Welsh Textiles

With having Welsh ancestry and the love of textiles, I've been thoroughly enjoying exploring the neighbourhood around our little Welsh cottage (#dovecottageonwye on instagram)

Lampeter is a sweet town about 35 mins drive from Dove Cottage and is home to The Welsh Quilt Centre www.welshquilts.com

On our last visit to DC we were joined for the last three nights by great friends of ours from the SW of England. Linda also has a love of quilts and many years ago when we lived in the SW we began our quilting journey by attending courses together.

The Welsh Quilt Centre didn't let us down, the quilts were amazing, all old and beautifully hand quilted. We were told that the exhibition upstairs changes regularly so a return visit will be required :)

Downstairs is a shop selling lots of great textiles, books etc.

I took a few photos, but of course they dont do the quilts justice. The quilts were mainly 'whole cloth' with some pieced work too

'Wholecloth quilt was the mark of an artist - the fabric a mere canvas on which to express the quilters fine needlework skills and creative flair. It is a quilt that dates back to the twelfth century, and has been created by European and American artisans alike. A wholecloth quilt is not necessarily made from a single piece of fabric, but from a few very large pieces of cloth, and it is intricately stitched to produce a highly textured, tactile design.'

Cassandra Ellis - A World of Quilts

I have a whole cloth quilt that my grandmother made, probably about 100 years ago. Cassandra Ellis goes on to say 'Both Welsh and County Durham Wholecloth quilts are highly regarded and extraordinarily beautiful' My grandmother was born in Durham and after marrying a Welshman, went to live in Wales before returning to Durham after his death and all her children had married. 

The quilt that I have is old and not in great condition, I covered it many years ago to protect it but may just uncover it one day to take another look :)

The photos below are taken of Welsh blankets, another passion of mine, the top picture taken at the Welsh Quilt Centre and the other three taken in antique shops

Wales

We have just retuned from 5 days in Wales. We stayed in a caravan on top of a hill with fantastic views for miles all around. The weather was lovely, although a bit blustery at night, this added to the atmosphere of staying out in the countryside in the Autumn. I visited a number of patchwork shops and one of the highlights was our visit to the National Wool Museum. This is housed in the old Cambrian Mills where amongst items of clothing, beautiful Welsh blankets were made. There is still a commercial working mill on the site. There is a wonderful textile gallery showing a great range of blankets. The photo's really dont do it justice. My ancestors on my mother's paternal side are Welsh and my mother was born and grew up there. This photo was on the wall in the museum but I can imagine my ancestors looking something like this lady!