March 2026

The March meeting of Sunshine Linus included our AGM, where the 2025 committee presented their annual reports. 📊 Cynthia N. oversaw the election of our 2026 office bearers, and thanks to the hard work of the 2025 committee, the transition was seamless ✨👏

AGM 

A big thank you to Claire T. ✨👏for her five years as treasurer. As required by the constitution, she’s stepping down from the role but will continue as a valued general committee member.

Sharon H. will remain as president, Glorianne P as secretary, and we welcome Marion G. as our new treasurer. Congratulations to the new committee!

We’ve had a change in the kitchen.

Thank you, Bonnie!

Nicky W. has kindly stepped in to take over organising and preparing morning teas from Bonnie. A big thank you to Bonnie for all her efforts. ✨👏 Be sure to say hello to Nicky next time you see her at morning tea. ☕

And remember, a plate to share for morning tea is always appreciated.🍰

A big welcome to Nicky!

RAFFLE

This month’s raffle will be drawn next month 🎟️✨

A big thank you to Val L. for taking care of the raffle each month 🙌😊

Prizes this month include a scarf, knitted doll and a small quilt.

THE SALES TABLE

A big thank you to Elaine for her tireless work coordinating the Sales Table. 🙌💖 Funds raised help purchase wadding and supplies so members can keep creating high quality items for local organisations. 🧵✨

Be sure to get in early each month as items sell fast! 🛍️⏰ 

Next month, don’t miss the beautiful handmade bags, a lovely collaboration between Judy B., who embroidered the motifs, and Kaye N., who crafted them into stylish, sturdy bags. 👝💫

There’s always something special on offer, from holders for iPads, phones, sunglasses, and coffee mugs. 📱🕶️☕ Remember to say hi to Elaine and see what treasures you can find! 🎁👀

Later in the day. 

Available next month.

SHOW AND TELL

For those who missed February’s Activity Day, here are some of the results ✨ It was noted that quilts made using the Marti Mitchell templates are always especially neat and precise 🧵📐

Barabara's square.

Sharon's quilt.

Kaye N. and Judy B. showed us bags they co-created. The bags will be on sale next month at the Sales Table.

A combined effort always works well.

The story of how Rosanna began making her quilt has featured in previous blogs.✨ This glorious creation began life at last year’s retreat at Bribie Island. 🌊🧵

Rosanna's checked quilt is complete. 

Judy B. has once again been busy quilting. Quits featured in Show and Tell have been made by Annie R., Lyn and others. Interestingly, most of the materials and blocks have been gathered from the freebie table.

Thank you, Judy, for quilting these pieces ready for distribution 🙏🧵  

Please remember that measurements and patterns for the items we distribute are available for free on the blog 📏✨

These  bright and cheerful children's Eye Spy quilts are from Narelle and Carole in Toowoomba

Every panel tells a different story.

Jungle Theme

More stories in a quilt.

The classic children’s book Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?, written by Bill Martin Jr. and illustrated by Eric Carle, has inspired a beautiful project 🐻‍❄️📚

Twelve very individual panels.

Claire F. spent many hours sewing last month to create a stunning story quilt 🧵✨ Each square is individually crafted, allowing children to retell the story in sequence in a fun, hands-on way.

The quilt was requested by and will be gifted to Palmview State Special school 🎁🏫

This panel features a beautifully ornate peacock, brought to life with flowing folds of fabric and shimmering sequins 🦚✨

A group of peacocks is called an ostentation. 

Farmyard Backing.

After our AGM, it’s back to what we do best. 💙 Items made for community requests are packed and distributed to bring comfort and care across the Sunshine Coast. 📦✨

A glimpse into our day to day work.

See you all next month! 🧵✨

IMPORTANT DATES 📅

27 APRIL:                        April Meeting   

25 MAY:                           May Meeting

1 AUGUST:                     Open Day 2026

March Meeting and AGM

You are invited to our next Sunshine Linus meeting on Monday, 30th March, 2026.

We meet at the Uniting Church on Coronation Street in Nambour, with car park access via Donaldson Street. Meetings are held on the last Monday of each month, from 9:30am to 2:00pm.

New members, sponsors, and visitors are always welcome. 

Tea, coffee, and a light morning tea will be provided.

We look forward to seeing you there!.

News from our Activity Day

 ✨ Sunshine Linus Activity Day – Monday 16 March ✨

Throughout the morning, everyone was engaged in a range of different projects including preparation of materials for distribution at our next meeting. Read on to find out more. 🧵✂️

👁️ Eye Patch Project

A dedicated group of women spent time cutting out fabric and assembling packs of materials for eye patches. These packs will be available for members to collect at our next meeting, so they can sew the patches at home.

Eye patches are used in hospitals to support some patients who have had a stroke. They can play an important role in supporting recovery by helping patients regain sight and movement as part of their rehabilitation.

A big thank you to everyone who helped prepare these packs.

Your work will make a real difference
 to someone’s recovery. 💛

Each pack contains 10 eye patches, and we currently have 18 packs ready for members to collect and sew. 

Thank you to everyone who will put up
their hand up to help with this project 💛.

If you’d like to help by sewing some of the eye patches, please see Jenny at our meeting on March 30 to collect your pack. 🧵✂️

Exploring Marti Mitchell Quilting Patterns 🧵✨

Activity Day also gave everyone a great chance to explore quilting with Marti Mitchell patterns. 

Patterns come with acrylic templates, which make a big difference when cutting fabric. They help improve accuracy with shapes and corners, making the quilting process more precise. 📐✂️

The full range of quilting sets was on display, giving members the opportunity to explore the various designs and options available.

😊 Borrow a Set to Try at Home!

The good news is that these quilting sets are available for members to borrow. 🧵📐

Simply sign a set out, take it home and enjoy working with the templates.

When you’re finished, sign it back in so other members can have a turn as well.

It’s a great way to try something new in your quilting without needing to buy the templates yourself. Happy quilting! ✂️🪡

 

Looking good, watch this space..

Quilting in action.

A top is ready to go.

 😊 A Little Decluttering Too!

Our president Sharon, pointed out that Activity Day is a great opportunity for a bit of decluttering as well! 🧺✨

The Freebie Table has received some fantastic donations recently, including hundreds of dollars' worth of magazines! 🧵🪡

During Activity Day, time was set aside to sort through all the magazines so they could be organised and ready for members to browse at next month’s meeting.

There’s a wonderful range of topics available, including:
🧶 Quilting
🧸 Toy and Doll Making
🧵 Knitting
🎨 General Craft

There are also lots of patterns included, which is especially exciting as hardcopy patterns are becoming harder and harder to find these days.

Make sure you stop by the Freebie Table at the next meeting and treat yourself to a magazine or two. You might just find your next project or inspiration! 😊📖

 

Magazines include patterns.

📦✨ A Trip Through the Archives

Glorianne and Carole spent some time during Activity Day sorting through our archive boxes, taking a look back through Sunshine Linus history and getting everything organised. 🧵📚

And of course, there was time for morning tea.

The archive box is sorted.

 With everything now tidied up and in order, it looks like Sunshine Linus is ready to officially begin our 2026 year at our Annual General Meeting on March 30.

We look forward to seeing everyone there! 😊 

Check the Blog for further details! 😊🧶

Activity Day Reminder

 Join us on Monday, March 16 for our next Activity Day! 🌸🧵

We’ll be getting together to make eye patches for stroke patients, a small project that can make a big difference.

If you enjoy quilting, we’ll also have Marti Mitchell templates available for anyone who would like to use them while they’re there.

Check your emails to see what to bring along.

Come along and spend a friendly morning with us at the Uniting Church Hall in Nambour, starting at 9:00am. Whether you stay for a little while or the whole morning, it will be lovely to see you there!

February 2026

🌞🧵 Sunshine Linus Meeting Wrap-Up 🧵🌞

Well… what a fabulous February catch-up we had! It was great to see so many people at the meeting. We were reminded of important safety and administration requirements and procedures. 

The creativity levels were high and ideas flowed. Everyone was gathering resources and ideas ready to create and  share a little Sunshine Linus magic around the Coast ✨

Morning Tea

We’re still on the lookout for someone to help coordinate our morning teas, so if you’re keen to lend a hand, please let us know. We’d really appreciate it!

🛍️ Sales Table

Our Sales Table was a hive of activity this month! From beautiful handmade goodies to crafty treasures, there was something for everyone.

A huge thank you to everyone who donated items and to those who made a purchase.

The table is always a winner.

🎟️ Raffle Fun!

Our February raffle was another highlight! There’s nothing like that little moment of suspense while tickets are being called 😄

Our lucky winners were: -

Bonnie - the vase.

Wendy Mc - the crocheted rug.

Marion - the placemats.

🧶 The Freebie Table – Treasure Galore!

Resources on the Freebie Table were building back up this month!

We had all sorts of bric-a-brac, fabrics, materials, wool, bits and pieces. The great part is it was all FREE! 🆓✨

Please remember:
👉 Take what inspires you
👉 You can use it to create a very useful item for our Distribution List 

Every ball of wool, every scrap of fabric and every “odds and ends” treasure can become:

• A quilt

• A knitted beanie

• A heat pack

• A cushion

• A comfort item

Let’s turn those freebies into finished pieces ready to bring warmth and comfort to our hospitals, palliative care units and community partners.

"Chicken and Mother Hen" modelled by Dawn.

Wool is available on the Freebie Table.

Create some comfort toys.

Mark your calendars now: 

🗓 Sunshine Linus Open Day – 1st August 2026

We will be holding a quilt sale on the day, and we need plenty of beautiful quilts ready to go!

This is a wonderful opportunity to:

• Showcase our group’s incredible talent

• Raise funds for materials and supplies

• Share the Sunshine Linus story with the wider community

So if you’re starting a new quilt, maybe make one for Open Day!
If you’ve got one nearly finished, come along to our next meeting to find a friend to help you complete it! 😉

Kaye is always available to help with wadding.

💛 Show and Tell

Bribie Island Quilters.
Faye and Charmaine.

Bribie Island Quilters.

Bribie Island Quilters.

Quilt As You Go also known as QAYG.
Sharon.

Scrap quilt put together by Sharon.

Another Scrap Quilt looking great.

Judie B. quilted and the centre piece is a panel.

Judie B.

Diamonds are a girl's best friend!

Palmview Special School students and teachers are in for a big treat this year. Claire continues to create exciting resources to make learning fun.

"Humpty Dumpty" is ready to play.

Children learn more when they can interact with letters.
Letter mats continue to be a very valued resource.

The wheels on this bus not only go round but up and down and on and off.
A fun way to encourage language skills.

To everyone who took photos, wrote notes, stitched, donated, organised tables, sold raffle tickets, sorted freebies, and simply showed up with a smile — thank you. 💛

Sunshine Linus isn’t just about quilts.
It’s about friendship, generosity and making a difference — one stitch at a time.

See you all next month! 🧵✨

IMPORTANT DATES

16 MARCH:                    Activity Day- Please join us. 

This month we will make eye patches for stroke patients and use Marti Mitchell Templates for quilts. 

30 MARCH:                    March Meeting   

1 AUGUST:                     Open Day 2026