September 2026
Hey lovely Stitchers!
Firstly, a big "Welcome" to all my new subscribers!
I took the summer off this year to recharge and spend time with my family before my eldest becomes a teenager. The past two summers were heavily scheduled with teaching, and the first half of this year was exceptionally busy. This break also gave me the chance to focus on my health. I've lost a stone through swimming and a new low sugar, high protein diet, even if avoiding chocolate and especially ice cream during the heatwave tested my willpower! Still a way to go but all progress is progress.
I’ve been putting off sending this newsletter because, honestly, things have been a bit tough lately. Due to recent changes in UK employment law, there is currently a lot of uncertainty surrounding our roles as RSN tutors, which some of you may have already caught wind of. I was also waiting for the new course launch to have something more to tell you all.
In light of this, I am taking the opportunity to run more of my own classes and dedicate time to my personal artistic practice. I am also exploring a part-time online MA program to deepen my collaborative and artistic practice skills, allowing me to continue teaching while I study. I plan to apply for QEST funding in January to help facilitate this next step. This is not just about funding but also accessing their network of opportunities.
As any MA studies wouldn't begin until September 2027, I have a clear year ahead to develop and run my own courses. I’ve also applied for the 2029 EAC seminar in Montreal, including some of my new designs, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Upcoming Classes
Introducing my new short course with the Royal School of Needlework: Threads of Connection, exploring nature through embroidery techniques.
Explore the hidden network of fungal threads that let forests grow and communicate — through coffee-painted ground fabric, drawn thread work, pulled thread, and couching. A class about mark-making and experimentation, not perfection — all levels welcome.
Sat 27 & Sun 28 March 2027 at Hampton Court Palace
Priority booking opens for RSN Friends on 30th September, followed by general booking on 3rd October via their brand new website! Please note this won't be live until the new website launches on the 30th of September.
I know many of you were hoping for an online option, but the education team has decided this new class will launch exclusively in-person at Hampton Court. Please don't worry, though an online version is definitely in the works! I’m aiming for later next year, though if the in-person class sells out quickly, I might be able to offer it sooner. Given the recent changes to short courses, my priority right now is making sure the in-person launch is a success. I'd love to see as many of you there as possible!
Looking ahead at Fairy Wren
If you follow me on Instagram, you might have spotted that I’m developing a brand-new box class aimed at beginners! I’m currently filming the process while I figure out the best way to offer it. I'm considering a few formats: a fully live class, an on-demand course, or perhaps a hybrid model featuring pre-recorded content alongside a one-hour live Zoom session for questions and extra support. I'd love to hear your thoughts—let me know what you think in the poll below!
Beginners box class
On demand
Hybrid
Full live zoom course
Alongside my new classes, I’m also making some minor improvements to my kits, which includes redesigning the boxes! As always, sustainability and eco-friendly solutions remain at the heart of these updates. Unfortunately, recent regulation changes have made it incredibly difficult for small businesses to sell within EU zones (including Northern Ireland), so for now, kit shipping will be restricted to the UK, USA, Canada, and other non-EU areas. For my US customers, orders will be sent duty-paid. However, this service isn't currently available for Canada via Royal Mail, so please be aware that your local postal service will add import fees upon delivery. If this changes in the future, I’ll happily update my shipping to include these fees—it would honestly make things much easier for me too!
Private sessions
Private sessions are coming soon! I'm just finalizing the website and hope to have times available by mid-October. I'll start with online sessions, expanding to in-person once my home and studio eco-renovations (heat pump and solar panels). These one-on-one sessions are £75/hour and are perfect for designing new projects, troubleshooting current ones, or learning specific techniques. If there’s high demand, I’ll add more slots after the first month!
Kits in the shop
Thank you to everyone waiting on out-of-stock kits! I’m working hard to get them ready as soon as I can. Juggling kit making, new classes, and the daily admin of running a small business on my own is definitely a challenge, especially when unexpected organizational changes leave little time to plan ahead. I truly appreciate your patience while I manage all these different hats!
If there’s a past class kit you’d love to see re-stocked or run as a class, just send me a message or if its on the website then just click the notify when back in stock button, if enough people ask or if I have some spare materials I’ll happily make a few up.
Artistic Practice
I have finally made some progress on my next portrait, which I plan to enter into the National Embroidery Awards. Thanks to their recent rule changes, artists are now allowed to share progress photos on social media. Furthermore, the initial selection process is now fully digital. Only the final selection needs to go to Birmingham, meaning I can deliver and collect the piece myself if it's chosen. Shipping such a large frame simply wasn't practical in the past and costly!
As a thank you to my subscribers, I'm giving you an exclusive sneak peek at the design. While I haven't started physically stitching yet, a lot of thought and planning has gone into this over the last few months. I owe a huge thank you to Tim Walker for allowing me to use his photograph as the initial inspiration (though I am unable to reproduce the original image).
Allow me to introduce the Margopiad.
This piece is inspired by Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad (her take on Homer's Odyssey) and the twelve maids she gives a voice to. The feathers will be 3D, constructed from painted white silk on organza, featuring a wired quill covered with trailing. Similar to my previous work, the rest of the portrait will be stitched in Blackwork—and no, I am not looking forward to stitching the hair! 🤣🙈 I am still undecided on the earring colour, but I will figure that out as I go. I am also choosing not to fully stitch her clothing this time around; it was crucial for my last piece but isn't necessary here. Scale-wise, this needs to be large, so I will be maxing out my 24" slate frame.
Personal projects
I've decided to tweak this section slightly to focus more on personal projects, trips, and events that tie into my broader practice. I haven't made much more progress on my son's rainbow quilt, other than piecing the backing together. However, I did manage to spend a couple of hours making a patch for the back of an autumn denim jacket! I spotted the jacket in Tesco with 25% off, so it would have been rude not to.
I originally found the patch idea in The Quilting Book and highly recommend it—the steps are incredibly clear, even for things like trimming blocks. I didn't own a denim jacket at the time, so I simply had to buy this one when I saw it. The best part? Because it's an oversized style and I've lost weight, I was able to buy a size 12 and it still fits perfectly over a hoodie! The mornings definitely have a chill to them now, so it's getting a lot of use. I used stash fabric for the patch and added my own spin to the pattern by mixing complementary patterned fabrics—plain white just isn't my vibe! It’s fully attached with a ladder stitch, so I can at least wear it while I finish up the rest of the quilting. Hand stitched with Wonderfil Spagetti (12wt).
Stay connected
If you know someone who'd love the Fragile Threads sneak peek, forward this their way.
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