her first attempt, the dye was quite purple and both fabric and threads were over saturated. In the second attempt, the dye was adjusted by using black dye  with a golden yellow and some green to get a better black.  A white thread and an ecru thread were dyed as well as a stranded cotton, which are going to be used in her project.

This cotton cloth has been dyed by Robyn with coffee grounds over several weeks.  Round tea bags and a selection of threads have also been collected to start her next project.

Robyn continues drawing on index cards influenced by Daisy Yellow ICAD challenge.

Following show & tell, we all visited 'Making Modernism', an exhibition of works by Georgia OKeefe, Margaret Preston, and Grace Crossington Smith which is currently shoing at the NSW Art Gallery. This exhibition is on now until 2nd Ocober.

Our meeting next month will be.......... who knows? Our new Guild building is slowly taking shape, so maybe, just maybe, our next meeting will be in our new space. How exciting! Here's hoping.