'I am proud of this' at Wombourne Quilters

Sandra's 'test' medallion quilt design

Every quilt and quilt-maker has a story to tell but most quilters that I know are not very good at taking compliments about their work, often feeling that their own quilts are not as good as others. I am always amazed at the variety and high quality of quilts that Wombourne Quilters make and feel very proud to be one of the group. 

Erica's growing collection of blocks 

We decided to encourage everyone to be proud of what we do and at our meeting last Wednesday evening (18 Sept) it was the first in our series ‘I’m proud of this’ - a special moment when invited group members bring in work to show to the rest of the group. 

Detail of an early quilt by Sandra

It is more than the usual 'Show and Tell' where work is held up for a few minutes and then put away quickly so that the rest of the meeting can continue! 

These sessions will give the individual an opportunity to talk about the things that mean the most to them and it allows the group to spend time looking at the items in detail, to ask questions, and to admire.

4 blocks - same design - different fabric

Sandra and Erica started off our 'I am proud of this' series - both ladies are relatively new to the art of quilt-making but they are very enthusiastic about exploring new techniques, trying new ideas and discovering all aspects of the wonderful world of quilting. 

Sandra particularly likes this block because such different effects can be created just by changing the way the fabrics are placed. She showed us other examples of blocks where she had been able to do the same sort of thing; it was interesting to see how a little imagination can make a design look so different. 

Ikea's best!

The cost of fabric can be daunting, especially when first trying out new blocks and techniques, but Sandra has found some lovely less expensive fabrics in unexpected places like Aldi and Ikea. 

We were able to have a look at many of the pieced patchwork tops that Sandra has made since starting sewing about three years ago, but she admits that the next hurdle is getting to grips with the quilting itself.

Detail of Erica's hexagon quilt

The first piece that Erica showed was the wedding dress she had made for her daughter and then we were treated to a delightful display of a wide range of patchwork cushions and bags (images on Facebook).

Some time ago, Erica was given a box of paper-pieced hexagons, the style of fabric suggesting that they probably date back to 1970's. At first she was not sure what to do with them all but by adding the calming cream hexagons, Erica came up with this fresh 'modern' arrangement.

The result is a stunningly impressive quilt that measures about 55 x 85 inches - just right to drape over a single bed. A little technical information for the curious - it is all hand pieced and hand quilted, with a backing in dark green and cream strips.  

Embroidered quilt label

 This is the label on the reverse of another project that Erica has finished recently. Chris had made an Amish style pieced top and earlier this year she asked if anyone in the group would like to tackle the quilting. Erica had agreed and brought the finished quilt in to show everyone. 

It is good to see the label on the back that hints at the story behind this quilt; it seems to complete the piece and make it much more significant. And it reminds us all to label our own quilts to ensure their stories live on too.

Detail of Amish quilt made by Chris and Erica

Sandra is proud of the fact that she likes to ‘have a go’ and now she is a prolific maker producing many pieces of work that she never imagined she would be able to do. 

Erica is proud of the fact that, even though making her daughter’s wedding dress put her off sewing for a while, when she started patchwork and quilting classes her love of stitching returned and that she loves learning new things. 

Thanks ladies for a fascinating glimpse into your sewing worlds.

More images on Facebook

Look out for the next in our series 'I am proud of this' in the Spring

Catching up on Wombourne Quilters blog

Having been very quite for far too long, the Wombourne Quilters blog is alive and well again and it is time for a catch-up.
The group has been very busy since our last post early in 2018 - is it really so long ago? 

We exhibited our 'Moving Towards Modern' quilts at the British Quilt and Stitch Village, Uttoxeter in the spring. Then we were lucky enough to be invited to show the quilts at the Museum of Cannock Chase for four weeks in the summer of 2018. Kate gave a talk about Wombourne Quilters at the Sew Crafty Festival at the Museum and the quilts were very well received by visitors on that day.

The idea of the quilt challenge was very popular and we started our next one in February 2018. This time it was a Medallion quilt Round Robin. It began with each person making a centre medallion in a style of their choice (pieced, appliqué, embroidered or a panel) and this was then passed on for the first border to be added. We included two fat quarters of fabric to go with the centre medallion and up to a quarter of this fabric could be used, together with additional fabrics, to make up each of the four borders.

The centre of Denise's medallion quilt is a piece of traditional mola textiles work. 
The completed quilt is so colourful and beautifully put together; one of the borders includes lovely small appliqué panels that echo the feel of the central design.

At the handover sessions we had the opportunity to talk about how to tackle the next border and there was plenty of help for those who were unsure about what to do next. Each border was a different size and made by a different person - it is quite strange to watch how 'your' centre panel develops as it grows into a quilt! 

This is a corner of Angie's quilt top before it was quilted and finished. 
With soft subtle colours throughout, the cream fabric in the centre and in the outer border holds the lively fresh design together very successfully.


This proved to be a very technical challenge - to design the next border to complement what had been made so far! One of the rules was that we could not undo what had already been added and the challenge was to respond sympathetically with choice of fabrics, colour and construction.

Gill started her medallion quilt with her own appliqué panel and this idea was continued in the wide border with appliqué ribbons and flowers in a similar style. 

Once the quilt tops were complete they went back to the person who had made the centre panel to finish off. Some people added an extra border but most quilts stayed the same; all quilts were layered, then quilted and edges bound. 
The finished quilts each measure about 40 inches square and they are a wonderful reflection of the skills and talent of those involved in this challenge.

This is Sandra's finished quilt and it shows how the design of the centre panel was taken through the rest of the quilt. 
A very striking piece, and yes, the 4 borders were designed and made by different people.  

Our beautiful medallion quilts were displayed at the British Quilt and Stitch Village, Uttoxeter, in April earlier this year and then at the Museum of Cannock Chase in June for just one day at the Sew Crafty Festival. Visitors to both venues loved the challenge and several asked if they could take the idea home to their own group. Praise indeed!

Our new challenge for 2019 started in May and will continue until May 2020 at least - more about that next time.

We are currently updating information and refreshing pages and the new programme for 2019 - 2020 is now in place. 

Keep in touch with what is happening at Wombourne Quilters here on our blog and find us on Facebook for more photos of all the things we have been doing recently