Embroidering our Island at the NIEG Residential

Christine Boyle

Creative Director - Sewing Tutor

As the sewing residential weekend in Ireland drew to a close at Drumalis, the needles stilled and the machines fell quiet — but the journey continues. A needle and thread has no passport, yet it crosses every border, carrying the spirit of Ireland with it wherever it travels. From the patchwork fields of the Emerald Isle to the homes of the Irish diaspora across America, Canada, Australia and beyond — cloth remembers where we came from. These islands were always meant to be unfinished. Until our last stitch is sewn, we are all still on our own journey.

DAY 03

SUNDAY AT DRUMALIS

Continuing, Not Finishing
We gathered again on Sunday morning not to finish our islands, but to continue them.
Our only boundary was lunchtime — 12.30, when we would tie up our loose threads and pack up. In those few short hours, the machines continued to purr, hands continued to bead, paint and stitch. There was a quiet determination in the room. A last surge of making.
After the final thread was clipped and the machines unplugged, we stretched our shoulders and our hands — those hardworking, remarkable hands — and stepped outside into the fresh air for our photoshoot in the beautiful gardens at Drumalis.

This time together mattered. Not just for the making, but for the seeing. Standing among each other’s work, fully looking at what had been created over the weekend — the questions asked, the details noticed, the quiet pride in every piece. I expressed my thanks to the Northern Ireland Embroidery Guild and invited every member to give themselves a well-deserved round of applause, using the very hands that had created such beauty. Thank you to Helen. Yvonne, Pat, Lucy, Janine, Anne, Lorna, Anne and Karen.
Sewing for the soul. It had done all of us good — including me. What a joy it has been to be with these women, connecting through colour and cloth. A breath of fresh air in every sense.

Thank you to the Northern Ireland Embroidery Guild for welcoming me so warmly, and to every maker who brought her hands, her stories, and her vision to that studio. And thank you to Drumalis — for the light, the gardens, and the quiet that holds.

NIEG welcomes new members. They hold monthly meetings with guest speakers. For more information and to register your interest please contact niembroideryguild@gmail.com

💡 Christine's Tip Remember to appreciate those hands. Wiggle the fingers, rotate the wrists, and give yourself a pat on the back. Apply the handcream. Stretch out the shoulders and be mindful of your posture. Its easy to slump when sewing, adding to back pain. Take breaks in your sewing time.

THE THREAD THAT TRAVELS

My first needlecase, sewn aged 6, travels with me. It has my initial CB. I show it to my students, a reminder that we all have to start somewhere. The action of passing a thread through a needle is a powerful and magical one.

A needle and thread has no passport, yet it crosses every border.
It carries us home when we are far away, and carries our stories outward when we leave. A scrap of fabric — a curtain from a childhood room, a scarf dyed with plants from a hedgerow, a tweed cut from a mother’s offcuts — can hold an entire life within its weave. Wherever we are in the world, cloth remembers where we came from.
The islands these women made were always meant to be unfinished. Not as an oversight, but as a truth. Because we are still here. Still stitching. Still adding to the story of who we are and where we belong. The threads left trailing are not loose ends — they are the next chapter, waiting.
Until our last stitch is sewn, we are all still on our own journey.

"Christine is a true textile artist. Her suggestion on a thread colour transformed my piece. A wonderful 3 day workshop where Christine encouraged me to explore new materials and techniques, resulting in a landscape embroidery which I will treasure. "
- ANNE CONATY, GUILD CHAIR

SEWING CONNECTIONS

During the weekend I discovered that the Guild secretary had written a story about a lady called Kathleen. My mother’s name. I had to find out more — and so I bought the book.
It sits in my sewing studio now, gathered together with all the other pieces of this journey. My mums Singer Featherweight that came to the retreat, the one she sits at in the photograph. A quiet reminder of the threads that connect us — to places, to people, to those who are no longer here but whose presence we still feel in the work we make.
It is these small, unexpected joys — a name on a page, a thread you didn’t know you were following — that remind me my own journey through colour and cloth is a story still being written.

At Colour and Cloth, we teach all levels of sewing courses and workshops. Summer Sewing courses are ready for booking and start mid July. NEW Free Motion Embroidery workshop will be released on Wednesday 1st July.