Description
Join Melanie Hodge specialising in naive paining and textile art for a day in her home studio and gallery. Melanie has been working with textiles her entire life and during the 2020 lockdowns they became a central part of her creative practice. Using fabric remnants from local upholstery and soft furnishing workshops, Melanie now makes sensory-rich quilts with fabric saved from landfill. In addition, using a range of machine and hand sewing techniques she creates contemporary pieced quilts and memory quilts / wall hangings using a combination of salvaged materials, UK sourced quilting cottons, pre-loved clothing, and more. Her work is intuitive, playful, and practical. For those wanting to mix stitched work with mark-making the day may also include use of paints, inks, and other mediums.
Your workshop experience will include the opportunity to learn a range of traditional and modern quilting and sewing techniques with the opportunity to create a unique piece tailored to your specific interests. This may include bringing your own memory-rich fabrics or working entirely from Melanie’s stash. For beginners the day may include making up half a dozen Christmas or Easter tree appropriate ornaments or a 1-2-1 tutorial on quilt assembly techniques or mixing machine and hand embroidery for a small collaged piece, while those with more experience may wish to layout a more complicated piece to take home and finish in their own time.
Duration: 6 hours, this can be split over two days on request for an extra £50 charge
Time at Venue: 6 hours
Availability:
This experience is available on selected dates throughout the year from 10 am – 5 pm,
Mondays through Friday
Requirements:
All materials provided though participants are encouraged to bring fabrics and/or other materials (ie jewellery, badges, other memorabilia) if they would like to create a unique piece incorporating their own memories / Refreshments and a light lunch included / Special diets catered for with advance notice / All levels welcome / No previous art or sewing experience required
Suitable for ages 14 and over
Some hand sewing dexterity recommended, but not required as the day will be tailored to your abilities and interests.
Price: £275
Group Size and Spectators:
Participants: 1
Additional Participants: £50 per person
Max Group Size: 4
Spectators Allowed on Site: On request
All prices include 25% commission
Location:
Burgess Hill, West Sussex
For those arriving via train, free transport to the venue from Burgess Hill (stair free access) / Haywards Heath / or Wivelsfield Stations can be arranged with advance notice.
Venue Accessibility:
Free parking available
Single small step from drive to patio and from patio into house. Ground floor loo is not accessible via wheelchair due to narrow hall and doorway.
What to Wear:
If mark making, wear clothing you are ok to get oil paint on – otherwise no specific advice.
Weather:
This experience should not be affected by the weather.
Extras:
Participants will be able to take home extra fabric to complete a project and follow up support via phone or zoom chat. You will also receive a 20% discount voucher towards purchasing small originals, prints and/or cards of either my textile or non-textile work purchased directly from me and valid for 12 months from the experience, transferable to a loved one who might want to buy them a gift.
Note on Accessibility: Melanie is experienced care taker and capable to offer extra support for disabled potential participants, please let us know in advance if this should be the case.
