Narrative Textiles

Bring your personal story to life in colourful, vibrant textile art.

Narrative Textiles by Ailish Henderson offers a unique journey into textile art, blending personal stories with vibrant creativity. Ailish Henderson is a young and exciting textile artist whose work captivates with its fun and quirky nature. Her art tells intriguing stories, grounded in cloth and enriched with diverse media. In this beautifully crafted book, Ailish shares her working methods, guiding you to harness them in your own creations to produce deeply personal textile art pieces.

Harness the power of your personal memorabilia to craft meaningful artworks. The aim is to capture moments in time, precious memories, expressions on faces, or glances of love from a pet. Ailish encourages you to delve into the stories that matter to you.

This book not only features the author’s work but also showcases pieces from renowned textile artists like Mandy Pattullo, Bridget Harvey, Jenni Dutton, and the popular Mr X Stitch (Jamie Chalmers). It covers:

• Materials: Discover how to source cloth, utilise found and recycled materials, curate vintage fabrics, and incorporate treasured family pieces into your artwork.
• Processes: Learn about finding inspiration, creating mood boards, maintaining sketchbooks, and developing work from drawings, all while capturing character.
• Techniques: Explore screenprinting, hand and machine stitching, applique, and mixed-media collage.
• Subject matter: Delve into themes like the narrative line, self-portraits, family snapshots, history, identity, travel, beloved animals, and even famous faces.

Throughout the book, Ailish encourages you to work with freedom, instinct, and honesty. She brings a wealth of techniques to inspire you to create authentic stories in cloth, and most importantly, enjoy the creative process along the way.