Our Aims
The aims of Romford Embroiderers are to bring like-minded people together to inspire, encourage and provide education in the art of embroidery, needlework and related textile arts in a friendly and inclusive environment.
To provide or assist in the provision of social meetings, speakers, exhibitions and workshops in the art of embroidery, needlework or related textile arts. This includes face to face and/or online meetings.
OUR HISTORY
Our group was started in 1992 by Wendy Pidgeon and Patricia Hamlin who wanted to share their passion for embroidery with other embroidery enthusiasts, and to be able to share ideas and learn from each other. They contacted the Embroiderers’ Guild and the Romford Branch was started. From there it went from strength to strength to become what it is today, and we now have around fifty members.
Sadly we have now lost these treasured founders. We recently celebrated Wendy’s life with her family at St Edward the Confessor.
Linda shared her eulogy for Wendy as follows:
Wendy Pidgeon remembered
Wendy in her own words – from the branch newsletter dated autumn 1993….
“Wendy was born into a family of Court dressmakers and there was not a time she can remember when she didn’t have a needle in her hand. Despite her long suffering father’s attempts to dissuade her (he always found the pin or needle in the carpet!), she followed the family and became a couture hand when she was 17 and later ran a sample workroom which included pattern cutting and sizing. (From Philip/Andrew we learnt that this was at Fortnum and Mason where she developed her love of their hand made chocolates!)
All this was put on hold when Andrew was born in 1963, but when they were a little older, she enrolled and completed the City and Guilds examinations both in dressmaking and in Creative Embroidery. The latter whilst attending the prestigious London College of Fashion.
She went on to teach these subjects in adult education over the last 25 years – obviously more than that because this was in 1993!
In recent years she has specialised in Ecclesiastical Embroidery and runs the local Church Embroidery Guild. She is a founder member and chairman of the Romford and West Essex Branch of the Embroiderer’s Guild.
Wendy enjoys camping and hiking and browsing around antique shops to add to her collection of half dolls”
Whilst at the London College of Fashion she met Anthea Godfrey, who I believe was a tutor there and Patricia Hamlin, a fellow student. Anthea suggested to Wendy and Pat that they should join the Embroiderer’s Guild – which they duly did.
However, they discovered that there nearest branch was in Chelmsford – and the meetings were held on a weekday evening. OK for the spring and summer months, but “bloody awful” in the dark nights of winter.
So, being a resourceful pair – they decided to start a branch nearer to home. The first thoughts were Ilford – I believe to attract more members from the East London area. However, they settled on the nearer venue that we’ve all come to love – the United Reformed Church in Western Road.
The first ever inaugural meeting was held on Saturday 14th March 1992 at 2pm. The response to the small flyers that were posted around town was phenomenal – over 75 people attended.
From this, the steering committee elected to meet on a Saturday afternoon, every 2nd Saturday of the month. This was to ensure that no one had to travel on dark winter nights!
Wendy’s commitment to the Branch was tireless. In addition to Chairing and steering the afternoon branch meetings, she held the committee meetings at her house. We came to know Norman who always supported Wendy, and he was always helping behind the scenes. On committee evenings he was the tea maker and biscuit server!
Wendy was nearly always serving on the committee. She was chair (at least twice), vice chair, secretary, and programme secretary, and on members workshops she would make the tea!
She encouraged us to hold exhibitions of member’s work at Romford Library (twice), Frances Bardsley School and Romford Museum. She was well respected by everyone who dealt with her, and because of these associations we have a permanent body of member’s work still on show at the museum. The “Lost Pub Signs of Romford” – was a brain-child of Wendy.
She was also adding her expertise to the two Embroiderer’s Guild Regional days which Romford hosted – 2005 and 2013.
Wendy has been our chairman, tutor, mentor and more importantly friend for the last 32 years.
She also ran adult classes for embroidery at the Robert Beard centre in Hornchurch, and latterly a Monday afternoon class at her home. She encouraged all her students to come along to the branch, thus ensuring a steady stream of new members.
Our ladies would be in agreement with many of the kind words and sentiments which summed up Wendy’s character – always a cheerful smile; a passion for embroidery; patient and inspiring, encouraging, calm and gentle, and her generosity knew no bounds. We all benefitted from her knowledge and skills that she so willingly shared and she was truly modest about her achievements.
She ‘encouraged’ many future ‘chairs’ into their posts, not by bullying, but by careful persuasion! More a case of “you can do it!” And the start of the Young Textile Group in particular – when she ‘encouraged’ Kirstie to start the group in 1997. She was always an advocate of getting the young to start and hopefully enjoy embroidery.
I have it on good authority that Wendy was ‘quite proud’ of what she’d help start. I hope that we will continue to inspire and encourage all members to our group as a legacy of Wendy’s vision.
Thank you everyone…
Linda Dulieu
16th August 2024
Please note that since May 2021 Romford Embroiderers is an independent stitch group affiliated to the Embroiderers’ Guild. If you need further information about EG then please click HERE.