Patchwork & Quilting UK – August 2019

FEATURE // the quilters' guild

32 British Patchwork & Quilting AUGUST 2019

Founded in 1979 by a group of committed quilting enthusiasts, the Quilters’ Guild aimed to

bring together like-minded quilters in a spirit of friendship, encourage learning about the

craft and promote quilt making in all its forms across the UK. Forty years on and the initial

membership of 300 has grown to over 6,500 members across the UK and around the world,

with 400 affi liated groups, young quilters and fi ve specialist groups to cater for all interests,

off ering challenges, meetings, retreats and summer schools.

The Quilters' Guild

40 Years and Still Going Strong!

BY KATH GARNER

Over its forty year history, the Guild has seen many changes but

has maintained its original aims of preserving and promoting

the historic crafts of patchwork and quiIting. The Guild was

registered as a charity in 1983, taking on the name of The

Quilters’ Guild of the British Isles in January 1998. Two years

later, the British Heritage Quilt Project, a UK wide project aimed

at documenting domestic items of patchwork and quilting

dating prior to 1960, was begun. Also in that year the fi rst

paid employees were taken on, previously all work had been

voluntary and an offi ce was opened at Dean Clough in Halifax.

As the acquisition of important historical items grew, so did the

need for space to house the collection; a problem solved by

setting up the Resource Centre at Dean Clough in June 2001.

Later that year, the collection was awarded full museum status.

By 2008, the work of the Guild had grown signifi cantly and

the museum relocated to St Anthony’s Hall in York; a beautiful

medieval guildhall which had space to house a museum,

gallery, library, shop, offi ces, education rooms and storage for

Volunteers with the collection at Dean Clough, 2002 the increasing heritage collection. The museum and gallery

St Anthony’s Hall, York.

Current home of the Quilters’ Guild