Thursday, October 30, 2014

How to make a Christmas Bauble

This is a wonderful video for this time of year on how to make a Christmas Bauble

Instructions

Start with a plain polystyrene egg and draw a line around it from top to bottom so you have two halves.

Draw another line at right angles to the line you have already drawn so you now have your polystyrene ball with four quarters marked on it.

Pin a piece of tracing paper to the top and bottom of the ball and trace around one of the quarters.

Cut out the shape on the tracing paper to create the template.

Take a piece of white paper and draw around the template four times.

Cut out the four shapes on the white and then place the shapes onto the piece of fabric you have chosen for the bauble.

Pin the paper to the fabric and then cut around the paper to leave you with four pieces of fabric shaped like the template.

Apply some adhesive to the egg and stick each piece of fabric.

Trim off any excess fabric that is either overlapping or sticking up.

Once the fabric has dried it is time to add the decorations.

Add a drop of glue to one end of the polystyrene ball.

Take a strip of ribbon and place it on the glue drop and run the ribbon along one of the seams of the fabric bringing it back to where it started.

Temporarily fix the ribbon with a pin until the glue dries.

Repeat this process with another piece of ribbon along the other seam.

Put a pin into the egg about 2/3^rd of the way down the egg in the middle of one of the pieces of fabric.

Put another pin in the same position as the first pin but on the opposite side of the egg.

Take a longer piece of ribbon and pin it to the top of the ball and then loop it around the first pin and back to the top and then the second pin and back to the top again. You should have two loops of ribbon on either side of the polystyrene ball.

Move the two side pins up so they are about half way down the side of the egg on each side.

Repeat the process so now there are two loops on each side both of different sizes.

Use the pin at the top to hold the ribbon in place.

Repeat this process one more time with the side pins being about 1/3^rd of the way down the egg to create three loops of ribbon on each side.

Firmly affix the ribbon with glue and leave to dry.

Add a decorative pin to the top of the ball and loop some ribbon on the pin to act as a hanging loop.

Your Christmas Bauble is now complete and ready for the tree!

How to make a Christmas Bauble

Monday, October 27, 2014

Add to your Embroidery Stitch Library

Learning when to use the right embroidery stitch is important to show your crafting project off.

Lucy Garvin is a self-taught artist whose curiosity and passion for sewing, embellishing and anything fabric or fibre related, has led her to explore almost every technique worked with a threaded needle, both hand and machine. Lucy shares her passion for hand and machine embellishment techniques through teaching.

Colouricious have organised a Hand Stitched Embroidery Workshop on Sunday 22nd February. This is the perfect way to either introduce yourself to Hand Embroidery or to perfect your current skill levels. Places are limited, but if you are interested in this workshop you can reserve your place by clicking the link below and going to the booking tab.

Hand Stitched Embroidery Workshop

We also have a super DVD that covers lots of embroidery stitches. Creative Free Embroidery with Gina Ferrari is an easy to follow DVD that covers lots of different stitches in clear and concise chapters. If you are interested in this DVD then you can find more details about it on our website where you can make your purchase.

Colouricious Tutorials

We have just posted our newest tutorial on how to make your own fabric necklace. This would make a wonderful gift for a friend or loved one. You can see this tutorials by clicking the link below.

How to make a Fabric Necklace

If you have a particular tutorial you would like us to cover in more detail please contact us and let us know the tutorial you are looking for and we will do our best to get it uploaded and sorted out for you.

Latest Colouricious Arrivals

We have updated our Latest Arrivals page in the last couple of days and we now have shells, trees and jellyfish blocks for you to see. We also have some lovely gifts for Silk Painters which would be perfect for Christmas.

Check out the latest arrivals!

The Stencil Shop

We are growing our Stencil offering everyday with lots of new stencils available. We now have seven different Stencil categories and are very confident that we will have the perfect stencil for you.

Check out the video and our super selection

Colouricious Holidays

At the end of March, 2015 we are off to West Bengal for an Embroidery Heritage Textile Tour. We will be exploring the Indian traditional techniques of block printing, kantha embroidery and textiles, and many more truly unique experiences. This holiday is already over half full so there are not many spaces left, so if this tour is of interest then please get in contact with us using the booking forms to reserve your place.

The highlight of the trip will be a visit to the village of Katna where you will take part in a Kantha weaving workshop. Kantha holds a very special place within the village life in Katna. In Katna, you will enjoy a workshop on Kantha weaving. The process of Kantha work goes in a way that the new fabric to be used for the top and the bottom layers of the Kantha is first cut and then stitched according to the desired size. The bottom layer is spread on the floor and ironed. A second layer of soft white cloth is spread on top of it. A third layer of fabric is spread on top and all the three layers are secured together by long running stiches. Thread colours are selected for the quilting work and this is followed by embroidery work. Once the embroidery work is finished, the extra fabric is cut off from the sides to get a straight edge and a piping in matching colour is stitched along the edge for the finish and the label is added. The Kanthas are washed and ironed and are ready.

Our Next Textile Show

Our very last textile event of the year is going to be at the most fabulous show Harrogate Knitting & Stitching Show which open 20-23rd November. If you can make it to this show then we would be delighted to see you. We will have all our Christmas stock on show which will definitely give you some more ideas and inspiration for your textile art.

Block Printing Workshops – More Workshops – Easier to Book!

We are delighted to let you know that we are expanding the number of workshops we are going to run next year. We have already scheduled about a dozen workshops so far for January and February. If you are interested in attending one of our workshops then take a look at the Workshop page of our website. Each course has a booking tab and from there you can choose the date you want to attend and then make payment. We have courses arranged for all of our workshops and we are planning on creating more workshops as well in 2015. Our first workshop is a Creative Block Printing Workshop to be held on Tuesday 6th January. We would love to see you there!

Learn, Create, Be Happy!

kind regards

Jamie Malden
Colouricious

Add to your Embroidery Stitch Library

Saturday, October 25, 2014

How to make a Fabric Necklace

How to make a fabric necklace

This is an easy to follow video that will enable to make wonderful unique fabric necklaces.

Instructions

Choose a piece of fabric and then block print it with your favourite block.

Iron the fabric to seal the printed pattern. This will ensure that your fabric is washable up to 40 degrees.

Cut your material into strips ready to be formed into a necklace.

It may be necessary to join multiple strips of fabric together to get the correct necklace length. Follow the video to show you how to do this.

Fold the strip of fabric in half lengthwise and inside out.

Pin the fabric in place and then draw semi circle shapes along the length of the fabric.

Use a sewing machine to sew along the line you have drawn.

Remove the pins and cut off the excess fabric.

Thread a slightly blunt needle and sew through the corner of the fabric and secure.

Push the needle through one layer of the fabric and then slide the needle along the length of the fabric until it appears out of the other end of the fabric.

Continue to pull the needle and thread through the fabric, turning the fabric inside out. Leave the needle in place.

Take some polystyrene balls and some beads and start putting a ball into the fabric and push the fabric through a bead so the bead holds the polystyrene ball in place.

Carry on alternating balls and beads until you get to the length of necklace you require.

Cut off the excess material and use the needle to affix both ends of the necklace together.

How to make a Fabric Necklace

Friday, October 24, 2014

Medieval Tile 02 (Duplicate)

This Medieval Tile 02 measures 10×10 cm.

Medieval Tile 02 (Duplicate)

3 Ammonite Wood Stamps

The three blocks each measure 8 x 7 cm.

3 Ammonite Wood Stamps

3 Shells wood stamps

The shell measures 7.5 x 7.5 cm, the spiral shell measures 7.5 x 6.5 cm, and the whelk measures 8 x 3.5 cm.

3 Shells wood stamps

PE03 Pattern Peacock

The peacock measures 10.5 x 8 cm, and the square block measures 7 cm.

PE03 Pattern Peacock

2 Peacock Feathers

The longest feather measures 15.5 x 6 cm, the smallest one measures 10 x 4 cm.

2 Peacock Feathers

2 Greek Keys

The biggest block measures 12.5 x 6 cm, the smallest block measures 10 x 4.5 cm.

2 Greek Keys

HD26 Divided Heart big

This divided Heart measures 13 x 7.5 cm.

HD26 Divided Heart big

Thursday, October 23, 2014

unto us a king is born ...

This wooden printing block measures 13 x 13 cm.

unto us a king is born ...

Quilting textile design with a Gelli Plate

First, spread a thin layer of fabric paint onto the surface.Then press the wooden printing blocks onto a round gelli plate.Then put a piece of fabric onto the gelli plate. Now you can use Colouricious block printing and have fun!

Use the gelli plate , fabric paint and wooden printing blocks to design your own hand printed fabric.These wood stamps lift the paint off the gelli plate to create stunning results. For more creative ideas join the Colouricious Club

quilt-textile-design-gelli-plate-block-printing-fabric

Quilting textile design with a Gelli Plate

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Easy Fix Stretcher Frame

56 x 56 cm (22 x 22 inches)

Easy Fix Stretcher Frame

Paints & Palette Set

This set contains a set of 5 paints and a 6 well plastic paint palette

Paints & Palette Set

Foam Brushes

Gutta White 20ml

Gutta Silver 20ml

Gutta Gold 20ml

Gutta Copper 20ml

Gutta clear 20ml

Acrylic & Deco Paint Brushes

This brushes set contains 8 Acrylic and Deco brushes for you to fill your painting desires with.

Acrylic & Deco Paint Brushes

Gutta Black 20ml

Workbox Painting on Silk

This set contains 10x45ml Setasilk bottles, 1x20ml gold water based gutta tube, accessories and 1 user guide

Workbox Painting on Silk

Monday, October 20, 2014

Learn more Embroidery Stitches

Using different embroidery stitches can really make your textile craft projects stand out. There are a huge number of different stitches that you can do, and most embroidery sewing machines will be able to automatically stitch most of them. However, all is not lost if your machine doesn’t do many different stitches as several of them can be successfully completed manually if necessary.

Colouricious have several videos that you can watch to see how decorative embroidery stitches can be used to make your projects unique. You can watch them by visiting our Embroidery Library page on the Colouricious website.

Colouricious Tutorials

We are running a series tutorials in the News section of our website. We show a video and then clear written instructions for you to follow. You can see the first two tutorials we have completed by clicking the links below.

Block Printing for Book Making

Make your own Felt Flowers

Latest Colouricious Arrivals

The Latest Arrivals section of our website is now full of all of our new blocks that have arrived in time for Christmas. If you saw our Hen Party email you will also know that we have also just got in some lovely sewing patterns that you can use your block printed fabric to make some beautiful hens. If you make Molly, Polly or Charlie Chicken then please send us some pictures; we would love to see your creations.

Check out the latest arrivals!

The Stencil Shop

We are growing our Stencil offering everyday with lots of new stencils available. We now have seven different Stencil categories and are very confident that we will have the perfect stencil for you.

Check out the video and our super selection

Colouricious Holidays

We have been able to confirm and set up two additional holidays to Vietnam for 2015. Booking and Reservation forms can be found on our website. This holiday was particularly popular when we first introduced it, so we are sure these extra dates will fill up quickly. We will be starting in Hanoi and then over 15 days we will travel south down the east coast exploring many of the different aspects of this wonderful Country. We will be staying in an eco lodge, exploring the hill top villages of the Hmong tribe, touching on the history of the Vietnam war and getting a chance to see and photograph some wonderful sites. Textiles, their use and methods of manufacture will also be a focus of the trip. If this tour sounds of interest and you would like to explore Vietnam, then head over to our Vietnam Holiday page, download the booking form and get your place reserved.

If would like to come to India in December 2014 to take part in several block printing workshops, with real Indian printers, there is now only one place left. You will be taking part in 2 block printing workshops, one in a factory in Jaipur and one in a rural village, to compare the contrast. You will also be taking part in a Dabu Printing Workshop – where you will actually print your own fabric using mud (!) and wooden printing blocks. You will then Indigo dye your fabric, which you get to bring home with you. Fabulous fun! For fuller details, see our Block Printing Holiday in Jaipur. This particular holiday is perfect if you are a person who loves to keep busy doing, learning and playing.

Have a look at the lovely hotel we will be staying at during our holiday in Jaipur. This link is not broken but can only be accessed if you are on Facebook.

Our Next Textile Show

Block Printing Workshops

We have had the most wonderful year teaching block printing workshops to quilting and embroidery groups across the UK, America & Europe. We are now accepting bookings for 2015/2016. If you would like your group to learn how to design their own fabrics for their quilting, embroidery and sewing projects, please do phone us to arrange the date. Best to phone as that way we can arrange the date without endless emails going backwards and forwards! My number is 01494 721 471. I am very happy to travel far and wide to share my love for block printing.

Learn, Create, Be Happy!

kind regards

Jamie Malden
Colouricious

Learn more Embroidery Stitches

Sunday, October 19, 2014

T-shirt with HOT SPOTS and Transfer Foils

HOT SPOTS t-shirt with Transfer Foils

Kim Thittichai is a British textile artist who specialises in surface design. In this video, you will learn how to make your own tee shirt. You can use Colouricious wooden printing blocks to print your own design.

Here are some examples of a tee shirt that Kim has made using HOT SPOTS and Transfer Foils.

Would you like to create your own Tee Shirt ? All you need to use is HOT SPOTS and Transfer Foil.

For this project, we recommend Colouricious wooden printing blocks and Colouricious fabric paint.

Love Textiles – Come and join us in the Colouricious Club – If you love arts and crafts and looking for new ideas and blogs, supplies and inspiration, Colouricious specialises in promoting textile art featuring leading British textile artists. sign up for our free weekly online newsletter to get up to date cutting-edge ideas.

T-shirt with HOT SPOTS and Transfer Foils