Festival of Quilts starts on Thursday and I am (nearly) ready! I’ve got a bigger stand this year, B50 in Hall 9 (if you stand with your back to the theatre entrance you should be able to see it). We had a great show last year but it was exhausting with just me and best buddy, Ruth, so this year we are going to be joined by my son Joe. Some of you will know him as he’s done shows with me in the past. I’m hoping this gives me a little more time to chat to old friends, meet new friends and possibly look at some of the wonderful galleries. If you don’t have a ticket yet please use the code LEAHHIGGINS23 to get a £2 discount. If you’re at the show please come and say hello!

As well as promoting next years workshops I’m hoping to get some sign-ups to my last 2023 workshop - Simply Screen Printing (the Full Monty) which runs from 2nd to 6th October. I will be offering the workshop at a 20% discount during the show and, because not everyone can make the show, I’m offering it at a 20% discount online from the 1st to 31st August - just use the discount code SSP5DAYDISCOUNT. The workshop normally costs £450 so you’ll save £90.

I will be taking lots of my hand printed and dyed fabric packs (112 Wonky Print + 35 Absolutely Hand Dyed). I’ll have lots of copies of my latest book, Simply Screen Printing along with my book on translating colour theory into colour practice, Colour Your Palette. I will also be taking all the remaining copies of my Breakdown Your Palette book to the show. I only have about 30 left. I’m not going to reprint the book as I’m planning to write a new version either next year or the year after, so once they’re gone they’re gone! (The digital version of the book will still be available). And I’ll be taking Procion dyes, soda etc, screen and squeegees. In fact, I will be taking as much stuff as I can physically get into mine and Joes cars!

And finally, both myself and Ruth will be demonstrating in The Creative Textile Studio which can be found to the left of the theatre. Ruth will be demonstrating different book binding techniques all day Friday, Saturday morning and Sunday morning. I’ll be demonstrating simple screen printing techniques on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. I’ll be demonstrating on my stand as well. Phew, I need a lie down and we’ve not even set off yet!

Some weeks are just good. Mine got off to a cracking start with an email from textileartist.org to let me know that their article ‘Discover: The power of print’ had just been published online. I feel honoured (and rather chuffed) to be included in this article on five textile artists who use print in their work. I’m in great company as the article also highlights the work of Amerjeet Nandhra, Sue Hotchkis, Bobbi Baugh and Ross Belton. We all use print in very different ways to create very different styles of art but we all exploit the serendipity of the hand printing process. If you haven’t heard of textileartist.org I really recommend that you take a look at their website and sign up to their newsletter. The breadth and quality of work they feature is amazing and they are a great resource for all textile fans.

On Monday evening I gave a talk ‘Understanding Colour’ to Seaside Stitchers in Blackpool. As always it is an honour to be invited to talk to a group although I could have waffled on about colour for far longer than my allotted hour! They are a lovely group of embroiderers, quilters and textile lovers and I really enjoyed chatting with them after the talk. You can follow the link above to their Facebook page.

Life is challenging for everybody right now and I am grateful to the 172 people who brought my new book Simply Screen Printing in February and March. As a result I have just donated £172 on your behalf to The Trussell Trust. Making a living as an artist is tough and I only get to pay my bills because of your continued support - thank you!

The frustrating bit …. the cost of posting books internationally. Unfortunately, when I started shipping the new book, I discovered that there are no longer any ‘cheap’ options for posting parcels weighing over 2kg outside of the UK. I kept my postage rates the same until the end of March but have now had to increase them. There is still a significant difference between International Economy and International Standard for parcels weighing up to 2kg but once you get above 2kg the difference is much smaller and pricing can vary from day to day. I shop around every time I’m sending out a parcel that weighs over 2kg and, typically, the standard rate will get you delivery via courier within a few days and the economy rate will get you delivery via a courier in 2 - 3 weeks. If I happen to get a rate that is cheaper than you have paid I will refund the difference.

What also made this week a good one was a few days away from home with hubby staying in Morecambe. I’m going to be on a plane to Melbourne on our 40th wedding anniversary so this was an early anniversary present to ourselves. The weather was a bit rubbish but the AirBnB was amazing and had great views across the estuary (when the rain stopped). I took some ‘moody’ grey photos of the horizon line, sand and rocks - inspiration for a project?? Maybe when I get a free moment!

I’m delighted / frankly relieved that my new book Simply Screen Printing has arrived and I’m busy shipping out orders. Thank you to everyone who has ordered online! And although it is a drop in the ocean, £1 from every book sold before the end of March is going to The Trussell Trust, supporting food banks and fighting food poverty. The book will have its physical ‘launch’ this Thursday at the Scottish Quilting Show as the SECC, Glasgow. I will be busy demonstrating some of the screen printing techniques featured in the book.

Why relieved …… well ……. I had organised the heck out of everything with son Joe due to take delivery of the books on Thursday 23rd. I’d printed out orders, ordered book mailers, etc, etc. All before setting off for my annual retreat in the Lake District last Sunday. Good company, good food, stunning surroundings and time to stitch, read and to treat myself to an afternoon nap. I spent time quilting the books cover star, a piece of fabric printed using a string mask on the fabric (see above). As always the retreat worked its magic and all the stress of recent weeks melted away.

A pallet of books arrived at 8.30am on Thursday. Joe rang me with the good news. I asked him to open a few boxes to check that everything was OK. He said he didn’t know what to look for. I said to do it anyway and check for things like pages falling out, uncut pages etc. Ten minutes later he rang me. He had spotted an obvious error …. they weren’t my books! All that stress that had melted away made an unwelcome return ….. my language was a little ripe! Several phone calls later the printer rang me to say that they had located my books and they were on a truck on the way to Fleet in Hampshire (about 200 miles from sunny Manchester) but would be re-routed and would arrive on Friday morning. Which they did. But, boy, I could have done without the drama!

That said I think they look brill and I am rather proud of myself. Not that I think I’ll start work on the next book just yet!

I am very, very delighted to announce that my new book Simply Screen Printing is available to pre-order from today with shipping expected to begin on 1st March.

Simply Screen Printing is a detailed, step-by-step, instructional guide to screen printing textiles at home, or in a studio, using Procion MX dyes and other media in a way that suits your budget and the space you have available to work in. It covers working with an open screen, with loose resists (paper, thread and plastic), with temporary resists (thickened dyes, masking tape and freezer paper) and with semi-permanent resists (flour paste, washable PVA glue and sticky back plastic). I show you how to pull traditional ‘perfect’ prints before exploring the wonderful effects we get when we embrace ‘imperfect’ printing. Yes, we break some rules!

With over 500 images spread over 236 colour pages, it is suitable for absolute beginners and, hopefully, useful to those of you who are already working with screens and dyes. Along the way I talk about colour (obviously!) and share lots of tips to help you achieve the printed fabrics you want to achieve.

The cost is £35 plus postage. You can find out more, see the contents pages, see images from the book and some sample pages by clicking here.

(Unfortunately the book is more expensive than I would like but printing costs have increased by 50% since I published Colour Your Palette in November 2021 and this is a slightly bigger book. If you are going to the Scottish Quilting Show in Glasgow or the Sewing for Pleasure show in Birmingham, both in March, you can save on the postage by buying from me at the shows).

As I did when I launched Colour Your Palette in 2021 I will donate £1 to the The Trussell Trust for every book sold before the end of March.

Simply Screen Printing is also available as a kit - Simply Screen Printing Kit in a Bag contains the book, a screen, a squeegee, soda, urea, Manutex RS and 4 Procion MX dyes in a heavy weight cotton tote bag. The kit costs £100 which is a £19 saving compared with buying the contents separately. Again I will donate £1 from the sale of each kit to The Trussell Trust.

I really hope you like the book, it has been a labour of love but now I’m going for a little lie down xx

Printed using an open screen first in different values of turquoise and brown. With additional line and pattern added using a breakdown printing screen.

It’s nearly here! My new book is called Simply Screen Printing and it is a detailed step-by-step guide to screen printing textiles at home or in a studio. Suitable for absolute beginners but, hopefully, useful to those of you who are already printing. More details to follow but for now here is some eye candy!

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Flour paste mask stamped onto fabric, printed using an open screen, adding acid lemon and scarlet thickened dyes directly to the screen to give bands of yummy colour. A little sunshine on a winters day!

I hope not. I’d like to wish you all a Happy and Creative 2023!

The days and weeks are flying by in a bit of a blur as I work my do-da’s off on THE BOOK. I am on track (just) for publication at the end of February and will post lots more photos and details over the next few weeks. In amongst the book writing we’ve had a massive leak in the bogshed (mostly fixed, but I’m still having palpitations!) and Christmas (two Christmas’s actually which was lovely). But mostly I’ve been working and to hit my deadline some things have had to give.

I’ve lowered my already low levels of housekeeping. Dear husband commented that the kitchen flour could do with a clean at one point. I perfected the HARD STARE nearly forty years ago and we have been happily married ever since.

Food needs to be filling and healthy. And cooked in 10 minutes. Or toast, if the day hasn’t gone as expected.

And the studio …. just a teeny tiny bit messier than I’m comfortable with. But I thought I’d share some images. Firstly, there is my sampling and photography area. Yes, this bit is tidy.

But the rest of the studio? Stuff on every surface. Piles of fabric that have been printed but need washing. Piles of fabric that have been washed. Tubs of dyes and a bench full of ‘stuff’ that I need to print samples. A pile of dressmaking patterns and fabric that I dyed about forever ago. Piles of old towels and drop cloths in case the bogshed has another ‘moment’. Curtains that need shortening and thermal liners adding before winter. Didn’t specify which winter. And a sewing machine that could do with a dust.

Ho hum. Nearly there. Honest.

Printed using a loose paper resists in different values of a lovely teal colour.

I’ve been elbow deep working on my next book over the last few weeks but have put my head above the parapet occasionally. And noticed that Christmas is nearly here.

So, a couple of things - if you are planning to order anything from my online shop please do so ASAP. In theory the last postage date within the UK is the 21st but postal strikes are taking their toll and I’m seeing that it is taking far longer than it should for things to arrive. I use Royal Mail for anything that weighs under 2kg and DPD for heavier boxes. Royal Mail seems to be badly affected in some areas and DPD have temporarily withdrawn their next day service and their collection service in my area.

And, if you’ve looked at my online shop recently you will have noticed that I have reduced the price of my Colour Your Palette from £25 to £20. With a new book imminent I need to clear some space!

The book ….. the words are (mostly) out of my head and on paper, or more accurately on One Drive. The bottle neck is sampling and photography which I can only do in my studio. My electricity smart meter is happily doing somersaults as I heat the studio during the current cold snap. Wearing thermals, sweaters, fleece-lined trousers, a woolly hat and fingerless gloves I find that I can work at 12 - 14C provided I don’t sit still for too long. My heart goes out to all those who can’t afford to heat their homes. It’s going to be a long winter for so many.

Hoping that you are lovely and toasty as you read this, Leah x

Printed using loose plastic resists in acid lemon and scarlet. Makes me feel warmer just looking at this one!

After the euphoria of Festival of Quilts and the fabulous news that my workshop in Australia next April has sold out I am back down to earth with a bump.

It may not surprise you to know that I love a spreadsheet. I keep a tight rein on the studio accounts, analyzing patterns of spend so that I can look forward to see what my potential earnings might be. Whilst Festival of Quilts will pay my bills for the next few months the outlook for next year is not great. And I’m not surprised. The news that fuel bills in the UK will go up by 80% from the beginning of October and are expected to go up another 50% in January is frankly terrifying. Sorry to get political here but without significant intervention many families, including those who have always felt reasonably well off, will suffer and worse.

I make my living from my customers and students discretionary spend and I would be very naive not to acknowledge that the cost of a workshop even without travel and accommodation, is going to be more than many people can afford. Or want to commit too when there is so much uncertainty.

So time to focus on more affordable ‘stuff’. I’ve started work on my next book and have set myself a goal of getting it finished in time for Christmas. I will be making an online workshop to go with the book although I don’t think it will be ready for Christmas unless I give up on sleeping. I also have ideas for some shorter online workshops to be available from next spring. And I will be printing and dyeing fabric off and on over the coming months so that I can offer fabric packs on my website.

I have a couple of five day workshops this autumn which are definitely going ahead but still have spaces available. I’ve decided to offer them at a 20% discount bringing the cost down from £400 to £320. The students already signed up will also get the discount as I’m not comfortable with students paying different amounts on the same workshop. The workshops are Print, Stitch, Go! (26 to 30 Sept) and Print Your Palette (10 to 14 October). Short notice but would love to have more ‘bums on seats’ as the saying goes.

It is four years, and one pandemic, since I made the decision to leave industry in order to start teaching. As a family we always knew that it might be ‘challenging’ financially but it is still the best decision I ever made and I’m grateful for all your support. Leah x

Twin needle Coptic stitch, Origata and a Stub binding

Some of you will know that I’m pretty focussed when it comes to how I use my time. If I’m not teaching or doing (the absolute bare minimum) ‘family / house’ stuff then I am in my studio making art. I read, do jigsaws, watch zombies on prime / netflix to wind down before bed but nearly all of my ‘free’ time is spent in the studio making art. I call this being focussed. Husband uses the word driven. I do get knackered sometimes and hubby will suggest I take a day off. Day off clearly means something different to him. To me it means wake up, skip having a shower, put on yesterdays t-shirt, kick aside the pile of laundry as I leave the bedroom, ignore the dirty dishes, grab a big packet of chocolate biscuits and head straight out to the studio. Remembering to lock the studio door so that I can’t be interrupted by my well meaning husband.

I do however make time for making books. I guess you could call it my ‘hobby’ now that textile art is my career / vocation.

And this last week I’ve been delighted to have friend, textile artist and book binder Ruth Brown teaching in the studio. I couldn’t sit in every day but I did make three of the five books that she taught during the week. My first ever twin needle Coptic stitch bound book which I love! Much firmer than the single needle version books I’ve made in the past and so many design possibilities. An Origata bound book which features a folded paper wrapper that holds the front and back covers. And a little stub bound book. The students also got to make a hard backed notebook and a travel journal.

Ruth is an excellent teacher and has a brand new studio in Otringham, nr Hull. Do have a look at her website here for details of her workshops. She will be demonstrating in The Creative Textile Studio at this summers Festival of Quilts as well as helping me on my stand. Do stop by and have a chat with her if you’re interested in book binding. (And don’t tell anyone but she is currently writing a book on hand bound books with stitched spines and will be teaching here at Urban Studio North in 2023 …. details to follow!).