Artist & Facilitator

I am a freelance artist based in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria in the North West of England. I have worked within the performing and fine arts for 20 years. Initally I worked within the theatre as a performer and on production. Then moving on to a street circus group that performed around the UK. I did my degree BA(hons) Fine Art at Uclan. For fifteen years I have collaborated with local arts organisations, worked on youth community projects and in schools running a variety of creative projects. I am currently a member of North Lonsdale Embroiderers Guild, Blue Tarn, a rural womens artists collective and Trident Textiles, based in Furness. I am always working on a variety of small scale projects including photography, textile and mixed media. Although my favourite thing is meeting and talking to interesting people!


Saturday, 22 May 2010

Exhibitions & Sewing




The collaborative of work including my brothers through Signal Films had opened on Thursday evening with the preview.  We all turned up like the Dingles or the Clampetts as my brother says and ate and drank everything!  It was great.  Eddys work was used in the publicity material and was in the Evening Mail.  It was the best there and so many others thought too.  Although everyones work was great. 

Its on at Forum 28 until the end of next week I think.



I have also started looking at the photos I had been taking of things around Barrow to see how I can ake work from them.  I have made a new 'mock up' handbag using on the boats in the channel.



So I took this photo of the boat in the foreground and made simplified sketches until I was happy with an overall design.  The boat although not entirely like the original was clearly the same.  Then I set about looking through my stash of scraps of vintage fabric to make up the boat in applique form.  Then I cut out the bag using my adapted pattern.  I chose Laura Ashley white spot on blue fabric for the bag itself.  Using 'misty fuse' I stuck the fabric boat onto the bag.











Then I free-motion embroidered onto the boat and fabric with my sewing machine using cotton thread to animate it to life.



The resulting bag is cute and very usable.  I lined it in a heavy cotton as the outer material is not very thick.  I included a 'wash label' and design label.  Although these are old fashioned and don't really suit it.  I would like new labels.




I used a magnetic fastening on the tab opening but sewed a large vintage red button on the outside for decoration.  I also used vintage buttons for the tyres.












Just right for a little jaunty shoulder bag for essentials.  Plus it is a boat that exists in Barrow.







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