Chris Marchant
Introducing my work
I am inspired by nature, the countryside, maps, words, folklore. Interesting surfaces fascinate me and I find myself drawn to texture and earthy colour palettes. Typically my work starts with lots of photographs from which I develop ideas, sometimes on paper, other times on the iPad. I almost always make from my own hand dyed and printed fabrics and papers, enjoying the creation of the materials as much as the stitching!
My grandma used to bead and embellish stage gowns in London's west end in the 1930s and her ‘stash’ of beads, sequins and threads passed to me after she died. My lifelong love of fabric and thread was ignited.
Embroidery and hand stitch in various forms kept me sane during a busy career in book publishing and the years raising our two daughters. But I always had a strong desire to break away from other people’s designs as soon as I had the headspace to do my own thing. Time pressures eased and an opportunity came along to join a dyeing course — a new world of surface design opened up.
Soon I wanted to learn more about design and new forms of stitch. I decided the way forward would be to enrol on the City &Guilds Certificate in Patchwork and Quilting, slightly ambitious perhaps since I hadn’t previously done any patchwork or quilting! In addition to learning about design, I would learn a new set of skills. I am so glad I plucked up the courage to sign up - I learned masses and went on to complete not only the Certificate but also the Diploma.
I particularly love texture and my work is generally inspired by nature and interesting surfaces, and usually incorporates my own hand dyed and printed materials.
Embroidery and hand stitch in various forms kept me sane during a busy career in book publishing and the years raising our two daughters. But I always had a strong desire to break away from other people’s designs as soon as I had the headspace to do my own thing. Time pressures eased and an opportunity came along to join a dyeing course — a new world of surface design opened up.
Soon I wanted to learn more about design and new forms of stitch. I decided the way forward would be to enrol on the City &Guilds Certificate in Patchwork and Quilting, slightly ambitious perhaps since I hadn’t previously done any patchwork or quilting! In addition to learning about design, I would learn a new set of skills. I am so glad I plucked up the courage to sign up - I learned masses and went on to complete not only the Certificate but also the Diploma.
I particularly love texture and my work is generally inspired by nature and interesting surfaces, and usually incorporates my own hand dyed and printed materials.
