Tuesday 26 January 2016

A.G.M. Thanks and Stuff

Well, I forgot to time it but I am pretty sure that it only lasted about 15 minutes!! But a necessary piece of business for our group.

Finances are looking good.

Thanks were given.

Committee re elected.

And on to another year.

Alison has begun to stitch the outfit for a new doll that she is making. She was really happy with the workshop that she had attended. We will see this progress over the next few weeks.

the beginning of the bonnet
A baby doll
 Annette was so impressed with her first crochet hug blanket that she is making another for her expected grand twins

the next one will have a Ted head
Bridget has started on an embroidered panel for a patchwork wall hanging 
 Remember those old paper pieced pieces of Kathy's?
they're coming on!
 Elaine is making a little bag
 And had brought her lovely Teddy in to show us. Made from Plush material lots of ladies would like to do one of these.
 Sue has at last finished her version of the Hussuff that was started 10 months ago
pocket for scissors
the outside
 Dianne was adding a stalk to her Tea Cosy as she thought it looked a bit lop sided
Eileen was appliquéing down a pretty Dresden Plate

 Pauline's embroidery has progressed well

Chris is busy knitting hats for the shoe-boxes.  Last year 1370 were sent off, so her needles will be kept busy. 
though she does knit in an unusual way .......
 Kay is hand piecing these tiny Shoo Fly blocks

Shirley is ready to make these fabrics strips into this little bag 


June was quite pleased with this lovely piece of embroidery 
and so she should be
 I am surprised that this is the first "Frozen "project that we have seen and Val was stitching it with a few  misgivings 
but the children love it
 Ann has broken out her stash of Liberty prints and has started cutting hexagons from these lovely fabrics.


Jackie has a pretty cot panel to quilt


Ellen is getting a head start  on some Easter crosses. As we know, Ellen NEVER makes just one of anything!
using plastic canvas and narrow ribbon
We held our C**p Raffle and raised a lovely £60 which was handed to Lynda to pass to her grand-children's sky dive fund

And I would just like to take this opportunity to Thank again all of our ladies and All of our Committee for all their help support and enthusiasm over the past year .

A quick summary .....

We donated £2700  (The results of our Exhibition and rounded up from funds) in total to the four nominated charities
Andi Bull Cancer Trust (£1000)
The Sanctuary Project (£1000)
Rushden Women’s Refuge (£350)
Cats Protection League (£350)
and the responses from these Charities were heart-warming.

We have ordered a very swish new library trolley for ourselves. 

We have had generous participation of our members in helping other members with their chartable project too. 

Ellen and her gang helping to bring the total number of shoe boxes despatched to 1370

Dozens of dresses and shorts being made for the Dress a Child Charity 

More than dozens of Trauma Teddies knitted and passed on 

Over 100 Linus quilts made 

Just over 100 knitted squares being knitted and crocheted and delivered to the 
Craft Club Yarnbombers to make their 10ft Christmas tree, which has now been dismantled and made into blankets for the homeless.

The haul of foodstuffs delivered to our local homeless shelter and food bank, which we can continue to do if you so wish.

A generous and much appreciated donation of toys that were distributed to poverty stricken families at Christmas. I have seen a letter of thanks from a parent, and it broke my heart to read this.  Not all poor people are wasters.

All just because we asked. 
  Thank you

Just in case you were wondering, we will be doing it all again this year , so brace yourselves!!!

Friday 22 January 2016

Great Wednesday Session! (PLEASE READ TO THE END!)

 We had a good turnout this Wednesday, with our newest recruit no being scared away, and the return of a very old Linda who moved away but has returned to the fold after three years.  It was good to catch up on all the news.

Linda is renovating an old quilt that she thinks may have been made in China. She is unpicking the quilting and will renew the wadding in this before re-quilting
Very white, so maybe not all that old?
 The Wednesday ladies are getting a head start on next months Linus projects.
Amanda was quilting one piece


 Anne is just starting
pretty fabrics
 And Rosemary was hand blanket stitching her Sun Bonnet Sue's
so neat Rosemary!
 Carol is working on a hexagon project
such a portable project
 Gail has used the fabric that her daughter brought home from India and has made a stunning silk quilt for her.

This will certainly bring back memories from her trip.
such vibrant colours
 Marjorie has progressed well with her needle-turn appliqué block
A Shirley Bloomfield design
 Maureen was sewing the binding on some place-mats
Susan likes to use embroidered sections in her patchwork and this will become a needlecase

Gillian and Julie were both working on embroidered pictures
Gillian's modern golfer

Julie's flower garden
Both Bernice and Brenda have crochet projects on the go

Bernice is using this pattern to make a scarf/shawl . So many of our ladies have made this. It's quick and easy and very warm!!


 And Brenda is patchworking a blanket
this will be cosy



Next Monday 
25th January
we will have our Annual General Meeting. Starts at 2.pm for those not usually attending our Monday session, and will only last 20 minutes
 (if I can stretch it out) 
Hopefully you will all be able to attend this short, but necessary piece of business
We will also hold a
 SPECIAL C**P RAFFLE 
with the funds going 
Cancer Research UK
Two of Lynda's grandchildren (18 & 16) are doing a sponsored Sky Dive to raise money for this charity to support their Uncle who is having treatment at the moment. 
Just for fun, you can pay an extra £1 to wind Lynda up with a joke about the perils of this activity!!! 
Image result for laughing emoticon
(her palms will be sweating just reading this!)
I feel I may have to organise a queueing system for this!!!
So hopefully we will ALL join in and bring along a wrapped item and buy a ticket to show our support 

If you know someone who was missing this week, please let them know about the raffle, then they won't feel left out!

Wednesday 20 January 2016

A Productive Day and a Reminder (PLEASE READ TO THE END!!)

 Our All Day session this month was a "UFO" day. We all have lots of things that want finishing off or generally progressing, so that was the order of the day.

We did start of with a Raffle for this huge Hippo cushion. Elaine has made this to raise funds for a Cystic Fibrosis Charity
Names selling well!
 Ann will be on holiday for our February project day (making Linus quilts) so she is doing hers now.
 Lesley was using up some nice Moda samples, making knitting bags, which will be sold for charity

 Jan was challenging herself to make more that one Twisted Log Cabin block - this will be a much larger project.
 Marie is using all of her pink scraps, and has assured me that I will be taking a photo of an elephant next week!
 Di has recently had some alterations done in her kitchen and has mad a Tea Cosy to co-ordinate, and finished the matching table runner
Nice bright colours!
 June has used up lots of fabrics to make a bunch of shorts for the "Dress a Child" charity.
 Aren't they cute?


 Bernice belongs to another group, and they are making the "fidget" blankets for dementia sufferers
lots do do on this one!
 Alison has finished her beautiful embroidered lace pincushion.
to nice for pins!
 Debbie is making a secret project using these pretty hexagons
 Elaine was sewing down the binding on this vibrant batik quilt


Bridget was adding the last stitches to her Gold-Work piece. This will be framed (very soon)  It's just lovely.
 Shirley was also working on a secret project (wonder what they might be?). Hers is a Foundation Pieced block
 This lovely panel is also just about complete



Barbara had found some fabulous Japanese prints that will become a quilt.

 June not only has made all those shorts, she is finishing this bright cot panel too!

Fran has embarked on a wall hanging that will hang behind the font in her church. This will include both pieced panels and some that are worked in Candlewick Embroidery .
One of three embroidered symbols
 Pam is also getting ahead of herself and has started her Linus offering early
teddies are always popular!
 Liz is another secret squirrel worker!  Lovely pin-wheel colours

 Kathy (one of our newest members) brought along one of the oldest projects!  She discovered these hexagons in a cupboard when she moved house. Now it's public, there is pressure to finish it ....... sometime!

Hazel has made progress on this embroidered piece. She only works on it at group. Its going to be really cheery!



Next week 
we will have our Annual General Meeting. Starts at 2.pm for those not usually attending our Monday session, and will only last 20 minutes
 (if I can stretch it out) 
Hopefully you will all be able to attend this short, but necessary piece of business

We will also hold a
 SPECIAL C**P RAFFLE 
with the funds going 
Cancer Research UK
Two of Lynda's grandchildren (18 & 16) are doing a sponsored Sky Dive to raise money for this charity to support their Uncle who is having treatment at the moment. 

Just for fun, you can pay an extra £1 to wind Lynda up with a joke about the perils of this activity!!! 
Image result for laughing emoticon
(her palms will be sweating just reading this!)

I feel I may have to organise a queueing system for this!!!

So hopefully we will ALL join in and bring along a wrapped item and buy a ticket to show our support 

If you know someone who was missing this week, please let them know about the raffle, then they wont feel left out!