Community stitch challenge week two: Cas Holmes
- Category Community Stitch Challenge
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It’s time to get involved in the TextileArtist.org community stitch challenge week two.
Here’s the lowdown. We wanted to do our part to bring together the global community of stitchers and encourage you to keep connected with each other and your own creativity during this time of social isolation.
And that’s why we enlisted the help of some amazing practitioners and textile art tutors to bring you a series of 100% free mini-workshops and stitch challenges.
The stitch challenge so far…
Last time we welcomed texture and pattern aficionado Sue Stone. We’ve probably only mentioned this a few thousand times (we’re very proud sons) but Sue is our mum so we know firsthand just how amazed she was by the work that was created in response to her mini video workshop.
She told us, “I’ve used that sampling exercise so many times and shared it with thousands of students and yet it never ceases to astonish me just how diverse the results can be!”
Check out Sue’s challenge here
For the second community stitch challenge, we’re really excited to welcome regular TextileArtistorg contributor Cas Holmes.
Who is Cas Holmes?
Cas is one of the UK’s best-loved textile artists with works in public and private collections. She has written extensively on the subject of creating textile art for Batsford Books. Her publications include Textile Landscape and Stitch Stories.
Travel has been integral to her textile practice and her work is influenced by time spent researching in Japan, India and Canada and her recent work has been focused on landscapes. During this time of social distancing, Cas is re-assessing her approach to use the ‘landscape of home’ as her inspiration.
Cas has made it her mission to repurpose cast-off textiles and objects, which she paints, layers, collages and stitches to capture fleeting moments in time.
What is this week’s challenge all about?
And it’s the current need to isolate and her zero-waste ethos that has inspired this week’s community stitch challenge.
You’ll be using an object from around your home as the starting point for a stitched collage. This is a chance to make creative use of some of those fabric scraps from your stash and get creative with your favourite hand stitches.
Check out the stitch challenge video now and download the accompanying workbook so you have a handy step by step guide by your side as you make your collage.
What to do next
- Download the workbook for Cas’s challenge here
- Join the Community Stitch Challenge Facebook Group now
- Discover more about Cas’s approach to making textile art here
- Got questions for Cas and don’t want to join the Facebook group? No worries! Leave a comment below.
Thanks very much for this. After a year not stitching (doing a poetry course) your challenges has got me going again. I can’t join in Facebook but am pleased they are also on your website. Living in a small flat and not having much storage space, in the past I’ve made pieces for greetings cards which has meant that I’ve made pieces that I think other people will like. Your challenge has started me to want to make pieces that I like, irrespective of what others might think – they might never see them. As to what to do with them – I don’t know. Maybe I have to throw my clothes away – having cut up bits I want first of course!
Love and thanks, Jan
Don’t throw away your clothes even if they have been cut up. Put them in a bag as Rags and take them to a charity shop once things are back to normal. They sell them by weight. Same applies to remnants from dress making etc
So pleased you are back into Stitch Jan…and stitch away the worries. Xx
Thank you for your encouragement to collage and to look outside for inspiration. I saw my poppies blooming a gift from a dear gardener who crossed over a few months ago in the ultimate social distancing. But she nods her head at me from my garden bed. I think ideas are percolating. Thanks, kate
I love poppies. They are the wildflower of my native Norfolk
Many thanks for allowing us to stitch via your website as I am not on facebook. Our Stage 3 isolation does not allow us to go out into the community unless it is for medical, supermarket, employment or exercise. I will be looking forward to working on the challenge while in isolation. I have quite a collection of old linens that are sitting there gathering dust!! Thanks again,
Jenni
Australia
This challenge has proven that isolated need not mean ‘alone’..we are in the sames stage here in the UK.
x
I am so excited to join this group. I have found my new passion.
Passion and cloth..what more do we need…each other.
Thank you for the inspiration! I loved your video, Cas 🙂 My challenge is complete, and can be seen here: https://www.thecrafties.com/2020/04/ta-stitch-challenge-2/ I look forward to learning more about your art style and poking around the TextileArtist website.
who would not want to feature the joy and calm of cats?
Heaps of thanks to you for providing those of us who do not use Facebook with the opportunity to join the community stitch challenge. And thanks for the weekly challenges…such fun to have “workshops with the greats!
Working with Textileartist has been my pleasure and encouraged me to also step into new territory
Dear Cas, you’re work is very inspirational and I wondered whether you could recommend a reasonably price sewing machine suitable for free motion embroidery.
Many thanks,
Irene
Hi Irene
I use a second hand Bernina. An old mechanical machine would be my preference. Most mid range machines if new (Janome, Pfaff etc) would be fine. This line on the site would be useful https://www.textileartist.org/sewing-machines-for-embroidery
Thank you so much for giving me inspiration during lockdown Cas. I started my textile piece yesterday and the time just flew. Wonderful to see you again on the video.
thankyou x
I have equally been busy….. It was good see what everyone was doing and to be involved
Thank you so much Cas and here are season’s stiched greetings from Japan!
I’m glad to know that you spent some time in Japan. I hope you were there at this time of a year when cherry blossom flowers are in full bloom.
They are in full bloom right now where I live, regardless of what is happening to human beings.
Please check my blog post below. I hope you all feel the spring breeze.
https://spaces.oca.ac.uk/jsocaft/category/research-reflection/community-stitch-challenge-at-textileartists-org/
I was there for the Quilt Festival in glorious weather and saw the plum trees coming out in blossom. One day I will go back. Good learning post.
Thankyou. The trees are beautiful at the moment
I too appreciate more than I can say that the stitch challenge is also available on the website instead of just the facebook group. This is so interesting and has expanded my horizons.
Thank you.
Thanks so much for this inspiration. I’m from Brazil and i really love to have this amazing opportunity to know England artists, their creative processes and different styles. I had’nt had any chances to learn so much as niw with this site. Regards
my pleasure Beth
Hi Joe and Sam
I’m not on Facebook so how do I post pictures of my efforts?
Tried emailing my picture to TextileArtist.org but it just disappeared without trace into the ether.
Hello Sue,
Charlotte here from the team. Unfortunately, you can’t share images in the comment section under articles, however, if you would like to share your challenge images with us at hello@textileartist.org, we would love to see what you have been creating in response to the challenges.