Found Objects & Unusual Finds

I spent much of yesterday attaching interesting things to fabric.  I’d visited Hannah Lamb‘s studio in Saltaire during the Arts Trail earlier this year and discovered that she ran workshops.  Took me ages to decide which one I’d like the best – Stitch with Found Objects.  So DH took Monkey to the Keighley & Worth Valley railway while I got to look through (& use) some of Hannah’s stash of collected objects.  She runs quite small classes (her studio isn’t huge) but it meant that the workshop was nice & chatty without being too chaotic.  There was nearly an extra attendee, as a very stubborn butterfly kept flying in through the open window.

I came away with a sampler of non-standard ‘things’ stitched to fabric, and to other ‘things’.  And a determination to do more ‘sketchbook stitching’, although admittedly I’ve been trying to do more sketchbook stuff for maybe 10 years…  I liked the fact that the workshop wasn’t all about learning a whole raft of different stitches, that part she kept pretty simple.  It was more a case of having a go with ideas.  Although I did learn how to do buttonhole stitch & mattress stitch.  I also picked up a flyer for some forthcoming workshops so I may be sending DH & Monkey off on another outing in a few months.

Changing the subject slightly, Monkey & I harvested a reasonable crop of peas this afternoon.  A couple of the pods had been nibbled by snails (which has happened in previous years) but that hadn’t had too much impact on the peas themselves.  Unfortunately, we also discovered that about a third of the pods we picked had small caterpillars in them, eating the peas!  They probably aren’t that unusual, but I don’t remember ever seeing them before.

I wonder if dried pea pods would be interesting to stitch…