Adoption Centre Now Open!

I bet you are wondering what on earth I am going on about but I am kind of used to that.  It will all make sense.  Sue sent me some orphan blocks to use up in AHQ and when I laid them out on the design wall it reminded me of a few others I have been sent, some for Aussie Heroes and others earlier than  that.  these are Sue's.

And here are some of Sue's and some from Celia, and a couple of others.  

 It made me wonder how many more of you are out there with unwanted blocks that you would like to see go to a good home.  So, as it says at the top, the Adoption Centre is now open.  Please feel free to send me any or all of your unwanted blocks so that I can incorporate them in a Aussie Hero's Quilt.

Here is one example of a quilt that the Gumnuts and I turned into a quilt for Queensland starting with some orphan blocks.

And, if you don't have any orphan blocks - feel free to make some!  Hee Hee

Now, just a quick bit of admin.  I have been using two different types of cording and I thought they would both be okay but I am now not so sure.  Last night I pre-washed all three laundry bags that I made (I prefer to wash the finished item than the fabric - so much less fraying!  What i didn't expect to find was how much the cord frayed - the second type!!!  It has a central core and boy! Did it fray!!!  So, if you have to buy cord from now on - I suggest you buy the cheaper looking cord at the top.  Hope that makes sense.

And now for the biggest surprise and treat!   This is the first time I have been able to share a picture of one of the quilt recipients with his quilt!!!  This lovely guy had to get special permission from his boss, and submit the photo for her approval, before he could send me a picture suitable for publication on this blog!

I guess the amount of effort he went to send us this photo makes it pretty clear how much these quilts are appreciated and if that doesn't make you want to get your sewing machine out  and start sewing------then you better take up carpentry instead  - nah.....just kidding. 

But wait.......there's more!  Tonight I also received a gorgeous email from none other than this soldier's lovely wife!  She just wanted to say thankyou too!  Okay, so yes I am doing a happy dance.  We are doing a good thing here and I couldn't be more pleased!!!

Till next time...............happy stitching!

Three more laundry bags completed last night and these are probably the last ones I will sew with initials on them.  I am only showing you two here because I think the recipient of the third might see this blog occasionally and if so I don't want to spoil the surprise!

Don't you love the pink square with the initials on it!  I do because it hides the initials underneath it - THAT ARE THE WRONG WAY ROUND - i.e. EA instead of AE!  I still don't believe that I did that!

From now on all laundry bags will have patches on them so that the guys and gals can write their own details on them.  The main reason why we are going to use patches instead of initials is so that we can all make laundry bags for those anonymous soldiers that we don't have names of initials for!

My friend Cathy from Blueberry Patch sent me a parcel of goodies which arrived yesterday.  In the parcel were some lovely quilt labels and that gave me a great idea.

What if we sewed quilt labels like these on some of the bags?  They look nice and they still fulfill the same purpose.  There is nothing wrong with the original idea of the bordered patches but the quilt labels would be something different if you have some you would like to use up.  What do you think?

Busy busy day at Gumnuts today - we layered and pinned all twelve quilts that I took.  I don't think any of us thought we would get it all done but we did and with time to spare and sit and chat.  It was great.  Guess what I will be doing tomorrow - quilting, and quilting, and quilting!

And now I have to race off and get organised for a very early start tomorrow morning with the boys - teenagers just love early starts so you can imagine how much I am looking forward to it!

Till next time........happy stitching.

Why are we sending quilts?

Obviously everyone (with any taste) loves a soft snuggly quilt - men and women alike.  That is a no-brainer but why is it so good to send specifically to our guys in Afghanistan?  The obvious reason is because it is cold there in winter...........

really cold - minus 25C in winter - that is seriously cold!  

And by the way it was apparently snowing on base yesterday!

But for me there are two more reasons, probably the most important reasons, why we send quilts.  

The first one is to brighten their rooms and make the place more homely.  

The third reason is really the key though.  Last night I received an email from a soldier I do not know who received one of the Gumnuts original quilts - the ones that we sent over to be given to soldiers not in our friendly warrant officer's teams.  We sent 24 quilts, 15 for the Warrant Officer's teams and nine to go to other soldiers.  This soldiers received one of the extra quilts so his quilt turned up completely unexpectedly for him - and here is his response.

"Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this beautiful gift. It is people like you that make the time away from our loved ones a little less painful. This quilt will keep me warm over the next few months until I return home. I look forward to giving it to my son when I return home as I know he will love it just as much as I do. Thank you."


He also included a photo of himself with the quilt but I can't publish that without his permission nor will I name him but his words say it all.  The fact that we are prepared to make a gift of a quilt to a soldier who is far from home means that we are supporting them, it means that they are valued and not forgotten.

Every time I receive a word of thanks from these wonderful guys and gals I am humbled and motivated to keep going and sew more.  My old Air Commodore served in Korea and he told me about receiving a care package containing all sorts of things - he said it was the fact that someone he didn't know cared enough to send something made him feel valued.

So that is why we are sending quilts.  I hope this encourages you as much as it does me.

I hope you have enjoyed the photos - they were taken and sent to me by our friendly Warrant Officer.

Have a great day and until next time......happy stitching!

Today's goodies from the postie.

Look what Mr Postman bought me today.  In the land of OZ parcels are delivered but a private contractor who brings them to the door and leaves them if they don't require signature.   My local contractor is getting to know this house well these days.

This first parcel is from Christine - three lovely laundry bags - one plain one and two for two gentlemen.  These will probably be the last ones I give out initials for - easier to manage if you just put patches for the soldiers to write their own initials.  Christine also included a length of extra wide backing which I am sure will find a home very soon, it is such a lovely colour!

Then Sue sent this lovely bundle.  She included BOLD STAR which is a lovely quilt top sewn by the Quilting Block Swaps Australia sewers and you can see the whole quilt top here.  Sue also included the blue spot for binding and the white sheeting for backing and, as if that wasn't enough, a bunch of orphan blocks AND, very generously, a charm pack for me!  I am feeling very spoilt!

I haven't had time to spread out the orphan blocks on my design wall yet but I will do it tomorrow and show you then.  In the mean time I have some work to do to get quilt backings ready for layering on Wednesday.

Before I go - I want to share some pictures that the lovely warrant officer sent me - these are Dutch Apache helicopters. The photos were taken by the lovely Warrant Officer, during a ramp ceremony for three Australian soldiers that were killed in a helicopter crash. The helicopters did a fly past, one pulled up vertically and fired flares while the other one continued the fly past.  A spectacular sight in somber circumstances, but I think it amplifies why we are doing what we do.  Our servicemen and women are doing their duty and making our country incredibly proud in a dangerous environment.  Quilts and laundry bags, though greatly appreciated by those in service, seem such a small recognition.

Keep spreading the word and happy stitching!

Lots of preparations

Lots and lots of preparations going on here.  Big day coming up on Wednesday - layering and pinning day!

first up I finished up some binding - love this zingy green!  

 Then I made labels - printed them off using printable paper.  Rinsed them of excess dye, dried them, added a border to each that would reasonably coordinate with the backing.  Most labels get a bit of Aussie flag fabric and then another Aussie fabric on the other two sides.  All the boys' quilts have this lovely outback red fabric on them but that didn't seem appropriate for the girls's quilts.

It might have been okay on this peach backing but I liked the green gumnuts!

And it would have clashed with the japanese fabric.

 I really like this black floral.  

 Most of the labels are fused and placed on an angle.  This way they will never be crooked!  We decided to fuse for durability given the wear and tear these quilts will receive.

 I set this one into the backing as I had to piece the backing anyway.

 The same with this one.  And here I just didn't think the Aussie fabric would contribute, rather I thought it would compete just too much!

And now I have a stack of backings ready for me to satin stitch around the labels and then they are all ready for Wednesday.

Till next time........happy stitching!

Cotton please

Hi there.  I have had a few inquiries about what sort of batting to use for the Hero Quilts.  The simple answer is 100% COTTON please.  Wool would be fabulous in the middle of winter but I expect these quilts will stay on the soldier's beds for the whole time they are in Afghanistan and no matter when they go they should experience some of the cold and some of the warm.  A cotton quilt is more versatile and also easier to launder PLUS it breathes better than polyester.  Hope that clarifies that for everyone.

One of my quilt group buddies has been busy - today she dropped off five feminine quilt tops and four backings.  Look what she has been up to...

I am going to be busy between now and Wednesday making labels and sewing them onto the backings but I really can't wait to see the quilts finished and ready to go.  There are nine feminine quilts that have been promised as soon as we can get them there.  Normally that wont happen. I am not taking requests for quilts.  I will just send as many as I can.  If I hear of a need and I can fill it I will but I don't intend to encourage requests.  Laundry bags are a different thing though.  I do my best to provide one for everyone who asks for one.

Till next time..........happy stitching!

More goodies in the mail.....

I received another parcel in the mail today, this time from the lovely ladies from the Injune Creek Patchwork Group from Injune in Queensland today and look what they sent - lots of lovely binding which they have made - 100m of it!  This is going to be so handy!

Look at that gorgous rainbow colour!  That will add some zing to some quilts!

We also received these bundles!  43m of 6 1/2" strips.  I am not going to unfold the beautifully folded bundles but the one on the left has some lovely browns and blues and the one on the right has some cute apples in it - both are great fabrics - batiks, lovely colours.  It is taking all my will power to NOT rip into them straight away but I need to concentrate on what is underway already!

Thanks so much to all the lovely ladies from Injune Creek Patchwork Group.  You guys are the best.

Back to work for me so till next time........happy stitching!