July Meeting

A few people missing today as it is the start of the holidays for many.  However we still had an interesting day with nearly everyone doing work towards their Warrior pieces. Christina and Anita reported on the Summer Schools they had attended and showed the work they had done.  Here is some more of the work in progress at Ayton.

Christine's Aztec warrior is looking amazing.

Jackie is doing a reliquary box which would have been carried by the troops to bring good luck.

Jane is also working on Aztec's and these Angelina feathers will be going into an Aztec head-dress.

I have to choose a picture to go on our flyer for the exhibition and these are some of the ones I have got to choose from.  Would like to make it an embroidery if possible.

June Meeting

Another good day with eighteen out of twenty members present and lots of work being done.  Most people were just working on their Warriors pieces or just getting on with things they needed to finish.  Here are some of the projects under way.

This is a piece Ann was doing.  It is black velvet (an old pair of trousers) with a design stamped on in gold.  She is embellishing it with chiffon and beads.

Christina is continuing her norman theme with the shields on fabric and net.

Christine is stitching this wonderful blackwork piece, based on a picture she saw in a book.

Jenny has been using her jellyplate to produce this lovely fabric and then using a stamp and stitch to work into it.

Colleen has been having fun making these face cupcakes in felt.

This was another piece Jenny was doing, painting a piece of tyvek and scrim that she produced last month.

May Meeting

I can't believe it is now over two weeks since our meeting and I haven't got the blog done yet.  Time has run away with me what with the bank holiday and everything else.

A few of us joined the Stitching in the Dales workshops which are run each year by the Grassington Branch of the Embroiderers' Guild.  We had an excellent time with Lynda Monk, very hectic but very inspiring.  For photographs of the work done see the Ryedale branch blog on ryedaleg.blogspot.com.  We had a small demonstration running of one of the techniques that Lynda showed us and several people had a go.  Roma was busy demonstrating felt making to Ann who had never done it before.  Moira was making machine cords and Ann also had her sewing machine out finishing off samples from the Lynda Monk workshop.

This is one of Colleen's pieces that I think she calls 'Yorkshire Nuggits'.  The hand is also Colleen's work, as she says 'You can design with anything'.

Here was Ann's work being arranged as samples.

Marilyn was working with buttons and found objects in this piece.

Jackie was trying out one of Lynda's techniques to make snowflakes.

April Meeting

We had a visit from the PAT testing man today, all of us getting our machines checked out ready for the residential workshop season.   Because they had their machines with them, some ladies decided it was a good opportunity to get some machine sewing done, so two were quilting and one was making machine cords.
Most people were busy with their Warriors work as October is now looming up and a sense of urgency is beginning to take hold.
Below are some of the papers we all made last month with Niki Hampson of Pulpitations.  Of course, Colleen has made hers into a lovely book with a poem she has written about becoming 'beige'.

Roma has been busy felting for her Warriors. Tea is always at the ready.

Colleen has done a one day workshop with Chris Gray and was finishing off her piece of work.  Several of us are doing the Regional Summer School with the Embroiderers' Guild and will have a 3 day workshop with Chris so hope it is as good as this looks.

Royal Armouries Exhibition

Five members of the group have contributed to the exhibition at the Royal Armouries called Threads of War.  The exhibition was the idea of Annie Parkinson who started people working on quilts, hangings and embroideries and who now has over 100 items in the collection.  She started displaying the work in local libraries and small venues and a large portion of the work is now in the Armouries.  It will stay there until 21st June when it will then move to the Armouries other venue in Portsmouth.  The amount of work Annie has put into this has been tremendous and we all thank her.  The opening preview of the exhibition was on Friday 27th March so I went along and took these photographs.  They aren't very good because the lighting was low.
This poster is in the entrance to the armouries.

This panel is outside the gallery along with a video of the Leavening Embroiderers at work.

This is the start of our part of the exhibition.

This small side area of the gallery was devoted to the Leavening Embroiderers work.

There were a number of workbooks on display.

More of our groups work.  My blog is mixing up the pictures and it is difficult to move them without making a complete mess of it.

Each piece of work is accompanied by one of these notices.

It is well worth a visit as the armouries is free to go in and there is lots there for children to enjoy.

Just wanted to add this picture of an embroidery done by the Ladies of Leavening village which now hangs in their church.  It was what started the Leavening Embroiderers group and it is beautifully stitched.  All the central panel is split stitch and each picture shows an activity done in the village.

March Meeting

Fantastic workshop today making paper with Niki Hampson of Pulpitations.  Everybody was busy all day and we all collapsed in our chairs at about 2.30 in the afternoon absolutely shattered.  Lots of lovely paper made as you can see below.  The coloured pieces are paper pulp and the white is cotton rag.  Hope to see some interesting things made with all this paper at next months meeting.

Don't know who's is who's but they all look great.