Well here I am ... back again with many more 'M' words ... so without further ado I'll kick this update off ... and we'll start with a picture of the quilt tops that Reg ferried to Bayswater for us on Saturday morning. And why, you ask, were they going to Bayswater ... a detour on the way to India perchance?
Well ... long story cut short ... Reg was doing a swap at Bayswater with Lyn from Mildura ... who had filled several boxes with completed quilts for us and given her hubby the task of getting them to us. You will remember Lyn from several Blog entries ago ... she has a phantasmagorical all-singing and dancing quilting machine that does everything but make dinner!! And she uses it to quilt for us ... how awesomely wonderful is that?? So ... here is the first pic ... and a close up of the work that her machine does for us ... just brilliant!!
How stunning is this quilting Folks? And how entertaining will this be for some little kiddy in India as they trace the various animals and flowers that adorn this fabric 'cuddle' that Lyn has completed for us.
I will now show the box of goodies that Reg brought back after the 'swap' had been completed ....
It's OK ... she didn't actually transport Charlotte ... just included some lovely soft toys for India as 'ballast' with the quilts ... how generous and sweet ... thanks Lyn!! Now onto the quilts that came with the furry pets :)
Isn't this quilting brilliant, kites adorn a reverse, doubling the pleasure and beauty of the finished article!
Don't you just love the paw prints around the border of the puppy applique .... cute as can be!
The motorbikes came with 'flames' on the reverse ... some little boy will just LOVE this one!! All these quilts need now is the finishing touch of a binding and they are ready to go!!
Intricate 'piecing' on this quilt top ... don't the colours blend beautifully?
This one had little cars quilted onto the yellow borders, is there nothing Lyns machine cannot do?
Another stunner ... the detail in these quilts just leaves me breathless ... :)
Now ... as well as the wonderful things that travelled from Mildura to Monbulk on Saturday .. .we also welcomed another brilliant 'M' to our gathering ... and that was Melly!! And while she didn't travel from Mildura that made her certainly no less welcome!!
'Melly' is Melanie Hurlston .. a designer of amazing talent who learnt of our project late last year and thought that it would be something that she would like to become involved in ... and as she is a very busy lady we certainly appreciate that she was able to join us. And ... she didn't come empty handed either (what stitcher ever does, indeed?) .. she brought with her a generous selection of fabric from her stash ... and presented us each with a copy of her very first book 'Kaleidoscope' .. pictured below.
How incredibly generous of her ... thank you so very much Melly .... and I have to say that we showed our gratitude by giving her a few tasks which she did most willingly for us ... how blessed and humbled are we by the kindness of our fellow stitchers :) For those interested in seeing Mellys talent for design themselves, or obtaining her patterns and book, I suggest you visit her Blog at www.mellyandme.typepad.com or email her at [email protected]
What a trouper Melly was, throwing herself into our working bee with enthusiasm and a brilliant smile!
Can you believe that mountain of quilts behind Melly and Margaret ... shades of Rapunzel and the pile of straw that had to be turned into gold!! All quilt tops in various stages of completion .. all destined for the children in our COM Homes in India ... my word we will be busy, won't we?
Now as well as Margaret and Melly, we had with us on Saturday some of our stalwarts ... Isobel, Alice, Yvonne, Joy, Lois and Tracy ... and they were also kept nice and busy. Tracy had brought along her completed tops .... she had been quite busy since we last saw her ...
Not a bad effort for someone who was a self-confessed non stitcher just a year ago ... now she's addicted to quilting!!
And ... almost before we knew it ... 'twas time for lunch ... but even in the midst of mealtime ........
..... Yvonne, Gaynor and Lois couldn't drag themselves away from the quilting program on Foxtel :)
Soon as the dishes were done (by Gaynors ever helpful soulmate Reg) ... we were back to stitching bindings on the never diminishing pile of almost completed quilts ....
Well .... some of us were stitching ... while others were waiting patiently for some stitching to come our way ... and Lois wasn't kept waiting for long :)
We also managed to keep Alice, Isobel and Joy pretty busy ....
In order to release funds for further quilting supplies, a number of the quilts that were completed on Saturday will be offered for sale at Global Impact Month which is currently happening at Careforce Church, Mount Evelyn (the home of COM). These are the quilts stacked neatly on the chair near Joy. To date we have sold about 7 quilts ... and this will also serve to get the word out in our community about our project. Buy a quilt ... find out the story behind the team that has created it ... and generate funding to enable us to make more quilts for more children .... couldn't be simpler, or more worthwhile, now could it ?
Global Impact Month (previously known as Missions Month) is the time of year at Careforce when we showcase the work done by COM (Christian Outreach Missions) in places such as India, Russia and Indonesia. For more details on the work carried out by COM why not check out the COM website www.com.org.au
Now ... back to our merry band of stitchers ... because without them we would achieve a lot less than we have been able to do so far ..
The ever-busy Gaynor ... she never stops .. I am not convinced that she doesn't stitch in her sleep!
And Margaret is equally as busy ... and always smiling ... this work truly makes it impossible to frown :)
.... and well may Rachel smile ... because I promised Charlotte that I would feature her fancy feet in this Blog (she is an extremely persuasive young munchkin!) ... and I did. So this pic is for you Charlotte Breukel!! Your feet are now famous ... satisfied ?
Now our next Working Bee will be held on Saturday September 12th ... the lunch theme (and no ... it's not the main reason that we gather, but we do earn it .. so it's worth a mention) will be 'Take Out' ... cost $5 ... will be a surprise, and sure to not disappoint anyone :) We commence at 9.30 am at Gaynors ... 345 Macclesfield Road Monbulk and work through till around 4pm, though we won't nail you to the floor if you have to leave early.
We are always receptive to offers of help, be it by offering to stitch for us, donate fabric ...always more than welcome ... and on that note I MUST thank the young gentleman who saw details of our Blog in a local gym and donated 4 huge rolls of awesomely helpful fabric which will certainly be put to great use in quilt backs ... the kind of fabric that is alway sought after!
If you would like to help us to create our fabric 'hugs' that travel from Monbulk to India, please contact us, either by calling Gaynor on 9756 7950, contacting Rachel on [email protected] or myself, [email protected]
Till I next Blog ... blessings to all who support us, we couldn't achieve even a fraction of what we do without your help ... and it is always so very much appreciated, both by us .. and the children halfway across the world in the Childrens Homes ...
Susan
P.S: For those wondering how far along the road we are to our longed-for dedicated workspace aka the 'Shed' that will house 'Big Beastie' our quilting machine, as well as all our stitchers and the fabric and all the other bits'n'bobs that we use in this project ... well the wheels of bureucracy are still turning .. albeit a little slowly. But they have not ground to a halt ... and we WILL have our shed ... and my word, will I be excited when I can upload photos of the turning of the first sod. Stay tuned folks ... it will happen :) In the meantime, we still hope to generate funds for the fit-out by selling off those gorgeous wedding gowns ... also suitable for upcoming debutantes ... as well as the mass of furnishing fabrics currently available. So contact Gaynor if any of these items sound appealing to you ... she's just a phone call away remember ... 9756 7950.