Our member Chris Beavers came up with the idea for our Postcard Project, and organised everything needed for a very successful project. Here's how she describes it:
I have to admit to blatantly stealing this idea from the group I joined after leaving the Embroiderers Guild some time ago. They had a traveling book whereby a empty sketch book was submitted by each participant and passed around with each person doing a piece of work each month in the book and it would then be brought back to the meeting and passed on to the next person - however over time it proved difficult to maintain continuity. So a Postcard Swap was instituted instead as they could be sent through the post if participants could not attend a meeting.
This was the basis of our Postcard Project and I thought that it was a good way to get to know the new members of YES as when I returned to this group there were a lot of new faces. Instead of a swap I wanted to organise a rotation - a kind of round robin with a theme (it’s the control freak in me!) However I got a bit of a shock as far more people signed up for it than I had anticipated. I had to readjust to having four groups of six so that the first theme of landscapes did not last too long. I organised a list of dos and don’ts, gave what I hoped were clear instructions, gave everyone a group colour and launched.
With some trepidation I prepared coloured boards for display and waited at the next meeting to see what turned up.
To say I was gob-smacked is an understatement - the quality and quantity of the cards was breathtaking- they were ALL so good and so different - I went home rejoicing - my faith in textile artists affirmed. You were all so great and I think from comments that I overheard that non-participants also enjoyed the experience - they were allowed to touch and pick up and read the messages on the back!
The second month was equally successful and I am looking forward to seeing subsequent months. February is the challenge month: the content has to be hand stitched only and only using one stitch - this is to encourage thinking outside the box!!!!
We will make five landscape postcards in total (6 if they want to make one for themselves) - at the end of this rotation there will be an opportunity for those who have had enough to leave and anyone who would like to join may do so. I will re-jiggle the groups so that people will make for and receive from different people from this time and the theme will be wings.
Here are the first set of cards, which were exchanged at our November meeting.
Here are December's cards.
Here are January's cards.
Here are February's cards. These had to be hand stitched, and the challenge here was to use one stitch type only.
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