Join Ali Ferguson for two lovely days creating personal wonky patchwork portraits. We’ll be inspired by old log cabin quilts, stories & memories of special people and handwritten words.

The centre square of many traditional log cabin quilts was red, to represent the fireplace as the heart of the home but we’ll use an old family (or other) photograph printed onto fabric at the heart of our pieces. Photographs will be printed in advance of the workshop, and you’ll receive more details of this later.

Ali will show you how she creates her deliciously wonky patchwork and how she adds to the story element with the use of meaningful words. These pieces are all hand stitched but don’t worry if you’re not experienced – Ali will share some of her favourite stitches and plenty of inspiration.

You’ll be working with a fabulous selection of vintage and used materials such as old handkerchiefs, vintage table linens & 1940s floral fabrics taken from old patchwork quilts. By using old and used materials we are bringing their stories to the piece too! Your patchwork portrait will be backed onto a gloriously scrappy piece of vintage quilt and the finished piece will be approximately A4 in size. You’ll be creating a beautifully personal ‘cloth story’ that can be hung straight onto a wall.

You can work on one or two pieces during the workshop, but you probably won’t finish them – hand stitching is slow! However, you will leave with a gorgeous project and all the ideas that you need to continue at home. Ali passionately believes that ‘slow stitching’ should be exactly that, something that can be added to, day by day, picked up and put down thus weaving a little bit of your own everyday story into your piece.  If you love stitching, then you’ll love this approach where the pleasure of creating is as significant as the desire to have a finished project.

A great selection of old & used materials will be provided including foundation fabric and the vintage quilt backgrounds; however, you may also wish to bring along some bits & pieces from your own stash. This wonky patchwork looks fabulous whatever your preferred style of fabric, so if you prefer working with new fabrics & patterns then bring them along. Of course, there is a gorgeous selection of fabrics available to buy from the Stitchery.

There will be a small charge of £10 for materials payable directly to Ali.

A buffet lunch will be provided on both days so please let us know of any dietary requirements.

The studio has a number of good air bnbs nearby and a small pub with rooms, ideally placed for workshops here. Please ask for accommodation recommendations if you plan to stay over.