Drawing - Sketch with Stitch Beginners & Improvers Workshop

Course intent

Add stitch to your drawings, learning about colour, mark making, and texture. Your design could be either naturalistic or abstract. You will leave with at least one drawing, plus either a small series of stitched pieces or be working towards a larger piece, with a clear idea on how to complete the project.

What will I learn?

You will learn

• How to sketch using dry and wet mediums
• Composition and basic design principles, such as focal point, movement and colour theory
• Appliqué and mark making stitches to interpret the lines and shapes within your drawing
• A range of embroidery stitches including straight, Cretan, cross and buttonhole, to create lines, patterns and textural surfaces, as the stitches replace the drawn marks from your original sketch.
• Other artist’s work and how they use stitch in their drawing practice

By the end of the session, you will be able to create a simple composition and use stitch to express marks within a drawing.

Who is this course for? Is there anything I need to know before joining?

The class is suitable for complete beginners, and those with some experience of painting, drawing and embroidery who want to combine ideas and explore new ways of working.

What do I need to bring to the first class? Will there be any extra costs?

Please bring

• A4-A2 white paper suitable for drawing or painting.
• Dry medium, such as chalk or charcoal, or softer grade graphite pencils such as 6B - HB
• Drawing ink with pen, plus a range of brushes and a jar for holding water.
• Sponge, old toothbrushes, sticks, card – anything you could use as alternative brushes and mark making tools.
• Plain white or coloured fabric such as cotton or linen - make sure your fabric is easy to stitch through.
• An embroidery frame (optional).
• Small scraps of fabric for appliqué (i.e. cotton, silk, wool, linen, synthetic, scrim or textured). Plain fabrics would work better, but they could be patterned.
• A range of embroidery threads, in a variety of thicknesses and textures, plus knitting yarn.
• A sharp, large eyed needle, plus other needles to suit the different threads.
• An apron to protect your clothes (optional – but a good idea if using ink!)
• Objects to draw or images to work from.
• Scissors for both cutting paper and fabric

  What can I do when I finish the course?

  We offer other Saturday workshops in life drawing, printmaking and embroidery. You could also join a longer course in Printmaking, abstract art, Portrait painting, Urban Sketching, drawing, painting or watercolour.

  Additional information

  We welcome learners with additional needs and disabilities. When you enrol, please let us know if you would like to discuss your extra support needs with a member of the Supported Learning Team who will then contact you as soon as possible. If you are enrolling within 10 days of the course start date, we may not be able to contact you before your first class.

We value and support equality, diversity and inclusion by promoting fairness and respect at all times.

How to enrol

Our courses are for adult learners aged 19 or over. If you are under 19, please call 0300 200 1044.

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