It's about time I got back to this blog, but I do have good excuse - we've sold the house, I'm writing a new book, new year with new courses to teach - I could go on!

However just to show I did do some stitching work in the last year here are some images taken for me by Kevin Mead of Art Van Go.

This one is based on bamboo at Beth Chatto's garden in Essex, I love the rustling in the bamboo when the wind blows. It's all hand dyed fabrics using dyrect dyes in the microwave, very quick and easy to do.

I do a lot of experimental work [ my new book on this subject is coming out in August] but I do like doing some basic patchwork sometimes.

For those of you wanting to do City and Guilds courses I will be teaching the 7822 course at Denman [WI] college over two weekends staring at the end of February, a new 7922 Certificate course starts in Sept in Suffolk, with a 7923 Diploma starting also in Sept but over several weekends a term. Contact me if you want more details.

For a bit of joy in these joyless times - or so the journalists would have us belive - visit louisebatten.blogspot.com - she used some of her early prototype toys to leave in a park for children to find - what a lovely idea!