Quiet Hearts: Stitching Our Inner Worlds into Something Shared

There are parts of us that don’t rush to the surface.
They’re not hidden exactly. They’re simply not always invited out.

Many of us know what it’s like to be described as the quiet one. The shy one. The one who hangs back. Over time, those descriptions can start to feel fixed, as if quietness is our whole story rather than one strand of it.

And yet, when we find ourselves in spaces where quiet is understood, more of us tends to show. Not in a dramatic way. Not all at once. Just gradually. A little more ease in the body. A little more colour in our expression. A willingness to share something we might otherwise have kept to ourselves.

Quiet Hearts has grown from that experience, and from Sue’s spark of an idea. Sue, a quieteer from Camborne, first picked up a pom pom at one of our Camborne Meet Ups after seeing Hayley making one. Before long she was crafting heart-shaped pom poms and delightful animal faces, inspired by the people – and the dogs – who come along each week. Since joining our Meet Ups, Sue has been exploring more of her creativity and generously sharing it with others. She’s hosted several crochet workshops for all levels, gently teaching complete beginners how to get started, and has more coming up. True to her thoughtful nature, she’s always looking for accessible ways for those of us who don’t see ourselves as traditionally creative to join in. Quiet Hearts is her invitation to all of us.

As part of HushFest, Cornwall’s festival of quietness, we’re creating a collaborative textile installation made up of handmade hearts. Each heart will be crafted by a different person, using materials that feel good to touch and work with; wool, felt, crochet, fabric scraps.

Each one will be made slowly, in someone’s own time. Later, they will be brought together as a shared display. It won’t be neat or matching. It will be layered and varied. That’s the point.

A heart is a simple shape, but it carries weight. It can hold what we don’t always say out loud. It can represent care, tenderness, grief, warmth, strength. For many of us, there are parts of our inner world that only come forward when we feel safe enough.

In louder or more evaluative environments, we often edit ourselves. We measure the room. We hold back certain colours. In spaces where we feel valued as we are, we relax, and we allow ourselves to be seen and heard. That vibrancy was always there; it simply needed room.

HushFest exists to recognise quietness as valuable and creative. Quiet Hearts is one way of showing that visually. Not through big statements, but through many small contributions.

There is no right way to make your heart. You might stitch something intricate. You might create a soft, simple outline. You might work in bright colours. You might keep it muted. You don’t need to explain what it represents. You don’t need to be experienced. The variety is what will make the installation meaningful.

If you’d like to create your heart alongside other quieteers, we’re gathering for a textiles workshop at Create Contemporary Crafts Hub in Camborne:

Quiet Heart-Makers Gathering
Create Contemporary Crafts Hub
Donald Thomas Centre
Chapel Street
Camborne
Cornwall TR14 8EF

Saturday 28 March 2026
11am–1pm

The session will be unhurried and gently facilitated. You won’t be expected to introduce yourself in a particular way or to talk about what you’re making. You can sit quietly. You can chat softly. You can take a pause.

If coming along in person doesn’t feel right, you’re welcome to make your heart at home and post it to Create CIC at the address given above.

Your heart will be added to the installation alongside the others. No spotlight. No ranking. Just part of the whole.

When the display comes together during HushFest, people will see colour and texture sitting side by side. They won’t know the story behind each piece. They won’t need to. What they will see is evidence that quiet inner worlds are rich, creative and worth making visible.

Join Quiet Hearts

If something in this feels quietly compelling, you’re welcome to add your heart to it; stitched from wool or felt, crocheted, pieced together from fabric scraps, or even made as a soft, heart-shaped pom pom.

To join the Quiet Heart-Makers Session, or to find out how to take part from home, visit: https://quietconnections.co.uk/quiet-hearts

The Quiet Hearts Installation in Full:

Quiet Hearts: A Portrait of Our Inner Worlds

The Idea

Quiet Hearts is a collaborative installation for HushFest. It is a large, shared piece made from many individual textile hearts, each handcrafted by a different person. Participants are invited to use materials that feel inviting and tactile, such as wool, felt, crochet, pom poms, or fabric scraps.

Each heart is shaped by someone in their own time, in their own way and at their own pace. When brought together, these pieces form a textured display that represents the richness of our quiet community.

The Meaning

A heart can carry the parts of ourselves we do not always show. Many of us open in layers. In spaces that feel loud, pressured, or evaluative, we protect our inner world by speaking less or holding back our colour.

When we are with people who make us feel appreciated, valued, and celebrated, our shoulders drop and our imagination comes forward. The vibrancy in these hearts is the result of that opening. The colour was always there; it simply needed the right conditions to surface.

What the Installation Represents

When these hearts are joined together, the display shows that:

• Quiet Hearts reflects what becomes visible when people feel valued as they are.
• Each heart is an expression of our depth, offered in trust and held in community.
• The colour and creativity we see are signs of belonging; this is what quietness looks like when it feels welcomed.
• Quietness is deep and textured, not small or silent. It is experienced not as absence, but as richness and presence.
• We are individual and different, yet still part of a community sharing similar experiences and emotions.

The Final Display

When the hearts are joined together, they show what is possible when quiet people are invited to contribute in conditions that allow them to flourish. The installation is a portrait of a community that values difference. It shows that our gentleness is not weakness and that the richness of our inner worlds is something worth celebrating.

To join the Quiet Heart-Makers Sessions, or to find out how to take part from home, visit: https://quietconnections.co.uk/quiet-hearts