Out and about

So, Monday dawned after a really hot weekend in the garden and on the allotment and off to the station to catch the train to London. Val and I were off to the V&A to see the quilt exhibition. London was hot, noisy and dirty, but it felt so good to be there after a long time away. Shame I forgot to take the AtoZ and wore the wrong shoes, but I managed to have a great time.

We got a sandwich and found a shady spot in Green Park to have a picnic. Then we set off to walk to the V&A, but it was so hot, and without the AtoZ I wasn't sure of the way, so we got a cab and arrived well in time for our start time of 2.30.

The exhibition was womderful. There was a good balance between the ancient and modern and we took our time going around. We had chosen a fairly quiet time, so we didn't have trouble getting close to the quilts. The old quilts were very impressive, especially considering that they were all done by hand. No photos allowed, but my favourites were King George reviewing the troops, the quilt made by prisoners in Wandsworth prison for Fine Cell Work and Pauline Burbridge's Applecross quilt. So then back out into the sunshine for a cup of tea in the courtyard in the company of a Black Backed gull and various small children cooling themselves in the fountain before we headed off to get something to eat and the train home.

The least said about the journey home the better, but we did get back at last,  an hour later than we should have done and feeling very jaded.

So then to Alwoodly quilter's on Tuesday morning where Sandra was showing us a technique she called shattered flowers. This invovled using a large floral print which was cut up and arranged on a grid. Keeping track of all the little pieces was tricky, but I managed to get the grid covered. Will I do anything with it? We'll see, but for now it's going on the WIP pile where no doubt it will gather quite a bit of dust!

Then in the afternoon, Sandra and I went up to the Quilt Museum in York to see a demonstration by Alicia Merritt. Alicia was showing us how to  use curved piecing techniques and creating wonderful blocks of coloured squares and rectangles. Sandra and I met up with her friend Julie who is also a blogger and very busy indeed. There was a lot to talk about, and another chance to look at the Breakthrough exhibition before we headed for home.

So, no photos, but today I'm recovering by doing a little gentle stitching and catching up on the Chelsea Flower Show!