: Addysg

After a year (2024) of creating incredible St Fagan’s inspired textile and mixed media art Cutting Edge members gathered at the Gweithdy Gallery, St Fagans National Museum of History on 25th & 26th April to exhibit their work and to provide craft and sewing activities for visitors in celebration of Global Intergenerational Week. And what an awesome two days it was!

Visitors were delighted to be able to view the exhibits close up and to read the workbooks describing how the project developed over time. They were also delighted that they could join in the various activities and we received lots of feedback over the two days, both in conversation and the Visitors Book. Here's a taste of what people said:

“As a fellow quilter and textile artist it is lovely to go out and see everyone’s work. Congratulations." Lesley , Higham Quilters, Gloucester
“Very impressive to see such a stunning piece of local inspiration and imaginative work” Byron family
“Fabulous exhibition. Well done all. Thank you for making us feel so welcome“ Sue & Vicki
 
The children tried out most things from colouring to stamping and sewing, which seemed to be a crowd pleaser. After colouring a picture on fabric many were eager to have a go at sewing and soon became hooked!
One little girl drew a large letter E on a textile square and began sewing it. She was disappointed to be dragged away half way though, but took some threads to finish it at home. However, later in the day she reappeared to pick up some more thread as she had run out of one of the colours. She must have found a little corner on her travels around the grounds to continue her sewing!
The adults enjoyed the sewing too!
The group from Pontadawe stitch group thoroughly enjoyed making brooches and owls:
“What a wonderful exhibition, so inspiring. Thank you for my owl/penguin. I love him! You are all a lovely bunch. Diolch yn fawr I chi gyd“!" Glenda , Stitch Pontadawe. 
“What a lovely event. Thanks for the brooch kit. I really enjoyed making it. All lovely friendly people” Dawn

Plenty of owls appeared thanks to Carol. They were so popular that she had to go home on Friday evening to prepare more!
“Thank you Carol for helping me make my owl!.

There was some great colouring and sketching going on. Pat's little leather bound sketch books were as popular as Carol’s owls. Not surprising as they were a fabulous little gift to take home.
“Lovely day out with lots of great crafts, the children really enjoyed themselves. Thank you so much"

The Cutting Edge members weren’t shy of immersing themselves in the activities either. They thoroughly enjoyed chatting to visitors too as it was an opportunity to pass on tips, advise and direct them to resources. One visitor was planning to repair altar cloths and was delighted to be introduced to another visitor who could help her find the braids that she needed.
Some feedback from the Cutting Edge group members: 
“I enjoyed the afternoon. A lovely way to spend it. I loved looking at the exhibits again and had fun stamping!” Sally
“It was a fun day with so much interest and appreciation… met some lovely people, some commenting that they were inspired to try something creative themselves and very polite children who all said thank you for helping them. Loved it” Ella.
“What a lovely time spent today meeting visitors who were so interested in our groups work. So many were amazed at the range of different textile / art skills exhibited.  My favourite moment though is the young boy in the photo above who was determined to stitch around his daffodils before leaving . So good to have had the opportunity to encourage the youngsters."  Liz
“Such a great couple of days and so many people leaving inspired to carry on stitching." Eleri

The Monopoly quilt was popular and a number of suggestions were made for a permanent home for it, though many were of the view that it should stay at St Fagans.
“Fantastic range of work and skills. Really enjoyed the whole exhibition especially the Monopoly quilt." Lesley, Rhoose
Carol’s stitched family tree project was also popular. Carol was overwhelmed by the repose she received. As a result the seeds of a workshop are now forming!

Over the two days we welcomed over 650 visitors who came from near and far, some as far as the Netherlands!
Two Dutch ladies who visited wanted to buy pieces of our art work. When we asked what they were interested in they pointed to Dianne’s postcard and Monica’s Thomas the Taylor post card. The cards were gifted to the ladies and addresses were swapped with a promise from Monica and Dianne that they would post them a fabric postcard too!
A brilliant two days enjoyed by both visitors and Cutting Edge members alike. 

A huge thank you to:
St Fagan’s staff member Loveday who went above and beyond to make sure that we had everything we needed. She even joined in and helped when we were very busy, which was really appreciated!
Jan’s husband Alan for taking photos for us. They are a fabulous addition to our album!
And an enormous thank you to all our amazing Cutting Edge members for their inspired pieces of work and dedication to make the two day event at St Fagans such a memorable occasion. You are all stars!

We held the event during Global Intergenerational Week which fell at the end of the Easter holiday. It certainly ticked all the boxes for intergenerational engagement as both children and adults went away happy and more confident with the new skills they had acquired.

“Fabulous exhibition and lovely to see the skills on show. Lovely initiative and great for children of all ages to experience”!
"Fantastisch!" Lia, the Netherlands
“Superb inspiring exhibition. I enjoyed the diversity too – patterns, stitch, water colours. Also enjoyed the hands-on activities. Relaxing and fun.” Gwynedd
“Such an excellent event, with wonderful pieces of work to admire and inspire! So kind and generous to supply everything for the intergenerational projects we did” Caroline
“Excellent exhibition. Lovely talented ladies”

Following the event, we were delighted to receive the image of the event sent by Mike who is a member of the St Fagans Sketching Group. He visited on the Saturday and sat quietly in the corner sketching the scene before him. He thought our work, like his, was amazing:
“I had the opportunity to visit the exhibition of members work from the Cutting Edge Textile Group at St Fagans. It was a beautiful day, and the event was very popular with families enjoying the last of the Easter holidays. There were lots of fun activities for children and adults. I was encouraged to visit the Cutting Edge Textile group exhibition to see what they do by a member of the CE group who attends the St Fagans Sketching Group. The answer is a lot and to a very high standard too! Everyone was so kind in sharing their work. I have got loads of ideas and tried to capture the event in my sketchbook” Instagram @mikelinewalker

End note:
Monica posted a fabric postcard to one of the Dutch women who visited our exhibition and surprisingly it arrived before she returned home to the Netherlands! This is the email Monica received from Thea:
“Dear Monica,
It was a surprise to find that the card you sent me has arrived already when I came home from my holiday tour through Wales. 
It was very nice to meet you at the exhibition and that I was allowed to make a choice out of the cards you had made. All in all it was a very inspiring exhibition and I enjoyed it very much.
The cards I will show tomorrow to the members of the quilt club I join and I am sure they will love them as well. I still have to find a nice place to put them. It will be in my house or in my school where I will enjoy looking at them, but I am not sure yet.
Best wishes, also to the other members of the Cutting Edge Textile Group
Thea“

To find out more about the Cutting Edge Group please visit: Cutting Edge | Sharing textiles knowledge, ideas and skills

Hello Bulb Buddies,

We hope you’re enjoying taking part in the Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation. This project helps us all learn more about how the weather affects the growth of plants—and your observations play a key role!

As part of the project, please remember to upload your weather data to the Amgueddfa Cymru website. By uploading the data collected so far, we can use it to predict when our plants might flower. It’s exciting to think that your contributions will be part of a bigger picture encompassing schools from across the UK. Your data is really important to us, so please upload everything you’ve documented so far by the end of January!

A Month of Wild Weather

Let’s take a moment to look at the weather from December. It was an eventful month, and this has had an impact on our gardens and bulbs. Here’s a quick weather overview:

- Storm Darragh (6th–8th December) brought heavy rain and severe gales (wind), especially to Wales and southwest England. It was the fourth named storm of the season, and it caused disruption from damaging winds and a lot of rainfall. A rare red weather warning was issued during this multi-hazard event.

- After Storm Darragh, the weather calmed and we saw colder conditions, with frost and freezing fog, especially in Scotland.

- December overall was milder (warmer) than average, with a provisional mean temperature 2.0°C above the long-term average. This made it one of the warmest Decembers on record! 

- Rainfall was also above average. Flooding occurred in parts of northwest England and Scotland on the 30th and 31st due to heavy rain.

- It was a dull month, meaning there was less sunshine than average (a total of only 24.3 hours of sunshine!)

What Does This Mean for Our Spring Bulbs?

All this rain and mild weather might mean that our bulbs could flower a bit earlier than expected! It’s important to keep measuring and recording your data to see how the conditions in your area compare to others across the UK.

A Few Tips for Uploading Your Data:

- Double-check your rainfall and temperature measurements before uploading.

- Add any interesting comments about what you’ve noticed in your garden - has the weather affected your bulbs?

- Don’t forget to upload your data weekly to the Amgueddfa Cymru website so that we can all track the progress together.

Looking Ahead

Remember to look out for early signs of spring and share these either with your comments, by email or on X/Twitter. We’re expecting more growth from our plants throughout January, so remember to keep a close eye on them.

Happy investigating!

Professor Plant

December's comments:

Bulb Growth Observations:

Langbank Primary School: Most of the pots/bulbs are starting to grow.
Professor Plant: Fantastic news! Your bulbs are waking up, spring must be just around the corner. 

Ysgol Tycroes: Nearly all of our bulbs now have shoots coming out of them.
Professor Plant: Well done! Shoots are a sign that your bulbs are healthy and happy. Keep observing for any changes.

Ysgol Llanddulas: Some of our bulbs have grown a lot. No flowers still.
Professor Plant: That’s perfectly normal. Flowers take time, so keep visiting your plants to see how they grow!

Henllys Church in Wales School: It felt a lot colder than it was this week, and our bulbs are trying to push through the soil.
Professor Plant: Bulbs are incredibly resilient! Even in cold weather, they’ll keep growing. Great observation!

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: Most of our plants have shoots now. We think they are mostly the daffodils pushing through.
Professor Plant: Spot on! Daffodils tend to grow quickly this time of year. It will be interesting to see if the crocus grow later but bloom first!

Langbank Primary School: We spotted signs of growth in some of our pots today and 2 of the bulbs planted in the ground.
Professor Plant: Brilliant! It’s exciting to see both potted and planted bulbs thriving. Well done for watching them!

Clonalig Primary School: Lots of bulbs are beginning to shoot up, and the mystery bulbs’ shoots are well up.
Professor Plant: How exciting! Mystery bulbs add a layer of fun and soon, you might be able to tell what they are. Keep observing closely.

St John The Baptist Primary School Portadown: We noticed some of our plants have some green shoots appearing.
Professor Plant: That’s excellent news! Green shoots are the first step towards a beautiful display. Keep up the good work!

Cold Weather and Ice:

Cornist Park C.P: There is a lot of snow, and it is very cold. The wind makes it feel like -1 degrees.
Professor Plant: Brrr! The snow can make things challenging for plants, but your bulbs are hardy and will continue growing underground. It's interesting how we feel the weather, some days feel colder to us even when the temperatures the same. This can be for reasons like wind chill, humidity, and sunlight.

Stanford in the Vale Primary School: Very cold, and the ice has settled in.
Professor Plant: It’s amazing how bulbs can survive icy weather. I hope you are all staying warm too!

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: Lots of snow and ice covering our rain gauge all week.
Professor Plant: Snow and ice can be tricky for measuring rainfall. It's fun to bring the rain gauge inside and take the reading after the ice has melted. 

Pil Primary School: There was hardly any rainfall this week, and it was very cold.
Professor Plant: Cold, dry weather is tough, but it’s good to see you’re keeping up with observations. Well done!

Ysgol Tycroes: It felt really cold this week.
Professor Plant: It can feel extra cold in winter, but your bulbs are well-equipped to handle the chill. Make sure you wrap up warm when going outside to take your readings.

Rain and Storms:

Scotstoun Primary School: The rain gauge has been full for some time now - it has been full due to torrential rainfall in December.
Professor Plant: Good observation. Remember to empty your rain gauge after taking each days reading!

Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School: Monday 6th January includes rainfall from over Christmas. Snowfall on the night of 3rd January melted.
Professor Plant: Melting snow often adds to your rainfall measurements. Great work noting the context, it’s very helpful!

Rhayader Primary: Over 50mm of rainfall after the weekend, with Storm Darragh. No temperature readings as school was shut due to no electric after the storm.
Professor Plant: That sounds like a wild week! Storm Darragh brought lots of rain, well done for recording what you could. Thank you for sharing the impact that the storm had on your school. 

Ysgol Pentreuchaf: Yr ysgol ar gau Dydd Llun, dim trydan yna yn dilyn Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Storm Darragh caused so much disruption. Diolch for keeping up with your records despite the challenges!

Ysgol Gymraeg Morswyn: 7-8/12/24 - Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Storm Darragh made quite an impact! Thank you for noting the storm in your comments.

St Mary’s Primary School - Newry: There was lots of rainfall collected on Monday because of Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Great job recording after the storm. That rainfall will help hydrate the bulbs in the soil.

Ysgol Porth Y Felin: There was a storm—that is why there is no record for some days.
Professor Plant: Storms make recording tricky, especially big storms that might cause school closures. You’ve done well to note the circumstances—thank you!

General Weather Observations:

Cornist Park C.P: Today it is cloudy and dark. It is damp and cold.
Professor Plant: Cloudy and damp conditions can be tough, but bulbs still grow under the soil. Well done for getting outside and monitoring!

Meldrum Primary School: Not as much rainfall this week as previous weeks, but there is still a general amount of rainfall.
Professor Plant: Great observation. A balance of rain is important for bulbs, they’ll appreciate the moisture in the soil.

Pil Primary School: There has been lots of rain on Thursday. I got wet reading the temperature and rainfall this week.
Professor Plant: Thank you for your dedication! Your readings are invaluable - great work braving the rain.

Mountain Lane School: Storm Darragh on Fri/Sat.
Professor Plant: Thank you for recording such significant weather events. 

Holiday or School Events:

Stanford in the Vale Primary School: It was hot during the first 3 days but then it got a bit colder. Also, Merry Christmas!
Professor Plant:  Hope you had a Merry Christmas too! Thank you for your weather observations. 

Wellshot Primary School: All of our school Christmas shows and parties took over the first few days, but we made sure to update the last 2 days.
Professor Plant: Great teamwork! Balancing festivities and science is impressive, well done!

Mountain Lane School: Nadolig Llawen.
Professor Plant: I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas too! 

Ysgol Porth Y Felin Christmas holidays/yay!
Professor Plant: Thank you for keeping your weather records up to date right up to the holidays!

Helo Cyfeillion y Gwanwyn,

Hoffwn roi ddiolch fawr i'r holl ysgolion a anfonodd geisiadau i mewn ar gyfer ein cystadleuaeth fideo newydd. Roedd o’n anodd iawn i ddewis rhyngddynt, ond pleidleisiodd pawb oedd yn rhan o'r prosiect a'r canlyniad oedd:

Enillwyr:

Clare Primary School

Yn Ail:

St Mary’s Church in Wales Primary (@StMarysCIWBJ)

Cydnabyddiaeth Arbennig:

Kirkmichael Primary

Our Lady’s RC Primary

Gwaith gwych Cyfeillion!

Athro’r Ardd