Scrub Stitching Special Project

Don't be too surprised to see another post today - I'm on a mission!! I hinted in my last post that there was another sewing project I worked on while at Scrub Stitching.

In recent months dear friend Chooky and family ran a big fundraising appeal for the Macquarie Homestay to expand the accommodation available for families of patients staying at Dubbo Hospital.

They had a wonderful response which surpassed their original goal. 

However we all know that quilts give that little bit of extra love so I offered to co-ordinate the making of a community quilt for the room.

A straightforward block was chosen and everyone was asked to make 2 versions of it, light surrounds and dark surrounds.

Here were my two blocks -

Before I'd even arrived, the wall was filling up with everyone's blocks - it was so cool to see how everyone was happy to jump on board with the idea.

The pattern I had chosen was called Fruit Punch out of  'Jelly Roll Quilts In A Weekend' by Pam & Nicky Lintott— 

I figured that if the authors could get one sewn in a weekend, then it might be a straight forward one to make!!

A sheet always makes a good design wall. I arranged blocks and let them sit for a while so that we could move them around as necessary — 

And then joining happened. I was pleased to get that long diagonal row joined! The odd block needed a bit of size fixing, but I found it a good one to use as a community block, where everyone's sewing is a bit different. I found a darkish neutral to use for the setting triangles - it was a bit hard to decide on a colour when the expected blocks were unknown, but I'm pleased with how this one worked.

Woohoo, 'tis together!

Photo without the goof!

Sandy of Shiralee Stitches very kindly offered to take it home to longarm quilt. A little team will bind it and then woohoo, it will be done.

What happened next was very exciting and heart warming. Sharmayne asked how many blocks we had left over; I said I was planning on taking them home and slowly making some more for a second quilt. She, however, wandered around the room collecting scraps and got a bit of a teamwork production line going. Here are Betty and Chooky making sets of blocks, which Christine and Sharmayne sewed together —

Before we knew it, we had enough blocks for a second, slightly smaller quilt. 

This one has the light blocks on the outside and will have coloured setting triangles.

Sharmayne and myself - mission accomplished —

I'll finish it here at home and get it back to Australia, either quilted or unquilted, somehow.

A great effort ♥

Thank you Scrub Stitchers for the generosity of your time and your scraps!!

See you next time,

Raewyn