My Kind Of Festival

I am a very keen sewist. 

A quilt with attitude

There is something about sewing and creating that I find beautiful and really enchanting. We are at the time of year where every other weekend there seems to be some festival happening, sadly I am not attending a music festival this year; however one day I hope to work on one because I imagine the creative atmosphere is electric. Despite not attending a music festival I haven’t missed out on the festival scene, oh no, I was lucky enough to go to the Festival of Quilts!

Before you switch off allow me to show and tell you how surprisingly brilliant this event is. Last year was the first time I went to this one of a kind festival, it was at the end of a girl’s holiday with my mama and we wanted to try something a little different. I’ve been to lots of craft and sewing fairs in the past and thought The Festival of Quilts would be relatively similar to rest but with more of a focus on quilting instead of generic making.

I really under estimated what this festival was.

The festival is spread over 3 exhibition halls at the NEC in Birmingham. The first hall is mainly filled with fabric and craft stalls all bursting with anything and everything to do with sewing. Among the stalls tend to be the big brands in sewing machines, these always prove a treat as you’re able to get great deals on machines and compared easily between the different companies. In the second hall (it also creeps into the 3^rd) are the quilts themselves and my word are they beautiful! Taking up the rest of the 3^rd and final hall is a space for live demonstrations, sewing classes and a much needed tea and cake stop.

This year my trip I focused on the shopping portion of the festival; my aim was to buy a new sewing machine ready for the next stage of my life alongside some fabric for a big project I’m working on! I did however spend some time this year wondering through the quilts entered into the show and I was bowled over by some of the amazing pieces on display. I thought I might share with you some of my favourites.

I’m going to start with the last quilt I saw before we left on the Sunday because it put a smile on my face. At first glance I just thought it was a narrow long quilt but as I walked closer to the display I could see that it was made from lots of small hexagon shapes and the quilt itself was made to look like a long line of toilet paper. What I loved about this, is that it’s fun, quirky and puts to bed the stereotype of stuffy old lady quilts that often pop into your head when someone says quilting.

The next quilt was the winner of the novice category which really surprised me. This quilt was made by Susan Sami and was made to represent the global influx of refugees caused by perils of war hence its name ‘Global Harming’. The reason why I loved this quilt so much is because it appeals to the textiles student within me. Mixing the technique of quilting with printing, free machine embroidery and still hitting home with a strong message. I think my passion towards this piece will stay with me for a while.  

'Global Harming' by Susan Sami

The next two quilts just melted my heart as both of these were made by primary school children. I think the reason why I find these two pieces so touching is the fact that they are made by children in school and that their schools provided this creative outlet. I think promoting creativity in schools is so essential. It can show to children that being creative is just as important and as impressive as it is to be academic. One quilt is simply a calendar decorated with iconic events throughout time and the other shows the progression of the sewing machine all joined together with a giant pair of scissors.

                        

My last and absolute favourite quilt is a replica of the new ten pound note featuring Jane Austen. This quilt caught my eye from really early on in the day and I kept mentioning it to my mum as we walked around the festival. To start with I love how the iconic face of Jane Austen has been reproduced so brilliantly by only using free machine embroidery and how this beautiful free machining has been used throughout the quilt to create texture. Personally what I think makes this quilt really special is the attention to the finer details for example: the use of holographic fabric with a hand painted queen, only visible in certain lights much like a real ten pound note.

This quilt is being taken to bath to be put on display in Jane Austen's house.

As you can probably tell I had an absolute ball at the 2018 Festival of Quilts and cannot wait to go again next year! I hope this has shown that quilts aren’t always the cuddly blankets you’re given when you’re not feeling very well but they can be pieces of artistry.

Also I now have a cheeky little Instagram account for my blog (rosy_tinted_world) where I’ll post links to my posts hot off the press and I’ll try and fill your newsfeed with some bright, fun and happy content! Don’t forget everything is coming up roses.

NV x