Let's explore the Christmas Market on a frosty winter night: as stars twinkle overhead, we can wander through the colourful stalls, filling our baskets with hand-made treats and keeping warm with a bag of hot chestnuts…
Photo shared with the with kind permission of Todays Quilter
Christmas markets are a highlight of the Christmas season in German-speaking Europe and many towns have held a 'Saint Nicholas Market' since the middle ages. Traditionally held during Advent - beginning on the fourth Sunday before Christmas and ending on Christmas Eve - toy makers and confectioners sold Christmas gifts for children and food sellers provided delicious treats to break Advent fasting.
Dresden‘s Striezelmarkt - literally 'cake market' - was first held in 1434, with Munich, Bautzen and Frankfurt dating their Christmas Markets back to the 14th century and they eventually spread to German-speaking parts of Italy, Switzerland and France.
Dresden‘s Striezelmarkt
When tourists started to make special journeys to visit them in the 90's, they didn't just take German Christmas decorations and gingerbread home: Christmas Markets started to spring up throughout Europe, in North America and as far away as Hong Kong.
St. Nicholas Fayre, York | Strasbourg Christmas Market
Visiting a Christmas Market in Germany has long been on my bucket list, but while I wait I've created my own quilty version, which you can find in the upcoming issue 119 of Today's Quilter.
Photo shared with the with kind permission of Todays Quilter
I made my quilt with a Layer Cake of Vanessa Goertzen's Christmas Eve collection for Moda and my stars twinkle against a velvety background of charcoal Linen Texture by Makower. Jayne quilted it with ...what else... a myriad of stars in sparkly, silver thread!
Inspired by the Striezelmarkt, my quilt is pieced in a traditional English frame - or medallion - layout, centred on a Christmas Tree block. The Market stall blocks made good use of both the larger and low-volume prints in the Layer Cake, while the tiny Star blocks took care of all the scraps. A touch of applique created the wheels on the Chestnut Stands and the handles of the Market Basket blocks (I've suggested needle-turn applique in my pattern, but fusible applique would also work brilliantly).
Issue 119 is this years Christmas special - always a highlight! - filled with gorgeous Christmas projects and including a 44-page supplement with festive projects to decorate your home with. My TQ Editor, Fiona, is letting me share Christmas Market with you a bit earlier than usual because if you subscribe to Today’s Quilter before the 1st of September using the link www.ourmediashop.com/TQP119 you'll get issue 119 as your first issue and you'll save a massive 60% off the subscription price! In fact, wouldn't it make the perfect gift for you or a quilty friend?
Now, where on earth am I going to find a bag of hot chestnuts in August?
Nicola xx
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