Leather Birds & Animals
Life size birds made from soft leather. The leather is sewn over a ‘skeleton’ made from wood, wire and aluminum. To make the legs I solder copper wire together and then bind it with leather strip. Beaks are copper or brass, or aluminium covered with leather…
Silk Birds & Animals
Life size and made from pure silk. Although the framework is the same, with a ‘skeleton’, metal beaks and legs, I use a much greater range of bright vibrant colours and sometimes incorporate embroidery. Quite a lot of the silk birds are imaginary…
Silk & Leather Spreads
The Spreads are made from pure silk or soft leather. Each one is unique. They are inspired by patchwork quilts, to which I’ve added an incredibly tactile third dimension with soft padded texture. Throw over the back of a chair or over a bed, or hang as a tapestry…
About Me
I’ve been sewing since I was a girl. Even though I studied ceramics, I soon went back to the sewing machine. I started making one off dresses and jackets when I lived in Madrid, and later sold them in the King’s Road. My clothes were very heavily finished, with patchwork, embroidery and textures worked into the garment. I’ve designed and manufactured classic, fashion and custom motorbike ranges, hats, shoes and underwear.
In the late nineties I worked with the Spanish interior designer Nacho Moscardò on several nightclub installations in Valencia.
All my work is made from leather or pure silk.I started making animals and birds during the time I was running Shotgun leather, manufacturing high quality custom biker wear. We had boxes full of scrap leather, and one day it occurred to me to make a lizard. Then I progressed to iguanas, sloths and armadillos, all soft and without an interior frame, conceived almost as cushions, albeit rather unusual ones.
Back in Spain, I collaborated with Javier Florèn, the late sculptor, on various interior design projects, (mostly for the designer Nacho Moscardò). Javier offered to make me steel ‘skeletons’ so that I would be able to make larger pieces. Together we made the Black Leather Jackals series, exhibited in Valencia, which includes a Rhino, a Crocodile, a Moose, an Ostrich, two Hyenas, and three Jackals, all life size in leather.
Having learnt by watching Javier, I started to make the frames for birds and smaller animals on my own.
I make a rough shape in wood of the body and head, and link them together with strips of metal. I solder copper wire together to form the legs, and fashion the beaks out of copper or aluminium.
Then I cover the skeleton with fleece and wad it up to get the shape right. I make the outer feathers or fur with either leather or silk, which is quite a labour intensive process, and can be really fiddly on small creatures, but also very rewarding, as I see the character of the animal appearing. The last step is threading glass beads through the head for the eyes.
I do repeat certain birds, Crows, for example, fly away quickly, but I always make a new pattern for each session, to keep the work looking fresh and unique.
I am usually inspired by an animal or bird I have seen, but have always tried to keep away from ‘cute’ creatures, and if I am left to my own devices, I tend to make everything in black, although working with silk has encouraged me to branch out into more colours.
I am a very adept pattern cutter, having worked in fashion for many years, but I’ve enjoyed the challenge of using power tools, however frightening that may appear! The technology I employ is entrenched in the fifties, but I seem to get what I want.
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