What's on and coming up...
- Sam Luxford
- 1d
- 5 min read
Reclaimed, repurposed and ready for summer
One of the things I love about running the Sail Loft Gallery is watching people discover things they weren't expecting.
Reclaim : Reborn has now been open for a couple of weeks and it's been fascinating seeing which pieces people are drawn to. Sometimes it's the materials that catch their attention first, sometimes it's the stories behind them.
And that's really what this exhibition is about.
Not just recycling.
Not just sustainability.
But seeing potential where somebody else might see waste.
♻ Reclaim : Reborn
The exhibition continues until 27th June and brings together artists who all approach creative reuse in completely different ways:
There are paintings by Paul Destri, created on reclaimed boards and framed with recycled timber;
Kevin Harber (Wood for the Sole) transforms found and reclaimed wood into beautiful sculptural pieces.
Craft Beerings creates colourful jewellery from reclaimed drinks cans, while Fenella Miller gives recycled bottles a new life through fused glass.
You'll also find work by Christine Gallant, creating bags and collages from old tapestries and reclaimed fabrics;
Mae Kandoo, whose work explores repair, reuse and reinvention through textiles;
and Chris Harvey combining reclaimed wood with resin and dried flowers.
Alongside them, I've included a selection of my own stitched pieces created on recycled navigation charts and framed in reclaimed Burmese teak from the SS Pegu.
Every artist has approached the theme differently, which makes the exhibition a joy to explore.
If you haven't visited yet, there's still plenty of time.
🌍 Manningtree Earth Festival
Reclaim : Reborn is part of this year's Manningtree Earth Festival, which runs until 30th June.
Across the town, the festival has brought together an incredible range of events - walks, talks, films, wildlife sessions, repair cafés, workshops, family activities, food events and creative projects. There’s even a free Saturday shuttle bus between Manningtree Station and Market Square, making it easier to visit without bringing the car.
It’s been lovely to see the festival encourage people to explore the town in different ways - on foot, by bike, by train, through conversation, through making, and through paying closer attention to the world around us.
That wider festival context has made Reclaim : Reborn feel especially timely - not just as an exhibition, but as one small part of a much bigger conversation happening across Manningtree this month.
🧵 Summer workshops
The workshop calendar is beginning to fill up nicely, but there are still spaces available on several upcoming sessions:
🪡 Mae Kandoo Workshops
✨ Versatile Visibility Pins - 27 June morning
🧵 Visible Mending - 27 June afternoon
Both workshops explore practical creativity, repair and reuse through textiles and fit beautifully alongside the themes of Reclaim : Reborn. Book your place here
🌿 Botanical - 8 July
🌊 Coastal - 12 July
🌊 NEW: On the Shoreline - 17 & 19 July
The new On the Shoreline workshop is a little more ambitious than some of my other sessions, combining embroidery with shells, textures and mixed media. It's designed for those who already have some embroidery experience and don't mind taking a project home to finish.
As always, workshops are kept deliberately small, creating a relaxed atmosphere where people can learn, chat, make friends and enjoy a few creative hours away from everyday life.
🛍 Beyond the gallery
With Father's Day coming up this Sunday, the shop has been surprisingly busy with people searching for something a little more personal than the usual last-minute gift.
Alongside original artwork, you'll find:
💌 Greeting cards
🎁 Gifts and homeware
📚 Books
🧵 Creative kits
⚓ Nautical stitched artwork
Whether you're shopping for a dad, grandad, step-dad, father figure or simply someone who deserves a thoughtful thank you, there are plenty of ideas tucked away around the shop. And behind the scenes I'm always working on commissions and bespoke framing projects too. Quite often someone visits for an exhibition and ends up finding a gift, a card, a workshop or an idea for a commission they hadn't expected.
That's one of the things I love most about running NaviStitch - you never quite know what people will discover when they walk through the door.
🌊 Sam Luxford Artist
Outside of NaviStitch, I've continued adding new locations and new pieces to the Wild Sewing project. The project began as a simple idea: to demonstrate just how portable paper embroidery can be. Since then it's taken me to some wonderfully unexpected places and introduced me to people who might never otherwise have encountered embroidery on paper.
One piece of recent news is that I've installed a selection of work in a new exhibition at the Beehive Café within Felixstowe Museum.
The exhibition runs until 23rd August and sits alongside the museum's fascinating collection of local history displays. If you're heading to the coast this summer, it's well worth a visit.
You can follow the latest Wild Sewing adventures, exhibitions and new work on Instagram and via my website.
🎨 Looking ahead...
As Reclaim : Reborn comes to a close, preparations are already beginning for the next few exhibitions in the Sail Loft Gallery:
Manningtree Art Trail Exhibition
📅 Exhibition at the Sail Loft: 1-11 July
The Manningtree Art Trail takes place across the weekend of 4-5 July, with artists and makers exhibiting at venues throughout Manningtree and Mistley.
As part of the trail, the Sail Loft Gallery will host a special exhibition running from 1-11 July, featuring:
🎨 Amanda Clement-Robinson
🎨 Jem Gooding
🎨 Sophie Taplin
🎨 Sam Luxford
We'll also be open on Sunday 5 July (10am-4pm) in addition to our usual opening hours, making it a great opportunity to explore the trail and visit the gallery at the same time.
Art Trail is always one of the highlights of the local creative calendar and I'm looking forward to welcoming both familiar faces and first-time visitors into the Sail Loft.
The Abstract Hut
📅 14-18 July
A contemporary exhibition exploring colour, texture and abstraction through three distinct collections inspired by nature, the sea and the idea of giving overlooked materials a second life.
Three Artists and a Potter
📅 21-25 July
Featuring:
🎨 Julia Lord
🎨 Frances Vincent
🎨 Billy Hamersley
🏺 Rob Norman
A varied exhibition bringing together watercolour, oil painting and ceramics from four artists and makers inspired by local landscapes, colour and creativity.
It's one of the things I enjoy most about the Sail Loft - every few weeks the space changes completely and introduces visitors to something new.
💌 Thank You
Whether you've visited the gallery, booked a workshop, bought a card, found a gift, taken home a kit, commissioned a piece, had something framed, or simply followed along online - thank you. Independent businesses are built on lots of small acts of support, and I never take that for granted.
Until next time, calm waters and plain sailing,
Sam
Comments