Last day of Summer

Hi Everyone,

It is hard to believe two months of the year have gone by already The weather is cooler and I look forward to our spectacular Autumn days.

General News:

We had almost a full house this week.
Marie K. brought in branches from her Bay tree for us to share.
Laurel was able to join us from the Southern Highlands, and Doreen enjoyed the Birthday card we sent.

Kathy Doughty also joined us for a few hours. She announced that her shop, Material Obsession, was turning 16 on March 1.
An amazing milestone and all due to Kathy's hard work, creativity and enthusiasm. I am fortunate to be having classes with Kathy this year. She is inspirational and her classes are fun and informative.

Alison spoke to us about the workshop next week to make the Amish Rag Rug.She also demonstrated how to make the wire tool to use.

For those who weren't there last week, here are the instructions:

1. Bring strips of fabric, 1.5" wide or between 0.50 to 2.00 inches. Cut fabric across the width and remove the selvedges.
2. A small pair of scissors
3. Wire tool. Photo instructions below.

I have some wire that is suitable and Alison also has some extras. Helena is going to try it with a large crochet hook and Robyn Jms. just used her fingers when she made hers. Whatever you use will affect how tight or loose the rug will become.

Visitor next week:

Iris announced that a care nurse for Breast Cancer will come to speak to us about items that can be made and used for those women who have had a mastectomy.  She will arrive around 11 a.m.

Show and Tell:

Below are a number of felt items made by Elva. There are bookmarks, keyrings, glasses cases, and hair clips. Elva and her group do wonderful embroidery and the results are bright and cheerful as well as useful.
I am a klutz when it comes to embroidery so I am always in awe of those who make it look so easy.

Below is a baby quilt from Jenny.

 Another baby quilt from Jenny.

A baby quilt from Narelle using the wonky star block which is always eye catching.

Below Robyn Jnst. made this quilt for her grandson. It reminds me of a Northern Hemisphere winter.
The colours are lovely.

Robyn also brought in a basketful of knitted baby hats and knitted bunnies. I forgot to take a photo. They looked amazing all stacked neatly together.
The bunnies were just waiting for their tails.
Robyn takes them to a hospital for little premmie and newborn babies.

Below are the the instructions for the wire tool to make the Rag Rug.

Until next week ......

Handover of Committee Duties

Hi Everyone,

We enjoyed the cooler weather today with some welcome rain for our gardens.
As positions had come vacant, there was a general handover to the new committee members.
We had another busy meeting as well as lots of talk and show and tell.

Sensory Mats for Children:

Iris has made the cutest crocheted octopuses (octopi) for the sensory mats for young children.
Many of the sensory mats that Robyn Jnst has made were on display. One mat had a little car attached, a tunnel and a garage for the child to play with.
There seems no end to Robyn's imagination and all the mats are special.

Shelter for Mothers and Babies:

Robyn has also been asked to make cot quilts for young children at a Shelter.

The quilts should be 40" by 50" or close to. There are a number of novelty prints at the hall for anyone to use.

Workshop March 7th:

Alison has found a number of fabrics in our cupboard that could be used to make her Amish Rag Rug on Community Day next month.
Cut any selvedges off the fabric first and tear or cut into 1 1/2" strips.
There is absolutely no sewing involved, only knots all done by hand.
It should be fun.

Future Shows:

For those who like to plan ahead, there are two popular shows to be held in April.

* The AQC in Melbourne will be held from April 11 - 14 in the Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton Gardens, Melbourne.

* The 13th Springwood Community Show will be held from 26 - 28 April at Springwood High School Hall.

Show and Tell:

First we have a baby quilt made by Grace for her grandchild which is due next month. The idea came from Elmo the Baby Elephant books. They are so cute.

Jenny showed us her Bunnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2018 called Good Fortune.
Jenny finished the quilt in record time.
The instructions were to make 240  1" squares but only about 100 of these were required. So Jenny incorporated the 'leftovers' into the backing which is as colourful as the front.
This is a quilt for Community.
Thank you Jenny.

Joy showed us this very colourful quilt she has made for her grandson. Her grandson chose all the fabrics. He has done a great job.

Helena has made this beautiful quilt based on Kathy Doughty's pattern "Liberty Fields".
It is a lovely pattern and one I intend to make sometime.
Helena crocheted the stems which looks perfect.

Marie G. made this quilt from shirt fabric samples she found in the cupboard. It shows what you can do with bits and pieces. This one I believe is for Community so thank you Marie.

Until next week .....

Annual General Meeting 2019

Hi Everyone,

We held our AGM at noon this week. It was good to see such a large attendance.
We received reports from the President, Treasurer, Community Coordinator, Membership, Retreat Coordinator, Librarian and Workshop Coordinator.
All reported a good year for 2018.

Office Bearers for 2019 were nominated and accepted as follows:

Executive Committee:

President -                         Judy
Vice President -                 Susan D.
Secretary -                         Jenny
Treasurer -                         Akiko
Community Coordinator - Iris
2020 Show Convenor -     Alison

Sub Committee:

Membership coordinator     Kerry
Retreat Coordinator             Narelle
Kitchen                                 Suzie L
Librarian                               Susan D.
Workshop Coordinator          Helena

The raffle quilts were decided for our 2020 Show:

The Contemporary quilt is the one we began at our 2018 retreat, from orphan blocks made by members.

The Traditional quilt is a beautiful design that requires a great deal of intricate and accurate stitching. Christie Dupond has kindly agreed to take charge of this project.

General:

* Akiko reported that her Mother loved the quilt we sent over to her.

* Laurel will be visiting on February 28.

* Robyn Jnst, has been asked to make as many sensory mats as possible for needy young children.
It is a huge task and Robyn would love any of our members to help out. If you can make one or two in between your other sewing and quilting, they will be be gratefully accepted.
Below is a photo of some knitted and crocheted toys that Robyn attaches to the mats.
The children love to feel them and cuddle them. Often they do not want to give them back.
If you need any ideas I am sure Robyn would be happy to provide suggestions. Grace is always a good one to ask for ideas as well.
Grace will be bringing in a copy of patterns for the knitted animals next week.

Retreat 6-8 September 2019:

I had a call from Desley at Kurri Kurri to say that they have put their fees up a little from last year.
The accommodation has increased by $20 per person.
Everything else stays the same.

Show and Tell:

Below Robyn Jms. has made the Amish rag rug out of her 'unloved' purple fabric.
Robyn made it in super quick time and it looks great.
Alison and Helena will be holding a workshop to make these rugs on next Community Day 7 March.

Below are examples of the knitted and crocheted animals for the childrens' sensory mats. My favourite is the mouse.
However you can let your imagination run wild and come up with lots of other examples.

Below is a beautiful quilt made from Adrienne's fabrics. Robyn S. and Iris have done all the hard and detailed work to make this amazing quilt.
It will be for sale at our next show.
Iris has called it "Flowers from William and Michelle" in tribute to the William Morris and Michelle Hill fabrics used in the quilt.

Below is a quilt made by Marie K for her granddaughter. Marie has used some fabrics from Margaret D. and Grace has quilted it. Her granddaughter wants to learn patchwork. She is very lucky to have such a great teacher. Marie makes lovely quilts and bags and seems to make them all in record time.

Until next week ........

First Community Day for 2019

Hi Everyone,

We had such a busy Community day this week. Iris, Grace and Gil continued to tidy and spring clean our cupboards to make the fabrics easier to find.

Community quilts were being sewn and finished.
Grace reminded us that they will be starting to make Waggas soon for our next show. It is one our biggest fund raisers at the show.
Waggas are lovely to make in the Winter so make sure you think about giving one a go.

We also had 4 lovely ladies visit us to see if they would like to become members.

Sandy and her friend Debbie, another Debbie who goes to classes at Material Obsession and Olga who has come once three years ago and came back for a visit.

I am always amazed at the connection between people. Robin H. suddenly remembered Sandy from years ago and Alison knows one of the Debbies.

I always enjoy mentioning the Birthday Girls each month. However, I did forget Helen K. this month, much to my dismay.

My Birthday list obviously has some gaps, so I will endeavour to update it so I don't miss anyone in future.

I do apologise to Helen but wish her a very Happy Belated Birthday for 6 February.

It was also Akiko's Birthday on 6 February. Akiko is in Japan visiting her Mum. Ros sent her Birthday greetings and Akiko said her mother loves the quilt we sent.

Reminders:

* Our AGM is at noon next meeting, 14 February.

* The Sydney Stitches and Craft Show is on at Darling Harbour from 14-16 February.

* Helena and Alison will be hosting a workshop next Community Day on 7 March to make Alison's Amish Rag Rug.
So gather all your unloved and bright strips of fabric together ready for the workshop.

A Lovely Surprise:

From 2015 to 2018, Iris has been diligently gathering photos of our Community quilts that we donate, including the baby quilts and our Show Raffle quilts, and has had a lovely book made for us to keep in the Library.

The statistics are amazing. Four years of giving include:

* 460 Cot Quilts to the Grace Centre for Newborn Care
* 146 Lap size and Bed size quilts
* $4,480 cash from sale of Community Quilts at our show. This figure does not include the many Waggas we have made and sold over this period.
*  Multiple Fiddle Mats, fiddle muffs, and Teddy Bears.

You should all be very proud of yourselves for these contributions to the Community.

Thank you to Iris for putting the book together and to everyone for your hard work and diligence.

Show and Tell:

First up above, Kerry displayed this lovely quilt made by The Orange Group - Ros, Narelle, Akiko, Helena and Kerry. Kerry was finishing the binding ready for a Community Quilt.
My group loved the pattern so much Susan D. has put one together for us which I will post when finished.
Beryl R. has also made the pattern. A striking design.

This beautiful quilt above has been made by Pamela R. Pamela has called it 'Branching Out' and has  hand quilted it.. Pamela wants it to go to the Womens Shelter at Hornsby.
A stunning quilt. It will bring some joy and happiness to a lady in need.

 Above and below, we have a couple of Suzie L.'s UFO's that she has finally finished. It is such a good feeling to finish something that has been waiting around for a while.
The pretty cushion is made from the beautiful William Morris fabrics.

Below is a child's quilt no doubt destined for Suzie's grandson.

Until next week .....

A Very Hot Thursday

Hi Everyone,

First of all, thank you to Susan and Iris for standing in for me last week. My friend from Lucerne in Switzerland loves Sydney and enjoyed the sun while she was here. She has now gone back to -2 Degree temperatures.

Member News:

*  Tidy Up -  Iris bought some smaller boxes for fabric storage as they are easier for us to handle.
Quick as a wink Grace grabbed the big boxes for the Kitchen Supplies and larger fabric pieces we use for Community quilts. A great job done and thank you.

Grace also presented us with a new Carpet Sweeper she had purchased from Bunnings. It works really well and saves us having to use the heavy vacuum cleaner. Kerry had fun showing us how well it picked up our bits of cotton and crumbs.

Felicity is doing really well and is in Steamboat, Colorado. She loves the cold which would be a nice change from our 40 Degree heat on Thursday.

Hayley was able to join us as well. She had some news. She and her husband are moving to the Torres Strait Islands for some time.
The Islands are a part of Queensland  and have a population of 48,500. The people of the Islands are distinct from the Aboriginal people and the rest of Australia.
It is a wonderful opportunity for Hayley and her husband and very much an adventure for them.

The good news is that Haley will be back for our Retreat in September. We look forward to hearing all about her 'new' life!

Akiko -  Ros called me a couple of weekends ago to ask if we could present a quilt to Akiko for her mother who is very ill. Akiko's mother has given us some beautiful Kimonos to use in our quilts as well as other Japanese fabrics.
As Akiko cannot stay in Japan for a long period, Ros thought her Mother would gain some comfort from the quilt.

As it happened, Iris was just finishing the binding on a quilt made from some blocks that Hayley had donated.

We presented the quilt to Akiko on Thursday and she was quite overcome.

Thank you Ros for thinking of it.

Dates for your Diary:

* The Sydney Stitches and Craft Show will be held at Darling Harbour from 14 - 16 February.
In the past the show has been held at Rosehill.
QuiltNSW will have a presence at the show as well.

* The QuiltNSW Show will be held from 19 -23 June this year.
If you would like to enter a quilt, the Entries open Monday 4 February and close Monday 11 March.
A separate newsletter will be sent out soon with more information.

Show and Tell:

Only one photo today. This quilt was put together by June and quilted by Susan St J. The blocks were made by members of the Burra Burra Quilt Group, which is long gone.
Iris has called it Old Amish as it is in the traditional Amish style and colours.
The quilt is very light and will make a lovely lap quilt.

Until next week and some cooler weather hopefully .....

Staying cool

On Thursday Judy was enjoying a day with overseas guests,  so Susan was our Madam President for the day and Iris, here, on blog. 

Thursday was a day when we were able to appreciate the air conditioning in Fairland Hall,

Only housekeeping for the week was a reminder that our AGM is on Thursday 14/2/2019, and questions and nominations to Iris or Judy.

Some excellent show and tell:

Can only be called 'FUN' by Marie K

Two very original  'Kangaroo' quilts from Grace:  a reminder to keep working on our challenge for April. 

Made by Joy for Community:   Joy's Stars

Also for Community:  Haley's 'left over blocks' put together and quilted by Iris

(always happy to work with such beautiful 'left overs')

Flowering Batics

Enjoy your week   ....    

A New Year

Hullo Everyone,

Welcome back to another productive and fun quilting year. I trust you all had a pleasant break. It was lovely to catch up with everyone on Thursday. Some have been very productive over the holidays while some (e.g. me!) haven't done a lot.

We received a couple of things in the mail from the break:

* Our local Federal Minister, Trent Zimmerman, sent us a Christmas card.

* At the end of last year we gave two quilts to the local Sydney Community Services to be raffled to their volunteers.
We received a lovely note from the winner of the Christmas quilt that Marie G. had made and donated. The volunteer said she had never had a hand made quilt before. It is at present, displayed on her sofa for her friends to see.
She is very appreciative. It is so nice to receive feedback and Marie was especially pleased to read the card.

* We received a very nice email from Springwood High School for the sensory mats and bears that many of our members made. Helen K. had heard about the request and asked us to help.
Thank you to everyone who helped with this project.
Helen was especially grateful for the quick response.

* I had applied on behalf of the group, for the Hunters Hill Australia Day Awards which recognise outstanding contributions made by individuals and groups throughout 2018.

I received a note from the Council, thanking us for our contribution, but unfortunately we did not win  this time.
Will try again next year.

* Jenny told us about some new books she is adding to our library. Be sure and borrow them. They all look very interesting.

* Amish Rag Rug:

Alison showed us an unfinished round Amish knot rag rug that she had started to make over the break.
She suggested that we might like to do it as a workshop item this year.
There is no sewing involved - only knotting. Alison said it is a great way to use unloved fabrics. The colour only is important.

Below is the video link to the tutorial for you all to watch. There is a photo of the rug below.


How to make an Amish knot rug


SHOW and TELL:

First up we have a quilt that I finished for a friend of Iris. It will be donated to the Hornsby Womens Shelter.

Baby quilts above and below from Carolyn.

Alison's Rag Rug below.

Above and below two more Baby quilts from Carolyn.

Until next week ....