New England memories

In May we were lucky to have a tour round New England with quilts!  Claire and Wendy LeMaistre told us all about their New England trip and showed the fabulous quilts this inspired.  They are mother and daughter, and how many people in the group envied their joint passion for quilting (and fabric!)

 

Their quilts were wonderful, bears, eagles, pumpkins, rainbows, they had all of them!  It was a really inspirational show.

 

More inspiration was in the 'Little House' blocks, especially for those of us who are a little behind in this mystery!

 

June is always full of inspiration, and here are her May raffle prizes.  Beautiful floral fabric, tied with pink tulle ribbon and decorated with flowers.  Wonderful!

 

And now for the show and tell.  I am constantly fascinated by scrap quilts, and here are Mile A Minute blocks combined with my other favourite - lime green!

 

More MAM in a different design. 

 

This is a striking double Wedding Ring quilt, which (according to its maker) is 'poor workmanship'.  Everyone can see how gorgeous it is, and the yellow background makes it extra gorgeous.

 

This quilt hasn't responded well to my 'point and click' camera style.  It was originally made for an Olympic theme, but wasn't finished in time.  (How familiar did we all find that strain!)  Still, it's finished now, and absolutely stunning.

 

Piecemakers were lucky to have a workshop taught by Ruth Jarman on Heirloom Quilting, and here are two quilts made by this method.  Debbie has made 20 beautiful blocks and got them assembled.  This quilt repays closer inspection!

 

And Ruth had got completely carried away and made 42 blocks for her fabulous heirloom!  Again, you had to look closely at this quilt to appreciate it.  Beautiful work.

 

Why are people so mdest about their work?  Who is this hiding behind this vibrant quilt?  I love the colours.

 

This is definately Di trying to hide behind this lovely quilt made from various blocks.

 

Di was lucky enough to have this snazzy bag given to her as a birthday present from her brother.  Can you see, it's made from a suit sleeve?  That's the ultimate in recycling.  What a thoughtful present (and from her brother!!)

A wonderful strippy, Chinese coins style.

 

And lastly, a Linus quilt completed by Paula.  Bright and cheerful!

Threads, threads, threads!

In April we had a visit by the Empress Mills team, Christine (pictured in her amazing glassses with built-in reading light!), William and Charles.  They brought an incredible amount of stock with them, and it was eye candy heaven for everyone who was there! 

 

Apart from an extensive array of threads, they had fabrics, haberdashery and all kinds of Vilenes, including one with squares printed on it -which one member had just ordered from America! - and some which laminates fabrics and is ideal for wash bags or anything which would benefit from extra durability. 

 

 

Here is William proving not only that men can iron, but also demonstrating a special Vilene which turns quilted fabric into a version of the fabric found in ruched swimsuits of the 1950s.  Ideal for those who want that kind of effect!

 

Christine's talk was called 'The Evolution of Thread', but turned out to be the fascinating history of Empress Mills, and then an opportunity to learn about (and handle) all the different threads they carry, cotton, silk, linen, poly, slubbed, metallic, thick, fine and fancy.  It was a super evening, which culminated in an opportunity to buy - although there was absolutely no pressure to do so.

 

June's raffle prizes had a sunshine and showers theme, with a rainbow of fabrics, held together with shimmery 'raindrop' ribbon, and decorated by cocktail parasols!  Wonderful!

 

And here are the book wraps waiting for Sarah to collect them.  For a group with over 60 members, I have to say that's not a very impressive number of wraps.  If you feel like making more to raise money for the Quilter's Guild, I know Sarah will be delighted to receive them.

March meeting

I can't believe I am so behind with my blogging - it's already nearly halfway though May and I haven't even written about the March meeting!  Add to this I've got a dodgy internet connection, which means that the photos aren't uploading properly, and you'll understand my frustration!  However, I'll do the best I can.

 

The March meeting was very informative.  We were lucky enough to have Yvonne Orchard with us, and as a very early member of the Quilter's Guild (she has been to every single AGM!) she was able to tell us all about the founding of the guild, it's evolution and news about the guild's museum in York.  (Sorry that she looks rather 'in the pink', but that's the wonders of modern technology for you!) Several people were interested enough to join the guild that evening, which is a very good thing. 

 

We were also lucky to have had Eunice bring lots of goodies from her shop, The Quarter Inch which is in Market Harborough.  Lots of people were pleased to be able to buy fabric (and such lovely fabric!) without having to travel, park etc.  Thank you Eunice for your hard work!

 

 

Another person who works hard is June - she always gives us an imaginative raffle.  This month's theme was 'Spring is here!' and it certainly looks as though it has by these delicious-looking prizes! 

There was the usual excellent show and tell, but I'll post this while I have the chance, so sorry to disappoint readers.  Hopefully I'll have more luck uploading photos in the future.

 

Sewing day

There is so much going on in Piecemakers that I can't keep up with it - no wonder we have had to close our books at 63 paid up members!  (Visitors are welcome, and we have a waiting list in case anyone takes the hump and leaves!  Not that that is likely to happen!)  We organised a sewing day on 9th March to make book wraps for the Quilter's Guild, and sew Linus quilts. 

 

 

here is sarah who kindly offered to share her talents for the day.  Gwyneth is obviously spoiled for choice!

 

Jan is using the time to finish the borders of a Linus quilt.  Lovely.

 

 

And Paula is also hard at work for Linus - as usual! 

 

Here is Gwyneth working with pinks and reds.  

 

 

And Di and Gill are beavering away.

Sarah was no slouch either!

 

And here are the finished results!  Gill's Kaffe Fasset fabric book wrap,

 

Di with something more restrained,

 

and everyone else with a variety of lovely items for the Quilter's Guild tombola.

Ruth tells me that there is a space on the Ruth Jarman workshop on 20th/21st April, and if you would like to go, contact her or any member of the committee.

Spreading the word

When we got some money from Waitrose, we spent a while deciding how to spend it.  It had come from the community and we wanted to use it in the community, so finally made a plan to use it to spread the word (about patchwork!).  We bought two sets of ruler, rotary cutter and mat, some scissors and pins and had our machines PAT tested.  Then we bought some brightly coloured fabric and set off to a local primary school to make some stars. 

 

 

Unfortunately we can't share photos of the children, who were wonderful, keen to learn, proud of their accomplishments and beautifully mannered.   Here is Paula showing some pupils how to pin,  

 

 

and Di moving onto machine skills.  Lynda, Liz and Gwyneth gave up their time too.

 

Here is Paula hiding behind a cushion made by a pupil who had recently been to New York, so was thrilled to find fabric with yellow taxi cabs on it!

Here is a proud new sewer with the finished item.

What a good choice for a border - lime green goes with everything!

And finally, a nicely coordinated design.      We're all looking forward to doing it all again next week - at least we'll have more idea of what we're doing then!  If you would like to come and help, please contact Lynda on 01455 556498.

Frazzled and dazzled

Alsion Bramley's talk this month was called 'Frazzled and Dazzled' and we were definitely dazzled (and she was a bit frazzled as she had come down from Yorkshire, just for the evening!).  Her quilts are nearly all made from silk, and the colours were fabulous.  Here she is in front of one of her amazing quilts.

 

 

This piece is her latest one, called 'York'.  It was so carefully researched that Sylvia was able to point out where she was proposed to and the hotel she stayed in with her husband!

 

 

Just to show that she can use a more realistic palette, Alison brought these two quilts.  Beautiful. 

 

June had been putting a lot of thought (and work) into the raffle - as usual.  This month's theme was a detective one, where people could choose an open or shut case!  Great fun.

 Lots of people had enjoyed making the latest block of the mystery quilt.  They all look so different, and I particularly like Carol's bright yellow house and Elaine's gingerbread house!

Gwyneth and I used the very same brown fabric for our roofs, strange that we did that when our styles are so very different.

 Most people used Andrea's idea of topiary trees, and don't they look gorgeous?

Very good going that 13 people had finished their block and were willing to show and tell.  We're all eager to see the completed quilts!

I'm always trying to finish UFOs, and this one has been around for a long while!  It resulted from some bargain charm packs which were bought at Malvern some years ago.  I enjoyed making the pinwheels, but felt it had rather an 'old lady' feel.  That's why it didn't get finished, until now!  I'm sending it to Ann Hill for her Alzheimer's fundraiser.  If you haven't sent a quilt yet, look here to find out what and where. 

 

Here is another of my UFOs, again from a while back.  I agreed a swap with some Canadian ladies which didn't quite work out how I'd anticipated!  I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that the resultant blocks were very difficult to put together. 

 

Here is a gorgeous child's quilt - I love the bright nine-patches.

 

Ruth had been given some raw silk, which was beautiful, but not in her preferred colours, and not a large amount.  In the end she has made this beautiful bag, with a black velvet top.  She said she's used it all up, which is a good use of something special.

 

Ruth has also been experimenting with some curved rulers which she bought from Creative Grids last year.  Unfortunately they came without instructions, but she managed to get some and produce these lovely items.  Clever.

 

Bunty made a confession - she was actually fibbing when she said she had no more UFOs last meeting, as she discovered this one, hiding in a cupboard!  She's no slouch though, as it's a UFO no longer!  Good use of scalloped borders there.

 

Jan is a star: she produces lots of charity quilts, and is an expert at using scraps.  This one is for Project Linus.  Thanks Jan, it's lovely. 

 

You would never be able to guess who had made this quilt, as it's a very scrappy quilt made by Stephanie, who doesn't do scrappy!  It was a challenge fabric swap which she embraced wholeheartedly, including putting in some Scoobidoo fabric which I got the blame for!  It's for her grandson, and I'm sure he'll love it.

 

She has also been busy knitting with 2-ply wool!  This shawl is so fine that it will go though a wedding ring.  (Not sure if she's tried it yet!)

 

Here is the Jacob's ladder quilt Paula made at the beginners' workshop last October.  Her colours are perfect and the design stunning. 

Liz brought these three quilts which had been made by Jane for Project Linus.  Jane found her scrap box was getting very full, so made lots of Mile a Minute blocks but sorted the colours out, so she ended up with a pile of pink blocks, a pile of blue, green etc. 

She was a t a loss as to where to go from there, but having made several Granny Square quilts, decided to use the blocks for that design.  She chose some 'reads as a solid' fabric from the Linus box, and sewed away.

Result - one empty scrap box and three lovely Linus quilts, which have been beautifully quilted by Liz.  Fabulous!  Thank you Liz and Jane!

Liz had brought along the jelly roll quilt she made at the last meeting - all layered and quilted!  You can see the spiral design she chose which goes perfectly with the bars on the quilt.  What a clever lady.

 

And here is Carole's New York Beauty quilt.  She used calico foundations to piece the points, which have all come out needle sharp - and what delectable colours!  The clever pieced border sets it all off too. 

If you fancy some quilty inspiration before the next meeting, book a ticket for The Journey of Quilts - a talk on the work of Headley Court for recovering servicemen and woman.

It is on Tuesday 12th March at 7.30pm at Jubilee Hall, Market Harborough Congregational Church.
Tickets are £5 including light refreshments and are available from "The Quarter Inch" St. Marys Road, Market Harborough, Sue Sharp 01858433396 or Ruth Wallett 01858 525346.
All proceeds will be divided between the Teenage Cancer Trust and Quilts 4 Injured Servicemen .