Monday 30th November

Well Sunshine Linus' final meeting for 2020 has come and gone and the committee and members who were involved in the extra organisation that was required during each meeting during this time of pandemic are looking forward to a well-earned break. With the change to meeting numbers, restrictions and opening of borders we are hoping that 2021 will be a return to normal meeting practices, but of course we have to wait until we get the go ahead from the church.
On the day, Janet (Vice President), Thelma, and Susan (President) were set up ready to greet members with a small Christmas gift as they arrived at the door.

Beryl receives a warm welcome from Susan, Sharon and Jan as she enters the hall.

Once again there was a bounty of gorgeous items that were created by members and friends and delivered for donation. 

Helen B was unable to attend the meeting but she has been busy making these cute little guys for the Sunshine Coast University Hospital. What a clever lady!

Barbara has also kept here hands busy making these wonderful marble mazes, drainage bags and a cute, washing-day themed, interactive mat!

These fabulous lace scarves and stunning dolls were crafted and donated by Loretta.

Kaye showed a beautifully appliqued 'quilter's ruler bag' donated by the Strathpine Quilters.

Susan made a pile of surgical gowns for children out of colourful, cheery fabrics.

Jan modelled one of the many eye-masks made for the mums at the neo-natal unit at SCUH. They help block out the bright lights in the wards.

Val has found a use for those balls of nylon yarn, she used them to knit some of these delightful teddies.

Beryl knitted these cute, little guys. They will be included in the baby packs for single mums.

Jenny has been hard at work crocheting a variety of weighted toys for the elderly patients in Ward 4FW at Nambour Hospital. Who could resist cuddling up to these friendly fellows?

Claire has been crafting at a furious rate. Among her creations are these teddies that were left on the freebie table in various stages of assembly. Mr Bunny was particularly gorgeous. They are destined for Lily House.

Some more weighted puppies made by Claire will be donated to Wishlist.

Clothing protectors for the students at Nambour Special School

Some experimental weighted toys for the chaplain at Nambour Special School to use to calm children when they visit her.

Lesley knitted these cosy and colourful hand-warmers and baby booties.

Rosemary has been getting very creative with these 'touchy feely' blocks, with lots of 'doodads' attached to make them interesting.

Beany donated a colourful collection of items including a 'touchy feely' book with lots of fun bits to pull out and pull along!

These little octopuses are destined for the children's ward at SCUH:

The quilters and sewers became quite excited by a very large donation of patchwork fabric from Lesley at Peregian. Thank you Lesley!

A big thankyou to the Strathpine quilters for their generous donation of quilts.

One of the many delightful children's quilts donated to Sunshine Linus:

A close up of the quilting

Another bright geometric design:

Janet from Toowoomba donated two very modern, strip quilts.

Kath from the Monday Mapleton craft group donated this lovely single bed quilt.

Orrawin has been putting her creative talents to work again by creating quilts from blocks found on the 'freebie' table. Kaye gave Orrawin the blocks for the purple and green quilt. Orrawin said it was like piecing a puzzle!

Anne M has been keeping herself occupied during the pandemic lockdown period. She brought along two intricately pieced quilts including this lovely Christmas themed quilt and a second version in a brighter colorway.

Jill showed a delightful disappearing 9 patch child's quilt she had made.

Anne C made this eye-catching, star quilt with a colourful border.

Sandra made two childrens' quilts including one in funky animal prints and another with a 'seaside' theme.

Dorothy had fun making a wheelchair quilt suitable for a man with its beer and lager labels.

Judy B put her quilting skills to practice with this 16 patch scrap quilt:

A close up of the quilting

Tips, Tricks and Hints

This month's hints come from Sunshine Linus President Susan:

• If you have some snaps that have tarnished, place them in a diluted mix of bleach and water. Leave soak for a bit and they will return to their original silver colour!
• If you are sitting at your sewing machine for prolonged periods of time, try using your left foot on the pedal. It will assist you to re-align your body while sitting at the machine and hopefully prevent those aches and pains!

Reminders

• Remember to check out the pages on the web that list where items go each month and also the wish lists for each month.
• A new calendar for 2021 should be posted sometime in the new year. Again this will be found on the links at the right hand side of the web page.
• We are currently planning to meet again on Monday 18th January 2021, but keep an eye out for any further updates.
• We are planning to host our Open Day in August 2021. Susan and Janet will be co ordinating this event. Further information will be announced in the coming months.

Sunshine Linus wishes you a safe and happy Christmas and New Year! We hope you find lots of opportunity to relax and of course time to stitch and craft during the holiday season!

Last Meeting for 2020

Hi Everyone, so this is just a friendly reminder that the last meeting for 2020 is just over a week away: Monday 30th November. Although the government has eased meeting restrictions the church has not yet altered their requirements so bookings are still essential. So if you plan to come along contact Janet to ensure a timeslot so you can do that final drop off and pick up of supplies!

Also if you are planning to do some last minute stitching this coming week remember to check out the 'Wish Lists' for this month, the link can be found on the tab on the right hand side of the blog page.

Some extra 'Wish List' items this month include the following:

• Noughts and Crosses sets (made using milk bottle lids)
• Breast drainage bags and breast pillows 

Monday 26th October

It was lovely to welcome Thelma back this month and of course with her contagious laugh and sense of humor she had us all smiling and laughing. Janet looked pleased with Thelma's efforts as she recorded each member's details on arrival at the front entrance! A big thankyou to Lyn P who has filled this role on previous occasions.

Every month the members and friends of Sunshine Linus make and donate a range of beautiful, handcrafted items to give comfort to people in need and this month was no exception. 

Marion was excited to show one of the many gorgeous Humidicrib covers she had made since our last meeting. They have a flap at the top for an opening and are used on the crib to protect the premature babies from the bright lights in the ward.

A number of the ladies enjoy making the colourful fabric hearts for the breast-feeding mums during their stay in hospital. The 'Baby Team' are asking members to make the larger (hand sized) hearts in sets of three. (There is no further need for the smaller hearts).

Another special item for the mums and bubs are these 'peanut pillows' that Elaine made. They are designed to cushion premature babies heads. Sunshine Linus provide peanut pillows for the special care babies at the Buderim Private Hospital and the Caboolture Community Hospital.

The Yarners Team have also been busy this month. Gabrielle showed these cute baby beanies and two stunning, crocheted rugs she had made. 

A close up of Gabrielle's very neat crochet stitches.

Other items from the 'Yarners Team' include these adorable dolls made by Leanne from Perigian. 

Chris from the Perigian Knitters and Crochet group made three colourful, crochet rugs.

The 'Sewing Team' make a myriad of items including bags of all types and sizes. Elaine and Marion made a selection of pretty, little girls' bags. Margaret made the bag with the embroidered cat. These bags will be donated to Lily House.

Orrawin made these treatment bags using fabric from the 'freebie table'.

Jill made these very jolly, patchwork Santa sacks. They will be donated to Lily House.

More bags from the 'Sewing Team'

 

Once again the sensory table was brimming with items. 

Elaine made this amazing sensory mat. It has been designed around a 'music' theme and includes various musical items.

Jenny D made these two handsome fellows. She has been experimenting with different yarns while crocheting the weighted animals. They are a big favourite with the elderly patients in hospital.

Lots and lots of quilts were donated this month. Marion has been working on this bright, modern Bargello quilt for some time and finally got it assembled. She was given a large Bargello block and asked to turn it into a quilt! 

Lyn P showed a pretty colour-wash, wheelchair quilt she had made.

Dorothy incorporated some 'cool cat' blocks from the 'freebie table' to make this fun quilt.

Anne made a green and cream zigzag quilt and a pretty, floral lap quilt.

Orrawin was given a box of small, fabric scraps last month and rose to the challenge of making a 'crumb' quilt from them! Orrawin also found time to piece this funky, blue quilt using a log cabin panel she was given.

 

Glorianne made a pretty heart-themed house quilt.

Barbara made a bright and modern, circle-themed quilt.

Annie R made two interesting lap quilts featuring floating squares.

Janet from Toowoomba made and donated a colourful batik strip quilt.

Sue V pieced these two tumbler block quilts from blocks found on the 'freebie table':

Joy from Mapleton made a gorgeous scrap quilt.

A few more quilts made by members and friends:

Thankyou to Lyn P for making all this binding and thankyou to Sue V for binding lots and lots of the donated quilts.

Hints, Tips and Tricks

And talking of binding here is the monthly tip from Sue V. 

1. Attach the binding to the back or front of the quilt (your preference).

2. Use a dry iron to iron the binding out flat from the edge.

3. Run a thin line of Elmer's glue between the line you have just stitched and edge of quilt.

4. Fold the binding over the edge and down onto the glue pressing it firmly in place.

5. Work your way right around the edge of the item/quilt folding the corners and gluing in place.

6. The binding should hold secure until you are ready to sew it down.

Reminder:

• Sunshine Linus' final meeting for the year will be on Monday 30th November. Be sure to book your time-slot with Janet!