A while ago, we asked our members what they wanted to achieve as a group, and several people suggested making a group quilt. But what to do?! Then inspiration struck after a conversation with a charity shop volunteer about textile waste.

We were shocked to learn how many donations of clothes and other textiles were not suitable for sale, and went to the ‘rag man’.

Our quilt is made from items taken from the rag pile at the Children’s Hospice South West shop in Wellington. On an average week the weight of rag in that one shop is equivalent to that of an adult polar bear – multiply that by 52 weeks, across the 35-plus CHSW charity shops and you can see the extent of the issue for just one charity.

We hope to inspire other quilters to look at alternatives to new, bought fabric in their quilts. Some of the fabrics were challenging to use! The bright pink linen was a particular favourite and appears throughout the quilt – but it needed careful handling. Other fabrics, such as shirting and light canvas, were much easier to piece.

The name ‘Starborn’ refers to the environment-controlled rooms of the same name at each of the three hospices where families can spend time with their recently-deceased children before they are taken to their final place of rest. We made a quilt of stars to honour them. The design is by Sheila Mathies.

We hope that our project will help to encourage people to donate more mindfully. It was exhibited at Festival of Quilts this year (photo above!) and will be displayed at CHSW charity shops. It will also be displayed as part of the Bridport Quilt Walkabout 2, from 4 – 13 September 2026.