ID number: TQ.2014.032
Interviewee: Pat James
Interviewer: Liz Savage
Transcriber: Gwen Jones
Place of interview: Pat’s home
Address: Neath, Port Talbot
Date: 1 September 2014
Length of interview: 0:20:00
Summary
Pat’s much loved king size quilt, which is used on her bed, grew from her ‘need’ to buy something in fabric shops. She explains how it was made using the technique quilt-as-you-go. Pat talks about making clothes when her children were young, returning to sewing when she retired and always being keen to try new things.
Interview
Liz Savage [LS]: Hello Pat.
Pat James [PJ]: Hello Liz. How are you?
LS: I’m very well. Can you tell me about the quilt?
PJ: Yes, erm, this quilt I made about 2011 halfway through my quilting experiences, erm, I’d been collecting squares. Every time we visited a shop I’d buy a charm pack and didn’t really know what I was going to do with it, it was just a matter of needing to buy something. And eventually I had quite a number of charm packs, they were all similar colours so that was good really, erm, so I managed to make them into the quilt that I’ve got today, which is quite large, it’s on my… it’s a king size, so it’s on my bed. It’s nine foot by eight foot so it does go over the bed and down the sides and it looks lovely I think. It’s one of the best that I’ve done and the largest obviously. I don’t think I’d manage a big one like that again. Erm, it’s a quilt-as-you-go, which is the easiest thing to do on a domestic sewing machine because the pieces are about 14 inches, squares, and I’ve quilted them with, erm… with vermicelli pattern which I learnt to do with one of the girls in Swansea Quilters and she said, ‘just practice’ So I thought well the only way to practice is to get it done. And this quilt, again, was good for that, because by doing the 14 inch squares I was able to… keep going on the, on the vermicelli and I don’t think you can tell which one was the first and which one was the last so that’s quite good. Erm… its colours, it’s quite pale, it’s all colours really, browns and reds and greens with cream edging just to show off the… the sashing is cream, just to show off the main colours. And it’s worked out quite well. Erm…
LS: Can you explain what quilt-as-you-go and how you do it, how you do a quilt-as-you-go for the benefit of people that don’t know?
PJ: Quilt-as-you-go… erm, you’re just quilting a small area at a time and in this instance I’ve done about 14 inch squares. They’ve been pieced together in, erm, in Twisted four… nine patch and I thought actually at the time that I was doing Square Dance but it’s not Square Dance it’s… erm… Twisted nine patch. Erm…
LS: And that’s what it’s called isn’t it, the quilt is called…
PJ: I called it To Dance or Not to Dance because one side is quilted… erm, is pieced and the other side is just plain square. So sometimes I used the plain side squares, so I’m not dancing that night [both laugh]. Anyway, you’re starting off with these pieced 14 inches and then you layer the 14 inches with the backing, the wadding and tack those together and then I can quilt the 14 inch squares and then they are joined together with sashing, so they are all machined together. It’s all machined and then I’ve just got to hand sew the sashing on the back then. [LS: hm hm] as opposed to doing a very large quilt under a machine, quite difficult by the time you roll it under the machine, of course our machines, they’re not really big enough for taking a big roll of fabric. So…
LS: Have you ever done that, machine quilted a big quilt?
PJ: I have, but only in straight lines.
LS: You wouldn’t attempt vermicelli or free motion.
PJ: I’ve done… erm I’ve done one in strips. [Whispering] I’ve done a quilt in strips, fairly wide, about 14 inches wide and I’ve backed them and then quilted them and they don’t look as if they’re quilt-as-you-go. [Machine is being switched off]
LS: Interview with Pat James continuing. Okay where were we? Can’t remember [both laugh].
PJ: Just finished talking about the quilt and saying about other ways, quilt-as-you-go. I’ve tried one doing long strips about 14 inches wide and then you sew them together without sashing and they don’t look as if they are quilt-as-you-go, so that is a different way of doing it.
LS: Would you ever consider having your quilts longarm quilted by somebody else?
PJ: I wouldn’t really want to. There may be a time, you know, when I won’t be able to do the quilting that I do and maybe I could just piece gently and maybe I wouldn’t be able to quilt it so then the option is there if it’s needed. But no, I prefer the quilt to be all mine. [Pause, sighs from both] The quilt is on my bed at the moment and I love it and I make my bed every day and I think it’s probably, if opulent is a word, the most opulent thing that I’ve ever had on my bed. Because I know when we were married first we just couldn’t afford, like everyone else at that time, you couldn’t afford really nice things, and I think bri-nylon sheets were the thing. I had a few for my wedding presents and they were absolutely awful really, but there we are, that’s what we had. So I love it and the plans are to keep it there I expect and look after it.
LS: Do you have it on the bed the whole year round?
PJ: Yes.
LS: With something else then when it gets cold?
PJ: I put a blanket between the sheet in the winter and that’s all you need really.
LS: Right, can we talk about your quilt making life? Your life in quilt making. When did you first start making quilts?
PJ: Erm… when the children were small, I used to do a lot of sewing, making their clothes, my clothes, my mother’s clothes. I had quite a few bits left over and I did make a quilt for, not a quilt really, because I didn’t know how to quilt. But I made, erm, a duvet cover out of patches for my daughter’s bed and I did an applique cover for my son which I’ve still got somewhere. The patchwork actually shredded to pieces and that went, but… erm, my son’s is just a pale blue duvet cover that I’ve appliqued an aeroplane and his name on. And I’ve still got that somewhere. So I suppose I did a bit then without really knowing what I was doing. I did a little bit in school. We had to piece together some material and make a cushion and I remember it was pink, because again it was leftover fabrics from my dresses, but it disappeared on our move from Lancashire to Wales, so, yes
LS: Pity.
PJ: Yes, that was…but I’ve always sewn really, just straight lines.
LS: So are there… did anybody else in your family who made quilts?
PJ: Not as far as I know. No
LS: Did your mother sew?
PJ: Yes she went to sewing classes when I was a little girl and she started sewing then. Her sister used to sew… She worked for… oh I can’t remember… Weatheralls I think the firm was called in Liverpool. She was in the sewing room, so, yes, she sewed and she absolutely made beautiful clothes but nothing fancy. She didn’t do fancy things and my Mum went to a sewing class, so I started sewing my own clothes then, really at about 14 year old.
LS: So you started quilt making much, proper we could call it, proper, finding out about it much later in your life.
PJ: After I retired from work. I think once the children got to teenagers and they didn’t want home-made clothes I think it just fell by the wayside and clothes did actually become cheaper to buy than make. So I don’t think I did sew for quite a while then and work was quite busy and demanding. I used to bring quite a bit home, so there wasn’t the time. But then when I retired, erm, workshop, a group started in Aberdulais, so I joined that and we did everything really, a bit of knitting, a bit of sewing and all kinds of things. And there was just about 14 or 15 of us for quite a while and then we just started to get a little bit bigger so we moved premises then, but were still going strong. Very strong, actually, really good group.
LS: Do you belong to any other groups?
PJ: Yes, Swansea Quilters and The Quilters’ Guild. We attend as many meetings as we can, holidays, if we are on holiday, obviously we can’t go but mostly we try to get to all the meetings. And we go to the Annual Quilters’ Guild AGM and that’s enjoyable. We are looking forward to it again next year. Yes.
LS: Talking about enjoyment, what do you enjoy about quiltmaking? [Whispering] And is there anything you don’t enjoy?
PJ: I enjoy all of it really. And I think when somebody comes in with something new it’s ooof! We’ve got to a try at that and I like to make a few little toys. I ‘ve made quite a few toys, in fact, the, the, one of my favourites is the doll I made for a WI competition and it came first and that was going to be my favourite quilt but I thought, no, it’s not really a quilt is it? But… she’s called Margaret and she stands on the stairs and beckons me up to my workroom to sew, so…
LS: Is there anything you don’t enjoy then? [Speaking over each other].
PJ: I don’t think so. No I enjoy all of it.
LS: You even enjoy the layering which is something I don’t enjoy, to be honest, but there you are.
PJ: Yes, I don’t mind. [LS: because I can’t get it to line up]. If it’s a quilt for my… well mostly the quilts are for me. We do a few charity quilts and we are in the middle of doing some for Linus at the moment, but no I don’t mind. I do use the spray glue, [coughs], sorry, which I think makes it easier but I’ve got to do that out of the house really. Mainly I try to do it in the garage because of the cats. And you don’t want it on your carpet really. I suppose it wears off, but there we are.
LS: We’ve talked a bit about your preferred style and techniques. We’ve talked a bit about quilt-as-you-go as opposed to quilting the whole thing in one go, is there anything else which you like to do, preferred styles or techniques? You talked a bit about applique. You’ve done applique erm, so that’s one thing that you quite enjoy doing. But you don’t do one thing all the time do you?
PJ: No.
LS: But some people do, don’t they?
PJ: I sort of mix them together really.
LS: Yes
PJ: Yes. When we were at the NEC this year, I bought a little set for doing needle turn applique which is something I hadn’t done but I needed to try because we’re doing… erm… a sort of material posters, I suppose you might call it, for the WI and I’m doing a fat lady and a thin lady because I’m on the Diet Year apparently. So, because they’re so small we needed to do needle turn applique really and just do it by hand. So that’s in my mind. I’m not sure how I’m going to do that [chuckling as she speaks] but it’s in there somewhere. Erm… no I quite like any style and I like all the techniques really. I’ll have a go at anything.
LS: You’re open to new things aren’t you? Some people aren’t are they, but you are definitely. Right, can we talk about where you quilt and when, do you have a special place?
PJ: I do almost every day, if I can. If I’ve got hand quilting I’ll take that with me. I babysit twice a week for my daughter to go out working or whatever. And erm… So I take a bit of hand quilting over there. Erm… but mostly I like my machine, and…
LS: So really you quilt every day, you like to sew every day
PJ: I like to do a little bit I don’t really like the television all that much. I like what I like and I watch some of it, but I’m not a big fan. I can do without it.
LS: Can you quilt when you’re watching TV. I know you’re not watching TV, you just listen.
PJ: Yes, because for a bit of hand sewing if there’s something I want to watch I do a bit of sewing. Yes.
LS: Because you feel as if you’ve not wasted your time then.
PJ: Yes.
LS: Yes, that’s right.
PJ: There are times when you just want to sit there and do nothing, so I do do that as well occasionally. Erm… I’ve got… erm… about 18 months ago, we decided to convert the attic because my sewing was everywhere, still everywhere, but most of it is in the attic. It does get brought up and down if I’m sewing something by hand or layering, but mostly it’s up there so that’s really good and I’ve got a good view right over the Neath Valley, so it’s quite comfortable up there as well and light
LS: Do you get inspiration from things like nice views for your quilts?
PJ: Yes, I like the countryside, buildings and things like that. I like to do a little bit of arty sort quilts, you know.
LS: And the painting:
PJ: Yes, a bit of painting on them. I quite enjoy all that, So yes, the countryside.
LS: We’ve covered that really there. So, what do you look for in other people’s quilts? If you go to a show or something or somebody does a Show and Tell, what do you really appreciate in somebody else’s quilt [whispering]?
PJ: Yes, mmm… quite difficult. Yes, because everybody’s got different views. But sometimes you look at a quilt and you can see the person in there, really. They’ve really taken time to make it their own and then you’ll see a row then of quilts that somebody, perhaps a group has done and they’re all the same quilt because they’ve done them in a workshop. And they don’t really mean anything to me anyway. They probably mean something to other people. I’ve done a quilt in a workshop, a little wall-hanging and for me I love it. It’s my interpretation of it, but if you see six or seven hanging on the wall and they are all the same, you think, ‘oh yes, they’re nice’, but there’s no individualism in it, you know.
LS: How do you feel about hand and machine quilting? Probably the same
PJ: I like the both. [LS: Both yes.] I like them both, there’s room for both, but I really do enjoy free motion quilting on the machine I have to say. We’ve recently done a workshop and I learned so much on that day but I haven’t had a chance to do anything about that yet, but I’m really looking forward to doing something different on a quilt, because most of my quilts have got vermicelli on them because I felt that’s the only thing that I could do. But I think I can manage something else now. [LS: Mmm] mmm… yes.
LS: Erm… what do you do with the quilts you’ve made, most of them? Do you keep them yourself?
PJ: Yes, they’re all, I’ve made quilts for my grandchildren, I’ve got five so they’ve all got bits of bags and quilts and quillows and the last one I made was the oldest grand-daughter was 18 last year so I made her a quilt which is pieced, appliqued, quite purpley and lavenders because that’s what she likes. It’s got a daffodil on it because she’s Welsh and circles because they say about the circles of life that she’s going to go through and I wrote a little letter to go with it as well, explaining it all. So she was quite pleased with that.
LS: Yes I can imagine
PJ: And I made… erm… a book, a sort of journal for my daughter for her 40th birthday. There’s a lot of applique and pieces of wedding dresses, my wedding dress, her wedding dress and my daughter-in-law’s wedding dress in it so that was quite nice too. She cried when I gave her that, so that was really nice.
LS: Superb, still is superb. Erm… right is there anything else you want to add before we come to the end of the interview about how important quilting is in your life, or is there anything else at all that you want to say?
PJ: I can’t think of anything.
LS: No. So quiltmaking is important in your life
PJ: It is very important I think.
LS: Especially, since you’ve got time
PJ: I think because I started quilting my Mum died just after I’d finished work and I think your friends in work are just friends in work and you don’t really see them much after you’ve finished. So you have to make a new life for yourself really and I think quilting has enhanced that…
LS: It’s got a social side as well [PJ: Yes.] Wonderful. Okay thank you very much Pat.
PJ: Thank you