H H QUILTERS RETREAT May 2016

Around the quilting room - random shots

Enjoy!

Some of the amazing and exciting projects to come. What incredible variety.........!

                

                        

                     

                          

                                   

     

     

                             

      

      

        

       

A look at the girls at work.....

      

                          

    

     

Can you guess who these quilters are from their baby photos? A little collection of quilters of the future!

A fabulous weekend away. Thanks for all the planning and hard work Narelle!

A QUIET DAY! 26/5/16

The hall was relatively quiet today, with a small number of members in attendance. Was it the sudden cold weather? Was it that the following day was the retreat? Who knows. We all asked each other these questions, but at the same time enjoyed extra space and a quieter room. 

As luck would have it, the morning tea turned out to enough for three times the number in attendance! Go figure......

We discussed the happy news that, not only do we have display space at the Guild Show on Friday 24th June, but it's also a large space. Plenty of room to make a terrific display to promote our group and our coming show. We will soon start planning what to take and how to display it. We will also call for helpers to spend an hour or two at our 'stall' on the day. 

Check out the Guild's latest Template magazine for a fabulous article about our group written by Iris. A wonderful promotional spread. Thanks so much Iris. 

In the same issue is an item reporting on Jessica's Friday Showcase at the Guild office. Well done Jess. We hear it was very well received.

All the girls who have signed up are excited about the retreat weekend, starting tomorrow. It's bound to be a huge success given the thorough preparation that Narelle has put in. Thanks Narelle!

Tomorrow we head for the hills!

SHOW AND TELL

Maureen from the Sydney Breast Cancer Foundadtion came along to accept two community quilts.

The first will be raffled at that group's Rugby Union Long Lunch function in June.

                                  

The second will be raffled at a Ladies Lunch in October.

                                  

We wish the foundation all the best with these fund-raising events. Maureen was extremely grateful for the gifts, and promises to give us feedback about how they go.

                                   

                                   

The following baby quilt has been completed for the Grace Centre by Felicity, with the help of her husband and daughter. A very special quilt indeed.

                               

Maree K has completed another Wagga, much admired by everyone. Gorgeous. Better keep them coming Maree!

                                 

                                 

This next quilt has been completed from bits and pieces previously belonging to Joan Gai (a former member). Here it is being pinned by Helen, Doreen and Gil, in preparation for quilting. 

                                

                                  

     

And so concluded our last meeting before the retreat. Plenty of work will be done in Blackheath. Stay tuned for a crop of new quilts at following Show and Tell sessions.

See you all soon.

Sewing and other stuff

Thursday was a busy day with photo shoots and visitors.

The tables and chairs and sewing activity were totally disrupted by the biennial photo shoot for the quilt show.   Like the results ?

Many thanks to our shoot director, Kerry for getting the the spelling right and 'flags' all in line!

Other shots taken on the day were:

Not nearly as much fun,  but good to have.   Watch for the updates on Facebook

Our visitor was  Laine from the Westmead Children's Hospital Palliative Care Volunteer Program. We have supported the work of these caring volunteers for a few years, now.   This year we gave Laine two quilts:  'Holly Hobby' by Jenny for a little girl with too many health problems and 'Glow',  a quilt also by Jenny which will be part of a raffle to raise funds for the Volunteer Program.

When it came to 'News ' time, there was no serious administrative news.  Obviously we need Elva to keep us on track.  Elva went home early to take care of a sore back.   However we did have 'Show and tell'.

3 new cot quilts to add to the 'Grace Center' stash:   two from Haley and one from Narelle.

Susan D. showed us this super quilt which is just about finished - I think Susan was sewing on the binding. 

Meanwhile until next Thursday and retreat weekend, have a happy sewing week,  Cheers Iris

ANOTHER BUSY DAY! 12/5/16

The hall seems to be getting busier each week. It must be a show year!

And in addition to our own show in August, the Guild Show is coming up at the end of June. We have been successful in gaining some display space where we can promote our group (June 25th). Iris has sent a list of questions about how much space we will have etc. We will ask for volunteers once it's clear how many people we will need to man the stall. Thanks Iris.

Finally we have working front door cards again! When it's your turn for morning tea duty, don't forget to get a set of keys and a card from one of the execs the week before.

A reminder for all those attending the retreat in a few weeks (can't wait!) to give Narelle your baby/toddler photocopy as soon as you can. She needs to organise that activity before the weekend. Also don't forget a wrapped fat quarter if you are intending to participate in that game. Bring some comfortable shoes for our little Tai Chi session as well. It's a bit difficult in heeled shoes!

New batting is in the cupboard ready for sale. 

SHOW AND TELL

At last a few show and tell items:

Iris showed four quilts intended for community.

The first is the 'blue' done by Gil, using the very last of the Christmas Challenge blues. Wonderful that two quilts were made from that challenge. Thanks Gil for taking it on, and what a result!

                                

And in addition it has a matching bag. I suspect this was made by Iris, but I may be wrong! Lovely anyway....

                                  

The second community quilt ready to go is Jenny's which was just a top last time we saw it. Looking fabulous in the finished mode. Well done Jenny.

                                

Thirdly, Robyn S, Maree G, June and Jenny have put together this stunning quilt, using Carolyn's scraps apparently. It is a 'quilt-as-you-go' production, and looks fabulous.

                                 

And the fourth quilt is another made from Akiko's donated silk. Orange group are responsible for this gem. Well done girls. It looks stunning!

                            

So, as well as those community quilts, Maree K showed one of her new designs. Susan St J did the quilting. Gorgeous!

                                  

And so, ever productive, we ended another week of fun and stitching.

See you all next week. Happy quilting!

MAY COMMUNITY DAY - 5/5/16

Well, the hall was looking particularly spectacular this week, with the great displaying of The Show Baby Quilts Challenge! At last we got to see them all in their glory, hung around the room. 

     

      

       

       

No close-ups, because we don't want to spoil the surprise for show visitors in August!

Congratulations to June and Maree K who both received the same top score in the voting, and to Gil and Robyn S who both received the same second-top score! How amazing is that?

It was clear that everyone put in an outstanding effort to make these special baby quilts. Congratulations all! It was generally agreed that this will add significantly to the success of our show. Each show we add something different, and we believe it gives the event added interest and variety. 

Great news that we have been granted some display space at The Guild Show this year. This is an initiative not trialled before, so we will do our best to help make it a success. Our day is to be the Friday of the Show, and planning has begun about how to use the space. Please done hesitate to make suggestions if you have any thoughts.

Iris and Robyn S reported back about the handing over of 50 baby quilts to the Grace Centre last Monday. The Centre was of course extremely delighted and grateful for the gift, and talked about their plans to present each new mum with a quilt as a special gift for Mothers' Day. Thank you to all the members who rose to the challenge of boosting baby quilt numbers for this special presentation, and thanks to Robyn and Iris for transporting and presenting the quilts.

Below are a few more shown this week as we continue the production of these gems. The Grace Centre says they could easily do with about 600 a year! We will continue to do our bit to help them achieve that number!

Thank you to Lindy, Val, Narelle and Helena for these ones......

                                

A fresh batch of wadding is coming next week. Thanks to Susan St J for purchasing this for us. It will go into the cupboard, so let us know if you need to buy some. 

A shot below of a busy quilter (Merlyn) 'laying out' a new beauty on the floor. Looks like it's going to be 

gorgeous! They just keep coming ...............

        

Only one Show 'n Tell this week. It was by Jenny who used her Sun Bonnet Sue Accuquilt cutter to produce this sweet little quilt for the community collection. Very nice......

                                     

The first raffle tickets were handed out this week, so if you didn't get any ask next Thursday. The more we sell the more money we make, so tap all your friends on the shoulder!

See you on Thursday. Enjoy your week.

LAST THURSDAY OF APRIL! 28/4/16

Well, there's another month of the year gone! Only 3 and a bit months to go before our show.

Nevertheless, we had a very successful show meeting before quilt group last Thursday morning, and everything is well on track. Many thanks to all the committee members who are working away to put on another great event.

Next Thursday will be the grand viewing of the Show Baby Quilts Challenge! Can't wait to see them all together. Each member will fill in a voting slip once all the quilts are up, and we will choose a first, second and third from the final numbers. Exciting!

SHOW AND TELL

Just a few bits and pieces this week. Iris showed progress on one of Adrienne's quilts which have been donated to us for finishing. Absolutely beautiful work, I'm sure you'll agree. Those who have worked on it include Grace, Iris, Robyn J, Akiko, Josie, Lyn, Sue D, Sheila, Judy D, and Beryl B.

Wonderful work girls.

                                     

                                  

Sheila showed a Stack 'n Whack quilt she has been working on. Very vibrant and stunning!

                                   

Around the room I spied what I think is yet another Wagga emerging. This one looks very colourful and interesting indeed. Can't wait to see the finished product!

                                   

                                     

And finally, the latest group of baby quilts ready to go to the Grace Centre - just in time for Mothers' Day! A very colourful and excellent pile, and we were told that Robyn and Iris will be handing over 50 quilts on Monday! Wow.

         

That's all for now everyone. Look forward to see you Thursday. Big day! Be there.....

Read quilting magazines for free

If you are a member of Auburn City, City of Canterbury, City of Canada Bay, Burwood, Strathfield, Lane Cove and Many other libraries, you can borrow and download magazines like Homespun and Quilters Companion.

This is the app to get if your library provides emagazines through Zinio.

1.. Locate Zinio on your library’s website.
2. Sign up with your library membership details through the library site.
3. Browse and choose magazines of interest. Each library will have a different collection.
4. Download the Zinio for Libraries app for iOS or Android and sign in with the password you created on your library site.
5. Refresh the library and the magazines you chose are ready to be downloaded to your device. Enjoy!

SCHOOL HOLIDAYS VISITORS ! 21/4/16

Well, being school holidays, it meant we had a few little visitors with us. They were very well behaved, and amused themselves wonderfully in the 'playhouse' corner. Well done girls! 

I must say that even though they all had tablets or iPads, they still managed to be very sociable and friendly towards each other. There's hope for this technology generation after all!

                            

While that was going on, we quilters set about busily completing projects and starting new ones. 

Quite a few more baby quilts came in for the Grace Centre. Some were as a result of Grace's workshop technique, and some were simply from the creative minds of various members. Just look at the pile that was presented!

      

Well done everyone!

A reminder that this coming Thursday (28th April) will be a show meeting at 9.30am in the Baby Health hall. We hope to see as many Show committee members as possible, to update progress so far. Only three and a bit months to go! Getting exciting. 

Another reminder that the following week (5th May) will be the day to bring in your Show Baby Quilt. There will be a members' choice voting, and it will be an exciting chance to view all these challenge quilts together.  Don't forget to put your name on a small piece of fabric, pinned to the back of the quilt.

In the absence of Show and Tell items this week, other than the baby quilts, here is a shot of a Wagga emerging from the stage end of the room. Gorgeous fabrics and colour choices.

    

 

Can't wait to see this finished.

I hope everyone enjoys the long weekend. See you Thursday......