Cottenham College Summer School

I had an exhausting but exhilarating week teaching at Cottenham Summer School for the first time. The course was called 'Quilt in a Week'. We started with a pile of crisp new fabrics on Monday morning with the aim of going home on Friday afternoon with a completed quilt. We worked hard in steamy conditions and everyone achieved more than they thought possible and several people made their first ever patchwork quilt. A lovely group. Here are some of the completed 'Cottenham Nine-patch' quilts - didn't they do well!

Mica's First quilt - ever

Val's first quilt

Diane's first quilt

Jean's first quilt

Barbara's first quilt

Veronica's first quilt

Shirley's first quilt

Come and See Me at Festival of Quilts

I will have my own stand in the Quilting in Action Zone (QIA8) at the Festival of Quilts at the NEC, Birmingham from 7th - 10th August 2014.

My 'Finer Focus' quilt which won 3rd prize at Uttoxeter will be on display in the QIA Gallery and I have entered a quilt into the Guild Challenge Class 'In My Garden'  - here is a bit if the detail...............

In My Garden - dyed, printed and stitched

Cosy Cabin Lap Sampler Quilt

Eight very lovely and enthusiastic beginners have been making a 6 block lap sampler quilt with me at The Cosy Cabin in Risby over the last 5 Thursday evenings. Here they are showing off the completed quilt tops before we added the quilting and binding.

This course will be running again on Thursday evenings 7pm - 9pm from September 4th 2014
To book please contact The Cosy Cabin on 01284 811222 www.thecosycabin.co.uk

City & Guilds display at Embroiderers Guild Regional Day

Creative Stitch Suffolk was invited by the Embroiderers Guild to mount a display of City & Guilds work at their Regional Day on Sat 5th July. This was a great opportunity to show off work from both patchwork and embroidery students. It made me proud to see such a variety of work produced by some of my students.

Shrivel Up and Dye

A couple of larger pieces using the shrivel up and dye technique made for the Tin Hut Textiles exhibit at the recent City & Guilds Graduate Show in Wickham Market. Should have been a triptych really and I am hoping to have a third ready for my Quilting in Action stand at the Festival of Quilts at the NEC in August.

Shrivel Up and Dye - artic wool fleece, lots of linens, cottons, silks and velvets. Stitched, shrunk and then dyed.
Pieced with dyed linen.

Green Man

Another image from the Sindano Paper Mania workshop.

Ursula's Green Man

Paper Mania day with Sindano

A workshop with the Sindano Textile Group who meet each month near Bury St Edmunds working with painted newspapers, layered up with sheers, stitched and burnt back produced some lovely results - a very talented group of stitchers.

A Paper Mania workshop, to make a similar piece, is running at The Cosy Cabin on Saturday 5th July. To book places please contact the Cosy Cabin on 01284 811222
www.thecosycabin.co.uk