Welcome to New Subscribers Thank you for subscribing to my newsletter. This is the best place to find out about upcoming new classes and events held at the Cadet Training Centre. You will also get information about local quilt exhibitions, shows and groups to inspire you. If you know of something that you would like to have included in the next newsletter please email me the details for consideration. |
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Classes Update As you all know classes were suspended until June 2020. I am now writing to tell you about the latest position. On 10.5.20 the PM laid out his provisional road map for the way out of lockdown. It is still an uncertain time and it is likely to be some weeks yet before we can start to get on with daily life as we knew it. I remain confident that we can weather this storm, however it is now clear that restarting classes in June is not going to be viable. I have no option therefore but to extend the period of suspension. In order to keep some flexibility about a possible restart I am initially extending the suspension of all classes (and their associated payments) until 10th July 2020. Then, if circumstances dictate I will look at extending the period again – possibly until September. To avoid confusion and unnecessary admin work I will not be issuing revised class dates at this time. Once I can confirm a restart date I will of course let you know the new details applicable to your class. However, in general terms the following will apply: • For ongoing courses, payments will not restart until there is a confirmed start date • For new courses and classes, any joining fees already paid will be automatically transferred over to the new start date • For any new bookings I am happy to place names on the class list so that you can reserve a place, but no payments will be taken until there is a confirmed date In the meantime, I am working behind the scenes to develop a programme of classes for the future. If you haven’t yet completed the class survey I would be grateful if you would take a few moments to do so. Please click on the link below to access it. https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/58K5DVX |
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Many of you have told me that you enjoy receiving the newsletters so Jayne and I will continue to issue them on regular basis although there will be a 3 week break before the next one is issued due to the Spring Bank Holiday. These newsletters are the best place to find out about any new developments and also to see what others have been getting up to. The website will also be updated with new course dates and the new programme of classes as and when information becomes available. Until we can get together please keep up the good work, keep sharing stories and photos and above all Thank You for your continued support. |
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The Things Students Do! Jane Moise volunteered via Facebook to make scrubs bags and headbands for Warwickshire hospitals, coordinated by Abigail Sheridan de Graff (Cut and Alter), and by that evening found she was a hub coordinator for her area! Along with Fay Way, Fiona Penhallurick and around a further 60 volunteers, they have worked hard over the last few weeks. Countywide the group has made over 8000 items to meet needs all over Warwickshire and it’s been extremely well organised. They are now making scrubs & other items to meet local needs such as for care homes. Jane says that despite all the hard work she has found it to be such a rewarding experience in these weird times and she’s also discovered that her sewing machine can do lots of things she never knew it could!! However, I have had to tell her that this is not a good enough excuse to forgo doing her quilting homework!! |
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Help in the Sewing Room There are times when having two hands is simply not enough and we need a bit of help. |
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When I am having to cut large pieces of fabric or pin borders on to quilts, I use Limony Chicklet to help me keep it in place. Limony is a large stone dug up by my son and painted bright yellow with the face of a chicken on it. I certainly always know where it is! |
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However, my cat Smokey things he can do the job better. His favourite way to help is to hold the rulers down as I cut in case they slip. I’ve told him that one of these days he’ll lose a toe or two, but he doesn’t seem to be too bothered. |
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Millie lives with Marian Downing and her special skill is to examine all the stitching as it comes off the sewing machine. |
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Denise Geach has a dog called Oli who is also very useful when it comes to holding quilts down. |
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Julie Powell has a very unusual helper as she shares her sewing room with a 12 year old tortoise left when her son moved away from home. As you can see he is quite happy to make his presence felt if he’s not getting enough attention while she’s sewing! |
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Lots more show and tell! Mary Strath has been keeping busy putting my QAYGO blocks together (all 30 of them). She has also been cutting out and making scrubs for the NHS alongside some smaller sewing projects for pleasure. |
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She has made a project bag to safely transport blocks/work in progress and a sew together bag to carry tools etc., when going out to class, and also a sewing machine needle case so she can keep track of what needles are currently in the machine. |
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Barbara Berg has found that being on the sewing machine means she avoids the housework and other boring jobs! She’s completed her Alaska top and is now waiting to get back into class to be able to layer up and baste in comfort. She is also trying to get on with her Jacqueline De Jonge quilt but is saving the tricky bits and amusing herself by trying to decipher the instructions on her own. |
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Working alongside her husband, Jan Dedicoat has been putting the skills learnt in class to establish her own business Evielydical fabrics selling remnants of beautiful upholstery and soft furnishings fabrics. They have also created an item and pattern to sell alongside the fabrics. She recently met up with Natasha McCarty from Natasha Makes who subsequently demonstrated their pattern on her live show and stocks their fabrics on her site. Jan is now working on building up her Etsy shop and her first orders are keeping her busy whilst in lock down. If you’d like to see what she has available go to https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/EvielydicalFabrics She says she often reflects on how funny it is to see where life takes us sometimes – she never thought this would happen, but she is enjoying every moment. |
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Yvonne Wright was looking forward to catching up on projects during her period of lockdown – until she received a call for help! Since then she has been making scrub caps, laundry bags and disposable overalls. Despite the work it has all entailed she has received some lovely feedback and has enjoyed being able to support the frontline. |
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Lila Hughes has sent me this photo of her Birds on a Wire quilt. It uses a mixture of techniques which she has learnt in class. She is quite rightly very pleased with the final result. |
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Richard Cook is sewing for England. His latest offering are these wonderfully quirky peg bags! Too posh for pegs so Richard is going to store fabric scraps in one of them. |
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Diane Hilliard has been leaving her sewing on one side in recent weeks. This is so that she can concentrate on taking advantage of the lovely weather to get plenty of gardening done. I‘m looking forward to seeing (and maybe sampling!) the produce she manages to grow later in the year. She has however, managed to make these beautiful cushion covers in the same fabrics she used to make a Cathedral Windows cushion in class. |
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Pat Jenkins is one of my longer-term students who still comes to classes when she can. She has sent this photo of her latest project which is a lovely bright bedspread. She's run out of fabric and is looking forward to visiting Cotton Patch soon - or maybe she'll be tempted to look at their online offerings ….. |
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After much agonizing and worrying about matching points Jen Smith has finished her Alaska quilt top which looks stunning. |
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Jayne has also taken advantage of an extra day off over the Bank Holiday, from keeping us all supplied with fabrics and notions from the Cotton Patch. She has sewn up this quick and easy Book Pillow, in a Transformers theme for her nephew. Tutorial available by Stuart Hillard on youTube. |
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Star Students I wanted to say how proud I am of all my students whether you are: - Helping to make essential equipment for our NHS care workers to keep them safe.
- Keeping in touch with others to swap quilting tips and help stave off feelings of isolation.
- Attacking the garden and other household jobs to keep themselves active and healthy.
- Simply staying at home and soldiering on the best you can in the circumstances you find themselves in.
Every day I get emails from you – some simply keeping in touch and sharing photos, some writing to tell me their news, both good and not so good, and others simply saying thank you for the latest newsletter which gave them a giggle or some inspiration. |
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It has been amazing to see how our small, but important quilting community, has come together to help and cheer wherever possible. I’m quite sure that there will be many tales to tell in the tea breaks when classes recommence. In my eyes every single one of you deserves the title of Star Student and a medal to boot! |
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With all of this sewing going on our machines will soon be in need of a service. To get first hand information on when Frank Nutt will be open again for more than online sales please sign up to his newsletter. There is a box at the bottom of the homepage https://www.franknutt.co.uk/ |
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A Bit of Trivia The word “Quilt” comes from the Latin word culcita, which means “stuffed sack” but actually came into the English language from the French word ‘cuilte’. The lack of close neighbours and the chance it gave to socialise resulted in ‘Quilting Bees’ which began in the Mid-West of America in the 1800’s. It drew women together to finish quilts and make friends. Patchwork quilts were more common in areas where women had few resources to make them. Using leftover fabric from earlier projects, old clothing, or other cheap materials was very common. Sewing machines were invented in 1790 but hand quilting continued to be popular for the next 100 years and more! Many quilts made by military soldiers were known as “convalescent quilts” since soldiers undertook this as a way of passing the time whilst recuperating after being wounded in the line of duty. |
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Answers as promised ... 1. Log Cabin 8. Flying Geese 2. Rail Fence 9. Grandmother's Fan 3. Courthouse Steps 10. Broken Dishes 4. Sawtooth 11. Churn Dash 5. Nine Patch 12. Bow Tie 6. Grape Basket 13. Monkey Wrench 7. Pin Wheel 14. Double Wedding Ring |
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Finally .. I'll end with some funnies that have made me chuckle .. |
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Terms and Conditions When signing up for a course or class it's important to know what to expect from me and the facilities that you will be using. You may be wondering... What happens if I can't attend a class? Can I change the date of the class that I am booked on? What happens if the centre is closed due to bad weather? All of these questions and more are answered in my Terms and Conditions which can be found here pasturesnewquilting.com/terms-conditions |
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