Wednesday, November 30, 2011

23 ladies attended yesterday--it was a big (and noisy) group! Lots of things going on: Ethel brought in her Christmas table runners she is making for each of her children; Joyce L. and Cathy M had fancy Christmas ornaments to show; Kathy O. had finished two moebius scarves and a hat; Sue R. had already made 40 (!) of the scarves Agnes showed us last week; and I brought in more Houston quilt show purchases. Kathy, Marie and Sandy are all making the moebius scarves. Betty Smith would be proud but they all wish Betty were here to explain the mathematics to them. Fran is knitting mini-sweater Christmas tree ornaments. Rosemary is nearing completion on her needlepoint as is Diane C. on her cross-stitch. Joan is doing redwork embroidery this week. Pat OR is hand piecing. Marguerite is quilting her mile-a-minute quilt. Sandy has a bag we all admire. It was made by her niece who has since lost the pattern. We took some measurements and Sue is going to see if she can create one just from the measurements. Dallas came in with a big box of yarn to give away. And we had a guest visitor who had heard about the group from Sandy. She says she plans to come back and bring something to work on. Elaine is still binding her quilt--I hope she's finished by February so we can put it in the show. It is truly a gem! Tina was working on a vest. She needed some fitting advice on the gaping armholes. Kathy O. sews a lot so hopefully she had some tips. I am under orders to make the final arrangements for our holiday lunch so will work on that this week and let you know next Tuesday.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

18 ladies attended today. I got out the fruit fabric and cut it up with my special ruler. Marguerite laid out the resulting squares and it looked awful! The ruler should have come with instructions on what kind of fabrics to use or how to lay out the original squares or something because what we did didn't look good at all! I am so disappointed. So I put that project away for awhile. I'll think about it later when I'm not so irritated. The other day my assistant and I cleaned out our closet (on orders from the boss--fabric has a tendency to spread!). In the closet was a quilt, sandwiched and partially hand quilted, which someone had given to us. I pulled it out to give away and Sandy thought her daughter would love it. It was a nice quilt but not too many people are interested in hand quilting anymore which is sad but true. We are all in such a hurry we've got to get things done! Last week Kathy O. had asked me for a pattern for the moebius scarf that Betty Smith used to make. I found a pattern on the internet (several in fact) so she had Sandy help her get started on one. Agnes had received a pattern from her sister (in-law?) for a simple cloth scarf. She was wearing one today and had another to show. It was very attractive and did indeed look simple. Maybe we'll have a scarf making day soon. On the week of Thanksgiving there is always a lot of talk about food and this year was no exception. They like to share and compare what their traditional Thanksgiving foods are and how they prepare them. I was over getting upset about my fruit quilt so didn't participate in that conversation but heard it in the distance. Christmas is coming soon so I have asked people to think of what they want to do for the holidays--go to a restaurant or have a pot luck. Next week we'll see if they have any good ideas.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

22 ladies attended today. The group was so big that we filled the entire community room. Marie brought in some of her crocheted and 1 tatted doilies to show. They will be in our show in February I hope. She was also wearing another of her special vests: a shadow applique vest. I pulled out a table to sew the fruit/vegee blocks together. Marguerite helped me. We sewed all 36 blocks together. Next week we will cut them up and see what happens. Winnie had some horse fabric to make a quilt for her granddaughter. Agnes gave her some assistance in cutting. Linda O. set up another table and was sewing petals for flowers which will be decorations for the Village Quilters quilt show in July. She was joined by Sue R., Deb and others. Elaine was in another corner getting assistance binding her music quilt. Rosemary sits in a comfy chair that is easier on her aching back. Since we all roam around a bit there is usually someone sitting with Rosemary at any given time. Agnes finished the binding on a small kid quilt for the Methodist bazaar. And Pat OR was embellishing her Christmas tree wall hanging. I'm starting to plan for our show in February so began asking people to do demonstrations. I think we will be able to put on a nice little show this year.