Teddy Bear Quilts
Just a reminder to get your teddy bear quilts ready for Christmas Cheer. They will be collected at the November meeting. I will have a sign-up sheet at the October meeting, for those who are able to help wrap the quilts and bears/plush together on November 18th. Thank you for your assistance! Many helping hands will get the work done quickly.
Carol
Click here to find a list of patterns for you to try.
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Placemats for our Community – *NEW* Patterns added
The Guild continues to supply clients of local Meals on Wheels with placemats and has recently started delivering our placemats to other community groups. Recommended size is approximately 12” x 18”, so that they are large enough to hold a place setting. Your donation placemats can be dropped off at any guild meeting.
We have a new dedicated page to find all of our placemat patterns. Click here to see photos and get all of the patterns.
If you need some more inspirations click here to view some beautiful placemats on Flickr. at https://www.flickr.com/photos/thunderbayquiltersguild/
*Try one of these patterns and donate the placemat.
Doris and Judy
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Fidget Quilts
What an amazing Fidget Quilt Bee held at Vickers Heights Community Centre in January 2023! Thanks to Pat and Iris for organizing. Watch the Quill and Facebook for another Fidget Quilting Bee soon.
Fidget Quilts (similar to a big placemat) and Single Fidgets (pot holder size) are especially beneficial for people with Alzheimer’s or dementia, however, many people enjoy fidgets for their calming attributes. Whether it’s to promote tactile stimulation, alleviate anxiety, maintain fine motor skills, or give restless hands something to do, fidgets are easy to make.
A fidget quilt is meant to sit on a lap or a wheelchair tray, so think about this when deciding on what size you will make. Common sizes could be 18” square, 16” x 24” or 12” x 18”. The size doesn’t matter as long as the finished fidget quilt has a few different sections.
The different sections include Texture, Trims, Noise, Movement, Velcro, Zippers and Doodads.
Click here for ideas on how to make Fidget Quilts and Single Fidgets.
Iris
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Comfort Quilts
Congratulations quilters! Our Guild should be very proud of the philanthropic work we do for Thunder Bay. Our talented members are constantly making quilts for the community. Your kindness is recognized by the many facilities that receive your beautiful work.
- In 2020 we donated 76 quilts and 15 fidgets.
- In 2021 we donated 156 quilts and 119 fidgets.
- In 2022 we donated 92 quilts and 64 fidgets.
Amazing!
Comfort quilts can be simple patterns, and don’t need to be labour intensive. It’s a great way to use up some of your stash for a good cause. Also, the Quilt Bee Committee has kits for making simple quilt tops, and they can provide you with batting, backing and fabric for binding to finish off a Comfort Quilt. We do ask that the quilts have adequate quilting to handle industrial washing machines. This means that if you put your fist down on the quilt top it should touch stitching. So, no more than a 4” gap between lines of quilting.
Jackie Black is piecing together quilted blocks to make larger quilts. Blocks can be any pattern, but we are requesting neutral colours so they will blend together with the other blocks. Sandwich your backing, batting and block to make a 14” square. Then quilt it anyway you like. Please let Jackie trim this down to 12.5”. This is a wonderful way to try out a new block pattern or practice free motion quilting. Completed blocks will be collected at any Guild event. Please keep in mind that the usable part of the block will be a 12.5” square, even though you’re asked to make a 14” square. Thank you Jackie for using your hinge method to piece these blocks together!
Bed sized quilts are donated to facilities where the quilt will stay with the bed, and not the individual. Examples would be respite beds in Senior Residence Homes, beds in High Support Housing, Hospice and Residential Recovery and Rehabilitation Facilities.
Nap/Lap sized quilts often go to Hospice, but also Long Term Care Facilities.
Wheelchair quilts go to Long Term Care facilities and residential programs for people using a wheelchair.
This year we are going to focus on bed and wheelchair size quilts. They are the most requested sizes, though any size quilt will be gladly accepted and greatly appreciated
- Wheelchair size around 36” x 45”
- Bed size/Hospice 63” x 80”
Comfort Quilts and Fidget Quilts need a Guild label attached flat to them. We don’t want any loops that could catch on a finger or toe. Labels will be available from Iris Maxwell at every in-person guild meeting or event.
Due to storage space limitations, we will be collecting donation quilts three times a year.
- December 16, 2023 at the Holiday Social, and
- May 20, 2024 at the in-person meeting
It will be a chance to display all of your hard work and admire each other’s efforts!
If you know of a facility that might appreciate a comfort quilt, please submit the name of the facility, and a contact name and phone number to Iris Maxwell at any in-person Guild meeting or event.. The focus should be on sites where the quilts will remain and be used multiple times. Thanks for your support!
Watch for Quilt Bee dates and other Comfort Quilt news in the Quill or on Facebook.
Iris
Recommended sizes:
- Hospice Bed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 63” x 80”
- Neo Natal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36” x 36”
- Crib . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34-36” x 48”
- Wheel Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36” x 48”
- Nap Quilt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40” x 55-60”
If you have suggestions for other locations, please provide the Comfort Quilt Committee a contact and location information (so the size and needs can be determined). The focus should be on sites where the quilts will remain and be used multiple times. Thanks for your support.
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Quilt Bee – dates for 2024 to be announced
The Quilt Guild hosts Quilt Bees for members to get together for a day to sew and create beautiful quilts for the Comfort Committee to distribute on behalf of the Guild to various charitable organizations, hospitals and homes throughout the community. The Quilt Bee Committee organizes these Bees and coordinates kits, donation fabrics, patterns and all aspects of the Bee to allow the quilters to have a fabulous experience. If you are interested in helping out with the coordination of the Quilt Bees please sign up to be on the committee. We generally get together a few times as we head into a Quilt Bee to do our planning. In addition we get together for an afternoon of quilt kit preparation which is a fun experience that stretches your imagination and colour/quilt planning.
The Quilt Bee gladly accepts donations of quilting cotton. If you are de-stashing and find a pile that you don’t want to look at any more, please consider donating it to the Quilt Bee Committee for use in kits. Any donation is greatly appreciated and will be turned into beautiful quilts. A small group of us got together over the summer to sort through the fabric and we have great plans for the fabrics we have for the coming year.
Check out the stripe tutorial on YouTube that Cindy demo’d at the 2018 Quilt Bee:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8xgM1H2X18
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Quilt Bees –What is a Quilt Bee you ask?
One of the things this Guild has become known for is its generosity and community service projects. As a Guild, we get together for one day in the Fall or Spring to do an intensive Quilt Bee.
Next Bee
The idea behind the Guild’s Quilt Bee is to set a time and place where members can get together and create some quilt tops for the purpose of donating what we have made to the Senior’s Homes, Hospital, Hospice centre and the Neonatal unit, and at the same time having a great time socializing with the other members 2 of the Guild and getting to know each other. The great success of each year’s Bee is that it brings out a record number of members, and shows what beautiful quilts can be created when we work together. And the side benefit is that we had a lot of fun. We have on hand supplies and equipment, such as Cutting Mats, Irons, Ironing Boards, Rotary Cutters and Blades, Extension Cords, Batting, Fabric, and a number of Kits. The Kits we have are all “pre-cut” according to the pattern, and in most instances the backing, batting, and binding are all included. The only thing you need to bring is your sewing machine, neutral threads (as some machines are fussy), rulers and whatever supplies of your own you wish to use, such as your own rotary cutter and ruler. You may also want to bring along a lunch or a snack depending on how long you intend on staying. Your own closed travel mug will also be helpful in preventing spills. We will also be supplying some snacks, and of course Coffee and Tea. This year, we hope to get some of these kits made up into at least quilt tops. The pre-cutting saves time in that it allows us to get to the sewing much faster. We have tried to keep the patterns on the less complicated side, so we can hone in on those ¼ inch seams, and piecing skills. There will be members from the Bee Committee on hand to help anyone that may be unsure or runs into any problems. If you, on the other hand, want to be a team leader, and have your own idea of a quilt top you want to make, go for it. We have fabric you can pick out and take to the Bee, and I am sure there will be members who are willing to be part of that project.
A reminder, you do not have to quilt the quilt top yourself, if you do not wish to do so. There have been some members who have thought they have to pay themselves to have the quilt tops quilted. This is not so. There are a number of Guild members who are very generous in donating their time to do just that. Also, don’t worry about getting a quilt top pieced together. If you can’t finish it, no matter what stage you are at, just bring it back, and we will get someone to finish it up. We appreciate any time you put in with getting these quilts done.
