Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 9 i Today's Quilter

There nothing more likely to silence our office keyboards than the cry of, ‘Look what I made!’ Although our days are filled with wall-to-wall quilts, we still want to see what each other has created. Whether it’s a baby quilt made for a friend’s newborn or a ring pillow for a wedding, we all have to stop and admire. Often the projects are not for life’s big events, but simply for us because we’re feeling creative – how indulgent! But it’s not only our makes; we want to see what you’re making! This month’s Show & Tell on page 20 is full of colour and inspiration. We love to see what you’ve been up to, and often the story behind the project is just as interesting. So, why not write…

Now is a great time for textile enthusiasts… We can travel, virtually and literally, just about anywhere… Jane Rae World Textiles LET US KNOW! Drop us a line – an email, letter, tweet or Facebook post – letting us know about your quilting. Whether it’s a new project, treasured heirloom, favourite fabric or imaginative mood board, we’d love to see what you’ve been up to and hear your stories! IT’S BEEN MONTHS in the making, but finally we can present our celebration of world textiles! Researched, written and curated by our very own Features Editor Jane Rae, this wonderful supplement is bursting with colourful inspiration from around the globe. Jane has travelled extensively. In fact, when we first contacted her about working with us on TQ, she was overseas exploring…

Happy hexagons I’ve recently taken out a subscription to your mag and received issue 7 with the diamond shape templates and booklet. EPP is my favourite kind of patchwork and I’ve stitched several variations of hexagon quilts and throws, plus the apple core design, which was great fun. No points for guessing that my next venture will be into diamond shapes. Here’s a photo of a quilt I finished in January. A design slightly different from the usual grandmother’s flower garden pattern. Pauline Rogers, Stourbridge Thanks for sending the photo Pauline, hexagons and EPP are fab quilting techniques. We hope you enjoy trying out the free diamond paper templates. Fab fabric florals Thank you for issue 7 of the magazine. The article beginning on page 49 (English Country Garden by…

Freezer paper is available in rolls at quilt shops, and is thick white paper, which you can trace with. One side is smooth and easier to draw on, while the other side is shiny as it is treated with a coat of wax. If you cut a shape from the freezer paper and iron it onto fabric with the waxed side down, the wax melts with the heat of the iron and sticks to the fabric. Then you can draw around the shape, or stitch around it without the paper moving. Once it’s finished with, the paper can be peeled off the fabric without leaving any marks. Making a circle from fabric using freezer paper 1 The trick is to draw onto a piece of freezer paper the exact size…

This project was inspired by a small quilt I made for the book Little Quilts and Gifts from Jelly Roll Scraps (published by Search Press). As is often the case, when I make little projects, they inspire something larger. I loved the block and all of the ideas it suggested, from the different arrangements of the flowers within the block to the possibilities even of doing this as a Quilt as You Go project. This was a great quilt to use up many scraps. The simple appliqué was fun to do, and worked on the blocks before they go together, so they made a nice portable take along project. The partial pieced border frames around the blocks meant that I could position them in any orientation in the quilt, and…

SHOPPING ACCESSORIES M&S www.marksandspencer.com Haberdashery House www.quinceliving.co.uk  0131 618 0806 Style Vil www.vlieseline.com Berisfords www.berisfords-ribbons.co.uk  0126 027 4011 Hemline & Clover groves@stockistenquiries.co.uk FABRIC COLLECTIONS Forest Floor & Fleet and Flourish www.artgalleryfabrics.com  0157 042 2866 Giggleswick Mill www.makoweruk.com  0149 157 9727 Aruba www.oakshottfabrics.com  0145 237 1571 QUILTING SHOPS Q Shop www.quiltersguildshop.org.uk  0190 461 3242 BOOKS Search Press www.searchpress.com  0189 251 0850 Comfort From Kindness www.weavingmusicalthreads.com Thames & Hudson www.thamesandhudson.com  0207 845 5000…

Magie Relph & Bob Irwin of The African Fabric Shop, and Diane & Jim Gaffney of Textile Traders not only helped us to create this supplement, but are also the creators of World Textile Day! Put one of these dates in your diary to get involved: World Textile Day South 7 May 2016 – Wickham, Hampshire Wickham Centre, Mill Lane, Wickham, Hampshire, PO17 5AL Venue info: www.wickhamcentre.org.uk World Textile Day North 14 May 2016 – Frodsham, Cheshire Frodsham Community Centre, Fluin Lane, B5439, Frodsham, Cheshire, WA6 7QN Venue info: http://frodcomm.org.uk/cc/ World Textile Day Central 4 June 2016 – near Banbury King's Sutton Millenium Memorial Hall, Astrop Road, King's Sutton, near Banbury, Oxfordshire, OX17 3PG Venue info: www.kingssuttonhall.co.uk World Textile Day Scotland 18 June 2016 – Bridge of Allan Bridge of…

If you visit one of the major textile events in the UK you will more than likely see a crowd of people circling a stand that is festooned with highly-decorative textiles in all shapes and sizes. Fight your way past the eager crowd, through the kente cloths, the Laotian silk shawls and the Kurdish tribal caps and you will find John Gillow, doing what he loves best, talking about textiles and sharing anecdotes about the places he has visited and the people he has met along the way. He is a leading expert in world textiles and has assembled textile collections for museums worldwide, particularly the British Museum. Luckily for us, he is a well-kent face in the quilting world and we can find John at World Textile Days up…

TEXTILE TRADERS GOING FULL CIRCLE I first got interested in textiles when I taught English in Turkey in the early 80s. On my afternoons off I would sit in carpet shops drinking tea from tiny glasses and chatting to the rug dealers. After that I went to Singapore and met my husband Jim, who had been a market trader, had sold embroideries from Rajasthan and now wanted to buy textiles in Southeast Asia. We met, got married, had a child and had a stall at our first flea market within a year. That was 1984 and it was the start of Textile Traders, although we didn’t know it at the time! Thirty-two years later, Jim and I are still together, still trading and still fascinated by the wonderful textiles we…

 S ocial enterprises across the world work tirelessly to change people’s lives for the better; but often it is just down to one or two individuals who are the driving force. Through their passion, generosity of spirit and dedication they garner support from individuals and sponsors that allow them to become viable and sustainable. Today’s Quilter caught up with two inspiring projects that are empowering women in their local communities by creating employment and giving them independence. “When we discovered the existence of Fair Trade projects here in India, we became inspired by what you could do for others while building your own business.” The Stitching Project, India The Stitching Project is a social enterprise based in rural India founded by Fiona Wright and husband, Praveen. They started operating Creative…

 K atie Chaplin set up Japan Crafts in 2006. She’d been fascinated by Japan for many years and had become increasingly interested in silk painting. At the same time, she began researching the kimono and Japanese textiles for her own enjoyment. “I love the precision and attention to detail, also the fact that many designs and motifs have been around for hundreds of years, but are constantly being interpreted in new, fresh ways.” When she read Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha at the age of 18 she’d never seen a kimono but the descriptions in the book captivated her. In 2004, Katie learnt kimono dressing from an expert who lives near Tokyo. She wears kimono almost every day and taught Katie this traditional form of dressing. She also has…

Lynne Edwards MBE TROUBLESHOOTER Sometimes one or two wrongs do make a right! Turn to page 31 for more words of wisdom from the always unflappable Lynne. Jane Rae WORLD TEXTILES Jane’s passion for world textiles shines through in her beautifully curated and written supplement. Find out more on page 12. Lynne Goldsworthy PROJECT DESIGNER Lynne’s 3D quilt looks as if it came from the wall of the Tate Modern. Get the same effect with our quick guide to colour value (page 52).…

STORAGE Under one roof We love this storage solution for threads and notions. The Haberdashery House (£25) is available from Quince Living, a family run store for Scandinavian home wares and UK-made designs such as Orla Kiely and Joules. Although it doesn’t come with all the threads and ribbons pictured here, we feel sure that you will have plenty of your own just waiting to be organised. The ‘House’ measures 228 x 310 x 58mm. www.quinceliving.co.uk It’s not too late to join the fun and sign up for a quilt along, such as Pat Sloan and Jane Davidson’s Splendid Sampler, which involves 100 blocks in a year. They’ve invited 83 fellow designers to join them along the way. www. thesplendidsampler. com PATTERN PERFECT ONE…

I’ve always loved the simple 3D effects you can create with different shades of the same colour. The idea for this quilt came when I was teaching at a retreat in France last summer. We were making Schoolhouse quilts with simple 2in squares as cornerstones. One of the attendees at the retreat wanted something a bit more interesting and I came up with tiny little quarter square triangle cornerstones of fabrics left over from making the Schoolhouses, where three shades of one colour were used to create the 3D effect. I loved how that simple idea brought the quilt to life and really wanted to create the same effect as the sole motif in a whole quilt. Although I love beautiful, intricate quilts, sometimes the simplest quilts are the most…

HELP! What’s the best way to make a scrappy binding? Try this… Scrappy bindings can look really attractive and are a great way to use up fabric scraps left over from making the quilt. You will need to know what length of binding you need in total (perimeter of your quilt + about 20in). You can cut 2½in wide strips and sew random strips together in variable lengths until you reach the total length needed. If you prefer, you can be more methodical and repeat the fabric order by grouping strips into four piles (one for each side of the quilt). A scrappy binding tends to use short strips, perhaps 4in to 8in long. Sewing them together with straight seams is more time efficient than using diagonal seams, and will…

“Purple can be a polarising colour, but we love how the rich aubergine tones contrast strikingly against the low volume prints and the zingy lime green.”LAURA PRITCHARD, TECHNICAL EDITOR Ingredients • Assortment of fabrics in 1in wide strips for corner units • Assortment of fabric scraps, largest size needed 4in x 5½in • Paper for foundation piecing • Machine sewing thread to tone with fabrics • Templates (see Templates section) Finished size • 12½in square (12in once pieced into project) Finished size • A mix of small scale prints in jewel tones. Notes • The ingredients list is for one block. Make eight (8) blocks for the quilt. • Seam allowances are a ¼in unless otherwise noted. Press seams to one side as instructed. • Press all fabrics before cutting.…

From its infancy the Women’s Institute (WI) movement and its members have paid a significant interest in crafts both as a leisure activity and a way of supplementing income. In 1918 the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) provided the first exhibition of craftwork by WI members. In November 1935 The Heighington WI quilt, now part of a collection of quilts at The Bowes Museum, was exhibited by the Heighington WI at the NFWI Horticultural Hall London, and was described by Queen Mary as ‘lovely… patchwork is simply wonderful’. Years later in 2013, the quilt was re-discovered by Lynne Peperell in her loft. The box was labelled: ‘Heighington WI, Mrs. E.M. Dixon 1935’. The quilt had previously been inherited by Louisa Reeves, the granddaughter of Mrs. E.M. Dixon, who was…

Printed and Dyed Textiles from Africa A visual feast, illustrating the richness and diversity of the African textile tradition. Over 30 textiles from The British Museum’s renowned collection are explored in detail. £10.99, Published by The British Museum Press (Fabric Folios), paperback 2001, www.britishmuseumshoponline.org World Textiles Illustrating the whole range of traditional handmade textiles from all corners of the globe, all aspects of materials and techniques are covered. Every kind of textile is described: non-loom and loom-woven, painted and printed, dyed, sewn, embroidered and embellished. £19.95, paperback 2003 Textiles of the Islamic World Discover the astonishing array of textiles made, worn, used and displayed throughout the Islamic world, from the glorious fabrics of the past to those still being produced today. £28.00, paperback 2013 Indian…

“The Indian subcontinent is a cornucopia of inspiration for quilters.” There is so much to explore around India’s textile traditions as you travel from one region to the other. Block-printed and woven ceremonial textiles from Gujarat, pashmina from Kashmir, indigo dyeing in Rajastan, kalamkari (hand-painted or block-printed cotton textile) and quilted clothing from the Thar Desert. Embroiderers seek out kantha embroidery of Bengal, phulkari from the Punjab and chikan whitework from Lucknow. The Indian sub-continent is a cornucopia of inspiration for quilters and textile enthusiasts. Quilters have learnt a great deal in recent years about the Turkey Red quilts and the dyeing industry in the Vale of Leven and Manchester, which thrived in the 19th century. The main market for the fabric was India, and in recent research Dr Sally…

“There’s a long tradition of hand woven textiles, recycling, indigo dyeing and hand stitching.” When we think of Japanese textiles, more often than not we think of kimono, the traditional garment worn by men, women and children. When Arthur Golden’s book Memoirs of a Geisha was published in 1999 it fuelled our interest in this exquisite form of dress even more. Putting it into context, the V&A when describing the highly-decorative pieces that have survived and made their way into their collection said, “they were the designer clothes of their day”. But looking beyond the opulent silk kimono worn by the upper echelons of society to the fabric of everyday life, we discover a long tradition of hand woven textiles, recycling, indigo dyeing and hand stitching. There has been a…

“When you buy a selection of wax prints or hand-dyed batiks from them you are buying into so much more than just a fabric bundle.” If you’ve ever visited the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham you might recognise that familiar moment when, while browsing the myriad quilts and vendors, a burst of vibrant colour catches the corner of your eye as a Bolga basket from Ghana brushes past you on the arm of a visitor. It’s a winning combination, beautifully handwoven baskets in punchy colours – lime green, magenta, turquoise and vivid yellow – the perfect addition to your creative space and in all the sizes that you might ever need. Quilters love colour and they appreciate artisan products, which is why the Bolga baskets are such a draw. Magie…

Textiles: The Art of Mankind By Mary Schoeser, £60 www.thamesandhudson.com Silk and Cotton: Textiles From The Central Asia That Was By Susan Meller, £40, published by Abrams, available from www.amazon.co.uk Textiles and Dress of Gujarat By Eiluned Edwards, £35, published by Grantha Corporation, available from www.mapinpub.com The Fabric of India By Rosemary Crill, £35 www.vandashop.com Indigo: The Colour that Changed the World By Catherine Legrand, £38 www.thamesandhudson.com World Textiles: A Concise History By Mary Schoeser, £8.95 www.thamesandhudson.com Indian Textiles: The Karun Thakar Collection By John Guy & Rosemary Crill, £40, published by Prestel Publishing Ltd, available from www.vandashop.com Embroidered Textiles: A World Guide to Traditional Patterns By Sheila Paine, £18.95 www.thamesandhudson.com Textiles – A World Tour: Discovering Traditional Fabrics & Patterns By Catherine Legrand, £19.95 www.thamesandhudson.com Textiles: The Whole Story…

THE QUILT PRINCESS FEATHERS Australian quilter Kim McLean is a master of hand appliqué and piecing. Her intricate creations are a riot of colour and movement. Using vibrant Kaffe Fassett fabrics and a needle-turn appliqué method with freezer paper, she creates whimsical designs like the bird inspired ‘Princess Feathers’, above. Other favourites include ‘Pandemonium’, with its abundant animal vignettes, and ‘Trees of the Four Seasons’, an imaginative interpretation of the changing year. THE SHOP MARKS & SPENCER Mornings are all the more appealing with birds singing and sunlight streaming through the curtains, making for a perfect lazy Sunday with a spot of EPP. If your bedroom isn’t yet in sync with the spirit of spring, the pretty Adriana Floral bedset from M&S (prices from £39.50) brings the outdoors in, so…

QUILTING EXHIBITIONS Splendid Shreds of Silk & Satin: A Celebration of Charlotte Brontë in Quilts 16th April-11th June, West Yorkshire Charlotte Brontë and her sisters were keen sewers and to celebrate 200 years since her birth on 21 April 1816, in conjunction with The Quilters’ Guild of the British Isles and the Brontë Parsonage Museum in Howarth, novelist Tracy Chevalier is presenting an exhibition of quilts inspired by Charlotte. Bankfield Museum, Akroyd Park, Boothtown Rd, Halifax, HX3 6HG 10:00-16:00 Admission: free http://museums.calderdale.gov.uk Unforgettable at The Welsh Quilt Centre Until 5th November, Ceridigion, Wales Quilts from the collections of Ron Simpson & Jen Jones, The Flannel Quilts of Wales. The Welsh Quilt Centre, The Town Hall, High Street, Lampeter, Ceredigion, Wales, SA48 7BB 01570 422 088 www.welshquilts.com A Celebration of Patchwork…

“If something takes a year to make, that’s fine. The phrase‘lovingly crafted’ comes to mind.” Don’t worry if you’ve made a mistake or think you have messed up a quilt. Sometimes major disasters can be made into a new and improved design! And don’t be afraid to defy tradition and try something new, that’s how the craft moves forward! The heading for my piece in this issue is possibly misleading, as it isn’t all about changing the position of blocks or pieces in a quilt. What I mean is turning something from what seems like a major problem or even a disaster into a new and hopefully improved design (what my son when small would have described as ‘even more betterer’). But first, how was Japan, I hear you ask?…

You will need • Thirty-seven (37) 1in hexagon paper pieces (see Templates section) • Sixty-six (66) 1in triangle paper pieces (see Templates section) • One-hundred-and-three (103) 1in square paper pieces (see Templates section) • Coloured scraps – thirty-seven (37) 4in squares for hexagons and triangles. • White fabric for squares – 1 fat quarter • Print fabric for back and piping – ½yd • Batting – 16in square • ¼in Piping cord – 60in length • Zipper, plastic dress weight – 14in length • Spray baste (optional) • 16in cushion Finished size • Approx. 14½in square Fabric used • Assorted Japanese taupe prints for hexagons and triangles. Kona Solid White for squares. Notes • This project assumes some prior knowledge of English paper piecing. A detailed EPP guide can be…

“I am mostly inspired by the great outdoors, from the largest trees to the tiniest of leaves. Creating patterns with summery sweet hues is my happy place. I thrive on botanical gardens, sunshiney days and nature walks – camera in one hand, sketchbook in the other. My goal has always been to create patterns that are organic and natural, joyful and lovely. “Since we moved back to the mountains a few years ago, I’ve been endlessly inspired by the forest at my doorstep. This collection is deeply meaningful to me, as every bit of it was inspired by our woodland explorations. I spent months photographing the flora and fauna of our part of the world. The end result is a true reflection of where we live, Pisgah Forest, North Carolina.”…

BRILLIANT BIRDS & BUDS CIRCLE & LEAF APPLIQUÉ TEMPLATES ACTUAL SIZE Thank you for making this project from Today’s Quilter. The copyright for these templates belongs to the designer of the project. They work hard to create projects for you to enjoy, so please don’t re-sell or distribute without permission. Please do not make any part of the templates or instructions available to others through your website or a third party website, or copy it multiple times without permission. Copyright law protects creative work and unauthorised copying is illegal. We appreciate your help. TILED TO PERFECTION ACTUAL SIZE Thank you for making this project from Today’s Quilter. The copyright for these templates belongs to the designer of the project. They work hard to create projects for you to enjoy, so…

Experience a day in the life of Lynette Anderson • Appliqué Dresden Plates with Lynne Goldsworthy • Carolyn Forster’s frame quilt is a traditional treat • New fabric from Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably Plus! Get to grips with rulers – FREE supplement plus 12 fabric grips! Issue 10 on sale 26th May Contents subject to change…

Throughout this supplement you will discover more about some of the fascinating people and organisations who are contributing to our understanding and appreciation of world textiles. Many work closely with communities to help create sustainable businesses. You can find out more about them by visiting their websites or through events such as World Textile Day. In addition to these experts, there are endless sources of inspiration on the internet. Here, Jane Rae shares just a few of her favourite sites to visit for a creative hit. Amy Butler Artist and designer Amy Butler’s world is bursting with colour and energy and she really draws upon her world travels in her designs. Amy and David Butler and creative guru Val Wells are leading a trip to Morocco in November 2016 for…

“You begin to recognise the distinctive colours and stitch traditions of each tribe.” The minority ethnic groups that inhabit the mountaneous areas of Thailand, Vietnam and Southern China have very distinctive textile traditions. Many of these ethnic groups, particularly the women, still wear their colourful costumes. Traditionally, all phases of making their clothing took place within each village – from the growing and processing of hemp and indigo dye to weaving, dyeing, stitching and adding decorative embroidery and embellishment. As you journey through the hill tribes you begin to recognise the distinctive colours and stitch traditions of each tribe. You’ll see the Indigo Resist Dyeing fabrics of the Bai people in Yunnan, the multicoloured strips of patchwork and appliqué of the Lisu in Northern Thailand and the Flower Hmong in…

“We work on a co-operative basis whereby all the money is shared equally throughout the carving team.” COLOURICIOUS A LABOUR OF LOVE In a small village in Jaipur, an entire community of artisans has found that their skills in wood carving have gained a huge following from textile enthusiasts who want to create their own fabrics. When UK based Jamie Malden could not find any ethnic designs in rubber for a stamping project that she was working on, she decided to have them hand carved in India. It’s quite a story as Jamie, along with her business partner Puneet in India, has gone from employing three block makers to 140 full-time block makers working solely for their business, Colouricious. The artisans receive 100% of the money from sales giving this…

SUSAN BRISCOE A LOVE AFFAIR WITH TEXTILES When Susan Briscoe set off to university in Aberystwyth University to study Visual Arts & Drama in the mid 80s she had no idea that this path would lead her to a career in textiles. Twenty-five years later she has published six books on the subjects of Japanese style quilts and Japanese needlework quilting (sashiko) and has a one-woman business selling authentic Japanese fabrics and her own quilt patterns. We caught up with Susan and found out more about her love affair with Japanese textiles. What was your first encounter with Japanese textiles? I got interested in Japanese design via the ‘Art and Society’ module on my degree course and the influence of all things Japanese in the 80s. This encouraged me to…

“Over the years we have developed wonderful friendships with many talented local dyers and batik artists.” THE AFRICAN FABRIC SHOP WORKING TOGETHER It all started with a small, battered suitcase filled with samples collected by Magie on her travels in Africa. Persuaded by longtime friend Janice Gunner to share the stories behind her stash with their local quilt group, Magie soon realised that there was a market for her brightly coloured wax prints, and the seeds for The African Fabric Shop were sown. Magie and Bob’s love of Africa stretches back to the mid 80s when they met through an adventure tour operator leading safaris across Africa. For Bob, his fascination with Africa had been percolating from a young age. Two of his teachers at his local school in Toronto…