Monday 8 April 2013

Quilters' Guild AGM

This past weekend I took myself off to Nottingham to the Quilters' Guild AGM.  I am not usually big on official AGM-type events but as my Region was organising everything and there were lectures to hear and traders to support I thought I would venture forth.  The added bonus was that the venue was on my doorstep so I packed my case and trotted off (I decided to stay as it seemed less stressful than travelling each day).

The AGM took place at the Jubilee Campus of Nottingham University which is a very attractive site.







Most of the events took place in the range of buildings shown above.


I wasn't lucky enough to get into any of the workshops but I heard that they were fun and rewarding.  I did, however go to some of the lectures and helped out at Gillian Carke's as a 'quilt angel'.  The lectures were held in the very impressive auditorium.



You may recognise Laura and Linda Kemshall in the photo above who enlightened us as to What Makes a Quilt.


The Young Quilters were busy over the weekend and produced some impressive work.







The work in the two images above is by the Young Quilters and was on a theme of Myths and Legends.  Robin Hood and The Medusa were two of the prizewinners.

You may remember my quilt for the 'My World is Green' challenge.  There was quite a large entry and I found it very hard to choose my favourite.



I'm not sure whether my quilt benefitted from its positioning ;-) but it was in stark contrast to the gentleman above!


I can't attribute this quilt above as they were not named but I really liked it. (10 April 2013 - I've just been contacted by the artist who made this quilt, it's Liesbeth Williams   There is an article by her here.)




This is the reverse of the top quilt.


These amazing quilts in the 4 images above (only snippets are shown) are by Gillian Clark, whose lecture I helped out with (pinning up quilts and such).  Gillian had spent her working life studying Mediaeval history and became fascinated with mediaeval manuscripts which she reinterprets for her quilts.  Sadly I cannot find any internet presence for her.



 These wonderful fish were made by German Quilters as part of a challenge.  Apparently they were given a piece of tartan and had to incorporate it into a quilt on a theme of fish.  There were goofy fish and beautiful fish.  I rather liked the effect with the last fish where angelina fibres were being blown in the breeze coming through an adjacent open door.  It made the fronds of seaweed come to life. :-)

As you might expect, no trip to a quilt event would be complete without a little shopping and I didn't want to disappoint you.....


These fat quarters each cost only £1 as part of a fundraiser for Quilts For London which was so successful last year.


I have been pondering over Gwen Hedley's book for some time and finally gave in and bought it.



I loved these ribbons and I have plans for the button that involve making a stamp for printing, I hope.


These threads and the needles were a generous gift from Coats Crafts who also donated a raffle prize which sadly I did not win.  Of course they have enlarged their database by inveigling us to give them our emails in return for the goodies :-)

Next year's AGM is in Portsmouth if you are in the guild and fancy a weekend away or even if you feel like joining the Quilters' Guild.  The official stuff didn't go on too long (to be honest I only went to the first part of the official meeting as I felt a bit grotty and decided to get some air) and it was a warm and friendly weekend away with like-minded people.  I have to acknowledge the tremendous amount of work that the team of organisers from Region 10 ( my region) of the Quilters' guild put in to bring this event to fruition.

As a footnote, I also need to note the passing of Lady Thatcher, the first and quite possibly the only, female Prime Minister of Great Britain, today at the age of 87.  Margaret Thatcher was born here in Grantham and regardless of politics was a remarkable woman who has earned a place in history. 


14 comments:

Heather said...

What a wonderful venue for this event and even though I'm not a quilter I can see that it must have been a great experience. Love the look of your goodies - I have that book and find it very useful.
Such a good idea to stay overnight rather than travel to and fro. Makes the whole thing more relaxing but with so much to take in, I bet you slept well!

ju-north said...

What a great time you had! I'm sure your quilt was very much admired! Location looks good too - Nottingham is my old uni but has lots of modern buildings since my day so it was good to see them!

Maggi said...

Looks like you had an great time. It is a wonderful campus, I was there yesterday morning having coffee and chat with Uta Lenk before she headed off up North.

Angela said...

The Gwen Hedley book is great, I've got a copy and frequently look through it.
Thanks for all the photos. Did you take some of them with mark making in mind?

Anonymous said...

Love your work Julie, I always think your quilts are tops! Sorry about the loss of Lady Thatcher, she was a role model for women the world over...what she accomplished was amazing...thanks for the tour...what a lovely place. xox

Digitalgran said...

Looks like it was a great day all round!

imac said...

Well done Babe

Emma said...

fabulous I'd have given my email away for those goodies! Excellent choice of book by Gwen H.

Wendy said...

great minds an all - I bought Gwens book last week!
The campus looks great, I am glad you had a good weekend..

sharon young said...

What a great event, looks like you had an fantastic time, your quilt looked great, and was a good foil for the one above.
Loved looking at all your pics thanks for sharing them.
Ditto Margaret Thatcher, a great ambassador for womankind.

pam said...

Sounds like you had a great time and the university complex looks very futuristic.

Charlton Stitcher said...

Wonderful buildings and fantastic quilts! I'm not a quilter either but I can recognise the skill.

Mrs Mac said...

What a strange quilt to hang next to yours!!
I've seen the from drawing to stitches book (not quite the title... but I recognise it!)

Love the medieval panels and the fish!

Charlton Stitcher said...

Just added you on my blog to my list of other blogs I watch. I will enjoy visiting you. I see you've bought Gwen Hedley's Drawn to Stitch - great book!