Quilting Exhibition at Rheged

I was lucky enough to receive an invitation to the opening of the Quilting Exhibition at Rheged, Penrith, Cumbria.

Now, I have done a little bit of random quilting in my time, just basic stuff, but enjoyable none-the-less, but this exhibition has given me so much inspiration and the urge to do more as soon as I can!

I must apologise for my rubbishy photos, the lighting in the exhibition played havoc with my phone camera - but it's a really good reason for you to go and view the marvellous quilts yourself.

In the meantime have a look at these beauties.

Just how much detail can you put in a quilt?  Amazing.

This one caught my eye, it is a giant shirt made up from collars, cuffs, pockets and yokes of old shirts, held together with threads.  Very cleverly done.

I particularly loved these quilted coats.  At £6,000 they were a little beyond my budget - but I would have had the rainbow one in the centre.  Alas, it was not for sale that one, so my decision was made for me  :)

I even got to "meet the maker", the lovely Marijke van Welzen, who was modelling her own work  :) 

Would you even believe these scenes were actually quilts?  No, me neither!  Such precision.

These pebble and beach scene pieces really caught my attention too, I just love the formation of the pebbles out of the fabric (then painted with fabric paint).  You were not allowed to touch the quilts, but if we were, this would be the one I would want to feel.  It looks so tactile.

How unusual is this clock piece?  It was very detailed and you need to get up close to see all the marvellous beauty and intricate work.

These pieces are a collaboration of two crafts, a woodwork frame with quilted pieces within.  Very clever.

This piece is fabulous, the ultimate in up-cycling.  It is a mattress cloth that the artist picked up from a car boot sale.  She then embroidered a poem all over the lines, it was really quite poignant and thought provoking.

Last but not least, a bit of quilting fun, with a nod to the Cumberland Wrestlers with padded, quilted pants and embroidered vests.

There was loads more than I managed to photograph, including a private collection of very, very old quilts in amazing condition.

If you are near by, do go and visit and see these beautiful pieces for yourself.  The exhibition runs until Sun 23rd April, and you can find more details here...  https://www.rheged.com/event/new-quilting/

Crazy Quilted Christmas Stockings

A week or so ago I ran a workshop for Crazy Quilted Stockings.

I LOVE the Crazy Quilting technique, used with a sewing machine it is such a pleasing thing to do and surprisingly easy.

I originally made the stocking for the Hobbycraft Blog a little while ago, so thought it would be a good one to run out as a workshop too.

Three lovely ladies came along, they chose the Fat Quarter packs that they wanted to use and we got to work.  Cutting, snipping, sewing, ironing, cutting, snipping, sewing, ironing..... it's a very repetitive craft  :) 

I was so absorbed in stocking making that I forgot to get any action shots, but here are the finished stockings in all their glory.

Two ladies chose the same colour schemes, while another went for something a little different.

I, myself, made a sample one, but it is not yet finished so you will have to wait to see that one  :)  Let's just say, it is very bright colourful and funky, not traditional at all.

Thanks for coming ladies, if you are reading, it was a blast, and you did fabulously.

Don't forget if you fancy making one yourself you can find my tutorial over on the Hobbycraft Blog.  (click on the link :)  )

Crazy Quilted Placemat Class at Hobbycraft

Last week I held a Crazy Quilting beginners class at Hobbycraft, Carlisle.

There were just two crafters that came along to this class, which was good as it was a first class of it's sort for me and I wasn't sure how many would be a good number to have - as machines are chugging, and irons are heating, plus you need space for fabric cutting too.    So from now I think 4 students will be an adequate amount of people  :)

Shelley and Janet joined me for some random chopping and sewing to make themselves a place-mat each.

And don't they look fabulous?

In order:  Shelley's, my own (that I made as a sample) and Janet's.

And for a closer look, this is Janet's.  She used a gorgeous Fat Quarter pack in muted flowery colours, with tones of pinks and soft greens, with a striking black & white fabric to balance it all out.

Beautiful!

Shelley went for a fun fabric, with foxes, paw prints, acorns and a print that looks like wood.

Very cute.

Such different fabrics giving off very different finished results, both of which are fantastic I think, don't you?

If you want to have a go yourself, you can find my tutorial HERE, or look out for one of my classes coming soon.    (

Owl Patchwork Project

I blogged about these beautiful fat quarters way back in June, having bought them for a specific reason.

Only months later I am finally getting around to working with them.

There are 6 owl colours and 6 stripe colours.  Each panel I am making consist of 3 owls and 3 stripes, so the plan right now is to make a piece with 6 panels in, each coloured material will have it's turn at each shape - does that make sense?

This is panel one, using pinks, whites and golds.

Then I add panel two, using navy, lemon and aquas.

Panel three added.

And panel four....

But right now other things have taken over and this project has to take a back seat unfortunately  :(   but I will be back on it real soon.  A laborious commission I am working on is nearly finished thankfully, which will free up some time.

In the meantime, I bought some more fabric for a second one  :)    Haha, I am just too naughty for words!

Robert Kaufman Lumina Fat Quarter Bundle

I've been a bit of a naughty crafter.  I think I need to go to a crafting confessional, but I suspect the queue will be SO long that I will just never get heard, so therefore I will confess to you  :)

You know these sponsored ads that pop up all over your computer? (cleverly done and drag money from your purse)  Well one popped up with a link to Craftsy and in particular a Robert Kaufman quilt kit.

Oh yeah......  bring it on.

Cheap too!       Or so I thought.   Cheap until the whopping great big postage went on just before pressing the "pay now" button.

So, sadly, I shut the page down. Wasn't going to pay all that postage - more than the kit was worth.

By then though, I had that fabric stuck firmly in my little crafters brain, and no amount of soup-making, baking, crocheting would take it away.

After a morning of Googling I realised that this fabric bundle was probably easily worth the money (including the postage) plus it came with a patchwork quilt tutorial.  So I went back and bought it.  Whoops!

Yesterday it arrived.  What beautiful quality fabric, so wonderfully crisp and colourful.

I tried for AGES to get the ribbon undone without cutting it, my teeth were aching in the end so I had to give in and just take a pair of scissors to it.

Let me share the pieces with you.   The last one is a larger piece as it makes up the sides of the quilt, all the rest are fat quarters.  (approx 18" x 22")

Don't you agree that they are just divine?  I really must start this project sometime soon.

If you fancy it yourself you can find the kit (fabric and downloadable pattern) here..... http://www.craftsy.com/supplies/rk-kit-lumina/3553