Worn and Washed

So Mum and I decided to go to see Kim's show. We are huge fans after having done the day course Kim offers. It's just such a lovely concept, All these faded soft fabrics; favourite old sheets, soft shirts, brushed cottom pyjamas; all reused and put together in bundles which you can just make into simple strip quilts. We were quite excited about the show as Olney is a very beautiful place and I have finally worked out how to use the sat nav.

In the end mums 'crew' who all gang together and go on road trips to shows and shops decided to join us and off we went in Angela's bright red mini, whizzing down country lanes in the fens, sneezing at the oil seed rape fields which were in full bloom.



I was a bit sad we weren't doing the class again as it was a lovely venue and would have been a great day to just dedicate to a project. The show itself was lovely. There was a great array of quilts made my people using Kim's bundles, all of which looked really soft and handmade. If you're not familiar with Worn and Washed, here is a rundown.

Here is a classic bundle



Here is the classic strip quilt you can make really quickly



And that's all there is to it! But the exhibition showed what people had done to take the idea that one step further. It was really great to see what it could all lead on to.

Here are a few of the things I really liked



I think the quilt on the left by Ruth Eglinton is lovely. I love the mixture of blocks and applique. The colours are also very faded and lovely. I am thinking I might ask Kim to see if there is a pattern available or else I will try and work it out myself. I even like the slight puffiness of the quilting. I am not sure how you achieve that effect, perhaps merely by washing it lots.



I also really liked Liz Tew's quilt, which you can't quite see as it has quilts on top of it but I didn't want to touch the display as it was so perfect. It seemed pretty simple. Just long rows of three up strips with white white strips which had been quilted with hearts.



I loved all the washed out tones, the use of stripey sheets and the whiteness of it. It's also a great chance to do some more Durham quilting on the white areas. I think I might actually make it!



I bought the roll for this quilt of Kim's below but now I am torn and think I must make Liz's quilt above. Oh I shall probably end up making a mismatch of both and wish I had stuck to one of them. I am so fickle



Here are some other lovely things



This quilt was tiny squares, slightly wonky which just made it seem perfect.



This one was a bit more complicated than the norm but I liked the quilting around the star and mum was quite taken with the button in the middle.


This one reminds me of the Petra Prins quilt kit I have stashed away for a rainy day



I think overall, that I have decided that I like it when the strips are small. I'll probably change my mind though, but this tiny quilt was lovely.



One day, I will dive into the whole Liberty thing. It is so tempting.



I'll stop now. I know I am gushing, but what can I do? Worn and Washed is exactly my kind of thing, whereas a lot of other kinds of quilting isn't always on the mark for me. At heart I am small sprigs of flowery faded fabrics and Little House on The Prarie. I have fought it, but I can't help myself. I always seem to return to it. My mum gave me my grandads old stripy bed linen years ago as it held such lovely memories for me. I can see it in one of these quilts, I have just never had the guts to cut it up. Bank holiday might see the scissors coming out!

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