My wonderful friend Becca whom I met whilst working in Aylesbury, has been a creative inspiration and motivation for me since I met her. A talented photographer and keen crafter, she encouraged me to join an evening course in dressmaking which I thoroughly enjoyed and learnt a lot about pattern reading in particular. While working together, she refreshed my memory about darkroom photography as I worked as a Creative Arts Technician at Aylesbury College and so was in charge of preparing all the workshops and materials for the lessons.
Not only was she the reason I started developing my technical sewing skills, but she has also given me tips and suggestions of other crafts to try. For Christmas 2018 she bought me this String Art kit by Kirstie Allsopp which I only started in June 2019 just before she arrived to visit us for her holiday. It was an experiment but using one of the designs included in the kit, I was able to create a very simple but cute owl. I had to learn the tricks to getting the patterns as I wanted them and how to outline the design effectively. I practised designing where the thread would go to see how to create a consistent pattern before starting the weave it between the nails.
I also wanted to add some depth which I did by adding multiple layers and height to some sections as a contrast. It is the start of something to continue for sure… I have already gone out and bought plywood which has been cut into panels ready to work on and 2 big boxes of nails in two different colours. I am excited to see how this new technique will develop into my own bespoke works.