In 2013 five members of our Guild took a fantastic “road trip” to England. Thanks to our Guild President Deb Blackmore who arranged this and fellow travellers we were very fortunate to reside for eight days at the beautiful, gracious Georgian House on the grounds of Hampton Court Palace. It was an incredible experience. We truly felt like princesses as we lived there for eight days . We had access to the tours and the beautiful grounds; we enjoyed the upstairs/downstairs visits and were even given a special private tour of the roofs to see the 365 different chimneys. And each day we took the train in to London and explored the city, while also having time to experience the village of Hampton, it’s shops and “locals”.
Hampton Court Palace is the home of the Royal School of Needlework and although we didn’t have the time or opportunity to take any courses or see the women working on restorations we certainly spent lots of time and pounds in the gift shop! There I fell in love with Nancy Nichollson’s designs and I purchased one of her pillow design kits. It didn’t take long after I got home to work and finish the project… then I ordered another by mail and enjoyed working her colourful cheerful design again. But I must admit there was a lag time between working on the embroidery and actually finishing the pillows. Now they have been made into pillows… two finished projects that give me so much satisfaction and bring back such incredible memories of our fantastic “road trip” as they brighten our family room. I’m ready for another “road trip” to Hampton Court!
