Studio Journal

When the temperatures soar, even our needles and fabrics seem to feel the heat. From chasing shady corners in the garden to retreating to the cool of the studio, here's how to keep your creativity flowing during a summer heatwave.

Some days, staying positive feels easy. The studio is busy, the phone rings, workshop bookings arrive, customers pop in for a chat and perhaps leave with a bag full of fabric. Those are the days that remind us why we...

Creativity rarely happens in giant leaps. More often, it grows through small steps forward – a stitch sewn, a new skill learned, a project restarted or an idea shared over a cup of tea. This week's blog explores the power of creative communities, learning through experimentation and why every small step on your creative journey deserves to be celebrated.

There is something quite special that happens when creative people gather together. Ideas flow, inspiration grows, and projects take on a life of their own as makers share knowledge, solve problems, and encourage one another. Beyond the creativity itself, these moments offer something equally valuable – the chance to become completely absorbed in the process of making, leaving everyday worries behind for a while. In a world that often feels busy and demanding, a few hours spent creating can be both inspiring and restorative.

Has the recent warm weather changed your creative routine? Explore how the seasons affect creativity and why inspiration often appears when we least expect it.

Sometimes the best way to unblock creativity is to step away from the studio. A reflection on how taking a day off, gardening and reconnecting with nature can refresh inspiration for textile art and creative practice.

Creative work can leave us vulnerable to self-doubt, criticism, and setbacks,  but creativity also teaches us how to rebuild. A reflective piece on resilience, confidence, and piecing things back together through stitch and making.

Slow stitching is more than embroidery or hand sewing — it is about slowing down, becoming present in the moment and rediscovering the quiet joy of making with fabric and thread. In our latest blog, we explore why this mindful approach to textiles is becoming increasingly popular and how tutors such as Amanda Clayton use stitch, fabric and texture to create beautifully thoughtful work.

Learn how mending and altering clothes supports sustainable fashion, reduces waste and refreshes your wardrobe with simple sewing skills.

There are moments when stepping away from work feels almost uncomfortable. The to-do list is still there, ideas half-formed, projects waiting. But every now and then, taking that pause—really taking it—becomes exactly what’s needed. Time with family has a way...

Eau Brink Studio marks 10 years with a busy open weekend in West Norfolk, celebrating craft workshops, creative community, and the support that’s shaped the studio’s journey so far.

The creative process isn’t always neat or predictable. In this piece, I explore the quieter side of making—the uncertainty, the layering, and the small decisions that shape a piece long before it’s finished.

A material, a piece of work, a technique… something that makes you pause and think, I’d quite like to try that.

Developing your own textile style isn’t about following rules,  it’s about giving yourself space to explore, experiment, and create work that truly feels like yours.

Join me at the very first Farmers Market at Norfolk Lavender this Saturday. A relaxed morning of textiles, creativity, and local stalls in a beautiful setting.

Discover how working with a limited colour palette can transform your textile art. Using black, white and cream fabrics, explore how stitch and texture take centre stage.

A reflection on four inspiring days at the Creative Craft Show NEC and why Eau Brink Studio is embracing change, focusing on workshops, textile art, and new creative opportunities.

Preparing for the Creative Craft Show at the NEC takes a huge amount of behind-the-scenes work. In the studio I’ve been cutting Lutradur for 64 lantern workshop kits, preparing FuseFX, assembling materials, and packing the equipment needed for teaching. I’ll also be demonstrating my embroidery machine on the stand and bringing a range of handmade textile items to sell. Here’s a glimpse into what it takes to get ready for a major craft show.

When I combine multiple images to create one complex composition, the result can be beautifully layered. but technically challenging.

At Printwear & Promotion LIVE I spent time with Robert Smith and the Wilcom team, gaining clarity on workflows that will shape my digital embroidery practice and teaching at Eau Brink Studio, proving how important it is to keep learning, even if fuelled by one Americano too many.

Once visitors began to drift in, the atmosphere truly came alive. There was a wonderful buzz conversations flowing, laughter carrying across the space, and that unmistakable energy that happens when people gather to browse, discover, and connect. At the Warehouse in Setchey.