We were delighted to welcome Julia Roworth, from Cross Patch in Wales, who brought along an inspiring selection of her kits, templates, and threads. Her products proved very popular on the night, with plenty of “retail therapy” taking place! Julia’s work often combines hand stitching and patchwork, and she has developed a range of templates that allow quilters to create multi-sized blocks of the same pattern with ease.

During her talk, Julia shared the story of how she bravely opened a patchwork business with very little prior experience, and gave fascinating insights into what it’s like to work as part of a live broadcast team. This, she explained, requires everything from dashing sideways behind display counters to preparing countless stitched samples in every size, shape, and colour scheme imaginable.

Julia’s honesty and humour made her talk both engaging and relatable. She even confessed to avoiding zips for many years (something many quilters can relate to) before developing her own easy-fit zip technique. Another highlight was hearing about her approach to colour. When asked about her choices, she simply replied: “It’s just what I like!” A lovely reminder that sometimes the best results come from trusting instinct and personal taste.