It’s here!! Celebrations for Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee kicked off on Thursday and we’ve been entranced with news of garden parties & pageants, luncheons and grand parades. These tributes to the longest reigning British Monarch are exhilarating and captivating, made all the more magnificent in tribute to a leader whose fierce nature, resilience, and compassion have set a strong example, inspiring a new generation of leaders.
Click HERE for event details and HERE for lots of great ideas and features on how to get involved and HERE to follow along with the Royal Family via Instagram.
When our Platinum Jubilee Collection first released, Wendy Sheppard (of Ivory Spring) reached out to request a sample, with designs on creating a work of art in tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Today, we have the distinct pleasuring of debuting her mini quilt. We know you’ll love it as much as we do! Thanks so much to Wendy for sharing her artistry and her mad quilty skills!!
Hello my Aurifil Friends! It’s the Platinum Jubilee weekend in Great Britain (and for Royal watchers around the world) to celebrate Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as the longest reigning monarch in British history!
As a young woman of 27, Queen Elizabeth II uttered these words during her Coronation on June 2, 1953: “Therefore I am sure that this, my Coronation, is not the symbol of a power and a splendour that are gone but a declaration of our hopes for the future, and for the years I may, by God’s Grace and Mercy, be given to reign and serve you as your Queen’. Seventy years later, she is as glorious and gracious as ever!
Having grown up in a Commonweatlth country, I can say that the Queen has been one of the constants in my life. By the time I was born, Queen Elizabeth II had been on the throne for more than 25 years! So, I have been a royal watcher for as long as I can remember.
Aurifil’s Platinum Jubilee thread collection is truly a collector’s item for any royal watching quilter or sewist! I am going to really cherish this special collection.
I used a few colors from the collection to make a mini quilt featuring the Queen’s iconic silhouette.
I started with tracing Her Majesty’s silhouette carefully onto my quilt top fabric. It’s important to take a bit of time to do that properly when transferring silhouettes onto fabric because you want to keep the likeness as accurately as possible. I free-motion quilted feathers to frame the silhouette and then filled in the negative space with pebbles.
Here are pictures of the obligatory pictures with the penny to show the scale of the quilting.
I love that Aurifil’s 50wt allows me to quilt tiny and tight! The silhouette outline was quilted 6 times around to give the definition to the silhouette. Aurifil 50wt is great for repeat quilting on the same quilting path – I never get any unsightly results when quilting over the same path over and over again.
And the white-ish spool included in the Platinum Jubilee collection is my new favorite color! At first glance, I thought it was pure white. It wasn’t until after I took a look under good lighting that I noticed it actually has a very slight tinge of lavender. I hope you can see it in this close up picture.
I am so glad I got to do a little something to commemorate such a historical event! I am serving Coronation Chicken for lunch on Sunday! I was going to attempt the Jubilee Pudding, but that’s beyond my skill level despite watching numerous YouTube videos, including one that is kid-friendly. I think I am just going to serve lemon ice cream over a regular Swiss roll instead!
Thank you, Aurifil, for allowing me to check in during this “Happy & Glorious” weekend! ‘Til next time!
HUGE thanks to Wendy for sharing her awesome mini with us!! What will you make in honor of Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee?
ABOUT WENDY
Website — Instagram
Originally from Southeast Asia, Wendy came to the US for her tertiary education. After her degrees in Chemical Engineering, she worked in research in a wind tunnel for a spell. Nowadays, she is a stay/work-at-home Mom to a 13 year old. Wendy’s designs have been featured in major quilting publications, both home and abroad. She is also an author for Landauer Publishing, as well as an online quilting instructor. She is passionate about encouraging quilters to enjoy their quilting journey. During her free time, she loves to read history, and indulges in hand needlework.
Wendy, Love your mini quilt of the Queen. It is exquisite, so you!!
Your mini quilt is lovely & I can see the hint of lavender in the white thread. I have ordered my Aurifil Platinum Jubilee thread box from The Fat Quarter Shop but I could never replicate your gorgeous FMQ. I’m in the US & was 2 when Her Majesty was crowned. She is so brave to be in this for so many years. Cheers to her & you!