Sashiko and Kogin - Tanya Shaw June Meeting 2026

 Tanya one of our own members  arrived with samples of sashiko and kogin Japanese embroidery as insiration, complete with packs of instructions and charts for us to choose from.

Tanya gave a a short history of sashiko and  our first job was to transfer our chosen pattern onto our material. A whole variety of transfer methods were used from pens, carbon, the window and a light box.

Once the pattern was transferred to the fabric the running stitches were started using sashiko thread or perle. Tanya reminded us the ratio of stitch to gap should be approx. 3:2.

Row upon row of neat running stitches began to appear and with it pictures and patterns.

By the end of the afternoon some members had managed to finish their patterns and were now thinking about what to do with their embroidery. Turn it into a bag, a book cover, a picture - all will be revealed at the next meeting!

The finished pieces are beautiful and the clean lines of stitching against the background can be fully appreciated.

A big thank you to Tanya for organizing a fun day and inspiring us to have a go at a technique which at first can look a little daunting.

Requirements List for Sashiko Embroidery June Meeting - Tanya Shaw

 

Finished Pieces of Work

 Karen has finished her felt appliqued piece inspired  by a  trip to Malta..  She liked the honey-coloured buildings  and so made the piece to go in her book where she keeps embroidered memories.

The windows and doors are beautifully embroidered to enhance the architectural features.

Thank you, Karen. It is a wonderful memory to keep.

Sandra made a felt appliqued owl which looks rather cross! He looks as if someone has stolen his mouse!

She used feather stitch to finish off the feathers which were cut in a zig-zag shape.

Thank you, Sandra. He has a lot of character.

May Meeting Show and Tell

Linda has finished her pretty jewel-like stump work butterfly. It is positioned from the side which is often how we see butterflies in the garden as we wait to see them flash open their wings.

Thank you Linda and for the way you have matched the colour of the butterfly with the background.

Sandra showed her stump work Clouded Yellow Butterfly with two wired wings. To complete the picture she has added a spray of flowers and leaves.

Thank you Sandra, it is very pretty.

Sandra also brought a piece of tapestry weaving carried out in one colour but in different  shades and tones.

If you look closely you can see a whole variety of patterns and the weed is made of wrapped warp thread to produce a 3D effect.

Thank you Sandra, it is surprising what you can do with one colour.

Wool Felt Applique - Elaine Terry May Meeting 2026

 A while ago Elaine brought this beautiful, colourful and appliqued quilt to a meeting while it was still under  construction. It was much admired and as a result our wool applique workshop came about.

Elaine had worked out some ideas we might like to try or use as a starting point.

She had also brought two items below using the same technique to inspire us to take our applique further.

Elaine had prepared some designs or members could design their own which we were advised to draw onto freezer paper.

These were then ironed onto our chosen colour of felt and cut out.

The shapes were then placed on the background in a pattern or picture.

When pieces were in the right place members began to oversew the edges with wool thread.

The shapes were then embroidered to add detail and bring the design to life adding extra details such as legs and stalks.

It was a very colourful and enjoyable session and members took  their applique to finish at home.

A big thank you to Elaine for organizing the workshop and sharing her applique skills with us.

We are all looking forward to seeing the finished items.