Heathfield Show 2025

This was our third year at the Heathfield Agricultural Show in the Arts & Crafts marquee (you can see my posts about 2023 here and 2024 here - look how much Toddler F has grown!). We like it because it is only one day so it isn't spread out over a whole weekend, Toddler F can come and look at all of the tractors, stunt bikes and animals and, Holly, the organiser of the A&C marquee, is very lovely and organised. The attitude of organisers can make a big difference to an event! 

Our usual routine is to set up on the Friday morning as early as we can and, in previous years, we have been known to break into the marquee because it wasn't opened up for us - it was all fine, no one had a problem and we zipped everything back up when the actual entrances were opened. We take two car loads as our car isn't long enough to fit the framework of my stand in so our car gets loaded up to bursting with stock boxes, and then the frame, grid walls, tables, shelves, card and print stands etc get loaded into my parents' car.

I really love this frame. I worry sometimes that it can be isolating once we have the curtains up but I love the feeling of security it gives me considering everything is just left in a field overnight. It maximises the space as well as I can have shelves above tables, utilise the walls...it gives you more areas to display items rather than just a table would and makes me feel more like a little shop. 

Sometimes the neighbours don't like it as they've said before it restricts view of their shop when potential customers are walking around, or they don't have such a good view of other stands, but customers would still have to walk past them so I'm not that worried. I have, on the odd occasion, also come back on show day to discover neighbours have hung lots of their produce off my frame work as part of their own displays too so it sometimes benefits them if they embrace it. 

I faff around deciding how I would like my Stitchscapes and stock displayed, trying to put as much out as possible, photographing it as a reminder and then hiding away anything that would get damaged through moisture or the stand being accidentally knocked by other vendors when setting up. 

We trialled a new way of displaying the kits this year - putting out one of each kit in a stand, with the stitched example so that they were individually easier to see rather than rifling through a basket. We did still have a basket containing the Naked Stitchscape Kit, Stitchscape Pebbles and the Christmas Mini Hoop II kits but the big sellers were all set up in the tiered display. 

The big marquee can get quite damp depending on the heat and weather conditions so we put a tarpaulin down underneath to help with any moisture on the ground, we do also then have the option to create a tarpaulin roof if needed, but usually everything is ok if we layer bubble wrap or old sheets over the top of it. 

Show day! The Heathfield show opens at 8.30am so we have to be up and at 'em to get in before the punters and put everything out that was hidden away the day before. This time round the sheets we put out over the stock were damp on the top but the stock itself was bone dry which was perfect. 

We take a breakfast and lots of things to do for Toddler F so Reece set about getting the kiddo fed whilst I quickly made my shop look all pretty again, setting out prints and cards, tiering up the kits and presenting my hung and propped Stitchscapes. Most of my haberdashery items had already been set up so it wasn't too bad. 

Reece's second job is to go and source breakfast for us - he did excellently well with this absolutely giant hot dog!! Although it was quite tricky to eat without getting ketchup everywhere. They aren't delicate things to munch on are they?

I'm pretty chuffed with how it all looked. I don't want it to be so overwhelming that no one knows what they're looking at, but you also want lots out so that it covers everything I can offer. Thanks to the expansion of the Stitchscape Shop in a box, I could almost do with two tables here now but that might block us in somewhat. If we come back next year I might have to rethink our layout. The problem is that we never know where our position in the tent is until the day of setting up and it does make quite a bit of difference as to how the space is set out. The first year, for example, I had two sides open to the public and poor Dad was sent back to the studio to get more things to have on the second side. 

Our position this year was the same as last time, in the corner with an extra little unusable corner space where we can put down a picnic blanket and some chairs and share it as a relaxed zone with us and our neighbour on that side. The window being there is also great as it makes it nice and light, and we can sneak in and out of that bit as well as there are zips to turn it into an entrance. 

(Happy in his chair nest. Thank goodness for Wifi!)

We had a good day on the show day, it was nice to see the 'Heathfield Show regulars' and several other familiar faces popped by to say hello. Our only problem this year was the weather as it rained in the morning so was quite quiet in comparison to previous years. It did stop raining after a couple of hours but I think it had put people off coming so it was just generally a quieter day. 

The new way of displaying the kits was a success, it felt like more people knew what they were and were coming to have a look. I did get asked a lot whether they were kits so perhaps I need to invest in a better sign? I don't know where I would put it though, to me it's fairly obvious that they are kits, what do you think?

At the end of the day it is utterly amazing how quickly it all comes down again. Literally within half an hour this entire shop and stand was packed away and in the back of the two cars and we were on the road to offload it into my storage. The evening is traditionally spent with our feet up on the sofa, with a takeaway treat for dinner as an edible pat on the back for a job well done. 

Maybe see you there next year?

Fibre Fest - All Things Textile

(Toddler F set out some of his favourite cars on my stand before I could unpack the frames!! I wonder if he'll set up a little car shop one day?)

This year is a year of trying out new events to try and find some that work better for me and my products. Stitchscape kits are actually quite difficult things to sell - people who buy them (or who they are bought for) tend to be those who actually like embroidery, don't mind the slow pace and are willing to have a go. My most regularly heard excuses for not buying kits are; I don't have time, I'm not at all creative, I only do cross stitch, I wouldn't have the patience, I can't see that sort of things anymore, my hands aren't that good at holding needles, it's not fast enough - I'm more a machine person. 

It's a fairly niche area - I often wish that I was actually a painter, or a potter perhaps, where more people would appreciate it and buy it just because it was pretty, or they understood how to use it, or it was considered practical. 

I was invited several months ago to have a stand at Fibre Fest - All Things Textile in Eastbourne Enterprise Centre. The organiser had come across me online, and I think I'd been recommended by another textile artist who regularly attends their events (but I'm not sure) so I had an email ping into my inbox inviting me to go along. 

The idea of an 'all things textile' event really appealed to me, and Eastbourne isn't far away so I jumped at the chance although, never having been in the Enterprise Centre before I wasn't sure how big it was going to be. When festival is used in the title it makes it sound really big and grand but, actually, it was surprisingly small! And held in an upstairs balcony corridor type place which was a bit strange. It was marketed very well and I felt really chuffed that so many people had come along because I had also advertised it and put it in my newsletter. There were lots of friendly faces saying hello. 

It was the first event where I also had a proper basket of fabric fat quarters/samosas, and had deliberately taken some haberdashery items. I took my IKEA peg board and propped it up at the back to give myself a little haberdashery wall. This was a great idea, although not particular sturdy but I think another trip to IKEA is in order to get another one and some other bits to make more walls. 

The building is an old train garage and has the original ceiling and features with lots of windows so it's beautifully bright and airy, it was just a bit strange being in this suspended corridor where you could look down into little shop streets below on either side. There was a very popular tattoo studio up there as well and we had several heavily tattooed people marching through the textile customers to squeeze another tattoo somewhere on their bodies. 

Other stalls included a fashion designer with clothing, crochet, felt hats, eco-printing with wildflowers, hand dyeing with natural dyes, sashiko, machine stitch textile artists, knitted creations...it was a good range!

The morning was fairly busy but then the afternoon just kind of dropped off and went very quiet. Luckily I had a project to sit and stitch and, I happened to notice that one of the yarn twists from Folkestone Harbour Yarn perfectly matched my hoop in colour so I spent some of my earnings on a little hand dyed hank of wool to play with. 

It was a very nice day, in a nice atmosphere - just a little on the quiet side customer wise (which seems to be happening more and more really) - and we can teach workshops so I think if it's on next year I would arrange to offer workshops on the day to keep more of a flow going. 

I managed to get a fair way with my little hoop too, all made with fabrics available in my web shop! 

Stitchwave for Artwave

I participated in my first ever Artwave this year. It's an event which I've been aware of for a while but had never been involved in before. There are many different versions of it and it's effectively an open houses or artist studio event, but kind of set as a trail so there is a booklet printed with all of the venues and their different opening times and you can walk between them or make special trips. I was invited to be a part of it at The Stitching Post in Isfield and, more excitingly, because The Stitching Post is all about stitching and fabric and gorgeous textiles, Kelly (the lady who runs and owns TSP) turned it into Stitchwave!!

Isfield is on what the Artwave organisers have called 'The Rural Trail', which basically means it's not in Lewes, Seaford or Newhaven where the majority of their locations are. Anyone register to join, either in a hired space with other artists to make more of a mixed exhibition, or in their own studios or houses. Some give over their houses quite completely and throw open the front door, hanging their pictures from every part of their walls and selling postcards off the dining room table. 

There were actually quite a few different venues open in Isfield so it was worth a trip out of the bigger towns and into the much more rural setting because you could make a day of it (especially as there's a nice pub in the village). 

TSP was open for two weekends, although our tables were set up for the whole time so weekday visitors to the studio could see and buy whilst they attended their workshops and bought fabrics from Kelly. The exhibiting artists (including me) were on a rota to come and sit and greet people, make tea and coffee, offer cake (Mr DT made a very nice banana cake for us!) and give demonstrations. Between visitors, there were some lovely opportunities for us to sit in the sunshine, listening to the chickens chooking in their pen, chat stitchy things and work on our own projects. 

I took my BIG project that currently lives next to my sofa waiting for small snatches of time to do a couple of stitches on it. It's not anywhere near finished but did draw a lot of attention with the different beads from Old Bicycle Shop that I've added and the big shells. Although interestingly, there were a lot of comments and questions about my floor stand rather than the Stitchscape clamped into it. 

In case any of you have questions about the stand, I don't know where it came from originally, or how old it is as I'm fairly sure I inherited it from my Nanna (or pinched it, I can't remember now). I would think really a more modern frame would be better, this one is just slightly too short and could do with being a bit higher, or adjustable to go up and down, and the wooden screw pegs are loose so it doesn't tighten up properly which means it could suddenly collapse at any moment. Who says embroidery isn't thrilling?

I do love it though, and have recently had it fixed by my uncle (thank you Steven!) because the whole 'head' section with the clamp snapped off where the dowelling had rotted in the middle and just gave up. I'm really pleased that it's back in action again. 

I did really well over the two weekends and, not only that, I had several visitors who I've previously taught in workshops, a lady who brought along her finished Fire Flower II kit (pictured below), a couple of ladies who wanted to book me for future workshops and someone who has just joined my Stitchscape swap (who brought that month's card with her to save on postage - savvy!). Thank you to everyone who made a purchase; there were lots of kits, cards and prints sold so I hope that you all enjoy your projects or pieces. 

There were nine of us exhibiting there, including Kelly herself showing the quilts she has made and selling some of the older projects or samples. We were all different but complemented each other beautifully, and Kelly had done a really good job of organising her space so that we sat nicely next to each other. 

I was next to Sarah Becvar who is a machine embroiderer and designer. We didn't actually meet as our rota didn't have us together at any point but she was doing really well with sales and apparently her demonstration on how to machine embroider a design on a card was very popular. I have just the teensiest amount of jealousy for machine embroiderers because they can produce work so quickly! Drawing with a sewing machine is an amazing skill, I have tried it before but I can't say I'm very good at it, possibly because it's so fast and I'm a go-slow stitcher. I still appreciate the beautiful design work though regardless of my little green shoulder monster, and Sarah's florals are really lovely - look at the beautiful bee below!

I would love my own space like TSP has. Mainly just the gorgeous shelves of wonderful bright fabrics so that I could hoard more metres and metres of fabrics without feeling guilty for taking up space in our home. (I have fabrics tucked away in every available space - plus a spare room at The Parent's house.) Kelly was making a quilt from the new Kasumi fabric collection from Makower, which I also have just bought to make a Koi kit with (watch this space) and it was nice to see her in action, as well as the beautiful finished articles she had hanging up. Some were for sale because they were previous collections or examples for kits she no longer has, and others were promoting upcoming workshops or currently available quilt kits. She's a busy lady, attending all of the major quilt shows and travelling the country with her fabrics!

Someone even more patient than me when it comes to stitching is Ana Kirby, who is a slow stitch specialist. She is quite measured I think in her approach, and stitches emotions, thoughts or feelings rather than creating things that would be seen as a recognisable image - although some of her little samples are slightly more decorative perhaps, joining fabrics together and just relishing the joy of using fabric and thread. 

These lovely lampshades are by Lexi and Lu, who choose the prettiest fabrics to make their shades. They aren't stitched, so aren't quite the same as the other artists who were in the exhibition, but they sure are pretty! You can commission them, or go on one of their lampshade making courses if you are interested in having a go yourself.

The Bridgerton Ladies are a rather fine little gathering aren't they? They are the work of Marilyn Willis and have been made using scraps of fabric and lace from real dresses made for the cast of Bridgerton! (I assume everyone knows what I'm talking about?) We did have a quick look to see if we could recognise any of the fabrics on a Google search of Bridgerton Season One but nothing jumped out at us. It was decided that it could be a challenge for whoever bought a Bridgerton Lady to re-watch the series and see if they could spot their dress. 

Marilyn has a range of different embroidered items, some upcycled, some created from scratch, and she also teaches workshops at The Stitching Post on various embroidery and textile courses. 

It was a very colourful corner with Alison McDonagh's ethical stitching. She upcycles even the smallest of fabric scraps into these wonderful pictures, book covers, textiles and all sorts really, saving them from landfill. She combines the fabrics with paints, machine stitching, fibres and hand embroidery so they are really textured and colourful with lots to see in them once you get up close. 

What you can't tell in an image, is that the colourful prints on these bags are actually printed on velvet! I couldn't help but stroke one to make sure but they definitely are which is quite amazing - what fantastic fabrics! Carole Brown makes all of her bags to be 'a little bit different', and sells them through her shop Teasel and Threads. There were bags, purses, pincushions and a few other little bits there which were all bright and lovely. 

Finally, these creations are by Jo Oakley, who is just starting out in selling her work so doesn't have any social media or a website or anything to tag her in. She is often at TSP as well though so that would be a good way to contact her if needed. Everything was so neatly and expertly stitched, from the English Paper Piecing to the machined top stitching. I think she did really well too, as all of us did as far as I know, which is fantastic. It was nice to be part of just a textile exhibition/show case rather than muddling in with watercolourists and photographers - not that they aren't worthy, but in this case we got everyone who was genuinely interested in the fabrics and stitching which made it much more personal in a way.