An unexpected quilt exhibition

The library in our nearest town is a great resource. Of course it is full of books (what is a library without books?!), audio books, and a few videos. The staff is extremely friendly and very knowledgeable. It has a reading corner for children and a newspaper reading table for adults. There are study tables for students, and computers to use, too.

Then there are the activities, reading aloud sessions for the small ones, poetry readings for adults, and occasional musical performances (in a library, I know - shhh)! A great resource I have been using for more than 10 years now, is the "multi purpose room", a room that can be booked (for free) for groups to meet. We meet there as a group of quilters once a week, to sew, discuss, advise and inspire on everything quilt-making. I show techniques, solve issues, discuss use of colour and materials. We stretch and baste quilts together on our shared frame or on the tables (basting is so much quicker and easier as a shared task!) and we sometimes make a group quilt for charity. And of course, we have a cup of coffee/tea and put the world to rights!

Double Wedding Ring quilt ready for basting

Group quilt for charity

Another part of our library is the exhibition space. Every two weeks the display changes. From photographs by the local photographers club, to paintings by a local artist or art group, to school art work, and yes, even quilts! The space is so popular that the slots are booked a year in advance... We have used the space a few times to display our quilts, I have posted about one of those exhibitions before.

A couple of weeks ago I was approached by one of the librarians with the (hesitant) question whether I was able to display a few quilts for the very next exhibition slot which was a few days away. The planned exhibition was not going to take place and the staff and visitors would be looking at bare walls for two weeks... Well of course!
I intended to show quilts from the group again, but it turned out too short a time frame to get that together. So I literally grabbed what quilts I could find at home and had a solo exhibition!

Of course, being in the library, related books were also on display:

Having my work all hung together made me realise how varied my work is! From muted or dark, to bright; from traditional to "modern"; pieced or appliqué, hand quilted or machine quilted; made years ago or finished recently, it was all there. Even the Beach Huts tote was included.

Black Jewel Box (centre)

And hanging in this space I have taken the opportunity to photograph some of my makes. It made me determined once again to add more posts to My Quilts page, too...

Some are already to be found there, like the Black Jewel Box above and Urban Jungle below:

Urban Jungle

Others are pictured on My Quilts page, but are still awaiting a blog post:

Beach Huts mini

Yet others have never been seen on the blog before (as far as I can remember):

If Pablo Could Sew

Most of my quilts are my own design, but this one was made when pattern testing for Allison Campbell who blogs at Campbell's Soup Diary (by the way, she just released a new pattern):

Tiptoe through the Tulips mini - pattern tested for Alison Campbell

This quilt I called "Weave" was finished about a year ago.

Weave

And also included were these two I made as part of the City & Guilds course:
This wall hanging "Vestibule" usually has pride of place on the chimney breast,

Vestibule

... and this is my king size Feathered Star bed quilt. Which reminds me that I haven't made a feathered star in quite a while, I'm itching to make another variation...

Feathered Star

While we were hanging the exhibition (me handing up the quilts while the librarian stood on some steps - health and safety prevents me to do something so hazardous!)  I took the opportunity to book another exhibition for next year, which should see some new work from our group - fittingly called the Library Quilters.

I hope to have some new work ready for that, so I better get sewing, of course!

Sandra

Lismore's beauty and a quilt exhibition

Last month I visited the lovely town of Lismore, Co. Waterford. Lismore is a very pretty historic town at any time, but on this day a quilt show in the local cathedral was the main attraction for me.

St. Cathage cathedral is a lovely church, located at the end of a quiet green street.

And inside it is stunning!

The weekend I visited it was also covered in quilts of an enormously wide variety. They were hung around on display stands, and covered all pews, too.

A few from the many that caught my attention:

There were also cushions, bags, and table runners.

A most unusual quilt hung right by the entrance.

Since it was a lovely warm day as well, I took some time to wander around the town and by the river, too.

I did not have the opportunity to visit well-known Lismore castle, I'll have to keep that for next time!

With thanks to Aíne of the Lismore Quilt Co. and her helpers for organising this wonderful exhibition, and giving me the excuse for a great day out!

Sandra

Quilts, quilts, quilts

In my last post I mentioned that I had been on a visit to Exeter, including a visit to the quilt show that was held at the time. As well as getting to know online friends there, I went around the exhibition (of course!), I even took some photographs.
The pictures are not great (low light and strange shadows from the stands), but I'd like to keep these images of some of the work anyway:

There were ten or eleven hexagon quilts by Gretchen Danckwardt, all impressive with their small hexagons, and inspired by a month of the year. Though I cannot see myself ever making something similar, it was interesting to see the very different layouts that can be made with hexagons:

Pyjama Days (March) - detail

Pyjama Days (March) - the arm didn't quite belong there!

My Bejewelled, Scrappy Garden (July)

Falling Back (October)

Flower Power (May)

There were smaller panels displayed which were part of the Seeds Challenge:

Autumn Night by Margaret Garrood

One Year's Seed - Seven Years Weeds by Margaret Pellow

Jenna Clements' quilt based on the character of Rick Grimes from "The Walking Dead":

What Lies Ahead

Another area displayed quilts on Saints of Cornish Churches. This one appealed to me:

St Enoder by Beyond Patchwork; Sue Hooper and Carolyn Richards

Gwenllϊan by Bethan M. Hughes

Two quilts by Alison Bramley:

York 800 triptych

this must have been inspired by peacock feathers, but I did not get the name...

This traditional Baltimore hand appliqué (and hand quilted) quilt was impressive:

Baltimore Papercuts by Helen Clarke

This one was traditional, I liked its use of colour:

The Victorian Lady, part pieced by Andrea Beck, finished and longarm quilted by Kay Bell

And what about the quilting on this longarmed soft-coloured swoon quilt:

Swooning (2012) by Kay Bell

I have to show you some detail of that:

Well, hopefully you didn't find this post too long, I certainly enjoyed my day!

Back to sewing now, of course!

Sandra

Library Quilters Mallow - a local exhibition

Since almost 10 years a small group of enthusiastic quilters are meeting in our local library once a  week. We sew and quilt, chat and share, and drink a cup of coffee or tea. It is as much a social gathering as a quilt class. Ten years ago the members were beginners at quilt making apart from myself, though every one of us had sewing and other (needle)craft experience. If they are stuck or need advice they call on me, but I am not teaching any specific class as such.

Every few years we are asked by the library to hang some of our work in their designated gallery space, for all visitors of the library to enjoy. It was a most varied exhibition this year, and we filled the place as much as we could:

our quilts in the library exhibition space

There was a scrappy Grandmother's Flower Garden:

hand pieced and hand quilted

From a just-finished first quilt (we have some more recently joined members) to an old(ish) quilt (slightly faded in places):

hand pieced, hand quilted

machine pieced, big stitch quilted

Small items with detailed appliqué and embroidery, and one collaborative sampler quilt (each member has made a block) for charity:


A beautiful Double Wedding Ring:

hand pieced, long arm quilted

A quilt made through a block-of-the-month programme:

machine pieced, hand appliqué, hand quilting

Two Baltimore-style appliqué quilts, from another block-of-the-month (showing nicely how fabric choice influences the final result):

hand appliqué, hand quilting

hand appliqué, long arm quilted

Some sashiko:

cushion cover

And a mini:

From a panel to my king size "Feathered Star" quilt:

panel, hand quilted

machine pieced, hand and machine quilted

We even covered the stair banisters...

Seeing the work together like this gave a huge feeling of achievement, individually and as a group. And hopefully we have inspired some visitors, too.

Sandra