On 16 September, the Women’s Institute movement celebrated an amazing 110 years. To mark the occasion, the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) invited members to wear purple – one of the colours adopted by the suffragettes’ Women’s Social and Political Union, representing dignity, freedom and loyalty. Lots of our members did just that at our September meeting.

We also welcomed Jemima Lumley to the meeting, to lead us through a fun craft activity, which was enjoyed by all and resulted in each of us having a beautiful Mod Podge bowl to take home with us. We decorated the bowls with scraps of leftover fabric – some came from children’s pyjamas and even old face masks from the Covid years. Together, they created a wonderful patchwork of our lives, layered on top of each other. And, of course, purple featured heavily! https://www.jemimalumleytextiles.com/about