New Australian National Quilt Register is now online

The National Quilt Register is an online database and central resource for the Australian quilting community. It provides digital access to quilts held in public and private collections throughout Australia. The original register originated from the work of the Pioneer Women's hut in New South Wales and launched in 2001 as part of the Centenary of Federation celebrations. It was made accessible via the Australian Museums and Galleries Online project and was hosted by the Powerhouse Museum. It was subsequently archived on Trove in 2014 and we lost access to its contents.

The new version of the National Quilt Register was launched in June 2017 at the National Wool Museum thanks to a grant from the Gordon Darling Foundation. The National Wool Museum is delighted to be able to re-establish this valuable resource for the quilters of Australia.

During this first stage of register redevelopment, the National Wool Museum invites quilters to add their quilts to this evergrowing public database, as well as provide feedback on how the register can best serve the quilting community and the general public.

Visit the National Quilt Register at nationalquiltregister.org.au

November 11th Quilt Study Group of NSW talk on Coverlets by Linda Butcher at The Glover Cottages.

The last QSG of NSW event for the year will be a talk at The Glover Cottages on Saturday the 11^th of November.

Since coverlets have appeared for the first time in the 2017 Sydney Quilt Show, we have asked noted quilt teacher and maker of coverlets, Linda Butcher, to talk to us about the history of this popular bed and wall covering and to show us examples of her work, including her recent prize winning 'By Night and By Day' coverlet below. 

Linda hopes to bring along some other quilt teachers' coverlets and there will be a Mary Jane Hannaford coverlet to see up close. 

Please bring along your own coverlets for show and tell – especially any that you have entered into quilt shows.

Please encourage everyone you know who is interested in quilting and quilt history to come along. The Glover Cottages (124 Kent St, Sydney) is a beautiful light-filled venue for the talks and it is an easy walk from either Wynyard or Circular Quay train stations. Entry is $5 for Quilt NSW Guild members and $10 for non-Guild members. Afternoon tea is provided and the talks start at 2pm. Check the Guild’s website, blog or the latest Template Newsletter issue for more details.

July 29th 2017 Quilt Study Group of NSW talk on Foundation Piecing by Chris Jurd at The Glover Cottages.

On Saturday the 29^th July at The Glover Cottages, inspiring quilt teacher, pattern designer and quilt maker from the Blue Mountains, Chris Jurd, will talk to us about Foundation Piecing and show us how her favourite technique figures in her work.

Bring along your own examples using foundation piecing to show and share with us.

Please encourage everyone you know who is interested in quilting and quilt history to come along to this talk. The Glover Cottages (124 Kent St, Sydney) is a beautiful light-filled venue for the talks and it is an easy and interesting walk via The Rocks from either Wynyard or Circular Quay train stations. Entry is $5 for Quilt NSW Guild members, $10 for non-Guild members. Afternoon tea is provided and the talk starts at 2pm.

Batavia Tapestry now on show at The Australian National Maritime Museum

The Australian National Maritime Museum has recently unveiled a stunning new large-scale embroidered work by Melbourne textile artist Melinda Piesse that illustrates the tragic story of the wreck of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) flagship Batavia in 1629.  

The Batavia tapestry is on display in Sydney until 29 October 2017 and is included in the free galleries ticket.  

More information is on the museum blog:

https://anmm.wordpress.com/2017/05/10/the-batavia-tapestry/

May 2nd Tour of Hambledon Cottage, Parramatta and Textiles

Starting at 11am on the 2^nd of May 2017, the QSG of NSW has arranged for a tour of the textiles and the building at Hambledon Cottage in Hassall Street, Parramatta.  Hambledon Cottage gives you a view of colonial life style and the Exhibition in the Lucas Gallery currently is on the Parramatta Female Factory & some of the women who lived there.

Amongst the textiles that will be on display especially for us are two quilts donated by locals. On seeing the poor condition of their Wood 1865 crazy quilt, a group of Guild and non-Guild quilters decided to get together to replace it with a more appropriate Medallion quilt (now known as the Hambledon Quilt) and Lyn Shayler will tell us how her group put the replacement quilt together.

You MUST book your place on the tour via the Quilt NSW Guild office (9283 3737) so that enough Hambledon Cottage volunteers can be organized beforehand to cope with our visit. Please let us know if you have any mobility or other requirements. Payment is $6 per person on entry to the Cottage. Happily both Quilt NSW Guild and non-Guild members are welcome on this tour and we have no limit on numbers. We will tour the building in groups of 10 starting at 11am and later view all their textiles up close, including both of the quilts.

2017 Quilt Study Group of NSW events

The programme of events for the Quilt Study Group of NSW has now been set. The first talk will focus on the research and documentation of textiles. Sue Shaw, a social historian who researched military quilts at the Powerhouse Museum for her Masters and co-curated the 2007 ‘From Mothers to Daughters’ quilt exhibition with Dr Annette Gero, will talk about her recent purchase and research of  a rare Crimean war quilt that was made in Australia. Among the invited guests who will also talk about their research will be Jane Gibson, will bring her family quilt and workbag that appeared in the recent NGV quilt exhibition, and Catherine Porter will bring along a pincushion made from military uniforms. Bring along your own textile items to share their story with us. The talk will take place at 2pm on Saturday the 11^th of March at The Glover Cottages.

The 2^nd event will be a guided tour starting at 11am on Tuesday the 2^nd of May of the textiles and building at Hambledon Cottage in Parramatta.  On seeing its poor condition, a group of Guild and non-Guild quilters replaced the Wood 1865 crazy quilt with a more appropriate Medallion quilt. We will tour the building in groups of 10 and later view all their textiles up close, including both of the quilts. Hambledon Cottage gives you a view of colonial life style and the Exhibition in the Lucas Gallery currently features an exhibition on the Parramatta Female Factory & some of the women who lived there. You will have to book your place on the tour via the Guild office so enough Hambledon Cottage volunteers can be organized for our visit but happily both Guild and non-Guild members are welcome on this tour.

The 3^rd talk will take place on Saturday the 29^th July at The Glover Cottages. Inspiring quilt teacher, pattern designer and quilt maker from the Blue Mountains, Chris Jurd, will talk about Foundation Piecing and show us how her favourite technique figures in her work. Come along to pick up lots of tips and see some of her gorgeous quilts.

Our last event for the year will be a talk at The Glover Cottages on Saturday the 11^th of November. Since coverlets have appeared for the first time in the Sydney Quilt Show, we have asked Linda Butcher, noted quilt maker of coverlets, to talk to us about the history of this popular bed and wall covering and to show us examples of her work. Please bring along your own coverlets for show and tell.

Please encourage everyone you know who is interested in quilting and quilt history to come along to the 2017 The Quilt Study Group of NSW talks and tour. The Glover Cottages (124 Kent St, Sydney) is a beautiful light-filled venue for the talks and it is an easy walk from either Wynyard or Circular Quay train stations. Afternoon tea is provided and the talks start at 2pm. Entry for Guild members is $5, $10 for non-Guild member. Check the QuiltNSW website, blog or the latest Template Newsletter issue for more details.