A successful workshop & a couple of finished pieces, oh my

I gave a workshop in my home for the very first time last week, called 'Functional Frivolity', making a notebook cover & one or 2 other things from  one piece of reconstructed fabric. I've given this w/s once before but not for 2 years so it was good to see an 'old friend'

My contribution  to my students - a notebook (that's my notebook in there, I meant to put a new one in!) a few pretties in a bag including a brooch back, ribbon loop &  button, a choice of organza, some Bondaweb & a handout with instructions.

 This was Kate's, above, before the organza & below, her book cover & spare pieces having used the burgundy organza & lots of delicious embellishments. She's enough to make a cuff & a brooch there.

 Here is Justine's before the organza

 & below with burgundy organza but don't the 2 look different. She had gridlike stitching one way & then wavy in the other direction to great effect. She'll make her book cover & some cards at home - she's a busy lady ;)

 Last but not least (oh, they were meant to be alphabetical order, I seem to have forgotten my alphabet!) are Tricia's, below before organza

 & here after covering her jewel colored strips with a bold purple organza, just lovely. Next to her book cover is a strip for a cuff. I was sent 3 lovely appreciative thank you emails so I think it went down well ;)

 I showed them ideas of what to make from the extra piece/s from my sketchbook - I've added in the book with the square of shiny fabric the purse & all the snippets that I can't throw away in my 'recycling jar' which end up neatly tucked under the organza.

 I have Jan Beany & Jean Littlejohn (Bonding & Beyond) & Fibrefusion (Beyond Boundaries) to thank for starting me on a journey of snippet collecting & fusing!

 Above is my piece which will be a couple of purses. I'm looking forward to making the Studio more workshop friendly because,  altho a nice number,  I can only fit 3 or 4 round my dining room table. We're working on improving the lighting for workshops during those dark winter days, & designing a table that will live on top of the permanent table but 'lift off' to use elsewhere when needed. But what we can do about the cold I don't know, short of insulating all over & installing under floor heating...but that's not in this year's budget ;)

 And finally above is my finished heron hanging, (well, bar the backing) about 6 1/2" x 14". I wrapped/couched down  machine cords with black embroidery thread - the mix of wool I made the cords out of reminded me of silver birch, perfect. I sweated over how to do the heron for months until I remembered Stephanie Redfern's Workshop on the Web artice a while ago on 'Slips'. What a revelation, it took me an hour or so, really,  to finalise a drawing (from my sketchbook) on the back of the pelmet vilene to which I fused a sort of black damask fabric, which I've truthfully only just found while sorting my cloth bins  - can you see the slight pattern follows the shape of the heron's underside.....  then I cut...carefully,  I used textile paint on the white 'sides' of the vilene, dried it over the Aga, initially  held it in place with 3 stitches &  traveled round the whole heron adding a few sparkly long stitches. Oh joy to have got him on there, finally. The same with the moon, two layers of different organza but it's blown out on the pic, sorry. What a relief to have done this, especially as it's one month till the exhibition.

This one, same size as above I just played with stitching & couching & had a lovely time over a few evenings - I could do more, we'll see. It does look vaguely nautical...... What shall I call it?