It's more Dumfries EG stuff

I have been so busy with the Keswick Mountain Festival all last week that I just could not find the time or energy to blog, I am doing a quick one tonight as I still don't really have a lot of time tonight either.


Blogger is playing games and won't do anything I want it to, so I will publish this as is because its so frustrating when you can't see what's going on properly.

detail of Aquarium

Margie Booth

So I found a couple of the embroideries I liked which I had photographed in detail too and when I looked at them again discovered they were both by the same person! So Margie this is your spotlight. You do deserve it too because I like your whimsical work very much.

I am sorry the glass has caused some reflections, but I think it does not detract from the work.

Dumfries EG some of the photos

A pretty display up the top of the stairs

 The display was brilliant and filled two rooms plus all the way up the stairs, but photography is not always simple in such situations.  Some of the embroideries had glass over them which made it almost impossible to take a decent photo. So I have a taken ones I thought would show the diversity of their work. I did not have a catalogue so I cannot give all of the names and techniques here but I am sure you won't mind.

Shirley McKeand's Jacobean waistcoat

 I did recognise Shirley's work straight away as she is a very talented embroiderer and studied and worked in couture for many years.  She had quite a few jackets and coats in the exhibition and this was just one of them showing how she uses crewelwork to enhance a waistcoat.

Lovely silk paper slippers by Lynda Crowson

Some of you will know that I am particularly fond of making silk paper and then turning it into all sorts of objects, but I have never made a pair of tiny slippers, so these attracted my attention. I also liked the little needle punched puffins which you can just see below them, but I will post photos of them and other delights another day.

Dumfries Exhibition another snippet

Family Portrait by Maggie Goodyear

Well here is another reminder about the Dumfries show which ends this Saturday, 12th May; so go and see it if you are dallying before it closes.  The show includes quilts, embroideries and examples of spun and woven textiles. It is at the Gracefield Arts Centre Dumfries.

I will be posting more photos soon but meanwhile I thought you might like to look at these lovely birds as it is the nesting season, especially in my garden, where the sparrows, blackbirds and dunnocks have been particularly pleasing in their antics this year.

Solway Quilters in detail

Chickens doing their thing

 The ladies had really made a fantastic display and no photos of mine can do justice to this, but I hope to give you a flavour, also I was not able to include all of the quilts so if yours is not here, I do apologise but I simply had too many to look at......But the chicken coop was an absolute delight and well done the person who made the actual coop too, it was marvellous.

I add these quilts in no particular order or preference here and if I know your name I will put it on,
if not I hope you won't mind.

Audrey Dolan's little quilt and Edwina Anderson's Dog and walker

Garden Blues by Ann McCall

 Baltimore style wall hanging and the flowers looked hand sewn.

Collector's Plates by Eleanor Watret

 This was a lovely subtle quilt and the photo does not do it justice.


Hearts by Pauline Cherrington

Based on a design shown in 'Popular Patchwork', machine appliqué, hand and machine quilting.

Top left 'With love from Gran' by Kathy Clow, bottom left 'Krazy, Kozy, Katz' by Catherine Mandoki, Top right 'The Lofoten archipelago' by Tanya Burlison and Bottom right, 'Fabric Landscape' by Jo Cockerill

 I really like strippy quilts with natural themes so liked the puffins very much.

'Christmas Medallion, by Elma Graham

 Foundation pieced and machine quilted.

'Perhaps a student quilt' by Elma Cliff

 The patches were all original tartan pieces and the quilt was hand and machine sewn for her grandson. Lucky lad! A very simple but striking design and a good use of remnants too.

'Fukurou' by Ann Hill - detail

 Japanese name for happiness, and this will be used for the spare bed in which the grandchildren sleep.

'Tree of life' by Ann Hill

'Coffee and cream sampler' by Myra Hall

 Machine pieced and hand quilted.

'Baltimore qult and cushion' by Eileen thomson and 'Lone Star' by Barbara Watts

 Hand appliqué and hand quilted baltimore quilt and star made at a workshop with Ann Hill.

'Mrs Noah's Ark' by Jenny Hughes

 Made using up household scraps including her parent's 1947 kitchen curtains!

'Life is beautiful' by Doreen Gibson

 Made for Ella's 16th birthday and based on an Australian design by Helen Stubbings.

Lots more including the raffle quilt in blue and white on the right.

 OOh I do want to win the raffle quilt, its in aid of MS my ticket is number 0710 ladies hint......

detail of log cabin on the slant? don't know whose this is sorry.....

'Shimmering sea' by Kathryn Welsh

 Same block as above and you can see how well it makes a quilt here.

'Japanese dolls' by Catherine Pardoe

Pattern by Susan Claire in Quiltmania magazine which is the French magazine I think which comes out bi monthly.

I hope you have enjoyed this snippet of the Solway quilters show, they really worked hard to produce these quilts and to have their exhibition space look so professional. Very Well Done Everyone!

hip hip hooray, hip hip hooray hip hip hooray ..........................................


Well that's it for the quilters, more next time on the other exhibits, namely the embroiderers' from the Dumfries branch of the EG.  I am not sure when I will post next as there are jobs to do, but I will try not to keep you waiting too long.

Solway Quilters

Catherine Mandoki "Liberty in the museum"

Yesterday I had the pleasure of a day off and went with the EG ladies and the Cumbria Patchworkers to Dumfries in Galloway to their show.  It was inspirational. This quilt used Liberty fabrics reproduced by them for their late 18th century and 19th century quilts and coverlets for the Victoria and Albert Museum 2010 exhibition. It was hand appliquéd, pieced and quilted. There were strong spotlights hanging from the ceiling so I could not avoid the loss of colour on the top left hand corner. I did try enhancing with photopaint to get rid of it but the degredation to the rest of the quilt was not worth it.  Catherine it was lovely to meet you again and thank you for being a loyal follower of this blog.

I will be posting more soon but the show had embroidery as well as quilts so if you look at the Keswick Embroiderers' blog you will be able to see some more exhibits. I am not sure when Lesley will post, but I expect it will be soon.

Sausage Rolls Update

Cumberland Sausage Rolls updated link

This is the new link for Peter Sidwell's recipe, my old link has stopped working. I know that it is often looked at because my viewing stats tell me ;-)

Now that I am on the new blogger platform for this and my other blogs I help out with, I find it much easier to use. Anyway, I hope it turns sunny tomorrow, missing it.

My display of Pelargoniums last summer