President's Letter
Dear Guild Members,
This has been a surprisingly long ordeal, but it's amazing what I've seen come out of this incredible time. The support that has been expressed in so many different ways. I'm sure each and everyone of you have seen great stories online of these expressions.
As for me and my family, I've made masks for my family, my co-workers, and, to support local businesses, our favorite pizzeria restaurant. Plus, we make a point to order take out from them once a week.
What else have I been up to? Well, I've gone through 16 books!! Audio books, that is. It helps pass the time while I'm making masks and working a few of my quilting projects. If you like some mystery, a cocky defense attorney, and dogs, you'll just love David Rosenfelt's books...the Andy Carpenter series! Plus, I've also had an interest to listen to books about World War II Women Resistance stories. One of my top likes has been by Kristin Hannah, The Nightingale. Also, I've made a weekly appointment to see my friends...on Zoom! What a great thing to do when you just need some together time with your friends and family!
Share with us any other ways that you've passed the time. I'm thinking about taking an online course about herbal medicine...just a thought.
Take care everyone, and stay safe!
Helen Hofbauer
President
Membership Kathy & Bob DeCarli and Marianne Caporale
We have 3 birthdays in May:
Carolyn Davis
Elaine Mayer
Rita Marie Smith
Great Machine Binding Tutorial
So you have been finishing up your quilts and now have to bind them all. Here is a fantastic tutorial to finish the binding by machine. Lella Boutique shows you how to baste using plain old Elmer's Glue. Check it out HERE
Clover and Violet
Do you love to embroider? I ran across this free pattern! Check it out here Washi Tape Embroidery Pincushion
Great Machine Binding Tutorial
So you have been finishing up your quilts and now have to bind them all. Here is a fantastic tutorial to finish the binding by machine. Lella Boutique shows you how to baste using plain old Elmer's Glue. Check it out HERE
Clover and Violet
Do you love to embroider? I ran across this free pattern! Check it out here Washi Tape Embroidery Pincushion
Safety First!
Also here is a recipe from the WHO for making your own hand sanitizer:
4.8 ounces 99% isopropyl alcohol
3.2 ounces aloe Vera gel
= 8 ounces equivalent to Purcell
Also for disinfecting hard surfaces:
Household use:
1 cup bleach
5 gallons water
For surfaces that have been infected by a known Coronavirus patient the recipe is:
1 part bleach to 9 parts of water.
Elaine Mayer
Genius!
Our former and beloved member, Marian Stevenson sent this to me. If you read the titles in order from top to bottom, it sends a message.....I got most of it....
It says:
The English Patient Caught It On The Beach I Should Have Stayed Home She Said Now She Was In Quarantine In The Dark (can't read this one) Still Hope Springs Eternal With A Little Bit of Luck (can't read) And Personal Hygiene Horror Stories Must End Soon and the last five say And When In Doubt Don't Go Out!
Sampler Sew Along
How is it going? Has everyone caught up with the blocks? Are you enjoying the bonus blocks?
As you are sewing your blocks, start thinking about how you want to set them. On point, sashing, no sashing, etc. Here are some ideas to look at.
Block setting ideas link
Sampler Sew Along blocks made by Marti Campbell
Newsletter Articles - Kelly Meanix
As always members are invited to send items to be included in the newsletter. Please send them to Kelly Meanix at kellymx@aol.com Items are due no later than the 24th of the month. The newsletter is published on the 25th. Please send them in an email and not as an attachment.
Genius!
It says:
The English Patient Caught It On The Beach I Should Have Stayed Home She Said Now She Was In Quarantine In The Dark (can't read this one) Still Hope Springs Eternal With A Little Bit of Luck (can't read) And Personal Hygiene Horror Stories Must End Soon and the last five say And When In Doubt Don't Go Out!
Sampler Sew Along
How is it going? Has everyone caught up with the blocks? Are you enjoying the bonus blocks?
As you are sewing your blocks, start thinking about how you want to set them. On point, sashing, no sashing, etc. Here are some ideas to look at.
Block setting ideas link
Sampler Sew Along blocks made by Marti Campbell
and Bob DeCarli
Newsletter Articles - Kelly Meanix
As always members are invited to send items to be included in the newsletter. Please send them to Kelly Meanix at kellymx@aol.com Items are due no later than the 24th of the month. The newsletter is published on the 25th. Please send them in an email and not as an attachment.
SHOW & TELL!!!!
Quilt by Sara Borr from our 2019 Sew Along! Great job Sara!
From Marti Campbell
Marti's finish of a UFO from Jean Fox below
From Donna Daley
From Page Toghill:
This is my 2020 CoVid-19 quarantine quilt. It is a scrap quilt called Split Pinwheels.
From Suzanne Stiverson
Wool Blue Bonnet
Sarah Reindel - pattern is called Church Window
From Maureen Carlson - Lots of Veterans' Quilts!!
From Cindy Vognetz Other than making masks for everyone this has been my one quilt project during the quarantine. Found this pattern at the Log Cabin Quilt Shop while at the getaway - perfect for showcasing my aboriginal fabrics. Now I just need to figure out how I want to quilt it.
Bob DeCarli:
I had such a good time with the horse that I made
a giraffe. The second is my quilt along with the first 9 blocks.
Elaine Egan's Show & Tell
Ways & Means - Robin McMillen
Hi Everyone,
No updates on the sale but I wanted to share a personal story with you.
My friend Gloriana is a lawyer for the county. She still needs to go to work everyday and she is justifiably scared by the process. Gloriana is not a sewer but she has a small sewing machine and she learned to make masks for herself and her aging parents. I gave her some of my fabric, not like I don't have any to share :). She texted me again on April 22 and requested some more dark fabric appropriate for men. She wants to make some additional masks for friends of the family that have a funeral next week. I do not know the details, but she sounded very sad and upset.
I pulled my dark, solid fabric and put it in a bag an left it out by my mailbox for her to pick up when she went home. Here is a photo of the fabrics.
I also felt she needed a little lift so I added a note and a small mug rug that I was working on that just needed binding (which I completed quickly, shhhh don't tell my boss). Here is her response:
So what I guess I am trying to say, is share with others close to you. Even if you can't share with everyone, you can share with someone and lighten their day. Fear makes us close up like a clam when the only way out is to open your hands to someone else. Stay home and wear your beautiful crafted masks. I miss you all!
-Robin
How is everyone doing during this COVID-19 Pandemic? You know, we are not the 1st generation to experience such a thing. While reading the Piecemaker blog detailing suffrage rights movement, there are several entries regarding women's help with two other epidemics:
Suffragists help with a 1916 Polio outbreak starting in New York City and spreading to PA.
Many of the strategies employed in 1916 are things we are doing today with the COVID-19 outbreak. This outbreak killed 6,000 people with 2,000 being in New York City. Read more at:
Many of the strategies employed in 1916 are things we are doing today with the COVID-19 outbreak. This outbreak killed 6,000 people with 2,000 being in New York City. Read more at:
Here is another post on the Piecemaker blog about women (nurses) during the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1918. It's interesting her take on how this pandemic changed the course of history and helped pass the 19th amendment. What will be the changes coming out of this current pandemic? Read more at:
As you read additional entries of Michele McLaughlin, you will see mention of women's service nursing plus helping with the effort during the Civil War, World Wars I and II plus many other additional projects and needs. I know I have been spending my self-isolation days making fabric masks for family, extended family, friends of family and of course charity. Women friends are wonderful -- sharing resources. A good friend recently sent out a text saying her husband scored a 144 yard spool of 1/4" elastic and asked if anyone wanted some for masks. How wonderful this is during this time of closed stores, shortages and delays with on-line orders, et al.
I am also spending time on the veteran charity quilting efforts with some completed quilts in the Show & Tell section of this newsletter. Three are guild sew-in tops that I brought home to finish and then decided to complete the quilting and binding.
Happy sewing, reading (which I hope includes some reading on our ancestor's efforts to gain the right to vote) and staying safe.
Maureen Carlson
