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Upcoming Mischief
Workshops, Events & Releases
Kids Workshop
Create your own Pocket Story Book
Saturday 24th October 2026
11 AM - 12 noon
Calderdale Library
£5
Join us to create your own individually-designed pocket story book using found and reclaimed materials - from maps to junk mail and envelopes.
We'll build the pages of your story book and use a simple hand-binding technique to fix them inside your cover, ready for you to fill with your very own story.
Whether you keep it for yourself or gift it to someone special, nobody else will have a story book quite like yours!
Memory Making workshop series:
Memory Making with Treasured Possessions
2 options:
6th & 7th Feb 2027
6th & 7th March 2027
Bradford Industrial Museum
Free
(fully funded places and/or Pay What You Can Donation)
Join me to sew items that honour you, a loved one or a key moment in your life.
Heritage Crafts workshop series:
Block Printing
25th April 2027
Bradford Industrial Museum
£30
Block printing is an ancient textile decoration technique used across cultures for centuries. Participants design their own pattern, explore different block-printing techniques using sample blocks, and create a printed t-shirt or apron to take home.
Heritage Crafts workshop series:
Fan Making
8th May 2027 - 2 sessions
Bradford Industrial Museum
£18 per session
Morning Session (11.30 AM–1.30 PM):
Traditional Folding Fan Participants learn the heritage technique of fan-folding, creating a functional paper or fabric fan using simple materials. This ancient craft teaches precision, understanding of geometry, and creates an instantly usable keepsake.
Afternoon Session (2 PM–4 PM):
Uchiwa Fan (Japanese Inspiration) Explore the circular Uchiwa fan design, learning how to construct and decorate a hand-fan using sustainable materials. Participants leave with a decorative and functional piece.
Heritage Crafts workshop series:
Pleated Cushion
4th September 2027
11 AM - 4 PM
Bradford Industrial Museum
£45
Join me for a full day workshop learning the "critically endanged" Heritage Craft of Pleating.
Pleating is a centuries-old textile technique that creates structure, texture, and beauty through precise folding. Participants learn hand pleating methods on some samples before moving onto making a decorative cushion with a pleated frill — combining a traditional technique with a modern, functional outcome.
Heritage Crafts workshop series:
Autumn Weaving
9th October 2027
11AM - 4 PM
Bradford Industrial Museum
£45
Weaving is one of humanity's oldest textile crafts. Participants bring a photograph of a place or scene that means something to them — home, a cherished landscape, a special memory — and learn to translate that image into a woven textile using colour, texture, and pattern.
Workshop
Beginners sewing course
Coming soon!
Craft House, Bingley
Join me for a 6 week introduction to sewing - learn how to thread your machine, choose stitches, alter tension and read basic patterns in making your first garment.
Workshop
Upcycle a Christmas top
Coming soon!
Craft House, Bingley
Bring an unloved or neglected item to upcycle into a festive item, ready to spread some Christmas cheer.
Workshop
Create your own Kimono inspired top in a day
New dates TBA
Craft House, Bingley
£100
Enjoy a full day of cutting and sewing and create a stunning kimono-inspired top, picking up sewing techniques and tips along the way!
Workshop
Create a linen top in a day
Coming Soon!
Craft House, Bingley
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Book release: Stubborn Hope
Coming Summer 2027
A pedagogy book for educators, parents, and anyone working with children on difficult subjects.
Stubborn Hope codifies my approach to making anxiety-reducing, hope-filled, creative learning happen. It's about teaching tough topics through play, creativity, and genuine connection — and believing that kids can handle hard stuff when we guide them right.
This is the book for anyone who's ever wondered: How do I talk to kids about grief? Anxiety? Big scary topics? And how do I do it in a way that actually helps?
Sign up for launch notifications:
Register on the Mischievous Update below to be notified when Stubborn Hope is available -
Book Release: If I Was a Tree
Coming Spring 2027
🏆 Best Unpublished Manuscript, Page Turner Awards 2024
An illustrated children's picture book exploring identity, belonging, and transformation through the lens of nature.
Currently in illustration, this award-winning manuscript is being brought to life with the same creative mischief that runs through all my work.
Perfect for children (and adults) navigating questions about who they are, where they belong, and what makes them special.
Sign up for publication updates:
Register on the Mischievous Update below to be notified when If I Was a Tree is published -
The Quiet Wonders
Coming 2027
Three interconnected picture books for children navigating tough topics through nature.
The Toadstool That Nobody Noticed
A nature object that feels wrong in its place is actually exactly right. A story about belonging, being seen, and mattering.The Stone That Couldn't Fit
A rock that doesn't fit the riverbed teaches us about acceptance, difference, and finding your place.The Cloud That Couldn't Rain
When a cloud can't do what it's "supposed to" do, it discovers its own kind of magic.Each book combines illustrated nature stories with (potentially - TBC) mixed-media textile illustration (incorporating embroidery + textile techniques), and themes around grief, anxiety, belonging, difference, and hope.
Currently in development with full manuscripts and sample illustrations.
Sign up for the series launch:
Register on the Mischievous Update below to be the first to know when Quiet Wonders is available
“10/10 It Opened neurodivergent minds”
Participant at Cliffe Castle Museum workshop
Interested in booking a workshop for your organisation?
I'd love to hear about your group, your space, and what kind of creative connection you're hoping to create.
Get in touch via the contact form or email helen@unlikelygenius.com and let's chat about what would work for you.
Your Creative Mischief Maker
Based in: Bingley, West Yorkshire
Available for: Workshops across Yorkshire and surrounding regions (contact for further afield - it’s available, just needs different planning)
Group sizes: Flexible (typically 6-15 participants depending on workshop type and premises for the more intense programmes)
All materials provided: Participants just bring themselves (and personal items for memory-making workshops)
Ready to get mischievous?
Workshops can be adapted for all ages. All abilities. All emotions.
You don't need experience. You don't need to be "creative." You just need to be willing to show up and try.
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