Quilts at Ethelburga’s Quilt Show

A visit to Lyminge

Ethelburga’s Quilt Show took place this weekend in the village of Lyminge, Kent. As I am new to Kent (two months a resident now!) I needed help from Google Maps to find Lyminge. Once in the village, a very helpful inhabitant gave me directions for walking across estate land to St Mary and St Ethelburga’s church, where the quilt show was taking place. This was the first glimpse of the church tower beyond the trees.

An A-board on the pavement confirmed that I was on the right track and that there would be coffee and cake as well as quilts. The Ethelburga’s Quilt Show coincided with the village’s Anglo-Saxon festival. I saw a long-boat, tents and people in historic costumes on the walk to the church.

After several grey and rainy days, the sun was out yesterday and the church looked welcoming, with bunting outside. Behind the church I could see a gazebo ready to welcome visitors and shelter them from showers.

St Mary and St Ethelburga’s church

This is a most beautiful and ancient church. The existing church is almost a thousand years old. An even earlier church was once on this site, built after 663AD by Queen Ethelburga, daughter of Aethelberht King of Kent and widow of King Edwin of Northumbria. Here is the doorway of the current church:

Quilt Show in the church

The space within made a most attractive area for displaying quilts, many of which were draped over the pews.

The quilts on display were all made by members of Ethelburga’s quilt group, which is led by Liz Coleman. A stunning small quilt entitled ‘Phoenix rising from the Ashes of Covid’ designed and made by Liz was on display at the front of the church. It depicts ‘a phoenix of hope’ rising from a ‘deconstructed rainbow’ (the rainbow having been frequently used as a symbol in the UK during the pandemic).

Another quilt by Liz Coleman, displayed on one of the church walls, also drew my attention. This is called ‘Passing Through’.

This large quilt ‘Our Hearts will go on’ by Julia Davies was made for an upcoming wedding. I loved the freshness of these colours combined with all the white.

The area of the church around the altar was dedicated to quilted items with Christmas themes, including panels of the Nativity by Lynne Newell, seen on the altar front.

Also by Lynne Newell, was this bold modern wall-hanging ‘What happens next?’ made in 2019.

The quilt shown below was made by Kerry Huntley. It is called ‘Liberty Quilt as You Go’. I loved the mix of colours and use of the pretty Liberty fabric prints.

Quilted cushions

Two quilted pieces by Julia Freeland caught my eye. This playful patchwork cushion is a portrait of her dog Poppy, complete with lead.

The other was this engaging ‘Mackerel Sky’ cushion, which I loved.

It felt quite extraordinary to be going to a quilt show after the long period of restrictions (due to Covid) since March 2020. The church was light and airy, with front and back doors open, a one-way system was in place, masks were worn and hand-sanitizer was available. In all other respects it was just what you hope for, from a quilt show: a warm welcome, beautiful quilts and a piece of cake and cup of tea at the end. Perfect.

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Next week on the blog: the next instalment of the 2021 Quiltalong ‘Summer Bouquets’. Join in and make a double-bed quilt by the end of the year!

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These two fabric designs are part of the ‘Japanese Garden’ collection.

This is ‘Japanese Garden – Little Birds on Blue’, available here

This is ‘Japanese Garden – Little Birds on Pink’, available here