Community quilts

It's been a very good month for community quilt making, with two sewing days because of a glitch with venue booking, and industrious sewing at home ...

Dawn collected some recently donated fabric from the
community stash and in no time at all had completed this
appliqued and pieced top, with some additions
from her own stash.

In the absence of a pattern, Dawn drafted her own wedge!

Julie used a package of fabrics donated by Jo-Ann during her
recent house move, to make her second version of
Miriam’s ‘Little Women’ design ...

... that was beautifully quilted by Laura on her long arm.

We’ve lost count of how many blue and white community
quilts Lynette has made, but since she’s happy to keep
making them, we are more than happy to
pass them on - they are very popular!

Jill is working her way through her scraps, by colour,
with a little contrast.

The contract strips help to define the simple design elements.

Marilyn O's version of 'Little Women' is made (appropriately)
from her stash of reproduction Civil War fabrics.

Lots of small checks compliment the floral prints.

Covergirl!

Brush with fame - the cover quilt for this issue of Simply Vintage magazine (Spring 2021 No 38) is ‘Little Women', designed and made by Fairholme quilter Miriam Jones (@sewmiriam) and quilted by Yvette Aoude (@yvettes_keepsakes), also a Fairholme quilter.

'Little Women' is one of a series of quilts based on favourite books designed and made by Miriam during the pandemic.Congratulations to you both - international stars!

Here are some of our versions of "Little Women',made by
(clockwise from top left), Julie, Sue, Julie again, and Louise.
We know there are more in the making.

Show and tell

We agreed to resume regular weekly meetings of our large daytime group, only to be stymied by torrential rain making travelling and parking difficult, but we will return soon! 

Susan has been very busy with a brand new grandchild,but
has finished off her French General quilt top started last year.

Centre medallion of Susan's quilt.

Julie has been hand piecing (the circles) and appliquing
thetiny (1") squares for her Bubble and Squeak quilt,
made from Cherry Pie Designs pattern.

Julie made a large wall hanging for a friend.

We 'borrowed' these two from Val's Facebook page.
First is a small wall hanging, inspired by the Blue Mountains,
made for  French friends after they visited several years ago.
It now hangs in their holiday house on Ile de Sein.

Val hand quilted this one, made from a Judy Hooworth
design, and then waited some time to find just the
right black binding.

New events notices

Opening hours: 10am - 4pm daily

'The New Quilt' exhibition

A few of us have been to The New Quilt exhibition at the Hawkesbury Regional Gallery in Windsor. We have been impressed by the gallery itself and the exhibition, and we’d encourage you to go if you are interested in quilting as an art form, and/or quilts with a message. It’s well worth the trip. It closes on 11 April.

Congratulations to QuiltNSW, the makers, curators and the gallery.

QuiltNSW has posted an online version of the exhibition as well, but if you can get there, we recommend viewing it in its excellent gallery setting.

These are a small sample of photos taken by visitors. 

Sheer Joy, made by Racheldaisy Dodd

Standing Tree, made by Hilary Peterson 2019

Detail of Picnic Rug, made by Fiona Givens

Detail of Whitewash 2020, made by Neroli Henderson

This striking installation of knitted poppies
is not part of the New Quilt exhibition,
but is located in the gallery's foyer.

The installation drops down over two storeys.

Recent show and tell ...

We've been sharing our quilts at meetings with restricted numbers, on Facebook, and Instagram ...

Val has finished two beautiful quilts during the pandemic.
 This one is a large wall hanging ‘La Belle Poule', named
 after a French frigate. Val hand-pieced the border propeller
blocks, some of them during our weekly meetings,
when those were last a thing. 

Val is an enthusiastic and skilled gardener -this one is
'The Gardener's Quilt, featuring floral block centres.
Both have been beautifully quilted by Laura Ujhazy.
We look forward seeing them at a meeting soon.

Elaine G originally planned to make this quilt in other

colours, and chose the fabrics. But she decided on these at the last

 minute, and likes it so much she’s going to make a second 

one in the original palette as well!

Elaine W has made this design several times - it is quick
to make and uses quite large pieces. This version is
for our community quilts collection.

Daphne made this very cute little zipper pouch by following
a You Tube video by @sewingtimes.nancy at
https://youtu.be/Nn-JAuZL8jg

Last year Nerida made a beautiful wonky courthouse steps
quilt from a large collection of scrappy strips (detail in the
header to this page). She enjoyed the process, and we all
loved it. But of course, there were then smaller strips left
over. So, of course, she is making another one,
with a slightly different layout ...

... and we love it too. This one too i for our community quilts
collection, with the first one having been recently donated.

Louise W is really enjoying working with scrappy strips for
VintageSpools blocks, inspired by Nerida's quilts (above),
and a spools top being made by Miriam.

Sewing day

Last weekend’s sewing day saw us pin basting half a batting roll’s worth of community quilt tops.  There was a lot of friendly chat and laughter. It was a very productive and enjoyable day ...

This zinger was made by Margaret, from a strip pack she
bought at our 2018 craft stall ... 

... and now she’s generously donating it
back as a community quilt!

Still others were also sewing their own or community projects

Miriam came well organised!

In another space, we were delighted to look through
and pack a very generous stash donation, including
long backing lengths and large pieces of modern fabrics
that topped up our recently culled community stash.

Louise started cutting and sewing a turquoise scrap quilt top.

Others quickly sorted through a tub of small scraps,
and plans were made for them.

Podcasts related to quilting and other stitching

 

A podcast series usually features one or more recurring hosts engaged in a discussion about a particular topic or current event. Discussion and content within a podcast can range from carefully scripted to completely improvised. Podcasts combine elaborate and artistic sound production with thematic concerns ranging from scientific research to slice-of-life journalism. Many podcast series provide an associated website with links and show notes, guest biographies, transcripts, additional resources, commentary, and even a community forum dedicated to discussing the show's content. (Wikipedia).

So its something like a niche radio program with episodes remaining online and available to listen to at your own convenience on the device of your choice. There are many quilt related podcasts - this is just an introduction - let us know about your recommendations for other quilters. We'll add to our list of favourites as we find new ones, and create a permanent page so you can find our recommendations easily.

The Stitch Safari

'Are you interested in stitch, embroidery, art, design and history? Then the Stitch Safari Podcast is for you.' The Stitch Safari Podcast is the creation by fibre artist Cathy Jack Coupland, who introduces it with ...

What on earth drove me to create this podcast? Passion, pure and simple.  I've always enjoyed stitching, and I find history utterly fascinating - I simply married the two together, so the entire ethos for the Stitch Safari podcasts will always revolve around history ...

There are currently 20 episodes to listen to, each 20 - 30 minutes long. There is also a blog to explore, and a compilation of resources - lots to enjoy. You can also follow the podcast and its events by liking their Facebook page, and/or on Instagram 

Quilt Buzz

... the podcast for quilters, by quilters, about quilters across the Quiltiverse. Join us every other week as we talk to folks from across the quilting community, asking all the nitty-gritty-quilting questions you always wanted to know ... 

 

Quilt and Tell - a Quilting Daily Podcast

Tune in every month for a fresh, new in-depth discussion about behind-the-scenes topics, the quilting lifestyle, and the conversations that take place between quilters—our craft is part of our identity!

Hosts Lori, Tracy, and Ginger come from different quilty generations and backgrounds. And, because they don’t know everything (they’re okay with that!), special guests will be brought in to tell us their stories.

Feedspot is an aggregator of blogs, You Tube channels and podcasts in niche categories, and includes a list of  the 'Top 25 Quilting Podcasts You Must Follow in 2021'