Tuesday, December 9, 2014

December 8, 2014 Christmas lunch

Yesterday was all about enjoying each others company over Christmas lunch.  Only a little bit of work was done.

Thanks Nicky for the great Christmas cake

Some of the many cans of food donated to local needy people.



We never let the chance go by to pass on our creations.  These are some of the quilts given to us by the Courallie Quilters from Moree.  We also received some lovely crocheted rugs from Rita who also lives out Moree way. Thanks Ladies!




Recently we were asked to try making some touchy feely cushion covers.  We look forward to seeing how these cushions help their recipients.


Claire's touchy feely cushion for Wesley Home Care


Judie's touchy feely quilt for Eunice


As Christmas is rapidly approaching it seems appropriate to finish the year with these cheerful Christmas teddies.



Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and looking forward to seeing you at our first meeting of 2015 on January 19 (not the 26th as that is Australia Day).

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

November 24, 2014 meeting

Last month Jenny found a "Mr Sunshine" pattern that she thought her Mum would be interested in. One month later Claire B brought in this sunny quilt top.  Next time we see the top it will have become a Sunshine Linus wall hanging.

Claire B's ray of sunshine

You never know what show and tell will bring.  It is always interesting to see the variety of quilt designs and uses of colour.  I also like to see how non-quilting fabrics are used.  Lots of non-quilting fabrics are used in touchy feely quilts and aprons but picture quilts are my favourite.  Here you can use just about anything.

Look at the detail Karen has put into this clothes line and the angel hiding under the cloud.  Bet you can't wait to read on to see the whole picture!





Karen's fabulous kid's Toogoolawah touchy feely wall quilt


just part of a 2.5m x 2.5m groundsheet quilt

Christmas bags

Christmas bags full of toys for needy families
Last month we were asked to think about making children's quilts for the next Special School in our region.  The result was some very colourful and creative pieces.

Pip's owls

Kim's owls





The Sewing Basket made and donated this large eye catching quilt

one of four kids quilts made by Denise

two of the Mooloolah Quilt & Craft Groups quilt donations

Orawin using up the scraps

Orawin making more scraps into columns



Claire B putting her best foot forward!

Rosemary modelling one of many touchy
feely aprons she made this month

Margaret is also making touchy feely aprons

A little girl will love to play with Sue's touchy feely

Jan and Carolyn are looking for people to help make simple hospital gowns from light weight fabric that has been donated to Sunshine Linus.  You don't need to be a dressmaker - 2 shoulder seams, 2 zigzag edges down the back, biased binding neck and attach some ties.


There is no meeting at the end of December, instead we will be having our Christmas lunch on Monday 8th of December.  Hope to see you there.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

October 27, 2014 meeting

Yesterday Cynthia and I loaded up the car and headed to Nambour for the Sunshine Linus meeting.  Several large fabric donations, secretary and treasurer bags, our sewing and most importantly our lunch made for a full car load.  At least the garages were empty for a little while ...


It didn't take long for the distribution table to be full and we still had items to be added during Show and Tell.


The ladies that make gowns, hats, booties and blankets of love for maternity departments around the state have certainly been spreading the Christmas cheer early.  Nine hospitals will have a brighter Christmas with wall hangings and gowns like these.




colourful blanks of love

Show and Tell gives people the chance to show members and visitors what they have been making. Just look at the variety of things we make. If you want to know where things go have a look under the "What we make and where it goes" page.


how to make a panel into a bigger quilt

Rosemary making a picture into the centre of a touchy feely quilt

Win clearing the cupboard of colourful bits and pieces

Win converted someones cut squares into this quilt 

Barbara's Kanyini bears for the SCPH at Buderim

looks like a butterfly flying into the bright light!

Daphne made this bright kids quilt top which Kaye will quilt

Jodie put her new free motion quilting skills to good use - well done!

Pip says she is learning - I'd say very quickly!

Jan used the last "Walk in the Garden" fabric to make this starry number

Daphne quilted this Australian quilt

Earlier in October Judie and I were guest speakers at the Island Quilters meeting on Bribie Island. We came home with so many things - a bag of quilts that have already been donated, lots of these beautiful teddies for the foster children, fabric for more sewing and a $500 donation!  That will buy wadding for quiet a few quilts.  Thank you Island Quilters.


As Sunshine Linus becomes known to the special schools and support groups for special needs families, we are increasingly receiving requests for one-off items to meet a person's particular need. Zoey is one such child.  She spends a lot of time lying down and is not able to clutch objects.  She needed a touchy feely that was big enough to lie on and have objects around the outside that she could brush past and feel or hear a noise.  We hope that Margaret's creation brings Zoey some joy.

Margaret's very large touchy feely quilt
Another request was for a handbag that could be tied on to the back of a wheelchair so that elderly residents could take their belongings with them.

a wheelchair bag

a 10 year old girl's tabbard apron touchy feely

These felt boards are being tested at a local special school.  They allow students to match colours or shapes.




Regular readers will know that I like to end my blog with a quilt that helps special school teachers with books they read to their students.  Well this month I have two for you. The first is "What made Tiddalik Laugh?".  This Aboriginal story is about Tiddalik the frog that drinks the country dry so the top picture shows brown countryside with bare sand and dry brown leaves.  All the (detachable) animals try to make Tiddalik laugh.  Only the platypus is successful and then all the water (creaks, rivers, ponds and fish) get laughed back on to the once dry land.




Story two is "Rosie's Walk".  Rosie the chicken lives in a hen house in a farmyard.  She goes for a walk across the yard, around the pond, over the haystack, past the mill, through the fence and under the beehives. Meanwhile the fox is one step behind.


Thanks to obstacles like the rake, flour falling from the mill and a wagon, Rosie manages to survive the walk to go home to her hen house.


Hope to see you at the next meeting on Monday 24 November.  Just a reminder to members that this meeting is also the AGM.