#QuiltsForPluse

Members, Please see the information below from our Charity Coordinator Tammy regarding helping the Orlando Modern Quilt Guild with #QuiltsForPluse. 

Hi Ladies,

This is kind of long, but stay with me… there’s LOTS of good information below!

We have worked out the details of the HMQG efforts to assist Orlando Modern Quilt Guild with quilts for those impacted by the shooting at Pulse nightclub over the weekend.  To ease some of their work, we want to provide completed quilts rather than just quilt blocks.  And we would LOVE to be able to complete at least 5 quilts to send… I’m sure we can come together to make these!  We will have sew time after our meeting this weekend, so please feel free to bring completed blocks and/or bring your machine and sew along with us!

The quilts will be made from 10” (finished) heart blocks using the tutorial at Cluck Cluck Sew

http://cluckclucksew.com/2015/01/making-heart-blocks-in-multiple-sizes.html

The hearts should be made in a rainbow of bright colors (solids or prints) and the background in low volume prints.

Because we are trying to complete these quilts on a quick timeline, we are going to try using a new (to us) tool – Signup Genius.  This is a great tool for organizing signups and I’ve used this with great success in other groups.

A little about how to use the signups:

There is a unique link for each quilt we want to make, and within each link are all of the requirements it will take to make a quilt… make blocks, piece quilt top, provide backing, provide batting, quilt, bind & label. If you want to make 10 blocks, click on the link for Quilt #1, click on Make Blocks, and then select your quantity as 10.  If there aren’t 10 ‘make block’ spaces left, fill in what’s available, and then move on to Quilt #2.  Seems a little confusing at first, but I’m sure you’ll grow to love the convenience as much as I do  :)

If you are making blocks, please bring them to the meeting or plan to stay after the business portion and sew with us.  If you sign up for 5 blocks, but find yourself making 10 – no worries, bring them!  And if you don’t sign up for blocks but end up making some – great, bring them! We will continue making as many quilts as we can, so keep those blocks coming.

If you are providing backing or batting, please try to bring that with you to Saturday’s meeting so that it can get into the hands of the quilter as soon as possible.

As always, if you have any questions, please reach out to me:

Tammy

Karamat26@hotmail.com

Quilt #1

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c45a4ab2fa02-hmqg

Quilt #2

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c45a4ab2fa02-hmqg1

Quilt #3

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c45a4ab2fa02-hmqg2

Quilt #4

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c45a4ab2fa02-hmqg3

Quilt #5

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c45a4ab2fa02-hmqg4

Two Quilts and a Tumor

I belong to a wonderful group of ladies who all had babies around April 2008.  Most of us have not met in person but we talk everyday online.  We have shared our joys and our sorrows.

Mira and her family were vacationing at Disney when Sully (4) fell ill.  He had a seizure and was rushed to a hospital in the area.  Sully and his family are from Canada.  Instead of enjoying care free time at Disney, Sully was having a brain tumor removed.  The family stayed at the Ronald McDonald House in Florida for a week and then some.

The Houston Modern Quilt Guild (HMQG) sent Sully and his little sister Vay so that they may have a little comfort in their stressful time.

The good news is that Sully's tumor is benign.  He has a condition called Tuberous Sclerosis and will have to MRIs every so often.  Doctors feel confident that Sully's condition can be managed with medicine.

Sully Post-Op

Mira said that they love the gorgeous blankets and she keeps Vay's in her living room for decoration.  They have returned to Canada.

Sully and Vay reunited after his surgery

I feel so lucky to be part of a quilting group who makes beautiful blankets for those in need.

-Karri
Charity Coordinator

Charity Sew In April 6 - AHOPE

Last month I received an email from my friend Kerry asking me if I wanted to be part of something special.  I thought I had won a trillion dollars from a far away prince or was being recruited to sell Amway.  Kerry was inviting me to join her Ethiopia Upcyling sewing team.  Ethiopia Upcycling sewing team is a wonderful group of ladies who sew year round making all sorts of items to sell on Etsy to benefit HIV orphans in Ethoipia.  Last year they raised $5000 to benefit AHOPE.

More information about AHOPE can be found here - http://www.ahopeforchildren.org/.

Kerry and I share a fondness about adoption.  Kerry adopted her second child, Tay from Ethiopia and I'm adopted.  We both have girls born in late Spring of 2008 which is how we met.  You can read about Kerry's journey to Ethiopia and how this group got founded.

Scott, Piper, Tay and Kerry

I have been collecting burlap coffee bean bags from roasters around Houston.  Kerry and Megan (who is also involved in Ethiopia Upcycle Sewing Team) sent me bags.

You can read about Megan's adoption journey and life with her kids here:   www.blueberrybuzz.wordpress.com.

Some other sweet adoption blogs are Findingmagnolia.com, motherparadox.blogspot.com, and kevindhendricks.com/abby and you will see why adoption is a tie that binds people together. 

The Houston Modern Quilt Guild has decided to be part of this wonderful team.

A few pictures of last year's projects:

Stockings

Tote Bag

Burlap Coffee Bean Bag

Ideas for the burlap coffee bean bags include yoga mats, bags, pouches, pillows... anything you can imagine and sew.  The only requirement is that the item have burlap incorporated.

I have 16 burlap coffee bean bags.  The HMQG has a charity sew-in scheduled for Saturday, April 6, 2013 to make items to benefit AHOPE and our ongoing efforts to make wheel chair lap quilts for elderly in nursing homes.

Where: St. Martins Episcopal Church
717 Sage, Houston

Time: 10 am until 4 pm

Items due for AHOPE sewing is August 31, 2013.

Helpful Links for Sewing Burlap:
http://www.ellaclaireinspired.com/2012/05/washing-and-cutting-burlap.html

http://paintedfurnitureideas.com/how-to-cut-burlap-so-that-it-wont-unravel/

-Karri

2011 Charity Sewing

We voted to support 2 organizations during the 2011 Guild year... Pillowcases for ConKerr Cancer and Art Quilts for Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI)

Please see these websites for additional information on both organizations:

ConKerr: www.conkerrcancer.org/
They have 2 sets of pillowcase directions on their website. The pattern seems to be the standard size you see most directions list, so I'm sure any pattern will do (APQ 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge website has lots of patterns!) A couple of notes... the fabric needs to be washed prior to making, and all exposed seams need to be finished (zig zag, serge, or French seam).

AAQI: www.alzquilts.org/
Please make sure to read through the information on their website. In addition to the {strict} size restrictions, you can not use someone else's pattern for your quilt without written permission (to be included) from the designer.


For our ongoing project, we elected to make BOTH the 9.5" Wonky Star and the 8.5" String Block. These can be made at any time, with any fabrics... I'll have a box available at each meeting for the blocks. Once we have enough blocks made of either style we'll be on the lookout for volunteers to piece the quilt top, secure backing/batting, quilt & bind. We can also vote at a later date where we want the completed quilts to go... lots of good ideas were shared today, but please also keep in mind any places you hear of that may be in need of a little quilt love.

Here are a couple of tutorials for the blocks:
Wonky Star: thesillyboodilly.blogspot.com/2009/02/wonky-star-tutorial... (we talked of making 9.5" rather than the 12.5" listed in the tutorial)
String Block: www.filminthefridge.com/2009/04/27/a-string-quilt-block-t... (no need for the white center string... just start with your fabrics and go!)


As for timing on the 2 projects, I was thinking we could focus on the pillowcases for the first part of the year so that everyone has time to brainstorm the perfect art quilts! I'll be in touch with both organizations shortly and more specific dates will be shared as determined.