PRE- EASTER GATHERING 24/3/16

We were quite a small group this week, probably because a few were away for Easter long weekends. 

As is becoming common in this show year, much work is being done on preparations. Narelle and her team are working on bright new table-toppers for the coffee shop area. They're looking great!

                           

Show quilts and baby show quilts are in full production. Lindy is beginning to do a general count, and next week is the closing date for entries. 

Baby show quilts are due back on Thursday the 5th May for a challenge viewing and members voting. These will then be kept safe until show time.

Grace is planning another in-house workshop using  thirteen 2 & 1/2" strips, preferably cut the width of the fabric. These can then be stitched together, and then the long sides stitched together forming a tube. From these tubes we will make quick baby quilts to add to the stock for The Grace Centre. If you weren't at group last week, wait until you can chat to Grace for further explanation. You can prepare the strips ahead of time if you like. Please feel free to use the cutter for easy preparation of your strips.

Gil brought along a friend, Libby. She has visited us before, and this time she showed us something she and Gil have been working on during Libby's stay. The dress is designed to be 'one size fits all' and it certainly looks that way. Very stylish, and we loved the fabrics. 

                                    

                          

SHOW AND TELL

Just two items to show this week. The first is a very sweet baby quilt from Val. Lovely fabric and again on the back. Thanks Val.

                               

      

And also the result of the previous Grace workshop, which also used the cutter. It was an easy one, and fun to put together. Good result. Thanks once again Grace!

                                

Looking forward to seeing everyone back next Thursday. Don't forget those quilt entries!

Enjoy the rest of the East break.

Cheers, Elva

RAIN AT LAST! 17/3/16

How wonderful to arrive at the hall in the rain! Never thought I'd be saying that, but the inconvenience of getting all the quilting stuff in and keeping it dry was ok with me! 

We were a small but dedicated group. Most people are starting to get really serious about completing their show quilts. The baby ones are due in on the 5th May, but we have until August to finish the large show quilts. Some very organised people have already completed theirs. Can't say I'm one of them.

Plans for the show are developing week by week, and the excitement is growing. The new little special features will add a fresh sparkle to this event as always seems to happen. Nice that we can keep it fresh and exciting.

It was a wonderful send off for Ailsa last Monday. She would have loved it, and I know she would have appreciated all her friends gathering to farewell her with such love and affection. Her family were very moved by the attendance as well.

Thank you to those who rose to the call for more baby quilts. These were presented today from Grace (using Vi's fabrics), and then Lindy. Both very cute indeed.

     

                        

          

Beryl presented this gorgeous quilt which was made by herself and her daughter. It's for Beryl's great grandson. Outstanding work! Interest for the eye wherever you look! Lucky boy.....

                                

And finally Jenny showed this quilt made by her for community. It's made using many 2" squares (hint hint - Go Cutter!) and is called "Glow". Very nicely done Jenny.

                            

And so another week goes by. Enjoy this lovely cool weather all, and see you one more time before Easter. 

Cheers, Elva

STILL DEALING WITH THE HEAT! 10/3/16

Yes, thank goodness for our air-conditioned Fairland Hall! 

Across the road, we held another productive Show meeting with Meg ably leading the team! All is on-track, with publicity material decided and ready to be published very soon. Keep the Show Quilt entry forms coming in please (due 31st March) so that Lindy is able to begin planning layout and lighting issues. The blurb about your quilt can be emailed directly to Penny who will be organising the signs to go on each quilt. 

Work on the Baby Quilts Challenge for the Show is happening all around the ogroup. These need to be handed in on Thursday 5th May for a showing at the group, and then storing till Show time. We will also have a little members choice judging just for fun on May 5th! Make sure you just pin a small piece of cloth on the back with your name, and stitch on a HH Quilters label, bottom left of back. Robyn S has these.

Congratulations yet again to Jess! Her 'Errant Geese' quilt has been requested for entry in a temporary exhibition called 'Australia Uncovered' in the Rocky Mountains Quilt Museum in Colorado USA! What an honour Jess! You've done it again!

A reminder to ring the Releaf Resort asap to book your room for the retreat. Rooms are filling up fast! Can't wait.

Grace reports that fees are coming in well. Just remember if you haven't done it yet to contact Grace.

We have two new library books which were shown to the group by Jenny. A few old ones will be culled and shown before departing. Please remember our library is there. Plenty of fascinating reading and ideas!

The Grace Centre has let us know that they are desperate for more baby quilts. They tell us they could easily use 600 a year! So if you've finished your Show one, maybe it's time to run up a classic 'quicky' so we can build the pile back up. I think we're down to our last 9! Thanks so much.

SHOW AND TELL

Just a few small things this week. Everyone is so busy at present.

Helen showed a lovely quilt she has made for a raffle, and many members supported the cause buying tickets. Helen and Susie thank you so much.

      

And here's a picture of Susie 'doing it' for the good cause of the Leukemia Foundation. The outstanding results of the 'World's Greatest Shave'! Looking great Susie!

                                                

Gil took up the challenge set from the original Christmas Challenge - the inevitable left over pieces! 

There certainly were plenty for another quilt as Iris had said. I'm not sure how much more Gil needed to add, but I think it was just borders. Well done Gil!

         

And finally a small beauty completed by Grace. It's the result of the first workshop in a series with Bob James, and sounds fascinating and 'deep'. Gorgeous colours Grace, and a lovely design.

       Mm

Well, I'll see you next Thursday girls. Take care. Cheers, Elva

MARCH COMMUNITY DAY 3/3/16

Well, if a stranger had walked into quilters last Thursday, they would have mistaken it for a busy factory production line! Grace worked her particular magic and set up a whole area with work stations for each skill and process required. Thank you so much Grace for presenting another in-house workshop for us all. We certainly learned some new skills and techniques, and a fabulous quilt was seen to emerge as a result! (See pics below)

    

                            

Great to our cutting machine in use at last!

                                 

                               

It begins.....

                          

Congratulations to "our Jess" for her presentation of the Friday Showcase at the Guild yesterday. I heard it was very well received and successful -  of course! Well done Jess.

Just a reminder to all Show Committee people that there will be a Show Meeting this coming Thursday, 10th March at the Baby Health Centre, 9.30am

Please make sure if you are planning to attend the Retreat in May that you contact the resort yourself and book your room in the same way we have always done it. 

Please also make sure you fill in your Quilt Show entry form ASAP and get them to Lindy.

SHOW AND TELL

Just two gems to show today. The first is a close up of the centre of a baby quilt made by Robyn J for Akiko's new baby nephew in Japan. The gorgeous embroidery makes for a spectacular and delightful design. Outstanding Robyn!

                                        

And finally, a quilt made by Doreen and a former member Diana Drake back in 1998. It belongs to Maree K who says it has been all over Australia on her travels, into the outback, through the red dust, on the floor of their camper van, then twice through the washing machine (gentle mode) and looking practically band new! Amazing work! Aren't waggas really something special? And the colours still look perfect!

                                        

Enjoy the rest of the weekend all. See you next week.

Cheers, Elva

LAST FEBRUARY MEETING - 25/2/16

Well, that's two months of the year gone already! Mustn't freak out......still plenty of time.....!!

I noticed that I'm not the only one. There was plenty of action around the room today preparing quilts and other bits and pieces for the show in August.

Another gorgeous Wagga on the way from Doreen and Gil. Lots of deliberation about borders etc.

                               

                               

A fabulous quilt top by Kerry (started at a retreat) destined for the show collection - yet to be sandwiched and quilted. This one will be ready in plenty of time! Well done Kerry

                                 

Another spectacular Wagga from Grace being prepared for the show. Looking very nice. The hand quilting is beautiful!

                                      

                                     

Thanks to Lindy for getting the Quilt Show entry forms out to everyone, either by email or hard copies which were handed out at our group meeting. Entries are due back by the end of March please.

Thanks also to Narelle who has circulated a sign-up list for the retreat in May, and produced an information sheet about dates, costs and how to book your rooms. Contact Narelle if you didn't get a sheet, and she'll make sure you get one next week. 

Thanks to Grace who has offered to run an in-house workshop next week for the March community day. Anyone who wants to participate is most welcome, especially if you don't have other community work to be doing. 

Thanks also to Iris for making contact with  the NSW Guild about applying for display space at their show in June. We keep our fingers crossed to be given space. It's going to very competitive I think. And thanks to those who volunteered to 'man' the stall if the days coincide with their plans. 

Thanks also to Joy who carried out an audit of keys, in an attempt to clarify and get rid of obsolete ones from each bunch. Joy has marked keys with a simple code to indicate which key opens what!

A very fiddly job, but it should ensure that everyone can open all areas of the hall when needed.

Please remember to be very careful about our current master key from the HH Council. We only have one, and we can't afford to lose it. It can't be copied, and must do us till they get this card system fixed again! Hand it over to the next person carefully!! Thanks.

All these efficient and organised members help to keep our happy group running smoothly. We are very grateful for so much cooperation and support.

Our best wishes go to our friend Ailsa who is currently in hospital. All are hoping for a quick recovery for you Ailsa. 

Well, a brief rest from reading to enjoy a few pictures of the busy and active room this week.

                              

                              

Below is the quilt given to the CWA this week. Their President Suzanne came along to tell us all a little about the charity support work they do around the community. Very impressive indeed, and if our quilts help them raise funds to achieve their work goals, we are only too happy. The quilt was made by Maree K and quilted by Iris. Well done ladies. It's beautiful, and Suzanne and Barbara were delighted. 

                                 

                                 

Finally then, here is the result so far of the Christmas jelly-roll challenge. Up on the design wall, it created a good deal of discussion and gasps of delight! It really is coming together beautifully. Many thanks to Iris for all her work setting up the challenge, and now bringing it all together. 

Iris showed us a pile of extra blocks which she says are enough to do yet another quilt. It will only take an interested person or small group to take it on. Should be great fun. No rush/no deadline. Nice project for community days perhaps. Just see Iris for access to the pile! I think she's done quite enough of this challenge and deserves a rest!

                                   

                                  

See you all next Thursday. It's community day, so plenty to get on with.

Cheers, Elva

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING! 18/2/2016

Our AGM went off successfully, with all reports presented, and all positions filled for this year.

Direct Deposit details are on the website for those who wish to pay fees that way, or you can see Grace on Thursdays. It's important for our financial security that all members pay their fees as soon as possible please. Many thanks.

A pause to see all the girls at work and play.........

                                  

                                   

The Guild's new Template magazine has arrived, and it makes for some very interesting reading this month. Please feel free to have a browse through it from our library copy. Also, don't forget to browse through our extensive library and borrow books any time you wish. It's easy to forget it's there, but you will be amazed at the variety of topics covered. Certainly something for every taste!

The Template has a list of all the clubs' shows coming up, and ours will be on that list for the second half of the year. 

A small Show and Tell batch this week, but worth a look in spite of that.

June made this quilt for community at one of our retreats. She has named it "Spring Has Sprung". It certainly looks like it! Lovely.

                                  

This gorgeous bag was made by Sheila to house the Contemporary Raffle Quilt for the show. It's really lovely Sheila.

                                  

Finally a little gem from Suzie, made for and shown by her mum Helen. An old pair of jeans (grand child's I think) were used plus some cute brights. It houses a personalised coffee mug, a fabric covered notebook, plus a variety of other goodies for on-the-go quilters. Lucky Helen and clever daughter! It's the cutest thing we've seen in a while!

Cheers till next time girls.

Hope everyone's having a great weekend. Bring on the cooler weather I say!

GOOD ROLL UP TODAY 11/2/16

The hall was near full last Thursday, with the return of a few friends who have been away for various reasons. Good to see everyone busy and happy at their work. 

We must never lose sight of the reasons why this group started and has kept developing. It's the companionship and sharing of our beloved hobby, and the skills we have built while practicing it. It's important I think to keep this in mind so we can continue to look forward to coming each week.

And here we are in action......

                                         

                                         

Next week is our AGM, so it's an important one to attend if you can. We seem to have all but one of the committee responsibilities filled which is a good thing. Just still looking for a volunteer to take on 'Workshops and Tours'. Jess is busy with work throughout this year, so it's not going to be possible for her to continue in the role, but I'm sure she's available for help, advice and ideas. Give it a think.

Thanks to Narelle who has stepped forward to fill Deb's shoes, and she will look after this year's retreat in May. Good on you Narelle!

Thanks to Heather who has volunteered to buy new blades (and fit them) for our entire collection of cutters! A most essential job. 

We have communicated with HH Council regarding helping find some extra storage space for a new community user of the hall. They were most grateful for our feedback and suggestions.  Let's see what comes of it.

Joy is investigating the possibility of a new padlock on our kitchen cupboards because of unauthorised access, and the loss of various supplies! Thanks and good luck with it Joy. Let's hope that solves the problem.

SHOW AND TELL

Ellen showed us the quilt she's working on for the show. It's looking very exciting and beautiful! Can't wait for the show this year. I think it's going to be outstanding, if this is any guide!

                                

                                

Looking amazing Ellen. Well done!

Three quilts for community were shown, and they are:

2 for Cystic Fibrosis, the first done by Pink Group

                                 

And the second was one done for the 2014 Christmas Challenge by the group, and put together by Iris. Very nicely done everyone!

                                 

The last one is destined for the Assisted Living Guide Dogs. It was done by Robyn J and quilted by Helena. Very nice, and very appropriate fabric!

                                  

See you all next week at group and the AGM.