Yes Folks ... its the November 10th Working Bee Blog update ... our final one for the year will cover our Christmas Breakup after it happens on December 8th. Then we will go into hibernation till the New Year ... when I will be able to overwhelm you with our Calendar for 2013 ... how exciting will THAT be!!!
But before I put fingers to keyboard for that, here is the round-up of our November Working Bee, together with pics and comments ... grab a coffee and put your tootsies up whilst I proceed to entertain you ... with dash/derring do ... and more than a smidgen of artistic license!
We gathered at the Barn on November 10th to remove and pack up all that was left after our Open Weekend the previous week. It was a busy day, and I took the opportunity to pop in a few more pics of the things we had out for display. Not having been there myself on the weekend, it was great to see just how awesome our Barn had looked!
I must also Thank the Estate of the late Ruth Carmody ... as her husband had dropped into Treasure Corner Opshop prior to our Open Weekend with a donation of many wonderful craft and quilting magazines for us to sell as part of our fundraising operations. So Thank You very much Mr Carmody ... and the vintage wedding dress which you also donated, whilst not able to be used in quilting, was gifted back to Treasure Corner for re-sale ... and the proceeds from its sale will be directed to the Childrens Homes in India that Treasure Corner supports. So it was a win-win situation all round!
Present on the day to help us were Jan, Jenny, Yvonne, Amber, Christine, Val, Emily, Sandi, Maxine, Margaret, Annette, Karen, Carol, Issy and Denise ... so it made the job of packing up relatively speedy!
Now I'm not sure ... but this may have been one of our 'For Sale' quilts ... I'll have to double check with Gaynor ... isn't it lovely?
One of a pair of beautiful embroideries made by our Carol ....
Just gorgeous .... love the detailed flowers ...
Maxine created this incredibly finely made stitchery ... absolutely stunning!
Another 'overview' of Cathys stunner of an appliqued quilt ... this never fails to impress me!
A revisiting of Maxines delightful and intricate embroidered Kookaburra knee rug ... the fine detail had to be seen to be believed ... this little fellow was small enough to fit into my palm:)
Just some of the finger puppets (made by Lois) and small childrens bags that we had for sale.
One of Jans' miniature tree stockings...
Aprons galore ... should anyone still wish to purchase a last minute gift for Christmas...
This never fails to impress me ... Gaynors ongoing project of a pieced quilt ...
So much pretty fabric ... I think I'm in love!!
These quilts are still available for purchase, as part of our on-going fundraising .. so that we can provide even MORE children with our warm fabric 'hugs'. Gaynor tells me that we will be sending quilts to Indonesia in 2013!! So even MORE children will benefit from our handiwork!
Jenny ... hard at work folding and packing away ...
Our 'Fat Quarters' ... still available for purchase ...
Emilys' gorgeous and extremely colourful pencil cases .... could also double as make-up bags I reckon:)
Yvonne custom quilted these cushions for us ... and underneath .. our myriad of buttons!!
Our hand-knitted coathangers ... perfect for hanging 'delicates' ...
And so ends the display items ... now on to our regular 'Show and tell' segment.
And you may remember that back in June our Jenny showed us the art of 'paper piecing' and we ALL set to work assembling pieces that would eventually all come together nicely in a quilt top. Let me refresh your memory ...
We stitched and prepared for the next bit....
OK ... memory refreshed? Now ... insert Drum Roll *here* ..... Ta-daaaaaaa!!
How amazing is the finished result? All beautifully put together and custom quilted ... isn't it awesome!!
Now Margaret had been EXTREMELY busy over the last few weeks ... and we must make the very most of these beauties, as she broke the news to us that she is de-camping and heading away and up country .... *sigh* ....very soon. We will indeed miss her happy smile and beautiful sense of colour ... and wish her well. Also hope that this will not be the last we see of her ... as there will always be room at the Barn should she find herself in the area on a Working Bee Saturday!! In the meantime ... feast your eyes on the tasty quilt top above ... mouthwatering eh?
.... and this colourful 'fish' themed top ....
Another vivid top .. .will brighten the life of a child no doubt!
I love the pairing of burgundy shades with green ... works so well together ...
As does pink and green ... Margaret has a real flair for colour teaming ...
Her final offering was this lovely blue and lemon top .. these colours always look so very fresh together!
Soon it was time for a well earned lunchbreak ... the theme of the day was BBQ and salad .. yum!!!
Scrumptious .... what more can I say?
The Chef at work ... and very good at it too!!
Mouthwatering isn't it? Would like to have said that no animal was harmed during the making of this lunch ... but that wouldn't have been strictly true ... Ooops!!!
Margaret making her selection from the 'buffet table' ....
Couldn't help myself ... simply had to snap my plate for posterity ... so much greenery!!!
Young Ethan patiently waits his turn in the lunch queue ....
Christine, Val and Issy finish the tidy up before making their way to lunch ..
Gaynor discusses the latest news while Yvonne, Amber and Margaret listen ...
And among the news we heard that our valued 'off-site' quilter ... Lyn Stott in Mildura ... will be reluctantly cutting back from the marvellous job that she has so wonderfully been doing for us over the last few years, in order to devote more of her time to family and local stitching groups.
We thank Lyn warmly for the magnificent job that she has so unstintingly done for us, the generosity of the time she has 'gifted' us and the many, many quilts that she has custom quilted ... her contribution to QFO has been nothing short of awesome!! We wish her well and hope that she will continue to follow our progress and keep in touch ... she has been a valued member of QFO and we appreciate each stitch she has done for us, well done and thanks Lyn!!
Emily and Val ... busily matching fabric for the next quilt to be made ...
Not too sure quite what was happening here .. but clearly something was amusing Carol and Maxine!!
Meanwhile Christine was casting a critical eye over the placement of colours in this next quilt top.
... helped by Sandi ... always good to get a 'second opinion' ...
.... and a third opinion doesn't go astray either ... as Val joins in .... :)
Can't quite figure out what to title this shot ... but Yvonne has a 'point' to make perhaps?
And finally ... at our pre-Open Weekend work day in October, Sandi had come across a donated but incomplete quilt top. Now and again we are 'blessed' by a UFO (Unfinished Object) ... and it is interesting to see what we can do with it. The following piece came to us in need of a border or two ... and Sandi had the task of trying to match the fabric we had on hand ... with a quilt top that already had a colour theme in place. Not always an easy task ... and matching the blues in this one was NOT going to be a walk in the park ... especially when we had to find enough fabric to complete the job!!
Here was Sandi in October .. after finally managing to find sufficient fabric for the task....
And here is the finished article .. the donated UFO was the white and embroidered centre piece ... and Sandi made it really all come together with the addition of a narrow strip of rust coloured fabric .. which in turn picked up the tiny rust sprigged flowers on this deep blue fabric. We think it worked rather well!
And on that note I will bring this epic Blogpost to a close. But before I go ... I will remind our quilters that our final gathering for 2012 will be on December 8th ... and we will be having a sewing free day ... instead we will be enjoying early Christmas lunch at the Barn. Cost will be $12.50 per head all inclusive, payable on the day to Gaynor. Please call her on 9756 7950 to confirm your attendance if you haven't already done so:)
We are also planning ahead and anticipate that we will be holding another Open Weekend in 2013 ... with the projected dates being the 9th and 10th of November ... so pop that into your diaries now :)
And that just about wraps it up ... all I need do now is a 'cut and paste' of our Links so that you can keep yourself updated with the news from all the Childrens Homes that we have helped with our quilts .. as well as the folk who have supported us with publicity in their own Blogs ... and the connections that we have to COM and its very own Treasure Corner in Mount Evelyn.
Our contact details are as follow:
Gaynor Peterson ... phone (03)9756 7950
email ... [email protected]
Susan Hamilton .....phone (03)9737 1825
email: [email protected]
Our postal address (for donations) is P.O Box 398 Monbulk Victoria 3793
Check out the following Links:
http://www.butterflych.org/.... for news about the Butterfly Palliative Care hospice in China
And their very own Blog ... which is beautifully written and contains inspirational stories on the children in their care. See the Link below:
http://butterflyhospice.blogspot.com.au/
http://secure.smilebox.com/ecom/openTheBox?sendevent=4d6a59784e7a45314d6a673d0d0a&sb=1
www.freetobekids.org/- .... the rescue organisation that frees children from slavery and exploitation
www.com.org.au/ .... our very own Christian Outreach Ministry in Mount Evelyn.
Don't forget that you can support COM and the children in the COM Homes in India by making donations to them via details on their website. I believe they may also have a range of products which can be 'gifted' to the Homes on your behalf and which would make a wonderful 'reverse' Christmas gift this year. For your efforts COM will provide you with Thank You certification .... you can purchase mattresses for the children, school supplies, chickens which will enable the families to have a source of income from the eggs produced ... apparently you can even purchase a GOAT!! How incredible to be able to give a family on the other side of the world the independence that owning a milk producing goat would provide. Give it some thought and contact COM now!!!
Now on to the rest of our Links .....
http://kayleenwest.com.au .... for Art with a positive spirit
http://mellyandme.typepad.com .... creative clothing etc for children
http://mrsmartinsquiltshop.typepad.com/ whose customer blessed us with awesome fabric
www.hopefosterhome.com ... the latest group of babies we are creating crib quilts for in China ...
www.zoehopeproject.blogspot.com giving hope to children in Zambia.
http://english.chinaconcern.org/
... and our newest recipients of quilts .... in Ethiopia
http://www.lolachildrensfund.org/
And finally .......
Our Link to Treasure Corner Opshop in Wray Crescent Mount Evelyn .... the brainchild of Helen Greenwood so many years ago, the start of the support for COM Homes in India is listed below. Well worth a visit for the many bargains available, proceeds from the sales go toward the Childrens Homes in India ... 26 so far have been built through funds raised by this shop, an amazing achievement indeed.
And for those on Facebook ... check out the Treasure Corner 'Page' via this Link ... it's another way of sharing the COM story with the world ... and I get to share our Quilts for Orphans news thru there too ... whats not to love about THAT???
http://www.facebook.com/#!/TreasureCornerOpportunityShop
And on that note .... I'm awaaay till next time we 'meet' via this blog..
Blessings to all ..
Susan