So our longed for weekend quilting retreat at the Mount Hotel in Wolverhampton finally arrived and then zip, there it was in the rearview mirror. But oh, it was glorious while it lasted.
Angie and I went to our first quilting weekend way back in November of last year, so we knew what to expect, but that didn’t make it any the less enjoyable. For Tracy, it was her first opportunity to see for herself what we had been chattering on about for the previous six months. I’m sure she enjoyed herself because she tells me she is boring the pants off her non-quilting pals with talk of it. We all three revelled in our time there.
If first experience had taught us anything, it was not to try and rush through to the end of our chosen projects, but to take our time and enjoy the journey.
Tracy began work on a full size quilt made up of sawtooth stars. She dipped in and out of other work but still managed to create a good number of them. She took her pattern from a monthly quilting magazine. I know she told me the name, but I’ve forgotten it, so I’ll have to refresh my memory with the details when we next get together.
Angie decided to do a little scrap busting and got most of a table topper quilt done – I think it just needs some outer border fabric to finish it off. The pattern she used was the ‘Mosaic Ohio Star Quilt’ by Jackie Taylor. With that done, she then began making splendidly large flying geese blocks towards a full size scrappy quilt called ‘Due South’ taken from a new quilting book from Carrie Nelson ‘Miss Rosie’s Farmhouse Favourites.’ (Lovely title.)
My Civil War Sampler will also be a full sized quilt one day too. Although I’m in no particular hurry to complete it, I still managed to get twelve 8” blocks completed towards the fifty that i need, so I’m happy with my progress. I also managed to finish the quilt top of my medallion quilt, ‘President’s Pride‘. (More about that in a later blog)
Jackie Taylor, from White Cottage Country Crafts, organises the weekends, and her passion for her craft is infectious. Her unfailing patience and good humoured approach are at the centre of why we had such a good time.
In the company of such a group of skilful sewists from across the country it was fascinating to wander around the workstations and see what was being created. When I complimented one lady on her work she said she had been quilting for thirty years, never losing her enthusiasm and still learning. How marvellous is that!
patchwork daydreams 