New creative workshops

It might have been cold (very cold) and miserable outside but inside Atelier it's been a veritable hive of creative activity. We've repainted and re-jigged the space and now have a wonderful giant chalk board so that you can see what's going on. We've also brought back our wonderfully huge table for making and a doing. And talking of making and a doing - we've been busy making up gorgeous samples ready to launch our new creative workshop programme. Now you can see what lovely things you'll be able to make here at the gallery. We have a workshop programme for grown ups as well as programmes for older children.

It's very exciting as this was the original vision for Atelier way back in July 2010 - can it be that long now? The plan was to have a beautiful space offering gorgeous hand made goodies from talented local and British makers AND to have a space where people could come along and learn new skills, have fun in a relaxed environment and make really cool stuff. Hopefully our new workshop programme fits the bill - you'll have to let us know! The next phase in Atelier fulfilling the original vision is for me to get back to ceramics and have a fully functioning working gallery ... I'll keep you posted on that one ...

I'm a bit of a groupie ...

It's not often that you get to meet your heroes. But just last week I met one of mine: Craig Underhill. I have, for an enormously long time, been a huge admirer of his work. When I tentatively asked if he'd be happy to take part in an exhibition in my new gallery I practically fell of my chair when he said yes. When he said he'd deliver it in person, I came over all wobbly. Honestly, if you are any bit of a ceramics geek like me, then you HAVE to see Craig's slab built vessels. Lucky for you - they're here in the gallery until June 4 (unfortunately one vessel didn't make it into the exhibition as it accidentally ended up at my house, no idea how that happened obviously...).

Craig's work is being exhibited alongside some stunning textile pieces from artist Rachel Gornall who I discovered at last year's Contemporary Craft fair at Bovey Tracey. Rachel's hand-dyed hand stitched 3D pieces sit beautifully alongside Craig's work.

It's easy to see why both artists are highly respected in their fields. If you are in need of creative inspiration pop in and see their work.

FREE Beach Bag tutorial from CLOTH magazine

BUT FIRST ...

Craftacular Craftacular was a rip roaring sucess. Yay! We had 9 make-stations manned by 9 very clever and talented makers, each offering a different bite-sized project to make and take-away. Pop into the gallery when you're next in Barnstaple as we have samples of all the projects out on display. Next Craftacular Craftacular is planned for July 13th. Make sure you sign up to the Atelier newsletter as tickets will be limited and they will go fast (there's a link to to right on the blog).

The wonderful Cloth magazine also lent their support on the evening by offering a free tutorial for this gorgeous beach bag. I have copies of the tutorial in the gallery so please grab one when you're passing as, you never know, we might be making it down to the beach this year!

We'll be stocking Cloth magazine from now on too. It's an indie publication that offers lots of brilliant projects to make. What's particularly great is that they focus on upcycling and recycling but in a very cool way. In the current issue they show you how to make a Liberty inspired watch, with a lovely silk strap. I have coverted one for some time and now I can make my own.

New Tutorial: Lavender Scented Mice

This lavender scented mouse is a really simple project to use up old T-Shirts or Babygros. It's handsewn so no special equipment is needed and it doesn't matter how good you are at sewing ... I think wonky stitches rock!

The wonderful thing about using cotton jersey is that it doesn't fray so no need for hemming. I also kept all the stitching and knots visible on the outside - something I learnt from the fantastic Alabama Stitch Book, one of my all time favourite crafting books.

He can be tucked into your drawer to keep your clothes smelling fresh or, with a cute little ribbon tail you can hang it in your wardrobe too. Make loads and give them as gifts for friends!

I can't post documents on this blog (doh!) so, instead, you can download and print the FREE tutorial and pattern template using the following link on mediafire (just click to download):

http://www.mediafire.com/?38byy4qh9d5ex59

* make* this festive rag wreath

At Atelier we are passionate about craft. Not only do we stock a range of gorgeous, orginal affordable work from new and established artists - we're also wanting to share craft skills and projects through artist-led workshops and free tutorials.

So, for your crafty delectation, each month we'll be posting a new *make* project on the Atelier blog. You will also be able to pick up a printed copy of the tutorial from our contemporary crafts gallery on Tuly Street.

What better way to start our new series of *make* tutorials than with a simple but stunning rag wreath. It's a great way to use up your scrap stash or to recycle old clothes.

To make your festive rag wreath you need: a wire wreath ring, fabric scraps, ribbon

Any fabric will do! Chop up old clothes (I used an old skirt in the pink version above), hessian and linen looks great or use your stash of bits left over from other projects.

You need to cut your fabric into strips of about 6” long and about 1” wide. Don’t worry about being too exact, you can tear them if you like or cut them using pinking shears to give extra texture. The amount of strips you need depends on the size of the wire ring you choose. For a 12” florists ring you’ll need about 100 -150 strips.

Then all you do is tie them onto your wire ring. You can use a florists ring, like the one in the picture above, or make your own by re-shaping a wire coat hanger into a circle, keeping the hook at the top to hang your wreath once it's finished.

I do have a small number of florists rings in the gallery in case you can't get hold of them in your local florists.

Keep tying the strips of fabric to the ring and occasionally push them together so that there are no gaps. Keep going until the whole ring is covered in fabric. Fluff out your strips a little. Finally find a piece contrasting ribbon, use one piece to tie into a pretty bow and a smaller piece to use to hang your wreath. In the blue polka dot version I added some festive jingle bells for decoration.

Ta da. Hang on your door or give to a friend as a gorgeous handmade Christmas gift .

Fancy making-and-a-doing and a FREE craft book?

When I first started this blog, it was mainly as a means for people to keep up to date with the refurbishment of 12 Tuly Street and the launch of Atelier. Well we're three months on and we've had a spectacular reception since our grand opening mid-July.

I couldn't be more happy with how things are going. I even have customers who send friends and family into the gallery saying 'I don't mind what you buy me for my birthday, so long as it's from Atelier.'

We're still evolving and there are lots of new exciting things in the pipeline so I have decided to re-launch this blog as a quick and easy resource for you to keep up to date with the latest news.

We have fantastic exhibitions on their way, exciting plans for artist-led workshops and on-going promotions giving you the chance to win cool stuff from the gallery.

And so to my first call-to-crafty-arms ...

Makers - Your Gallery Needs You

As you know I have a growing collection of inspirational craft books.

I'm planning a 'book of the month' promotion to highlight some of my favourite project-based books.

And I need your help!

I'm looking for volunteers to take away one of my books and make up a project for display here in the gallery. The great thing is that you get to practice your making skills, you exhibit your project in the gallery AND, best of all, you get to keep the book you are working from. Yay!

This opportunity is open to Devon-based crafters only

Email me at crafts@gallery-atelier.co.uk, if you are interested or pop in and see me at the gallery.

Inside Atelier ….

 

In the last post you saw the left hand side of the gallery, which is where the COAST exhibition is currently showing. Ziggi popped in with her  camera (much better than mine) and took some pics for me of the rest of the gallery.

 

I’m delighted with how well the gallery has been received, and even more delighted with sales. Some of my artists are having to send new stock already which is brilliant news all round (well done us!!). And I’m really going to have to get my act together for the pre-Christmas season and make sure I have plenty of stock for all those Christmas presents that my customers are already planning (they’re very organised and have already started making up ‘wish lists’.