Category: textiles
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Material Histories, Making in the Home with Deborah McGuire: Making Meaning Episode 68
This episode is the second of the occasional mini series Material Histories with Deb McGuire. In this episode we are talking about what it means to work from the home, to work alongside domestic life and how that worked for women makers in the past. We both share our very different experiences of home /…
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Tangled: Textile Stories of Care & Connection Making Meaning Episode 67
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In August I launched my new self-published book Tangled. It’s been a long journey from idea in 2018 to finally having the books in my hands in 2026. In this episode I’ll read extracts from the book, explain how it came about and respond to some questions asked in my online and in-person book launches…
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Red clay and faded madder
Following the day’s colour prompt, I looked for a summer orange but what I found was an autumn russet, terracotta, brick. Had it been a sunny day, I might have thought of Tuscan roof tiles, glowing at sunset, but on an overcast, post-heatwave day when everything seems faded, it’s brick I see. Good, solid English…
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Hand & Heart textile days
A new series of events for textile folk in and around Loughborough Hand & Heart is my new project exploring sense of touch, textiles and sewing and I would like to invite you to join me for the first events in September and October. Do you love textiles & sewing? We invite you to join…
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Material Histories, Showing and Sharing Textiles: Making Meaning Episode 66
This episode is the second of the occasional mini series Material Histories with Deb McGuire. In this one we have a wonderful wide-ranging conversation starting with what we look for in quilt shows but covers far more than that. We talk about the power of connecting through making, about showing and sharing textile works and…
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Textile Book Group Autumn-Winter 2026
Four more book group sessions to take us through to the end of the year I’ve now hosted 12 months of Textile Book Group and we’ve read 11 books (with a break earlier this summer). The next monthly sessions are now open for bookings. Textile Book Group is on zoom, on a Monday evening at…
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21 Years of Ruth Singer, artist and writer. Making Meaning Episode 65
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This month, July 2026 marks 21 years since I left a very nice, well-paid job in the museum sector (at the V&A no less) and set off on this journey of second-career self-employment. It’s been varied to say the least and full of successes and failures, risks and rewards. In this new podcast episode I…
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Where Do I Get My Ideas From? Making Meaning Episode 64
I have been asked about my ideas and where they come from more than anything else in my 21 year career (although “How long did it take to make?” must be a close second). It’s really hard for me to define where each idea came from but I’ve given it a go in this podcast.…
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Nature connection and colour
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Exploring green in the garden During my first nature-based residency in 2023, I read that humans can see more variations of green than of any other colour. That’s because we evolved to live in green places, needing to identify plants and food. I developed a lovely activity to explore this, using threads in many shades…
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Stitching The Garden
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Nature-inspired embroidery workshop in Mill Field Forest Garden on 8th August I keep saying I am going to stop running workshops but I can’t resist one more in the wonderful community garden I help to run. I was artist in residence here 2024-2025 and I still find it endlessly inspiring and I want to share…