How about a Retreat in beautiful Wales??

Good news - well I hope it is good news ... there are a few spaces on the Spring Retreat  I am running in May 2016  at the Minerva Gallery in Llanidloes, Wales. The retreat will coincide with a the exhibition 'Identity' by Art Textiles Made in Britain - and all in a stunningly beautiful area of Wales.

 The retreat is entitled 'Sanctuary' and we will be making pages which incorporate the things/places/people/objects which bring you joy, comfort and peace. You can work on individual pages, or in a book, or on khadi or watercolour paper, or canvas; you can use paper or fabric or both: you can stitch and embellish with any ephemera or found objects you may have collected. You can bind the pages, or mount them or make a hanging . or .... . the point is you don't have to make all the decisions at once .. that so often stops us doing anything. We will be printing and painting on day 1, then working up pages for the remaining two days. 

Following are some ideas of things you might try:

Some fabric pages .. using prints I have made of a crab found on the beach - a definite sanctuary place for me. Not sure how I will finish these yet .. may mount on canvas; may make some more an bind together as a book or I may make a soft wall hanging with them .. I can think about it whilst I stitch them  

     

  

 

some khadi paper pages - featuring found objects from nature - picked up when I am walking the dog. Again - not sure yet what these will become - I have many options as above .. but I can keep making them until I decide

These pages are made using opened out blank greetings cards

and I do have a plan for these .. when I have finished them, I shall stick them back to back in a circle like this - to make a circular standing book

I have just made these pages, using gorgeous leaves I have picked up - collecting treasure is another form of sanctuary for me - again, still to decide what I will do with them - they are on khadi - so lots of options

in this case I decided to mount them as a possible finished page - I shall probably put this on canvas after adding some stitch. I made three backgrounds so I can make a set

 

of course you may choose to make pages direct into a sketchbook - you can always remove them and use them elsewhere .. or you can add other pages you have made into the sketchbook ...so many options

 

  

these pages are made using leaf prints .. an activity that I find soothing and replenishing .. another form of sanctuary - I have added in some extra pages with washi tape (I would count washi tape as a treasure too!)

 

there again - maybe you would like to prepare a books worth of pages to work with - these are khadi paper coloured with neocolour 1 crayons and dye  .. they started as a pack of A5 in two weights. I tore the end off each and then used that to make a spine for the page. These can now be worked into and bound when you are ready

  

these are also made from A5 papers .. a pack with an assortment of paper types this time. I have used some of the pack to make the spines for this book, so keeping the A5 dimensions

 

the pages are all still loose - some spines have two or three pages in them 

I can work in to these any way I want .. with paints, dyes gelatos, crayons, collage and stitch and then put the pages together to bind

 

below is an example of one way you might choose to bind your pages .. I have woven them together 

 

this is the book - made using a pack of two different sizes of long khadi paper - still easy to work into as it opens right around into a spiral and

another little book option  with the long pieces - a homemade zigzag with pockets

and that is another thing you might like to do - make some zigzag books - these are great for keeping mementos, photos and ephemera in so you can enjoy them every day ....

this little one uses some brooke bond cards of the coast, which I have had stashed  for years ... so much nicer to have them out and enjoy  them

this taller zig zag is made from two little zigzag books stuck together - so I could use my long thin photos of my beloved gulls .. ready to stitch now

a couple more zig zag books - larger this time, both reflecting my love of the coast .. and my boys!

 at the most simple - these are just little pages that I am going to put in some lovely wooden frames I have when they are stitched

maybe you would like to alter a book - one with a resonance for you to contain some of your treasures and images of your sanctuaries

this one is a nature diary - reflecting a passion of mine .. and I have been altering  and working in it  for a couple of years now - just slowly building up images and memories for myself

....some collected twigs and a drawing of them too

beloved echinaceas and the paw print of the artist - from my beloved gelli plate

more gelli prints of leaves - all set up for colouring into

and simple drawings of favourite flowers

this is a new/old book I am altering. It is one of those colouring books that are very popular right now

 ... that spoke to me as I love colouring. I've started gesso-ing some pages and adding bits - in this case from Bettys tearooms - surely the ultimate sanctuary!! I am planning to use this one for my favourite northern haunts and visits

another option (the last for now!!) is a fabric based book. This one is again a beachy one .. the pages are all my own dyed and printed fabrics and like some of the paper books - it is not yet bound, so I can easily work into the pages

some pages are half done - this is a paper thermofax print and some free machine stitcthing

empty pages ready to go

some pages reflecting my love of the boats at the seaside

 at present it is all held together with an elastic band .. when I am ready, I can stitch it all up

The truth is, just making pages and working into my sketchbooks is a place of sanctuary for me. Add in favourite subjects and special things, and make things that keep those close to you and visible ... and you have bought sanctuary right into your home and heart

 

All details about the retreat can be found on Minerva website .. and booking is via them too. Here is a link: http://www.quilt.org.uk/index.php?topic=workshopdetail&id=82&year=

Hope to see some of you there - our own sanctuary for three days! xx