Brilliant Birds Roost at The Winning Post

Anna, Jane, Sylvia, Diana, Cath, Deborah & Heather

We had our final #BrilliantBirds workshop of Craft & Design Month at The Winning Post pub on Bishopthorpe Road, York.  They made us very welcome and had reserved a super spot for us...

Gillian, Sarah & Pie

Jane popped in with a delivery of these fancy fledglings...

Jane's birds

and Diana brought a basket of owls...

Diana's owls

Lara was crocheting a very colourful bird...

Lara & Izzy

while Katie was knitting a blue tit...

Katie

Heather & Sarah were knitting colourful birds to Sue Stratford's blackbird pattern...

Cath, Deborah, Heather & Sarah

Cath finished her stitched bird...

Cath's bird

whilst Jane's is still a work in progress...

Jane's bird under construction

And here's what came to roost with us at the end of the night...

The Winning Post wonders

If you want to find out more about the Brilliant Birds Yarnstorm that will be on display in Rowntree Park, York later this year, the details are here.  If you'd like to make some #brilliantbirds for the installation, the patterns are here but you don't have to use these - any knitted, stitched, crocheted or felted bird would be lovely.  

Please deliver your finished birds to Rowntree Park Cafe by Saturday 10 June 2017. 

Brilliant Birds Fly into The Golden Ball

Lyle with his pompom bird

We had a lovely session at The Golden Ball pub making birds for the Brilliant Birds Installation in Rowntree Park.  It was our second workshop in #CraftandDesignMonth and our final one during the Voluntary Arts Festival.  Just one more workshop left!  Thank you so much to The Golden Ball for having us.

Everyone was very busy...

Gina, Vicky and Heather making owls, robins and blackbirds

James, Lyle & Rosie hula hoop weaving, pompom making & finger knitting

Dev crochets a parrot

James took a shine to this bluebird and made a pompom bluebird too...
 

James

Remember Anna's cute blackbird from the workshop in Rowntree Park Cafe?  Well now he has a friend...
 

Little birds perching on cotton reels

Anna & Jane

Sarah's little girl was very well behaved and didn't disrupt her & Dulcie's stitching at all...
 

Dulcie & Sarah

Carol stitching away

Penny & Deborah hard at work

Lyndall knits an owl

Vicky's robin even has a nest

Kate popped in with a delivery to complete the workshop's fledgling flock...

Quite a flock!

Thank you to everyone who came - we couldn't do it without you!

Our final #BrilliantBirds workshop of Craft & Design Month is at The Winning Post on Monday 15 May from 7-9pm.  Can't make it? Don't worry, you can still make birds at home or with friends.  More details about the project here.  Find patterns here.  Completed birds need to be returned to Rowntree Park Cafe by Saturday 10 June 2017.  Happy making!

Fresh 2017 at Rural Arts in Thirsk

Kate Buckley - We need to talk...  (detail)

I have just been to see Fresh 2017 at Rural Arts at the Courthouse in Thirsk. Fresh is an exhibition of emerging artists from a variety of artistic disciplines and it's definitely worth a look.  My favourites were Kate Buckley's "We need to talk..." - a mixed media installation exploring a failure to communicate in domestic relationships...

Kate Buckley - We need to talk...  (detail)

Kate Buckley - We need to talk...  (detail)

Kate Buckley - We need to talk...  (detail)

Kate Buckley - We need to talk..

and Evagelia Hagikalfa's layered lightbox worlds in The Wisest Man installation...

Evagelia Hagikalfa - The Wisest Man (detail)

Evagelia Hagikalfa - The Wisest Man (detail)

Evagelia Hagikalfa - The Wisest Man (detail)

Evagelia Hagikalfa - The Wisest Man (detail)

Evagelia Hagikalfa - The Wisest Man (detail)

Hazel Dixon's rusted screenprints on steel depicting the steel industry closures in Redcar and Middlesbrough were very moving...

Hazel Dixon - Rust and Steel a Dead Industry (detail)

Hazel Dixon - Rust and Steel a Dead Industry (detail)

and I also really liked Chloe Lawrence's Roll 3 - lino print onto lining paper but didn't quite understand the explanation...

Chloe Lawrence - Roll 3 (and detail)

Diane Watson's kaleidoscope pictures made up from plastic beach debris were both appealing and alarming - alerting us to the need to improve our environment...

Diane Watson - Plastics

I liked the colours in Mari Fisher's glass vessels...

Mari Fisher - Glass Vessels

and the strangeness of Sheyda Porter's Idea Generating Machine No.9...

Sheyda Porter - Idea Generating Machine No.9 part 1

and the texture of Jordan Palmer's piece...

Jordan Palmer - Catch My Drift

Other artists are also exhibiting.  It's not on for much longer - so do go and see.  There is a very nice cafe and a lovely craft gallery.  Rural Arts also does a variety of workshops that might take your fancy.  Take a look here.

Brilliant Birds Flock to Rowntree Park Cafe

Our first Brilliant Birds Yarnstorm workshop of Craft & Design Month and the Voluntary Arts Festival took place at the excellent Rowntree Park Reading Cafe.  It was a beautiful day and we had a great turn out.  As you can see above, lots of birds flew in.

Kate & Francesca enjoying refreshments, the view and making birds!

Everyone was hard at work...
 

Liz, Margaret, Alison, Michelle & Julia

 Linda braved the hula hoop weaving...

Pam, Linda & Irene

Owls were popular but Lucy tackled a hummingbird...

Lucy, Pie, Amanda & Diana

Ann & Beth were knitting robins...

Ann & Beth

Claire's making a puffin...

Amy & Claire

Anna, Donna & Bronwen

We loved Anna's tiny blackbird...

Anna's Tiny Blackbird

Rosemary, Alyson & Naomi

There was alot of stitching going on too... 

Emma, Maddie & Natalie

The two hours really flew by.  We also had an unexpected attendee - Peter Bayliss from the York Photographic Society.  Peter busied himself taking pictures of the workshop makers and the making process. Here's a sneaky peek... 

You can see all Peter's photos of the workshop here.  They're great!  You can also see more of Peter's work here.

So, thank you to everyone who came to make #BrilliantBirds, to Rowntree Park Cafe for making us so welcome and to Peter for his fab photos!

Craft & Design Month - May 2017

 

The last printed edition of Craft & Design magazine has been published. It is the March/April 2017 edition and of course amongst a whole host of interesting items, it features what's on in Craft & Design Month May 2017.

Hippystitch is delighted to be featured in this edition ...

and this year our project is a Brilliant Birds Yarnstorm which is supporting St Leonard's Hospice and will fly into Rowntree Park, York later this year.  You can find all the details here.

But here's a quick reminder...

Workshops

At our Brilliant Bird workshops, you can unleash your creativity with knitting, stitching, pompom making, finger knitting, knitting with very large needles and hopefully even some hula hoop weaving. 
 

Friday 5 May 2017 – Rowntree Park Café 

Rowntree Park, Richardson Street, York, YO23 1JU 
10:00 – 12:00

Saturday 13 May 2017 – The Golden Ball Pub 
2 Cromwell Road, York, YO1 6DU

12:00 – 14:00

Monday 15 May 2017 – The Winning Post Pub 
127-129 Bishopthorpe Road, York, YO23 1NZ 
19:00 – 21:00 

Drop in – all materials provided and leave your makes behind for display in Rowntree Park, York.

If you can't get to any of the workshops but still want to be involved you'll find some Brilliant Bird Patterns here.

Do join in - we can't do it without you...

And don't think that Craft & Design is disappearing - it's moving online to begin an exciting new phase.  So to Angie & Paul - a big thank you for featuring Hippystitch in your Craft & Design Month editions and good luck with the new developments - I can't wait!  

And I've just heard ...the first issue of craft&design Online is now available here.