December 2019 - Christmas Challenge and more

This month saw the results of the Christmas Challenge on show - make a card using fabric and embellishment. Although Christmas was not stressed as the theme, understandably, all samples depicted Christmas. We had fewer participants than in previous years, all using a different technique to produce their cards.



We did not take a vote this year, so no winner for the most votes. All were lovely pieces of work, any of us would be pleased to receive one at Christmas!

We also had a quick and easy project set by one of our members. This resulted in several little pyramid shaped gift boxes being produced within the 2 hour meeting. Thanks to PM for the idea.




Show and Tell produced some finished works as well as several WIP's.


A selection of finished Angels from last months project
A variation on the Angel theme, are these exotic Kings



Several other projects from this, and previous, years programme,

Harry Potter Sudoku quilt

Folded hexagon wreath - embellishment in progress

Triangle Star wall-hanging

Lastly another Harry Potter Quilt, this time a Magic Nine patch, to use up the left-overs and a hexagon star.




November 2019 - Christmas angel decoration

Another month seems to have flown by and we are back making Christmas decorations, this time an Angel.


These proved very popular, with nearly everyone having a go. The idea came from the internet, lots can be seen on pinterest, a wealth of inspiration.




We also had some finished projects from previous meetings and workshops.

Fiddle quilt


Folded hexagons

Finished Quilting With a Difference cushion

Sudoku quilt

And lastly an ever popular Hexagon project.




October 2019 - Is it too early for Christmas? Folded hexagons

This month the main part of the evening involved a demonstration on making folded hexagons, with a view to using them to make a wreath with a Christmas theme. It could suit any occasion depending on the fabrics chosen. A smaller double sided version would make nice Christmas decorations. There were some initial problems with the folding stage, but everyone seemed to manage it in the end. I suspect not everyone will make enough for a wreath! Click here for instructions.



A finished wreath

We also had on show three finished Sudoku quilts

Front and back, showing demo blocks to extend the backing fabric.

Bottom quilt is a variation using quilting patterns

One member is keen on recycling fabrics and has been making Crazy patchwork pieces.

Crazy patchwork style bag

Crazy patchwork quilt in progress

On the subject of wreaths, here is an October themed one made from fabric pillows, one of a series for various occasions.


Now for a grand finale and tah-dah moment. This quilt has made several appearances as a work in progress and is now finished. A beautiful piece of work, hopefully destined to become a family heirloom.


Border detail showing tiny hexagons


AGM September 2019

This month we had our AGM, this year's seems to have come round quickly. The Committee reported on the years activities, the state of our finances and proposed a programme for the coming year. As we talked participants got on with some hand sewing.

Project Linus quilts seem to be as popular as ever The coming year we are planning another group quilt for Linus using Orphan blocks. These are blocks that have been made but not used in a quilt. They may have been practice pieces from a workshop or demo, or left over from a previous quilt.

An Orphan block quilt

Peppa Pig quilt

Also for a child, is this Noah's Ark panel.




This Crazy quilt is a labour of love, lots of work involved and it could be a brain teaser fitting it all together.

Lots of embroidery and applique, promises to be a spectacular quilt

Another popular and portable technique is English paper piecing (EPP).

Elongated hexagons

Hexagons to be appliqued to a background

An ongoing project from the year is the Sudoku quilt. Here is one that includes piecing on the back.



This last project is a very smart looking bag kit. A simple design of squares, with very nice fabric that has a hint of gold.


July 2019 - Shisha mirrors

There was a change to the programme this month, as most quilters making the Sudoku quilt were getting along well with it. Last month we had been given some shisha mirrors, it was suggested we have a demo for stitching them. This seemed to go down well, as most attendees had a go. Here are the results with the demo sampler showing five methods for stitching them down.



We also had two Sudoku quilts. Several quilters had decided to use plain squares, rather than pieced, to make their quilts. They then used a different quilting design for each of the nine colours.




Another work WIP from the 'Quilting with a Difference'  workshop (Feb 2019), may be destined to have a square shisha mirror in the centre - depending on the success of the practice piece.


Another of our workshops was on transfer painting (June 2015), and this piece has become the pocket on a bag.


It is satisfying to see the progress and finished results for demos and workshops. The different interpretations, showing the creativity of our members, is fascinating and often leaves you wondering "Why didn't I think of that?'. Another good reason for joining a group.

June 2019 - Sudoku quilt part 2

This month saw the second instalment of the Sudoku quilt featured in the Quilter magazine during 2015. Several members had made a start, some getting on more than others.



A variation using plain squares
'Show and Tell' consisted of a Linus quilt featuring farm animals,

Farm animals - 3D effect as some heads 'escape' into the red squares 

a purse made from a furnishing fabric sample,


and a fiddle quilt, incorporating some more of the furnishing fabric samples,



Work in progress consisted of a Sashiko panel, one of several for a larger quilt,


Dresden plates,


hexagons,


and a scrap quilt being hand quilted.


We had a small stash sale of items generously donated by Indra, for which we would like to say Thank you.