Festival of Britain, 1951

The WI ladies were very proud of their work and would often display their wares at shows and exhibitions. This Festival of Britain certificate was awarded to the Newbury Group of WIs for their exhibits at the arts, crafts and hobbies exhibition held in Newbury in 1951.

Embroidery Skills

The Calcot Evening WI (Reading) made a tablecloth, the centre of which is shown here. Unfortunately there is nothing to indicate when it was made or for what reason. Perhaps it was to commemorate an event in their history, or it may have been part of some embroidery classes that they held.

Presumably all the members were asked to sign the cloth and then each one was embroidered over. The middle is of a wreath style design with the letters WI in the centre. Whether this was created by one member or a few we do not know, but it is a beautiful piece of work none-the-less.