Sarah McAlister Textile Artist

The Weaver’s windows of Shoreditch

The demolished Weavers’ Cottages are a significant omission from the history of Shoreditch

Motspur Park Gas Holders

A little bit about the story behind my beautiful ethereal textile interpretation of the derelict gas holders at Motspur Park.

Comfort knitting

How I mashed-up two different shawl patterns.

Joining yarn colours (without having to sew the ends in)

This looping method of joining different yarns is easy once you get the hang of it. Here it is in easy steps:

On Sunday 7th July 2024, I will be running a free sewing workshop at the Morden Family Fun Day at Morden Park. I will be showing you how to make little needle cases to take away with you either to keep or give as a little gift. This workshop is funded by Morden Rotary, butContinue reading “Free Sewing Workshop!”

Is your online hat purchase a disappointment?

Have you bought a hat online and been truly disappointed when it arrived? Perhaps it can be revived and restored. Recently, I have been contacted by several people who have purchased felt hats online that were delivered in completely unsuitable packaging. Strangely (no I’m kidding, it’s really obvious!) these hats have arrived in a dreadfulContinue reading “Is your online hat purchase a disappointment?”

Towards Zero

In this post, I will attempt to use up all the colour in a dye bath that was left over from another project and record what happened.

How handmade does something have to be to be called “Handmade”?

The story of a Handmade Red(ish) Beret In the past, I used to buy in berets to sell on my market stall and I noticed that the red ones always sold out first. These berets were not especially good quality, being items that were mass produced in China, but were popular because they were competitivelyContinue reading “How handmade does something have to be to be called “Handmade”?”

Cleaning the gunk off your iron: is this the world’s most boring chore?

Is the plate of your iron looking a bit gunked up? Mine gets distinctly grotty after using adhesive fabric backing and interlining. Here’s how I get rid of the gluey residue.

Surrey Tweed 2022; from fleece to fashion

It gives me such a sense of achievement to be able to show you some garments made using wool that I have washed, carded, spun and either hand knitted or woven on my rigid heddle loom into beautiful garments. Truly slow fashion. In summer 2021, I was lucky enough to take possession of five lovelyContinue reading “Surrey Tweed 2022; from fleece to fashion”