Monday 28th September

September's meeting was the third time that Sunshine Linus members met with restrictions in place. The committee had streamlined the process of preparing everything for the occasion but of course there was still a lot of lifting and carrying required before the attendees arrived. Jenny and Sharon are no strangers to the effort involved!

Thanks again to Charles who was happy to help out with the storage and delivery of many boxes and bags.

Sue and Margaret have become experts at setting out the many and varied items that are donated for the 'Freebie table'.

Kaye, Jan and Marion take a five minute break after the 'set up' is complete.

Once again Lyn and Janet were organised with lists to check everyone in and out as they arrived and departed.

Lorraine was pleased to be back and of course she always has a smile and laugh to share!

Besides dropping off the many donated items, the meeting also provides an opportunity for members to restock. 

Beryle, Eileen, Francis and Pam enjoy rummaging through the fabric boxes to see what they might find useful.

Every month we are amazed at the beautiful hand crafted items that are made and donated to Sunshine Linus. Gabrielle brought along a selection of stunning rugs made by her craft group in Peregian.

Jan had these cuties to show:

The 'Baby team' also received two dainty baby blankets from Shirley.

And look at all these gorgeous beanies for babies!

Leanne from Noosa arrived with several bags of beautiful items she had knitted during the past year!

Kaye showed a very modern quilt made with a geometric design in bold reds and blacks.

Anne showed two lovely lap quilts made in bright colors.

 

Orrawin made this eye-catching half square triangle quilt.

Many quilt tops arrive at Sunshine Linus un-quilted and un-bound. A big thank you to the many ladies who quilt, make the binding and bind these quilts tops so they are finished and ready for distribution!

Claire has kept herself occupied making numerous weighted, toy animals. These two little guys look very cuddly! 

Claire was asked to make a horse and dog-themed sensory bedspread. She was given so much horse-themed fabric she was also able to make this 'touchy feelie' mat for the ARC unit at Nambour Hospital.

Of course the tables were brimming with donated items once the members had completed their 'drop-off'.

Beanie shows some of the 'touchy feelie' items.

It didn't take long before it was time for the 'distribution teams' to arrive and begin their work sorting, labelling and bagging items.

Barbara and Jill set to work.

Lisa, Denise and Val from the 'Sewing team' seem to have everything under control!

Lesley and Pam are hard at work again.

After all the sorting was done it was time once again to pack up, head home and have a cuppa and much needed sit down!

Some reminders:

• If you are making quilts please remember to check out the recommended quilt sizes. The tab listing sizes can be found on the right hand side of the blog.
• If you are only making the quilt tops for renal quilts (ie. not quilting, adding the pocket and binding), please make them to the suggested measurements but leave as a rectangle. The 'quilters' or 'binders' will cut the wedge at the bottom after they have been quilted. Please also remember to include fabric for the pocket.
• Sunshine Linus next Distribution Day (with restrictions) will be on Monday 26th October.

Stay safe and well!

Next Meeting

Just a reminder that the next Sunshine Linus meeting will be held on Monday 28th September. Again some important reminders for this restricted meeting:

It is absolutely essential that you contact Janet  B to organise a time slot to attend! 

On arrival members will be asked to:

•  use the hand sanitiser provided

•  check their details

•  enter arrival time and sign the form

•  wear the numbered lanyard provided

•  maintain social distancing at all time

Hope to see you there!

Sunshine Linus: A Good News Story

Here is a lovely good news story (from Sue T) to cheer everyone up during these challenging times: 

A friend of Sue's - Ponee Louie is a Rural Area Nurse working mainly in Indigenous and Islander Communities. She recently sent an email to Sunshine Linus thanking the 'lovely hard working women' of the Sunshine Linus group at the Sunshine Coast for the beautiful gifts and practical things they provide for these communities. Ponee said they use these items to enhance the Primary Health Care Centres and also provide useful and neccessary items to the local community members. The items are greatly appreciated and valued.

Ponee feels very lucky and privileged to have groups like the Sunshine Linus Group, who endeavour to help and do whatever they can to help the less privileged and vulnerable in communities near and far.

Below are a few photos of the beautiful quilts, clothes and toys made by the members and friends of Sunshine Linus. 

 

Monday 31st August

Another successful Distribution Day has come and gone with thanks to the many committed helpers here at Sunshine Linus. Of course the Covid-19 safe practice plan has meant that many of these ladies (and some husbands) have spent countless hours behind the scenes preparing for the gathering.

On the day Marion and Jenny were on hand again to ensure everyone maintained the required social-distancing.

 Jan kept an eye on the air quality.

Unpacking everything and setting up always takes a couple of hours.

At 9:30am, (and after some instructions), Janet allowed the queued members entry into the hall and Lyn was ready to record their names and entry time.

Sharon made sure members were kept on the 'straight and narrow pathway' as they entered and continued their walk around the hall.

Cynthia had to re-enter through the correct doorway before she was allowed to drop off her donated items!

Members were then allowed half an hour to drop off items and pick-up supplies.

Helen and Eileen wait patiently in line at the 10 o'clock time slot.

It didn't take long for the tables to begin to fill with a gorgeous array of donated items.

There were some finely crafted 'touchy feely' items on display as well some colourful, crocheted balls and this cute little fellow made by Jenny D. Mr Octopus is destined for the special needs children at the One Mile School!

Jenny also showed two themed sensory mats. These mats are popular with dementia patients at Aged Care Centres, so if you feel inclined to make one or two, feel free!

Loretta made this stunning, three dimensional knee rug. Nambour Hospital's Acute Restorative Care (ARC) Unit have requested rugs such as this with color and texture. So, once again, if you feel inclined to make one they will be much appreciated.

Judie arrived with a cart load of quilts including this bright, modern design:

Orrawin arrived with two very intricate scrap quilts she had made.

Lyn showed two quilts she has been working on this past month, including this elegant embroidered quilt and a star-themed, window-box quilt.

Sue has been busy attaching binding to a pile of quilts including these pretty designs:

Annie donated these two lovely quilts:

Robyn left looking very pleased after her drop-off and pick-up time-slot.

And once the scheduled time-slots finished this was the view from the stage!

The distribution teams then set to work sorting, labelling and bagging ready for distribution. Leslie, Pam and Irene set to work organising all the knitted and crocheted items.

Jill set about checking and sorting the quilts.

And it wasn't long before the hall was looking a lot tidier and all the bags were zipped up ready for distribution!

Hints, Tips and Tricks

Last post I included a tip from Dorothy relating to straightening yarn. The tip this month is for the patch-workers: if you want to achieve those perfect points when piecing your blocks invest in some of these forked pins. Remember to press your seams in opposite directions, then pin your seam as usual but where they meet with the second block use a forked pin to match the seams. Leave the forked pin in place and slowly stitch across where the seams join. Perfect points every time!

A FEW REMINDERS:

Quilt Sizes

• Below is a list of the recommended and most requested quilt sizes from Sunshine Linus clientele. It makes the distribution team's job much easier if the quilts fit within these measurements.

Single bed: 60"- 75 "wide x 87"- 95" long
Body: 40"- 50" wide x 60" - 65" long
Renal: 40" - 50" wide by 70" long with the bottom corners trimmed and a pocket on the back
Wheelchair: 36" square with the bottom corners trimmed
Lap: 40"- 48" square
(You can find instructions for the renal and wheelchair quilts under the 'Patterns' tab.)

Next Meeting

• Our next meeting is scheduled for Monday 28th September, but of course this will depend on Government restrictions regarding Covid-19. So please keep an eye on your email and this blog for further updates.

Reminders for Monday's Meeting

Hi Everyone, well the next Linus Meeting is only days away now so a few reminders if you wish to attend:

First, it is absolutely essential that you contact Janet  B to organise a time slot to attend! 

Once again on arrival members will be asked to:

•  use the hand sanitiser provided

•  check their details

•  enter arrival time and sign the form

•  wear the numbered lanyard provided

•  maintain social distancing at all times

Quilt Labels

Please ensure if you are attaching your Sunshine Linus labels that they are placed in the bottom right corner of the quilt. This makes the work of the ladies who sort items on Distribution day much easier as they can check for labelling very quickly.

A few of the beautiful quilts donated to Sunshine Linus:

Hints, Tips and Tricks

The members at Sunshine Linus are bursting with creative ideas, hints and tips in relation to their field of expertise, so each month we plan to include a tip you may find useful! This month's tip comes from Dorothy and it's especially for our Yarners!

You will need: A saucepan with 2 or 3 litres of boiling water (or larger if you have it).
When you unpick an item and rip the yarn out, wind it around the outside of the saucepan. Stop when you reach a join or when it becomes awkward to wind any more. Loop the end of the yarn around the handle to hold it. Fill the saucepan with boiling water to within an inch of the top. Put the lid on and set aside until the water is cold. Gently remove the hank of yarn and empty the water. You can then roll the straightened yarn into a ball, like our grandmothers did. (Engage someone else to hold the hank on their hands for you, if you like!)