Sewing Bee Hand Stitched Quilt

Win a hand stitched quilt, modelled on an early 18th C design and stitched by the Strawberry Hill House Sewing Bee.

In 2014, the Sewing Bee under the direction of historic furnishings expert Eileen Reay, recreated George 11’s campaign bed, one of Walpole’s prized possessions and one of the first pieces of furniture installed in Strawberry Hill House.  The quilt for this bed took 648 hours (approximately one-year) to complete.

These highly skilled needlewomen are now creating another quilt – this time to be raffled to raise funds for the house. It is anticipated that this one will take approximately the same amount of time to make as the quilting will again be done entirely by hand on a frame that can accommodate up to four needlewomen at any one time. This quilt will be made as a close copy of the one on the bed, with a similar linen top, but with a cotton lining in place of wool. The design is modelled on an early 18th century quilt, in the possession of the V&A.

The quilt will be stitched at Strawberry Hill, so visitors to the house will be able to see it being made and will often be able to see the quilters at work.

Raffle tickets are just £2 each and are available from the shop.  The draw will take place as soon as the quilt is complete. 

We at Strawberry Hill House would like to thank Eileen Reay for not only giving her time to this project to raise funds for the house, but also for donating the materials.  We would also like to thank the members of the Sewing Bee for giving us their time and expertise to raise much needed funds for the House.