Instinctive Textile Explorations – Draw and Stitch Permutations with Alysn Midgelow-Marsden
Course Overview
Over three days, we’ll break free from overthinking and dive headfirst into instinctive, playful textile art creativity. In this workshop, you’ll embark on an improvisational journey that begins with fluid, exploratory mark-making and effortlessly transitions into textured, multi-dimensional works inspired by natural or observed forms.
Together, we’ll experiment with:
- Free-flowing drawing to spark spontaneous ideas.
- Simple stitching and couching to add layers of texture and movement.
- Appliqué using translucent metal fabrics and wires, creating delicate, light-catching details.
- Ripping, cutting, and burning for bold, organic edges and intriguing textures.
- Shrinkable backings for structural surfaces including jewellery and sculpture.
Each participant will develop their own unique pieces filled with layered stitches, expressive lines, and translucent elements. The techniques are straightforward and accessible to everyone—no prior experience in drawing, stitching, or textile arts is necessary. This workshop is perfect for anyone eager to create intuitively, whether you prefer hand stitching, machine work, or a blend of both.
By embracing spontaneity, you’ll produce stunning results that reflect your instincts and the joy of making. Your final works may echo the layered elegance of seed pods, the intricate pathways of tangled branches, all including the delicate interplay of texture and translucency.
Teacher Profile
Alysn Midgelow-Marsden has been described as an energiser and inspirer for her art making and her teaching practice.
She is a maker of inspiring and visually compelling forms comprising three-dimensional lines, structures and patterns in complex, lyrical fluidities using media such as textiles, wires, metals and plastics.
Materials List
Participant Requirements
(*) denotes materials and equipment Alysn or the studio will have available to use/borrow/buy
(!) denotes materials included in your materials fee, however if you have more of these or wish to bring similar to use in addition, you are welcome.
As these sessions are flexible, you may not use everything on the list, or you may want to get more of certain items as you go. It’s hard to predict what will take your fancy! So, bring what you can.
A materials fee of $20.00 for some starter/trialling materials such as metal cloth and shrink plastic.
Equipment
- General sewing requisites, especially including a variety of needles from very large to small.
- General scissors.
- Sewing machine if you want to use one, free machining foot and spare needles/other requisites. (Recommended)
- Iron (*)
- Non-stick baking parchment (*)(!)
- Few brushes. Flat, cheap paint brushes are fine. (*)
- 2 tea light candles and matches (*)(!)
- Heat gun and protective surface (if you have them)(*)
Materials
Note: I tend to stick with neutral colour schemes to match the papers and metal fabrics, if you wish to use colour, it is probably a good plan to choose a limited scheme from a tight band of the colour wheel.
Drawing materials:
- A small selection of drawing materials such as drawing pens and paint media; pencil; charcoal; pastels; Inktense etc (and spray fixative if you bring pastels or charcoal), acrylic paints, inks or similar.
- 1 or 2 colours of car spray to suit your colours (optional) (*)
- Papers:
As large a format as you can bring such as A3/A2.
Basic: Cartridge paper drawing pad / Watercolour paper approx. 300gsm
Other options: A few sheets of other papers to try out would be great, see what you have of the following:
Handmade papers such as
Thai mulberry 120gsm
Khadi paper
Plant papers
Wallpaper lining,
Packaging paper etc.
- Threads:
Sewing: Standard (cotton/polycotton) sewing machine sewing threads in at least 3 colours to suit your colours, plain and/or variegated. As base colours to stitch with, the metal cloths colours suit the use of grey/tan/aubergine for stainless steel and blue/copper/tan for the copper/brass and bronze fabrics. However additional colours can be introduced to suit your colour preferences.
Hand stitch: Heavier threads to emphasise your design in your colour preferences. Such as fabric rags/string/perle/sewing threads etc. A variety of sizes and textures is important. - Beads: A selection (optional)
- Interfacing (Vilene ‘medium weight’ iron or sew-in or similar) ½ m maximum.
- Bondaweb/Vliesofix. ½ m maximum. (*)
- Metal fabrics. Copper, bronze, brass or stainless steel. Approx. ½ m max. (*)
- Manmade or natural organza (translucent fabrics)
- Shrink plastic (*)(!)
- Tyvek (*)(!)
- Other plastic such as black bin bags, ohp plastic or similar – we will trial these as shrinkable backing alternatives to Shrink plastic and Tyvek.
- Metals/Wires:
Knitted wire 0.1/0.2mm wire, approx. 20cm (optional) (*)
Other craft wires/scrap wires
Aluminium (plain or coloured) 1mm -2 mm. Approx. 3-5m. (sold at craft shops as sculpture armature wire and at florists, often brightly coloured) (*)(!)
Car spray (to colour the metal cloth)
Workshop Terms
While our fibre art workshops are usually held in the gallery's historically significant workshop space, the workshop venue may change according to the needs and wishes of the artist tutor. Likewise, the times of the workshops may vary depending on the type of workshop and its presentation.
Timeless Textiles Gallery will, at its own discretion, where a participant is unable to attend a fibre art workshop, an exchange or credit note will be made available or a refund of the deposit or payment in accordance with the following Workshop Refund Policy.
Major commitments must be met, and in fairness to all, the policy concerning the refund is:
Cancellations 3 months prior to workshop date - refund 80% fees paid
Cancellations 2 months prior to workshop date- refund 50% fees paid.
Cancellations 1 month prior to workshop date- no refund.