Boxes & pouches workshop
What a memorable day, in more ways than one!
Who would have thought that Tuesday 19 July 2022 would have been the hottest day on record in many parts of the country and there we were, fourteen members of Textile & Stitch taking part in an “in house” workshop. Looking at the temperature it was 35 degrees. Fortunately we had a couple of electric fans and could open the hall doors wide. I chuckled when I saw Kay with a fan in her hand!
Tase and Amanda very kindly offered to organise this workshop which was related to bags and the day was divided into two sessions, one in the morning and then we swapped to the other in the afternoon. Tase said she was nervous and had butterflies – it was much easier to teach people who you don’t know. Both Tase and Amanda were extremely well prepared with notes and a lovely variety of fabrics and accessories for us to buy.
Tase had two items for us to make, an origami basket and/or a pouch. She talked about the various possibilities and said we could add a layer of wadding to give more support. The layers could be quilted, the basket folded in various ways and buttons added to give another dimension to the finished basket. There were three sizes of pouch to choose from and by the end of the session everyone had completed at least one to take home.
Amanda’s project was to make a box bag and she guided us through the various steps, adding the zip to the bag, folding, turning, adding a couple of tabs and stitching it to make a box. One lady experimented by having two different complimentary fabrics for the outside and this looked extremely effective. There was a lot of scope to do your own thing and make your bags very individual.
Vernice kindly offered to be in charge of the kitchen for the day and various members contributed delicious cakes for people to buy. There was a wonderful choice – walnut cake, orange cake, lemon drizzle cake and cookies. The money was put towards group funds.
What an amazingly talented group we are to be able to have members prepared to lead workshops and to share their skills. It was super to see the results and everyone went away happy that they had made at least two very useful items with inspiration for birthday and Christmas presents. I for one, am really look forward to the next workshop.
Thank you Tase, Amanda and Vernice.
Report by Ros
Photos thanks to Amanda, Vernice and a couple from me, Ros!