Join Ali Ferguson for a day of hand stitching with a difference creating a ‘stitched sampler’ from ‘patches’ of wood. This is such a unique way to curate your own little collections of random treasure into one gorgeous wall hanging full of your own personal stories & memories.

To make your piece truly personal you’ll need to bring along your own bits & pieces to stitch onto your sampler, things that tell a little bit of your, or your family’s story

You could make a sampler themed around your family or memories of childhood. You could bring along the contents of granny's sewing box, small things from grandpa's tool shed, or a collection of garden related bits – scraps of twine, old seed packets, seed-heads, plant labels, and bits of rusty fence wire! You could work on a kitchen theme with recipe’s, bits of cutlery, cookie cutters & kitchen cloths. Perhaps you habitually pick things up when you are out for walks - things gathered from nature make a beautiful collection with perhaps some text from a nature book or similar. Or maybe you’ll gather a collection of unrelated bits that when put together tell a story of you. Thinking about and gathering your materials in advance of the workshop is the very start of the making process, so do make sure you give yourself time and enjoy! Do bring along more than you think you might need so that you have a choice to work with.

You’ll start by preparing & painting your wooden patches before laying out your treasures. Each object will be stitched into place onto its wooden ‘patch’ and then these will all be stitched together to create your unique sampler. You’ll drill two tiny holes through the wood for each stitch that you make – you’ll soon feel as comfortable using the drill as you do your needle & thread!

Ali will provide all your wooden ‘patches’, thread for stitching and cream paint for painting your patches – bring your own paint if you want to use a different colour (small tester pots of emulsion are ideal). You’ll work with six wooden patches approximately 7cm wide and varying in length from 4cm to 12cm.

Ali will also bring along a selection of sewing related bits & pieces that you are very welcome to use.

There are a few messy bits so please bring an apron or at the very least don’t wear your Sunday Best!

To see more of Ali's work, head to her website here. Or head to Ali's Instagram here.

BOOKING THIS WORKSHOP:

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