North East Quilting Retreat

Meet Mandy Shaw and your Tour Manager at the Durham Marriott Hotel Royal Country this afternoon. Relax and enjoy dinner with your fellow stitchers this evening.

Partake in a full-day hand-sewing workshop with Mandy.

Beamish Open-Air Museum tells the story of life in North East England from 1820s to 1950s. We will spend a full day exploring the site, but one of the highlights is sure to be the 1820s quilters cottage, where you can learn the fascinating story of quilter Joseph Hedley.

The Bowes Museum is a treasure hidden in the heart of beautiful Teesdale. Purpose built in the 1920s by John and Josephine Bowes, the museum houses one of the largest and most significant European textile collections in Britain, representing all textile techniques and European centres of production, from the 15th to 19th centuries. We will enjoy a guided tour of the collection.

Alnwick Castle was built in the 11th century to control and protect the border with Scotland. Alnwick Castle underwent several renovations in its first five centuries, the most major of which was commissioned by Henry Percy, the First Baron Percy of Alnwick. The Percy family still live in the castle today. In fact, Alnwick Castle is the second largest inhabited castle in England, second only to Windsor Castle. The grounds surrounding the castle were landscaped by Lancelot “Capability” Brown. As well as being the residence for the current Duke of Northumberland, Alnwick Castle has been used as a filming location for many movies and TV shows including Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone, as well as Downton Abbey.

The brainchild of The Duchess of Northumberland, The Alnwick Garden is a multi-award-winning visitor attraction. The 12 acres of magnificent gardens are home to the world’s largest Tai Haku Cherry Orchard, the Grand Cascade comprising 120 water jets and the world's largest Treehouse Restaurant. The garden is also a charity, any surplus is re-invested into improving and developing The Alnwick Garden for the future through one of their charity programmes. We will enjoy a guided tour with a garden volunteer, including the Poison Garden.

The Community of Cuthbert arrived in Durham from Lindisfarne in 995 and built an Anglo-Saxon cathedral. In 1083, following the Norman Conquest, a community of Benedictine monks was established in Durham. Construction of the Cathedral as we know it today was started in 1093 by Bishop William of St Calais. It is a Christian Church of the Anglican Communion and the seat of the Bishop of Durham. 

Durham Cathedral houses some of the best church needlework from the past 11 centuries. We will enjoy an embroidery and textile tour, highlights of which will include a 10th century Stole, Maniple and Girdle, recorded as being given to the shrine of St Cuthbert by King Athelstan when he visited Chester-Le-Street in 934. These are some of the finest surviving examples of Anglo-Saxon embroidery in England and the only ones to be found which depict human figures. The collection also includes four late medieval velvet copes.

Kim Suleman will welcome us to the community hub in North Shields for a short demo and talk. Kim is probably best known for her website Six Penny Memories and for her appearances on Create & Craft TV.

Enjoy a second full-day hand-sewing workshop with Mandy.

Check out by midday, with fond memories of a week with like-minded friends.