Monday 5 December 2022

A Busy Community Day

 Hi Everyone,

A little late with the blog. We are renovating and my house is a nightmare. 

Dates to remember:

* Christmas lunch on December 8. Come around 11 am. Bring a plate of food to share, a glass, and a plate for yourself.


There will be three lucky door prizes. Susie M. is devising a special game for us all. Grace is bringing flowers for the tables. 

* We return to quilting on January 19, 2023.

* AGM to be held on 23 February, 2023.

Emergency Contact List:

This is hanging in the end cupboard for everyone to refer to. If your details change please let Kerry know so she can update it.

Grace has kits ready for Waggas. A good holiday project.

The orange group were busy starting another community quilt this week. Meg's group worked on their quilt as did Alison's group. 

Show and Tell:

Carolyn's ten baby quilts.



Cot quilt from Jane


Iris made this one from scraps and hand quilted it.


Baby quilt from Beryl B. all hand stitched.



The orange groups' finished community quilt.

Wishing you a very happy Christmas and holiday celebrations. 

Friday 25 November 2022

Lots of 'Show and Tell'

 Hi all,     Judy is taking a well earned two week break,  Sandy was on 'news' for the day and Iris here on blog.  

It was good to see tables all full on Thursday with so much creativity activity happening.

Elva showed us the finished Riverside Pre-school Anniversary Quilt and received a huge round of applause. I don't have a picture. I understand it has been shown to the kids who participated in the squares  but it has yet to be officially presented and hung.    Let's hope that Elva will get that official picture.

Good to see Marie K back on Thursday.  She had two new finished quilts to show and donate.  The bright snowball block quilt for Amelia House and the Blue and Yellow for  Ukraine.    



A bright fun 'toddler' size quilt from Jane - I believe that is also going to Amelia House



Five more baby cot quilts from Carolyn ... including a Christmas theme


A pretty 'girlie' cot quilt from Robyn S. .. almost all the diamonds are fussy cut



Next week is Community Day, and Grace has an empty 'wagga' stash,  so she will be available to encourage us and help with fabrics to make a wagga.  As always, Grace has lots of creative ideas. 

The week after, Thursday 8th, is our Christmas break-up day.   Everyone is asked to bring a plate of food to share, your own glass for some bubbly and your own plate for food (single use plastic plates no longer available).   

Judy will be back next week   ....   meanwhile have a good sewing week.      Iris




Sunday 13 November 2022

10 November, 2022

 Hi Everyone,

This week, Elva, Joy, Jane and I were busy attaching the little squares to the top of the Wall Hanging we are making for Riverside Preschool's 20th Anniversary. Each child had drawn something on their square and a teacher had added their name. They were so cute. The girls were more elaborate with their drawings than the boys. A happy memory for the school to have. Joy was a huge help guiding us in the use of the fusible material. Elva will attach the backing. 

Olivia from RPAH has collected the 80 baby quilts from Sandy. The team at the hospital has been very busy as their original group of 8 helpers has reduced to 4. It was easier for Olivia to collect the quilts from Sandy's home rather than coming to the hall. Olivia was thrilled with all the quilts and thanked us again for our support.

Dates for end of year and AGM:

Our Christmas Party is 8th December.

We return to quilting on 19 January 2023.

Our AGM will be held on 23 February, 2023.

Show and Tell:

Kathy has made this most beautiful quilt. I have highlighted some of the features to show details. 




Until next time ....



Saturday 5 November 2022

3rd November, 2022

 Hi Everyone,

The year suddenly seems to be speeding by. We are well into November with Christmas around the corner. Time to start thinking about Christmas cakes and puddings. 

We will finish this year on December 8th when we have our Christmas Party. 

Grace had some good news this week. She had been in touch with Stepping Stone House to ask if they could use some of our Waggas. They have taken 14 which will keep the residents nice and warm. The weather is so changeable at the moment. One day is sunny and warm, and the next wet and cold again.

The Wagga cupboard is now bare. It is a great opportunity to get started on making one. Jane and Dawn were helping Grace do some stitching for a Wagga this week.

As it was Community day this Thursday, Christie and Ros were busy putting together their Community Quilt.

Sandy did a great day cleaning out the fabric cupboards, putting colours together and generally tidying up. A great job done Sandy.

Sandy also took 8 cot quilts and 4 quilts to Bear Cottage. One of the these was Sandy's "mask" quilt which was displayed at our show this year. It has gone to a good home. They can use cot  and single bed quilts. They would particularly like more quilts for boys. 

Thank you to Robyn Jnst. for donation of her step ladder. Ours went missing during the show. 

Also Robyn is busy making more fiddle mats for an aged care home nearby. 

Show and Tell:

Elva has made this Wagga for her son.


This amazing quilt is from Robyn Jms. All hand pieced. We roughly calculated there must be over 6,000 fabric pieces in it. Robyn loves to work on it in front of the TV. I admire her patience.


A close up of Robyn's quilt - the kaleidoscope design. In this photo you can see the circles more clearly.


Below the 14 Waggas donated to Stepping Stone House.



Until next week ....



Sunday 30 October 2022

27 October, 2022

 Hi Everyone,

Another good day seeing friends, catching up on news and discussing our latest projects.

Sandy said that Bear Cottage can take cot and single bed quilts. 

Don't forget to fill in the survey. It is the best way for us make decisions that we all agree on.

In a couple of weeks we will receive the material for the wall hanging that the Riverside preschool has asked us to make to celebrate their 20th Anniversary. We will require a number of helpers to get it all done in time. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. 

Show and Tell:

Two baby quilts from Carolyn. See the little dragon flies on the top one.




80 baby quilts awaiting pickup.


Until next week .....




Friday 21 October 2022

20 October, 2022

 Hi Everyone,

A busy hall this week. The retreat was a huge success - claimed to be the best ever. A big thank you to  Narelle who devised fun games for everyone and organised everything. Narelle is the Queen of Retreats. Unfortunately Iris and Karen had to pull out at the last minute.

QuiltNSW show starts tomorrow at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse. There will be lots of exhibits and many Exhibitors. 

Ros has emailed a survey to everyone. Alison will also put it on WhatsApp. We need everyone to be included in any decision making for our next show. Please fill it in and add your comments.

Sadly we had news that Carl Ryves has died. His wife Alysoun was responsible for starting The Hunters Hill Quilters. She has left a wonderful legacy. Our group is quite special and many friendships have been formed over the years - all thanks to Alysoun's ingenuity.

Show and Tell:

Photos of the Retreat. Perfect weather and lots of fun.



Baby quilts from Robyn S.s friend.


Cute baby quilt from Robyn S.


3 Community quilts from Narelle.






Cot quilts from Carolyn.






Dawn found this fabric from The Sewing Basket. She made two for her two dogs. The fabric is really cute. Lucky dogs!


Heather's quilt for Ukraine.


Until next week .....

Friday 14 October 2022

A Quiet Day

 Hi Everyone,

It was relatively quiet in the Hall this week. It was lovely to have Carolyn join us. She has been unwell for some time.

A reminder that the QuiltNSW Show starts on Friday 21st October through to 23rd October. It is at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse.

Important Dates to remember:

We will finish meetings on December 8th 2022
Back 19 January 2023
AGM 23 February 2023.

Survey:

Ros has emailed a Survey to be completed by all of you. We would like your feedback and suggestions, looking ahead for our meetings and for our next Show.

The Hunters Hill Art Show has its opening night on Friday 11th November.The museum will be open for the evening to display our Bicentennial Quilt.

I was contacted recently by a lady from the Riverside Preschool requesting us to make a wall hanging to celebrate the school's 20th Anniversary. 
The playgroup will purchase the materials. Elva suggested that the children who attend the group could stamp their hands onto pieces of calico. These will then be raw edge stitched to the top. I hope many of you will help out with the stitching.

Our retreat is on this weekend. Unfortunately fewer members are unable to go this year. Those going  will have a great time nevertheless. It is always a fun weekend with lots of sewing done. Narelle has done a superb job of organising it again. Thank you.

Show and Tell:

Baby quilt from Beryl R.



One from Jane.


Lovely quilt from Beryl R. 

Until next week ....


Sunday 9 October 2022

Community Day

 Hi Everyone,

A very wet and cold day this week but many of you braved the weather to come.

We have 6 Members' Birthdays in November. Congratulations to Marie G. who turned 90 on her Birthday this year. Marie is a very special member of our group and it is always so good to see her. 

Carolyn has not been well and we miss her. She is hoping to get back to sewing soon.

As it was the first meeting for October it was Community Day. What a busy hall it was too. Many groups were working on their Community Quilts. There was much discussion and recommendations for the block placements for the Orange Group.  The quilt is looking lovely.  Narelle and Helena stayed back to finish the sewing.

Grace set up a table for those who wanted to learn more about making Waggas. It was heads down and stitching up a storm. Very enjoyable.

If you are free on 15 October you might like to join the Zonta Club at North Sydney Community Centre, Civic Park, 220 Miller Street for Breast Care Assembly Day from 1 to 4 pm. A donation of $5 is required to help pay for the materials. 

Narelle  has emailed out a very comprehensive list for the Retreat at Kurri Kurri. It is always fun and you get lots of sewing done. Enjoy!

Show and Tell:

Dawn attended a workshop to learn the Kawandi technique. Below is her piece she was working on. Kawandi is a hand-stitched quilt, made from scrap fabric. It is assembled from the outside in. The edges are turned under and stitched together with batting laid inside.The quilting proceeds in a spiraling line. New patches are laid on top as needed. It is fun and easy to do to use for place mats, a special feature, etc. 


As there was no other Show and Tell this week, I am including Kathy's lovely pattern which she exhibited in our Show this year.


A section of our Bicentennial Quilt which is currently hanging in the Museum at the Hunters Hill Town Hall. It is well worth a visit if you haven't done so already.





A quilt from Bev which intrigued us when it was first shown. A great pattern.

Until next week ....


Monday 3 October 2022

A Great Day

 Hi Everyone,

What a day we had this week. At 11 am representatives from the two charities we were supporting this year, arrived. Also Narelle brought out the cakes and drinks to celebrate our 40th Anniversary.

Janelle from Days for Girls spoke to us about her charity. She showed us one of the kits they make. One kit lasts for approximately 5 years. It is therefore an ongoing task to make all the items, get them packaged and sent. We were able to donate fabric from our cupboard as well that can be used in the kits. 

Emily from Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Women's Shelter explained the many ways donated money is used for the refuge.

We are proud to support such worthy charities.

Our members chatted and mingled around which gave the whole day a party atmosphere.

When we hear the stories of where and how money can help these charities, all the hard work we put into our Show is very worthwhile. For a small group of women we certainly "punch above our weight". A big thank you to everyone.

There was an extra surprise as well. As you know Marie K. makes many quilts. She was talking to her daughter about perhaps selling some of her quilts.  Her daughter and her friends soon took up the challenge and sold all the quilts.
Marie came to me with a cheque that she wanted to include with our donation to the Women's shelter. I was blown away by her generosity and Emily was too.

Thank you Marie!

Executive Meeting:

Later in the day we had an Executive Meeting. Alison has prepared a survey for you all to fill in. We would like feedback from everyone. We all need to be involved with the group and each have her say. Like everything these days, we are evolving, and the way we have always done things may no longer apply.

 The survey will be emailed to everyone and printed copies given to those who are not on line.

Show and Tell:

Some photos from our show.






Morning tea almost all gone. 
Thank you to Kerry who organised the cakes and to Narelle for picking them up.


Janelle and Emily from the charities with their cheques.



Until next time .....

Monday 19 September 2022

15 September 2022

 Hi Everyone,

Another busy meeting this week - almost full house which is always good to see. Now that the show is over we can concentrate on other things. Had an email this morning to let me know that Christmas is 14 weeks away!

As September 22 has been declared a public holiday in memory of Queen Elizabeth, our next meeting is on 29 September. We will celebrate our 40th Birthday then. Please remember to bring a glass for the toast. We are allowed to sing this year so I hope you will be in good voice.

We have received a very nice letter from our contact at the City of Sydney about the Lord Mayor's Picnic. Unfortunately the City has made the decision to no longer proceed with the Lord Mayor's Picnic on New Years Eve. They will therefore no longer require us to make a quilt for raffle. We have made some pretty spectacular quilts for this event in the past so it is very disappointing. 

Alison and Sandy looked through the cupboards to find dark fabrics to be used for the Days for Girls kits.  Alison, Sandy and I washed and ironed them over the weekend. The lovely sunny weekend was very welcome.

Show and Tell:

Two quilts from Sue D. this week. The first uses the disappearing four patch blocks. The second is an Irene Blanck pattern. Irene's patterns are great for applique and hand stitching.



Until next week .....




Sunday 11 September 2022

8 September 2022

 Hi Everyone,

Birthday wishes to all those who have a September birthday. Spring is in the air and hopefully we can look forward to some sunny weather. Gardens are blooming which is always a wonderful sight.

Akiko has finalised the accounts from our Show. Even though we had 161 fewer guests come we still managed to make enough money to pay our two charities the same amount as last time. 

This is a credit to you all for your hard work. Thank you. Representatives from the two charities will come on our 40th Birthday celebration to receive their cheques. 

As September 22 has been declared a Public Holiday we will celebrate our Birthday on 29 September.

Robyn's trophy has been engraved. I was very happy to give this to her for her Best in Show quilt. It was also very special to have Marie G. at our meeting this week.

Grace spoke to us about the Waggas. Their sales contributed greatly to the amount we can donate. 

Grace suggested that for our Community Day at the beginning of the month, she and Jenny will set up a table to demonstrate and help any who would like to learn how to make a Wagga. They are lovely things to work with using all the beautiful wool fabrics.

Grace also said that two ladies who bought Waggas last show, came back for another one each. Waggas are unique to our group thanks to Doreen who introduced them.

Show and Tell:

Two quilts below were donated by Rhonda.



A cot quilt featuring Dinosaurs from Judy.


Another donated quilted from Rhonda. 


Our Womens Shelter charity asked us to make little decorated felt hearts for them to sell at their show.
Many members rose to the challenge, especially Elva, Joy and Heather. Also Marie K and Iris. Apologies if I have missed anyone. Sandy arranged them into the heart shape. They look so pretty. I am sure they will sell like "hot cakes".


Another quilt donated by Rhonda. All these donated quilts have been taken to a Womens Refuge. I am sure they will bring much comfort.



Until next week .....