About Dionne
Dionne paints with stitches to create dynamic, vibrantly coloured textiles. Her needle becomes her pen and thread her ink. The scale, emotion, and energy of her landscapes are inspirational.
Dionne is a graduate of Goldsmith’s College, London University. She has a Masters in Textiles from UCE. And she has been recognised by the industry for her incredible work, e.g. Shortlisted Finalist in the Fine Art Textiles Award at The Festival of Quilts 2020.
Now based between Yorkshire [UK] and Abruzzo [Italy], she exhibits and tutors internationally.
You can watch Dionne demonstrate how to use free motion embroidery to create a range of patterns, textures, tones, and shades in an episode of The Makers Studio series, brought to you by Janome and justhands-on.tv.
Signature Technique
Painting with stitches
Top Tips
- Use a vibrant mix of thread weights, colours, and styles to build up a more dynamic texture.
- A machine with an extra wide throat makes it easier to manipulate your piece.
- Cover your hoop with fabric to give it more grip. You need the fabric to stay drum like as you manoeuvre it.
- Drawing your subject first, with pencil on paper, can help improve your observation and knowledge of your subject – try not to work from a photograph.
- Practice by stitching your signature to get started. Your muscle memory will help you.
- Think of painting with stitches as an orchestra with the sewing machine, threads, fabric, hoop, and you (!) coming together to work as one.
- Don’t be afraid of the machine. After a few hours of speed sewing it becomes second nature.
- Try not to have a set image of the outcome. You are not stitching an exact replica. The result is where you get to. There is no wrong in there. Enjoy the journey.
Videos
Patterns
Posts
Fat Quarter Baby Quilt Gallery
Valerie has to thank Beatriz, one of her students, for the introduction to It's So Emma's Fat Quarter Baby Book and now we love this – we think you will too They have been busy making lots of the quilts and here are just a few. The book has 20 little crib quilts to make, with great shopping information and excellent cutting and sewing instructions too.
2 June 2017
New Videos Every Friday Meet Kate Findlay This [...]
Bath Cancer Unit’s Forever Friends Appeal
Members of staff at Knorr-Bremse Rail UK in Wiltshire are selling raffle tickets for a quilt to raise money for Bath Cancer Unit’s Forever Friends Appeal. Their colleague Tony Bliss lost his battle with cancer last year, so an appeal went out for shirts from staff at the Melksham site – an engineering and manufacturing facility in the rail industry – and the amazing response ensured there was enough fabric to make a quilt for a double bed.