Quilling at The Vyne

Well, I'm finally back at my computer after a wonderful weekend of quilling!

Yesterday, I attended a meeting of the Quilling Guild committee where we discussed exciting plans for the forthcoming Quilling Displays and Shared Skills Day at Lutterworth (Leicestershire, UK) on 15th/16th September 2012 - and also for what promises to be an unmissable celebration of international quilling to be staged in the UK in 2013 ... watch this space for details!

Meanwhile, on Saturday, I had the great pleasure of staging a quilling demonstration/'make and take' workshop at a magnificent 500-year old Tudor mansion in Hampshire called The Vyne, as a guest of The National Trust.

There was a special event being staged at The Vyne on that day, celebrating the mansion's historic connections with the English Regency period author, Jane Austen, who mentions the art of quilling in her famous novel, Sense and Sensibility.

In late 18th century/early 19th century England, quilling was highly regarded alongside needlework as a respectable artistic 'accomplishment' for young ladies. Paper filigree work was often used to decorate items such as tea caddies, fire screens, cabinets and picture frames, with several wonderful examples surviving to this day in various historic houses and museums.

I decided to follow the Jane Austen theme by creating a pattern of quilled shapes that could be used to decorate a picture frame containing her portrait. I purchased a suitable cardboard mount for the picture, and showed visitors how quilling could be used to form an intricate filigree pattern around the frame, offering them the opportunity to roll a few coils for themselves.

I also devised a 'make and take' project for a simple quilled greetings card, which proved very popular amongst junior visitors.

When I arrived at The Vyne on Saturday morning, I found myself surrounded by people dressed up in elegant Regency costume - it felt just like arriving on the film set of Pride and Prejudice!  Many of the visitors to the house came dressed for the Jane Austen era, and a group of Regency dancers from Hampshire delighted visitors with music and dance formations of the time.

I was honoured to be allocated space for my table in the magnificent Staircase Hall at The Vyne:

Here's my table, complete with card display and demonstration showcards:

Here you can see the pattern that I had started for the frame at the beginning of the day, adding quilled pieces as the hours went by:

And here are two of my delightful 'make and take' customers who made such a success of their quilled cards:

Lauren Rigby from Farringdon

Julia Macdonald from Burghfield Common

I enjoyed the day immensely, and the whole experience has reaffirmed the enormous pleasure I get from teaching quilling - especially when my pupils are such stars!

Thank you, Jane Austen and everyone at The Vyne!!