Stitch the Wandle: Walking and Stitching Workshop with Elly Platt, Sat 23 May 1-4.30pm

Join textile artist Elly Platt for a gentle afternoon of walking and stitching inspired by the River Wandle.

This creative workshop invites you to take embroidery outside and let go of perfection. As we stroll through Morden Hall Park, we will stop at intervals to create short embroidered “sketches” in response to the river, its wildlife, the surrounding landscape and the act of walking itself. Think of it as the textile equivalent of a quick life drawing pose, capturing impressions of a constantly changing environment.

Prompts may include the movement and reflections of the water, riverside plants and textures, the surfaces beneath our feet, and the relationship between the built and natural landscape. You can work on separate small pieces or develop one evolving response across the session.

This workshop is suitable for anyone who can thread a needle and sew a basic running stitch. It is not about technical precision but about observation, creativity and connection to place.

All materials will be provided.

About the artist Elly Platt, also known as Take It Up Wear It Out, is a costume maker and textile artist whose work explores storytelling through clothing, visible mending and site-specific textile practice. Her Wandle Wardrobe project drew on walks along the Wandle Trail, transforming discarded textiles into new works that reflect the river’s rich history of textile production and its ongoing ecological story.