Make space is nearly a year old!

 Hello all!  Did you know, Make Space is almost a year old? 

Easter Make Space at Annie's - decorating eggs

Lilia creating wax marks before dying her egg

Jo and Naomi (that's me!) had a brainwave around this time last year - to start something for the people of Petworth and surrounding area - something that harnessed the creativity  in all of us, young or old and made a space for it to flourish.  We also wanted it to be about good fun, laughter, meeting people and making friends and new connections.

Sharing a joke!

Back last summer, we ran a few workshops for young people and children and they were very popular and a great time was had by all!
Since then, we've had 6 of our Girls' craft nights at various venues and with a different mix of people every time.  Each time we meet we bring along our current projects if we have one; our knitting, crochet, card making etc and usually there is a little project ready and waiting for those "between projects", like this mini pincushion.

There's always plenty of tea and coffee - the odd glass of wine, heaps of biscuits and cakes, and buckets of laughter and chatting.  They really have proved to be a lovely way to spend an evening.

The yummy homemade treats at Libbie's house.

There's always good food - white chocolate fondue at Esther's house

One of the finished collages, made at the April get together

We are truly thrilled that the little idea we had last year has worked and is something other people were craving too.  We hope that if you haven't been to one before, you know that it's just as much for you as anyone else - we have new people trying it out every time and there's always a warm welcome.  It's not exclusive and we love to see new faces.  It's all about sharing ideas and inspiration too - so even if you don't have a "project" on the go, or you don't feel like you are a creative person, come along and see what everyone else is doing and enjoy the lovely atmosphere - you are more than welcome!  I have to confess, most Make Space evenings, I spend my time chatting, picking up tips and taking photos, and I have a great time!  I just love to see what people are making!

Our crochet expert Naomi B's granny Squares....beautiful!

So, if you would like to come along, Like our Facebook page to stay in touch with when the next meeting is and see what we've been up to. 

Calling all Girl Crafters!

The next Girls' Craft Night is on Tuesday 28th February at 7.30 pm at the lovely Katie's house, 19 Rothermead, Petworth, GU28 0EW
It's the usual idea - bring along the project you are working on, along with anything you need to work on it and we'll provide the refreshments and a cosy place to chat and exchange ideas.

Please bring £2 towards refreshments (bargain!) and I will bring along my sewing machine for anyone who needs one, and a little crafty project you can have a go at if you are lacking a current project.  This time, we're having a go at making spiral roses - which I haven't had a go at yet, so I'm looking forward to it!  I thought we could try fabric and paper - with the addition of a safety pin, they'd make lovely brooches, don't you think?

So, see you then for an evening of girly crafty fun.

By the way, sorry to anyone who can't make it this time because it's on a Tuesday, we are trying to vary the days a little so that there's more likelihood of everyone getting a chance to have a go.  Thanks! xx

Cosy Crafting at the Clubhouse!

Kerry and Jo craft chatting!

Our second Make Space Girls' Craft night was another lovely evening.  There's something so wonderful about cosying up in front of a log fire with a basket of crafts and a few good friends around you.
The clubhouse at Duncton Mill Fisheries was the perfect setting for our get together with it's wood burning stove, comfy sofas and coffee pot gurgling in the corner.

Everyone brought their various projects, including a tapestry, knitting, sewing and even a fancy dress costume that needed making for school! (Now that's an efficient way to have an evening off!)  We all settled into our cosy home for the evening, helping ourselves to homemade treats and hot drinks and warming ourselves by the fire on what turned out to be quite a cold evening outside.

 

I had set up the Make Space project area in the corner, amply stocked with all sorts of fabrics, beads, buttons, ribbons and sequins and a few of us sat happily decorating our lavender filled hearts.  I even made a few Make Space pincushions for the occasion!

 

Others made a bit of progress with their Brought From Home projects and a superhero cape was completed, all in good time for a busy mum to get ahead of the game for a school dressing up day.

That's the whole idea about these Make Space Craft evenings - to bring along something you've not had time to do - or have wanted to do for ages and actually give it some space and time.  Time to make - Space to flourish.
A few of us learnt something new too - the beginnings of crochet!

And we launched our idea of book swaps - with a table full of lovely craft books and magazines, ready to be borrowed.

We hope that others will have books at home they may be able to lend around too - so that we can make use of each others resources to keep ourselves inspired.  Jo's idea of bringing along novels was a fab one too - so if anyone has something they've read and would be happy to pass on, please do bring it along.

Hopefully everyone went home pleased with what they had made and achieved, having had a wonderful time, chatting, learning, laughing and making.  And hopefully you all went home feeling a little bit more like YOU. xx

Next Make Space Girls' Craft night is on February 28th at 7.30 at a particulary cosy home in Petworth.  watch this space and face book for more details nearer the time!

Love is.....A Make Space Girls' Craft Night!

 I was thinking about what we could have as our stand by craft activity for this Thursday's Craft Night and it occurred to me that it's Valentine's day coming up - so I dug out one of my faithful old craft books and found this lovely idea.....
It only takes a few scraps of fabric and some very basic sewing skills to create something beautiful to either give to your loved one, or keep for yourself!  They look lovely framed, or would actually make wonderful Valentines card.
So, this Thursday I will be bringing along some of my pretty fabric scraps, some ribbons, beads and bows and we'll see what we can create!
Of course, you can also bring along your current craft project - whether it be crochet, drawing, sewing or card making.  It will be nice to see what everyone is up to, chat and share tips!

I will bring along my sewing machine if anyone needs one and there will e plenty of refreshments on hand to keep us going. Please remember to bring along £2 for refreshments and 50p if you want to make a heart.

The venue is the Dunton Fisheries Club house - a lovely, cosy venue tucked in at the foot of the South Downs.  Instructions on how to get there can be found here.  Jo will be putting up some balloons so you can find your way!

See you at 7.30 on Thursday 26th January.

xxxxxxx

Girly Craft Nights!

 

Our first ever Girls' Craft night was a great success!  We held our gathering at our lovely friend, Esther's beautiful and most welcoming Farm Cottage just outside Petworth. 

We feasted on mince pies and mulled wine and sat round the roaring fire, making to our hearts' content.  The variety of projects was amazing - everything from knitted cafetiere warmers, owl doorstops and framed baby collages. 

A few of us had a go at making the paper baubles from the tutorial I had found through Mollie Makes magazine too.

 

So, now that we know the idea works, we are planning another get together, this time in a well furnished Barn in Duncton, a lovely place at the foot of the South Downs.

We'll provide the refreshments (please bring a suggested donation of £2)and the comfort (it's a very cosy barn!) and you bring your current project and all the things you need to work on it.  If you need to use a sewing machine, there are places you can plug it in, and tables to work on and there will be tea and coffee in plentiful supply as well as good chat, exchanging of crafty ideas and generally lots of making fun!

If you want to sign up - go to the Make Space Facebook page and let us know.  I'll also be posting directions there soon.
 
We look forward very much to seeing you in a couple of weeks!

Make Space takes a breather

Make Space is currently taking a break for the Autumn. We are hoping to gather a few creative circles together, to have a go at some "Coffee, Cake and Make" sessions, possibly crochet or sewing. We'll let you know as they grow!

We also loved doing the Summer workshops for young people so much this year, it is something we plan to do again next year, so watch this space for further details.

In the meantime, if anyone out there has a creative something they want to shout about - this is the place to do it, so let us know. It can be anything creative you are involved in in this community, including dance, drama, art and music.

Cut and Paste Heaven

We've just returned home after this mornings brilliant collage workshop with 14 Junior Make Spacers. We had a fab time, surrounded by all sorts of lovely materials, buttons, beads, beach finds, papers and paints.




It was great to be up in the Herbie room again, especially on such a lovely sunny day. It really feels like you are sitting amidst the tops of the trees up there - beautiful and so inspiring!


All of the participants went home with one or two - and sometimes three or four collages, ready to hang on their walls. they were all so different too - from intricate drawings, to explosions of colour and 3-D materials.



Half way through the morning we stopped to look at each others' work and enjoy a drink and a cupcake - quickly becoming the "Make Space for a Cupcake" moment of each workshop!


I particularly enjoyed the queue of things to be stuck using the glue gun - (a job just for the adult helper) even though I managed to burn myself more than once in the process! They were all so inventive.


We hope you all enjoyed yourselves as much as we did and have a happy memory of your morning spent creating when you look at the collage on your wall. thanks for being with us and don't forget to keep an eye out on this blog for details of our next events.


If you have any ideas about workshops you would like, why don't you comment below? We'd love to hear from you. That goes for you grown ups out there too - we have lots of ideas, but we'd like to hear your too!

Don't forget to check out the Gallery page to see the lovely art work we've been creating!