Greetings fellow hand crafters
Winter has well and truly hit Johannesburg. This week has been ice cold and our houses are not geared for this weather. We are huddled around heaters and dressed in all the winter clothes we possess and counting the days until Spring…but it’s still a long way off!
The highlight of this month has undoubtedly got to be seeing my name mentioned in the Inspirations Newsletter last Friday afternoon. (For those who want to subscribe the email address to arrange it is news@inspirationsstudios.com.) I could have grown wings and flown when I read a piece by one of my students, Conor Hughes, regarding an embroidery I’d helped her with earlier in the year. This makes all the teaching worthwhile. Thank you, Conor.
Now to share with you what some of my other students have been doing: Eleanor Peake completed her floral embroidery (designed by Salli van Rensburg). Eleanor decided to get it made up into a runner and it takes pride of place on her dining room table. It looks absolutely gorgeous. Thank you, Anita Bouwer, for making up the runner. It is lovely.
Elfie De Necker completed her embroidery on the needlecase she was working on. It is exquisite. Thank you Delene Wolfe-Coote for making up the case. It is beautiful and the perfect place to keep all your sewing needles.
Nara Mahale has continued to amaze me. I showed her how to do a chevron stitch and she tested it out with several thicknesses of thread, creating a lovely sampler. She also made herself a crocheted blouse all by herself. Last week she mastered the bubble stitch. For someone who has only crocheted for a few months and is all of 11 years old, I think she is doing brilliantly.
While I was in New Zealand on holiday earlier this year, I bought some wool. I am happy to report that I am using it making a jersey with a DROPS design pattern. Hopefully I will get to wear it while it is still so cold.
I have also finished another of the embroidered designs of Colleen Goy’s. They are loosely based on William Morris designs. Of the twenty-five I need to do for the quilt, six are complete, with a seventh almost done.
As a charity drive for Threads of Joy this year, I have chosen three options. One is to knit scarves, the other is to knit or crochet Knockers (alternatives to breast prosthesis) and a third is to make beanies, booties and vests for babies. I challenge myself and students to give back to society and in South Africa there is need all around us. We will be giving these out in the next week so that the various charities have them in time for Mandela Day (18 July). Thank you everyone who has contributed.
I give lessons at Ribbonfields in Bordeaux EVERY Thursday morning, so if Kyalami Estates are too far for you, please consider this option. Lessons at Kyalami are on Wednesday and Friday mornings and Tuesday afternoons every alternate week. I’d love you to join me so I can share my passion for crafts with you!
The stock at Threads of Joy is building up. If you are needing items, especially for your embroidery projects – from DMC and Chameleon threads to Roseworks Embroidery kits, to sewing needles, to embroidery hoops or scissors please give me a call. If I don’t have the items in stock, I will try my best to get them for you. Just call me before hand to arrange a suitable time to do your shopping.
Join me if you want to learn a new skill and meet some like-minded friends! Be inspired. Begin a new project. Bring a friend along too. Contact me if you are interested in crocheting, knitting or doing some hand embroidery. Remember, you are never too old or too young to learn something new!
Yours in craft, Lindsey
