And on to the next......

 

Out of the Fold are preparing for a large exhibition of new work on the theme of 'Material Dialogues' which will be shown at the St Margaret's Gallery in Norwich from 21st Sept until 4th October 2026

As part of 'Material Dialogues' we are working in collaborative pairs, drawn at random. 

My partner is Frances Overy and we are holding a material dialogue between the traditional woolen, red madder dyed fabric of Norwich where Frances lives and the silk, blue indigo dyed fabric of  Sudbury where I live

We have both dyed a mixture of woolen and silk fabrics in madder, indigo and mustard and shared these to create pieces of work

The range of colours we have acheived is amazing - the same base fabrics have dyed in very different ways. The water of Norfolk has produced much deeper, redder colours whilst the limey Suffolk water has given me a more orange palette - but they all tone in together

I am using sections of old woolen blanket resuced from my Mother' airing cupboard as the base to embellish and kantha stitch.

The results will be displayed on wooden spools turned by Frances using chestnut wood from her garden

Out of the Fold are one of the Alumni Groups taking part in the fnal Creative Stitch Graduate Show 2026 and all six of the collaborative pairs will be showning their results

Sat 18th and Sun 19th July 2026

Needham Market Community Centre

School Street

Needham Market

Suffolk

Wearer Unknow installation finally on show

 

After two years in the making 'Wearer Unknown' finally went on show as part of the EAST exhibition Paradigm Shift at the Grundisburgh House Gallery near Woodbridge in Suffolk.

The work is made up (so far) of 12 plaster cast shoes inspired by my original discovered clogs which walk on a path of 24 (so far) hexagons

As they are all separate pieces they can be moved around and shown in different ways depending on the venue

In a smaller venue just the shoes could be shown

Each shoe has been cast from one of the originals and then 'crusted' and rusted to give an antique feel

Each hexagon represents a shoe recorded on the Concealed Shoes register held by the Northampton Shoe Museum and includes the CSI number or location of the find.

The hexagons have also been rusted

'Paradigm Shift' will move to The Minories Gallery in Colchester in April 2027 and be shown in a much larger space. So the plan is to continue adding both shoes and hexagons over the next few months.

I will also contact the Northampton Shoe Museum to see if they might be interested in showing the work

Eco Print Silk Scarf Workshop

 

New workshop for 2026  Eco printed silk scarf

Learn the skills of mordanting and eco printing onto a 100% pure silk scarf using gathered fresh leaves. 

I will provide all the equipment needed - pans, stoves, drainpipes, iron water etc. A 100% ponge 5 silk scarf 28cm x 114cm with a hand stitched rolled edge from George Weil can be supplied for £6 if ordered in advance.

Date: Saturday 4th July 2026   10am - 4pm

Venue: The Cosy Cabin

Cost: £55

To book please contact The Cosy Cabin  01284 811 222 or visit www.thecosycabin.co.uk/

Handmade Book workshop - another date added

 

New workshop for 2026 Handmade Fabric Book

Learn the skills of basic bookbinding to make an unique A5 sketchbook from scratch. We will print the fabric for the cover and paper for the endpapers before making up the the book. Suitable for all levels

All materials provided for £10. Choice of colourways.

Date: Saturday 27th June 2026  10am - 4pm

Venue: The Cosy Cabin, Risby Barns, Risby, Bury St Edmunds

Cost: £55

To book please visit https://www.thecosycabin.co.uk/workshops-events/ or telephone 01284 811 222

Textile Discovery Day In Ipswich

 

I will be just one of the many textile practicioners demonstrating at the Textile Discovery Day at Christchurch Mansion in Ipswich on Tuesday 26th May. 

This is a FREE event from 10am - 3pm

www.ipswich.cimuseums.org.uk/events/textile-discovery-day/

Out of the Fold members Nicola Whayman and Sarah Boardman will also have stands at the events

Beyond Stitch, an exhibiting group based in the region, will have a display in the kitchen

You will also be able to see the 'Constable250 Set of Characters exhibition www.ipswich.cimuseums.org.uk/constable250/#characters

First Lutradur Lantern workshop - a success!

 

Video made by Lizzy Curtis showing off her Lutradur Lantern

Although I have been working with Lutradur for many years, and teaching it as part of the Advanced Stitched Textiles course this is the first one day workshop making the Lutradur Lanterns. 

I must acknowledfe Amanda Neville for the idea when she made a tea light holder when we used Lutradur on the Bridging the Gap course in 2024 and, with her permisssion, I 'borrowed' her idea and developed it into a larger version.

The students at the Cosy Cabin workshop created some lovely examples, in lots of different colourways

We first painted papers with transfer dyes and hund them outside to dry

After stitching and colouring with the transfer papers, and foiling to add extra bling, it was time to get out the heat tools

Here Juliet is using her soldering iron to make marks and holes in the lutradur

Juliet's completed vase

We also used heat guns to burn the lutradur so it opening up into a filigree look surface

Here is Teresa in action

If you would like to book the Lutradur Lantern workshop then please contact me by email

maryelmcintosh@gmail.com

I can provide the materials for £6 and provide the soldering irons and heat guns for class use

£240 per day for a group up to 16

Out of the Fold collaboration

 

The theme for Out of the Fold's 2026 exhibition is 'Material Dialogues'

For our group challenge this year we are working in collaborative pairs, drawn at random, to make new work on the theme

Some pairs are producing a single piece of work with both artists working on different elements

Other pairs are 'swapping' elements throughout the process and incorporating these into separately produced works

Some are discussing ideas and interpreting them using their own choice of materials and artistic practise.

The process is challenging and stimulating in equal measure. 

My partner is Frances Overy who lives near Norwich. The city was famed and made wealthy by the woven wool industry and the use of madder to dye the vibrant red cloth.

Norwich has many landmarks in the city which record it's textile history including the Madder Market.

I live near Sudbury which has a great tradition of silk weaving and whose mills still produce woven silk of the finest quality.

Sudbury also has architectural evidence of this past with streets such as Weavers Lane. Sudbury blue, also known as Lavenham blue, was achieved by dyeing with woad and indigo

Out third dye inspiration also comes from Norwich and the other product produced in the city -  mustard

Frances and I have both been dyeing a variety of wool and silk fabrics and are sharing these for the joint collaboration

What will we do with these fabrics? And how will the theme of 'Material Dialogues' be translated into finished work?

The other materials we are exploring are paper (Mary's favourite) wood (Frances is a wood turner), and plaster (a new material for both of us)

Weaving  is the link between Norwich and Sudbury, and so we will present our joint installation on a series of spools inspired by those used on the looms.

You will be able to follow the progress of our collaborations on this blog and on the Out of the Fold website where you can read regular blogs posted by group members www.outofthefold.com/category/blogs/

The whole series of work from the collaborations will be seen first at the Creative Stitch Graduate Show 2026 where Out of the Fold are one of the invited alumni groups

Venue: Needham Market Community Centre, School Street, Needham Market, Suffolk IP6 8BB

Dates: 18th and 19th July 2026

And then at our main exhibition in St Margaret's Gallery, St Benedict;s Street, Norwich NR2 4TU in Sept 2026