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