Patchwork Corner quilts at Sandown

 I guess I should confess. I am mean and cruel and I beat not only my students but Jenny's as well. I've been trying for years to get more people from Patchwork Corner to enter quilts into the Sandown quilt show, partly because it's a really nice show and partly because there are a lot of good quilters there. It also seems daft not to enter when most of them go to the show anyway and entering gets you a ticket.

In the past one or two students have given it a go, and enjoyed the experience, this year was the best yet, with 8 quilts from the shop. This was helped a lot by the charity category. All the entry fees for quilts in the charity theme (In the Pink) were donated to Breast Cancer Care, it was a win win situation.

So on that note the first quilt I am sharing (with permission) is a small wall hanging. It was made by Karen Benge from a McKenna Ryan pattern. It's a lovely quilt and the picture doesn't do it justice. The quilt on the washing line is a separate little quilt and there are real pegs. It's scary to be responsible for it, but worth the effort.

The next quilt is a group entry. Unfortunately groups were not allowed to enter the theme category, but it wasn't obvious from the entry form. Looking at the show guide, there were a few groups who didn't spot that restriction and there was a larger then usual group category. Again the picture won't show you the half of this quilt made by the Thursday Morning Ladies. The blocks are very effective and were a great choice for a group project, but the detail in the machine quilting is mad. Do try clicking on the photo, but I don't think the tiny hearts will show. This was Jill's first attempt at machine quilting on a frame, brave or what? She did a good job and learned a lot. I love finding new frame quilters, they get all the fun little problems that you don't even think about until they happen to you. This quilt will be raffled for Breast Cancer Care, I'll let you know about tickets when I find out about them.

The next quilt is by Liz Norton, one of my Thursday night ladies. As soon as we knew the theme it was clear this quilt had to be entered. What I didn't realise until I saw it hanging was how good it is. Just look at how well it hangs. I wish I knew how she did it, I would love all of mine to look that good in a show. 

Another quilt that really pleased me is this one by Carolyn Meggison. She recently joined myWednesday morning class 'to learn machine quilting'. She meant it too, and her dedication is paying off. Those feathers are completely freehand and sewn on a quite basic little domestic machine. Watch out for the name, she has picked up machine quilting a lot quicker than I did and is rapidly soaking up not only everything I can teach her but all sorts of things she finds on the internet. I don't know how she got the lone star done so fast and to the standard, I only know I didn't teach her it. I can't wait to see what she enters next year.

 Ah, now this one is really cool. This is from the boss herself, Jenny. It was made as a sample for a new range of fabrics but then she realised it was pink and thus could come to the show. She doesn't read my blog so I think I am safe in saying she is probably the best piecer I quilt for, and this is the first time she has entered a show. Maybe we should be thankful :) This quilt was a bit of a challenge to quilt. The fabric is a very loose weave and with the blocks on point it likes to wander about a bit. I did go a bit crazy with the quilting. It's full on show quilting, with rulers stencils and all that fun stuff, and I loved doing it. I wish it had picked up an award, but the charity category was big and had a lot of very good work in it, so not this time. I hope Jenny can be persuaded to enter again, her work should be out there being seen by more people.

I'm not sure how I should describe Angela, she wears so many hats at the shop. She is in my Wednesday morning class, teaches her own classes (from her own designs) works in the shop and demonstrates machines. This is a quilt of her own design called 'I wish I was blue'. The centre was inspired by my second sampler quilt pattern which she enlarged. I don't like pink but this quilt shows how striking 3 fabrics can be when you have good contrast. There are hand quilted stars that you should be able to see if you enlarge the image by clicking on it, and a lot of machine quilting. Angela has been my star example of quilting with decorative stitches for years, as she swore she couldn't do free motion quilting. Then her students started mentioning that they wanted to learn to free motion quilt. Rather than put them off or send them to my classes (which would still have given the message this was hard and put them off) she decided she was going to master it. This is one of the great things about teaching. It's not a one way process. Your students can teach you so much both directly and indirectly if only you will let them. She is now encouraging the rest of the class to give it a go and is solidly hooked on the process. I did tell her it was fun and she could do it. I think she is now looking to try a wholecloth along with Carolyn, and several others.


Gill hasn't been able to come to class this term, but it didn't get her off the hook. She still entered the show with this little quilt. She was inspired by Ashley Newcomb, from the blog 'Film in the Fridge'. She found this to be a real learning experience, and seems to have enjoyed it, even the stressful bits. I was amused to discover that most quilters finish show quilts at the last possible minute if not a few minutes later. I thought it was just me. She also discovered that delivering quilts is fun. I haven't heard from her since we took the show down, so I don't know what she made of that. I know I really appreciated her and her families help loading up the van. Other traders were very impressed with how well they worked too.

Carol Brackley comes to a class with me on Thursday afternoon and is another student who has really taken off. When I first me her, she seemed quite nervous and unsure of her skills, now she is up for anything. She plays with all sorts of patterns and fabrics producing an impressive number and range of quilts. This quilt has four bows quilted into it in honour of the theme. Unfortunately her family were really busy during the show, so weren't able to see her quilt hanging. I hope they will make it next year, I can't wait to see what she is making by then.

So there you have it. Those are this years quilts from the Patchwork Corner crowd. It would have been great for one of them to go home with a ribbon, but I hope everyone enjoyed the experience of entering a show and seeing their quilt hanging. It is magic just to see your work displayed in an event like this. I know a couple of these students did hear people saying nice things about their quilts and that is an amazing buzz. They also discovered that the competing bit isn't really scary, you don't hear directly from the judges unless you apply for them, and on the whole people who visit the show are pleased you entered. After all if no one enters quilts there isn't a show. I hope some of you will join in the fun next year.