Yesterday I went with a friend to the Northern Quilt Show, for years this was held at the Great Yorkshire Showground, near Harrogate. I like this show as it’s not too big, there’s some stallholders there who don’t go to the big November show and it’s a reasonable price to get in. This year it’s moved to the Wetherby Racecourse which would prove difficult if not impossible for me to get there on buses, so I was really pleased when a friend asked if I wanted to go.

It’s in two different buildings, three rooms, so it’s not as convenient as the big flower hall in Harrogate but I’m sure we’ll get used to it.

There were some beautiful quilts on display but one really caught my eye, it was by Janet Bevan, called WW1 Centenary and it was stunning. The background is tea-dyed, the flag was torn and distressed and the shadowy figures are in voile which was really effective. The detail in the quilting was just amazing. Quite a moving piece.

Another display I liked was a large group of wall hangings. These were made in 2000 by the Studio Art Quilt Associates. The theme was the Orient Express, the train that runs from Paris to Istanbul, the aim was to bring together the richness, history and culture of Europe and the Middle East. Members were asked to produce a panel to a set size, all had to include a train carriage at the bottom and some sky. There were quite a few on display, here’s just a small selection.

Of course I bought a few bits!! It didn’t bode well when the first stand I went to within 6′ of the door, I bought a kit for a little wall hanging!

I got a dress length, a skirt length, half meters and some fat quarters (at six for £10 they were a bargain!!) some of which are earmarked for potentially finishing my garden book. Also some pretty hand-dyed threads which I hope will be useful for a sea-scape workshop I’m going on next month.

I thought I was quite restrained really 😀

All in all a good day out!