Christine Green

CRAFTING AT THE COTTAGE

Daughter of graphic design parents, niece of a photographer, painter and printmaker, granddaughter of a wedding photographer and painter, my destiny was set very early on by the influences of my forebears; I was going to be arty; speciality unspecified and to be honest that’s how it has been throughout my life.

Growing up there was always creative stuff happening at home; Dad had his lashed up rostrum camera on the landing next to my bedroom where he created his animated films. Mum made clothes for me and my sister and we used the left over scraps to create matching outfits for our teddies and dolls.

Our birthday parties were famed for their crafting activities that Mum would dream up, I remember peg doll fairies were particularly successful.

And that’s how it started. TV was black and white and children’s programmes ran from four until six finishing with the ‘Magic Roundabout’, there was a lot of time to fill, and I drew and stitched, entered art and craft competitions, wrote to the BBC’s ‘Blue Peter’ with suggestions for projects they could make, (I was particularly proud of my finger puppet theatre made from an Easter egg box,) and I had a painting included in the gallery on ‘Vision On’. I dreamt of making pictures for television and on graduating from Kingston Polytechnic, my dream became a reality and I joined the BBC Graphic Design Department, I was in my element! 

Thirteen years later I left, went freelance, had two children, took a PGCE course at Goldsmiths and after a few twists and turns I now teach crafting courses, regularly give talks and have my own range of merchandise featuring my typographic paper cuts, and several patterns for some of my favourite stitching projects so you can have a go.

I consider myself extremely lucky to do what I love and love what I do!

I look forward to helping you find your creative side!

Upcoming Courses & Talks

march

20mar2:30 pm4:30 pm‘Working for Auntie’ – TalkTalk for Chiltern U3ADrake Hall, Amersham Community Centre

27mar7:15 pm9:00 pm‘Bust the Rules and Get Creative’Talk for the Market Square QuiltersSt Francis de Sale Church Hall, Newbury

april

04apr7:30 pm9:30 pm‘A Life in Stitches’ – TalkTalk for Cheddington WICheddington Village Hall, Leighton Buzzard

06apr9:30 am3:30 pmEnglish Pieced Paper patchworkHand stitched patchworkMaker Space, Nuffield

08apr10:30 am1:00 pm‘Working for Auntie’ – TalkTalk for Chiltern U3ARegents Park Golf Club, Horwich

13apr2:00 pm4:00 pm‘Bust the Rules and Get Creative’Talk for the Meon Valley QuiltersWaltham Chase Village Hall, Southampton

15apr9:30 am3:30 pmPapercutting WorkshopCreative paper cuttingMaker Space, Nuffield

24apr7:15 pm9:30 pm‘Bust the Rules and Get Creative’Talk for the Heather QuiltersHigh Cross Church, Camberley

Living the dream

 I started my BBC career as an assistant graphic designer and my first job  was animating an extremely large amount of Lego. I went on to work on a wide range of programmes including ‘Our Friends in the North’, ‘Tracy Beaker’, ‘Children’s Hospital’ and the Queen’s Christmas speech and I loved it.

I even got the opportunity to direct programmes about art and design for the schools department.

I was living my dream at Television Centre, Wood Lane W12 8QT one of the most exciting and famous addresses in Britain.

Teaching and talking

My teaching career is as varied as my BBC career. I ran the Film and Animation School at Kingston University, for a couple of years, taught at the Oxford Photographers’ Workshop, ran workshops for BAFTA and have a PGCE from Goldsmiths College.

These days I run numerous courses, textiles, paper cutting, patch working, lettering and a bit of photography, to students of all ages at a variety of locations. It is enormously rewarding, passing on knowledge and sharing experiences and seeing students develop in to confident designers and makers.

I regularly give talks to interested groups including WI, U3A and patchworking groups. I offer three different talks all of which are well illustrated with lots of images and anecdotes.

Bust the Rules and Get Creative – my back to basics approach to patchwork and my influences. 

Working For Auntie – life as a graphic designer at the BBC.

Playing with Knives – my take on this ancient craft, a bit of history, culture and how I do what I do.

Crazy about Crafting?

Join my mailing list for news and upcoming courses

Patchwork & Stitching

I began stitching when I was very young, outfits for my teddy, stuffed creatures and very simple clothes.

These days it’s patchwork  that excites me, I like the practical aspect of the finished item but also the designing and the recycling aspect. You could not describe me as a fat quarters quilter, I don’t stitch by the rules and rarely buy new fabric. I prefer delving in to my stashes and making do with what I have already, much of which has been donated, or bought at car boots and jumble sales. I mix and match velvets and linens, ticking and denim and am not too concerned about mitred corners. My approach is about going back to the origins of patch work, using whatever materials are to hand, improvising and above all enjoying playing with fabric.

Find about more about booking a Patchwork Course.

To see lots more of my own patchwork projects visit the patchwork gallery.

Students’ work.

Paper Cutting

I was on a rather extended trip to Canada when I taught myself paper cutting. I needed to send birthday cards and gifts home and these hand cut panels were perfect. I had plenty of time on my hands, a ‘Dollar Store’ in the town, (great for paper and foam board) and a scalpel.

My designs feature quotes from sources as diverse as Shakespeare, Dickens and my dad and with my graphic design background, designing and cutting letters came naturally. And with my love of felines, cats feature in many of the designs.

I have refined my technique over the years and now teach many creative paper cutting courses with terrific results. It’s a low cost, visually pleasing craft which students find enjoyable and rewarding, and often take up.

Find about more about booking a Paper Cutting and other Courses.

Cats are small people in fur coats

Designer-Maker

I was asked to teach at Art in Action a few years ago and was given a stand to sell my stuff from – what stuff though? Most of my makes were for friends and I didn’t make things en masse, but my paper cuts were well-liked so I took the plunge and designed, cut and had printed five greetings cards, a tea towel and a limited edition of giclee prints. They sold well and I had a great response in my visitors’ book. Since then I have extended the card range, produced    Christmas versions and have three tote bags.

Most recently I have developed a range of patterns so you can have a go at making some of my favourite projects. They are illustrated with full colour photographs, clear instructions and lots of top tips so you can personalise your version.

  Visit the shop.

Visit the Shop for some unique Cards & Gifts

Eye-catching and quirky Framed Prints, Cards, Bags and Tea towels – all using on my uniquely designed typographic paper cuts.

Other Stuff

Never one to say no to creative challenge has resulted in me taking on some odd jobs including making eighty velvet scarves for the opening night of ‘Mary Poppins’ on Broadway NYC, filming a funeral for the Queen, and costume and set designing ‘Romeo and Juliet’ for our local primary school.

I have co-written a book ,‘Contemporary Needlepoint’, an inspirational collection of contemporary designs, updating this most traditional of crafts and designed a needlepoint kit for the National Trust.

I won Kodak’s Young Photographer of the Year and my work on ‘Cambridge Spies’ was nominated for a BAFTA.

CANVAS BAGS!

Don’t miss my eye-catching Canvas Bags – Ideal for those little shopping trips. New design just out!

Privacy Policy

European Union General Data Protection Regulations

The EU GDPR is designed to help all of us have more control over our personal data, and how is it used.

Who does the GDPR apply to?

Data subjects, being all visitors and users of any website who are members of the European Union who submit any personal data. Christine Green is the data processor and data controller of this site. You can find out more about this law here.

Privacy Policy

Effective from 25th May, 2018

This Privacy Policy sets out how I use and protect information that you may provide when you use this website.  Your privacy is protected, and is important to me. If you provide identifiable personal information it will only be used to help me fulfil queries and requests.

Christine Green is the company or person who collects any personal data submitted through christinegreencrafts.co.uk

I may update this policy periodically, please check this page to ensure that you are in agreement with any changes.

What I Collect

Personal information, basically any data that can be used to identify or contact you is collected so I can service your requirements.  This could include your name, business name, address details, email, telephone numbers, or information pertaining to enquiries you may have sent me, or details about classes, workshops or other services I offer. You may also at times be asked to leave a message about your enquiry or project brief.  Websites also collect your IP address through the use of Cookies (find out more about cookies below).

If you opted-in to our mailing list, you may receive occasional emails on important updates or service information. You have the right to opt-out or and have any personal details removed at any time, please email me, Christine Green, at buttnergreen@gmail.com

What I Do With The Information I Collect

Information is saved until the enquiry is dealt with, and then archived with the project or on cloud based systems if you are an ongoing client.  I also retain your contact details and information in the emails you have sent, but you can request to have your personal details deleted at any time.

I will not sell, distribute, or lease your personal information to third parties unless I have your express permission, or are required by law to do so. I may use your personal information to send you relevant information about services I offer, or information you need as part of the services I offer.

Data Security

In my commitment to ensuring that your information is secure and to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure, I have suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures in place to safeguard and secure the information I collect online.

  • Data is stored on a secure cloud-based server or on a secure, password protected computer with limited user access.
  • Sending information over the internet is generally not completely secure, and I can’t guarantee the security of your data while it’s in transit. Any data you send is at your own risk.
  • I have procedures including passwords, restricted access and other security features in place to keep your data secure once I receive it.
  • I will NEVER pass on your personal data to third parties without first getting your explicit consent.

Controlling your personal information

You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the following ways:

  • Whenever you are asked to fill in a form on the website, look for the box that you can click to indicate that you do not want the information to be used for direct marketing purposes
  • If you have previously opted-in to a mailing list, or provided other information, you can find out what information I hold, and ask me to remove or not to use any of it, by emailing me.
  • If you believe that any information I am holding about you is incorrect or incomplete, please email me as soon as possible: buttnergreen@gmail.com  I will correct any inaccurate information.

 

Google Analytics

User and Event Data Retention

I use Google Analytics to find out what content works best for our users. User-level and event-level data associated with Google Analytics cookies is retained for 14 months and then automatically deleted. Website visitors who don’t want their data used by Analytics can install the Analytics opt-out browser add-on.

IP Anonymization

I have implemented IP Anonymization, simply put, the last three digits of your IP address are set to zeros in memory shortly after being sent to the Analytics Collection Network. The full IP address is never written retained, or written to disk.

 

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