Cancellation of March Meeting

Dear members and friends of Sunshine Linus, due to the the current situation with COVID19 and in accordance with public health recommendations our March meeting has been cancelled. We will continue to monitor events as they change and keep you updated.
Please stay safe and keep stockpiling your wonderful handmade items!

A couple of reminders.....

• Just a reminder to our members and friends that there will be no Linus Activity Day on Monday. The next meeting is scheduled for Monday 30th March.
• Jenny D has created a crochet pattern for the 'boobs' she spoke about at last month's meeting. The lactation consultants at SCUH have asked for more of the crocheted boobs to use as an aid for teaching breastfeeding. They want different sizes in different colours. The pattern is on the blog and can be found here.

Monday 24th February

There were 81 members and 8 visitors in attendance at this month's meeting and lots of new members have been added to the membership roll! A warm welcome to our new members!

Thelma found herself back in the kitchen organising morning tea. A big thank you to Thelma for her faithful support of Sunshine Linus over the years as Kitchen Co-ordinator. Next month will be Thelma's last turn in this role so make sure you take time to go over and thank her!

Jenny, Janet and Leslie were caught having a giggle as they showed several sets of ‘boob’s’ Jenny had crocheted and knitted for the maternity section at SCUH. They will be used in antenatal classes to show first-time mums how to breastfeed.

Fran and Eileen found themselves inundated with a whole pile of lovable Kanyini bears to label.

Dawn was happy to show a collection of very quirky, ‘touchy feely’ clappers she had made using yogurt container lids!

Show and Tell began with Lorraine and Susan modelling two of the knitted shawls that are always in high demand. They are basically made from three 45” to 50” squares stitched together in an L shape with a button on the front.

The Yarners Team have been creating a range of very cute sea creatures made from small scraps of wool.

Kaye has kept herself busy making a selection of bags that can be used to store wheel chair foot rests.

Kaye also managed to make a number of quilts for renal patients at hospitals. They include a handle and an attached pocket for the patient’s feet and for the quilt to be folded into! Click here for a pattern.

Leonie showed two delightful quilts she had quilted. The first was a hexagon-themed quilt made by a lady from her church group and the second quilt was a double wedding-ring quilt that contained beautifully quilted motifs between the rings.  

Faye showed a number of sweet quilt tops she had quilted and finished. They were donated by Maleny Patchwork Magic.

Faye also showed an adorable wheel chair quilt that any dog-lover would be happy to own!

Lyn showed a quaint red and white quilt with embroidered hearts.

Lyn also showed these two botanical beauties she had made.

Glorianne showed a number of colourful and scrappy quilt tops she had quilted and completed for other members and supporters.

The first two were made by a lady from Woodford.

Glorianne also showed two quilts she had made. The first quilt was an attempt to use some of the many floral fabrics that are donated. It is called ‘Candy Crayons’. The second quilt was a freebie pattern from the internet called ‘Bloom’.

Anne had been trying out the quilt-as you go technique and attempting to use up smaller pieces of wadding with these two colourful quilts.

Show and Tell concluded with the draw of the lucky door prizes. One of our new members was first to receive a prize. Sunshine Linus president Susan had made a number of gorgeous, heart-shaped and scented pomanders for prizes.

Following Show and Tell, Kaye ran a short but very informative workshop called ‘Precise Piecing and Cutting’.

Some of her tips included:

• Always use the same ruler and mat when cutting out a quilt.
• Keep an eye on the thread count of the fabrics you use. They can differ greatly and cause difficulty when trying to align the pieces to sew.
• Use a walking foot or raise the upper feed-dogs on your sewing machine if possible. This helps both layers of fabric to feed evenly.
• When joining rows together Kaye doesn’t press her seams before she sews as it can cause ridges on the right side of the fabric. Instead she flips one seam away from her and one toward her as she sews. The seams should nestle together when you do this.
• When joining triangles take care with the bias to prevent the fabric stretching.
• When joining half square triangles just sew a few stitches in a longer stitch length from the end then remove the blocks and check that the seams align on the right side. If so, go back and sew the whole seam in a regular stitch length. If not, unpick and try again!
• When you have many seams coming together at a point iron them firmly flat on the wrong side.

Look at those points!

• There will be no activity day in March as previously scheduled.
• Susan will sending out a reminder regarding the tagging and testing of sewing machines and overlockers at next month's meeting.
• The AGM will be held during the meeting on March 30th.
• If you click here, you will find the links to the new pages on the blog that describe the Structure of Sunshine Linus Inc, the Team Leaders, Rosters and Cleaning Tasks.

A Few Reminders.....

Just a few reminders for the Sunshine Linus meeting this Monday 24th February:

• After the general meeting, Kaye will be running a workshop called ‘Precise Piecing and Binding’, so bring some lunch and stay a little longer this month.
• Remember to bring your membership form and $10 fee if you haven't yet paid for membership.
• Remember to park parallel to the driveway if you park on the grass. 

       See you Monday!

Monday 20th January

It was fantastic to see everyone back for Sunshine Linus’ first meeting for 2020! We were greeted at the door by Lyn and our president Susan, as they processed the member registrations.

It didn’t take long for everyone to begin sorting and labelling the many items that had been stitched, crocheted and knitted during the holiday break.

Of course many of our members were keen to show and talk about what they had made. Claire had created this amazing ‘touchy feely’ abacus quilt for the prep class at Glenview State School. She had ingeniously incorporated a whole range of beads, corks and bottle tops that her husband had very kindly drilled for her.

Chris was happy to show a colourful blockenspeil and crocheted poppy she had made.

Orrawin arrived with this intricately pieced, black and white checkerboard quilt.

Jenny showed her delightful ‘touchy feely’ wall hanging.

Show and Tell began with Liz explaining the fire drill and evacuation procedures. A big thank you to Marion and Jan for attending the training session on Fire and Safety during the break.

Lorraine has been ‘monkeying around’ with these two delightful characters made using Suffolk puffs.

She also showed a quilt she had assembled using a set of beautifully embroidered blocks made by a friend, and a geometrically themed quilt complete with a pocket at the bottom. The quilts with the pockets are particularly suited for use by patients who are undergoing renal surgery.

Cynthia showed a quirky quilt she had managed to piece using a range of ‘orphan blocks’ found on the ‘freebie table’.

Anne has been busy during the holidays quilting a number of quilt tops made by other members. The eye-catching bargello quilt came from the Bribie Island quilters.

These two gorgeous Japanese-themed quilts were given to Anne by Jeanette, a friend from line dancing.

Anne also managed to make two lovely quilts of her own.

Dorothy has been busy once again making a range of colourful children’s quilts.

Dorothy also made this pretty, fairy-themed quilt using a panel from the Cicely Mary Barker range of fabrics. She also made a set of pencil cases that will be handy to add to the activity bags Sunshine Linus donate to various police station around the coast.

Glorianne finally got her quilting frame and sewing machine working after a long recess and has helped out by quilting quilt tops made by other members of Sunshine Linus. 

These four bright scrap quilts were made by Kim and quilted by Glorianne.

Brigitte found the quilt patterns for these bold and modern designs on Pinterest.

Annie has been endeavouring to use up her scraps to make a quirky ‘Wonky Stars’ quilt and a strip quilt.

She also made this striking purple and cream quilt using fabric donated by a church member.

The ‘Baby Team’ showed a selection of gorgeous dresses and shorts made and donated by Sandra.

Lorraine and Beany had fun modelling these very pretty and frilly children’s skirts and shorts!

Linda from the ‘Sensory Team’ showed a nifty ‘touchy feely’ mat that had lots of hidden pockets to explore and a quirky cushion that had a range of sensory items attached.

The ‘Yarners Team’ showed a collection of very cute fish, knitted by Helen.

Claire has been creating a range of items during the break. She showed a mini trampoline she had re-covered for Nambour Special School and a sensory sash she had made for an aged-care client.

Peachester State School asked Claire if she could create a hand puppet to represent their school emblem: a yellow-tailed, black cockatoo. So she set about designing a prototype using the pattern from a frog puppet.

The final result was this charming fellow!

Reminders:

• Remember to park parallel to the driveway if you park on the grass.
• Don’t forget there will be a workshop following next month’s meeting called ‘Precise Piecing and Binding’.
• Remember to bring your membership form and $10 fee if you haven't yet paid for membership.