Basket of Blooms Pattern

I have such a lovely project to share with you today!

Last year the Quilter’s Guild of the British Isles (which will be referred to as QGBI for the rest of this post!) asked me to take part in their new Quarterly Techniques venture for 2020.  The plan is to explore the wonderful world of British quilting heritage through an exclusive series of patterns inspired by The Quilters’ Guild Museum Collection.  Each pattern introduces a different skill or technique as a way to develop and broaden your quilting knowledge.

I was asked to design the needle-turn applique technique quarter and as you would expect, knowing how much I adore applique, I jumped at the chance.

To help me decide which quilt I would base my design on I took a trip to the QGBI HQ in beautiful York to look at some of the quilts in their collection. And my lovely partner Karen met me there as an extra bonus! We spent a wonderful hour or so looking over likely candidates along with curator Heather (above). What a treat it was to see these antique quilts in the flesh!

Unfortunately I don’t have a full image of the quilt that I used for inspiration, in fact nobody does. It is just a top which has never been quilted and it’s very old and delicate (circa 1830). Because of this it’s never been properly photographed (a photo session was booked to tie in with this launch but had to be cancelled like so much else at present), however you can view more of it here.

I do have this close up of the centre piece which I used as my main inspiration.

As well as the beautiful basket of blooms, which is the main feature of my design, I also took flower motifs from this quilt and heart motifs from the quilt I am viewing with Heather in the photo above (which can also be seen here).

Here is my finished panel. I was given a palette of fabrics to choose from (as they want each of the finished designs to tie in with each other), and though not my usual style I really loved using these vintage style fabrics from Makower.

They are from their Trinkets range with some dots and solids to match. In fact I loved the finished look so much that I have requested more of the collection for my next magazine commission.

The original top used a lot of yo-yos (or Suffolk puffs) which I have replicated here. I love that extra dimension they give. I used Aurifil 80wt for all the hand applique and then hand quilted around the motifs with a cream Aurifil 28wt for a subtle traditional look.

The pattern launched today on the QGBI shop and you can download your very own pdf copy for £8 over on their website here.  The pattern is crammed full of technique tips and advice which should both get you started with needle-turn applique or improve your skills if you have tried it before.

If I hadn’t already made this I would certainly be buying a copy myself!

With extra time on our hands at the moment and with extra stresses and strains affecting our mental health then some nice slow stitching could be just the ticket right now.

 

 

And by purchasing the pattern you will also be helping to support the QGBI which does invaluable work preserving all of our quilting heritage in the UK.

Excitingly the Guild are offering a chance to win copies of my new book with a giveaway! Simply subscribe to their newsletter by clicking here and you will be entered, with a chance to win one of 3 copies!

You can also purchase a copy of my book from their store here.