Soft circuits workshop

This workshop at the V&A was a good introduction to smart materials and showed us how to embed circuits into fabrics. We used conductive thread and various sensors to construct circuits to light up LEDs. We were shown how to incorporate light and pressure sensors into textiles so that they light up when parts of the fabric are touched or exposed to light. Switches can be made in different ways and we were shown how to make them from Velcro, using conductive material, so they could be taken apart, and from a loose connector made from a metal bead which lit up different circuits as it made connections with them. The day was very enjoyable and we came away with lots of useful ideas that could be incorporated into many different smart projects.

Handbag exhibition at Valtopina

My black and white bag ‘positive-negative’ has just returned from this exhibition in Valtopina (Perugia) in Italy entitled 'Filo di segno opposto'. I was invited to make a bag for the exhibition reflecting the idea of opposites and after much thought I decided on this black and white theme. I also decided to use Bedfordshire lace as a distinctive English lace. The beautifully produced catalogue I received when the bag returned shows the diversity and skill of the other participants and includes interesting essays on various aspects of bags through history, as well as a catalogue of the historical bags that were exhibited with the contemporary ones.