Margaret's Biography

My first memory of beautiful printed fabric was on trips to Libertys in George Street in the 1970's with Aunt Agnes. As her only niece, and having no children of her own, I was lavished with dresses, skirts and pinafores lovingly stitched on the Singer machine handed down from my grandmother. In the 1980's, amid a flurry of weddings followed by christenings, I re-visited Libertys to purchase Tana lawn, creating cot quilts in the only block I knew - log cabin.

my first quilt made after Jo's Peekaboo day class earlier this year


Years passed working as a scenic artist and prop maker in Theatre and Exhibition design, however, an opportunity arose whilst also lecturing part-time in Technical Theatre at Edinburgh College to join the charity Hatwalk in 2004. Over the next 7 years Hatwalk promoted Millinery through workshops in schools culminating in producing my own collections for the annual Fashion Show whilst raising funds for Teenage Cancer Trust.

quilt made in Jo's Modern Sampler Quilt evening course in the spring

Part-time City and Guilds courses taken between 2011 and 2013 developed skills in machine embroidery, hand-made felt, creative sketchbooks and experimental hand embroidery. By chance, I discovered the wonderful quilt exhibition at Jo's previous shop in Church Hill last summer, and promptly signed up for a course. I am now delighted to be part of the Edinburgh Quilt Guild amongst such a wealth of inspiration and skill!

Margaret