Urgent request for masks for Ambrose University

Ambrose University is expecting many student back on campus this Fall. They want to be able to have masks on hand to provide to students who don’t come with masks. This is so they can abide by the COVID-19 guidelines put out by Alberta’s Medical Officer of Health.

FACE MASKS FOR FALL

Ambrose University invites you to help us provide each student with five face masks this fall. The target is 3000 masks by August 15, 2020.

It is important that anyone involved with the creation of homemade masks be free of COVID-19 symptoms and should not have been recently exposed to anyone experiencing symptoms.

Masks can be made from any template. There are many examples on the internet. We are in need of standard adult face masks – with two layers. Please keep in mind when selecting the materials that masks should not be too heavy or hot for the wearer.

Typically, a mask requires the following materials:

Materials

• 100% cotton or muslin fabric for outer layer –  Clean cotton bedsheets can be used as long as they are clean, unstained and breathable
  • Don’t use flannel
• elastic or twill tape or cotton material for ties
• Sewing machine
• Light-colored thread
• A mask pattern
  • https://buttoncounter.com/2018/01/14/facemask-a-picture-tutorial/
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kwFaRFHKhY
  • https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/prevention-risks/sew-no-sew-instructions-non-medical-masks-face-coverings.html
• Cutting device (scissors or rotary cutter with mat)

Mask can be delivered to Ambrose University’s reception area, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Masks can also be mailed to:

Ambrose University
150 Ambrose Circle SW
Calgary, AB T3H 0L5

When received, the masks will be washed before being delivered to students. Every mask matters. Thank you for your helping your community!

test – just checking if new links work.

new blog to come in a few days

July 2020 Summer sewing

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Just a quick peak at a few quilts that have been shown in our guild over the last few years. More to come in future blogs.

Paper bag challenge 2020

This month we’ll focus primarily on the paper bag challenge photos. Once you see your fabrics and your surprise quilter, you can contact them to arrange for the safe pick up of your project.

paper-bag-challenge-2020Download

CQA Newsletter July 2020

cqa-july-2020Download

Enjoy the rest of your summer. More later….

June 2020 Clips and Snippets

How did it become June already? We’re getting close to 3 months in the “Safer At Home” world. The bright side is that now as businesses slowly begin to open up we can begin to see the return of what we used to call normal life. There will certainly be changes of course, but when do changes not happen in life.  Some we choose and others we don’t.

I think for me, more exciting than the opening of hair salons and restaurants, is the reopening of quilt stores. Not that I’ve returned to any of these yet but just knowing I can is a relief. As I swing, trapeze-like, from project to project knowing the safety net of being able to pick up supplies at my favourite quilt shop calms my spirit and pushes me on to keep going on that next project. Ok, I never said that I finish all these projects, but I do so enjoy starting them.

As we move forward, I’d encourage you to support your local quilt shop. Restock your stash. You never know when you’ll need it again. Or just do it because it brings you joy. I’ve been trying some of those Marie Condo ideas. Keep only what sparks joy. For me that makes it a certainty that my stash is safe. It brings me great joy to go through it and dream of what quilts will come from these lovely bits of fabric. SC

_{PS: Images shown may have the quilter cropped out. I think we’d all like to see who did the quilt as well as the quilt itself. If you do not want to have you photo displayed with your quilt (from Guild archives) please let me know by text or email. If I don’t hear from you then we’ll take it to mean that you don’t mind having your face appear with your quilt. We’ll only ever use first names and last initial in the blogs.}

Paper bag challenge

Bags will be swapped at the Nov. 2, 2019 meeting and the completed project will be returned at the May 2, 2020 meeting. This is a SECRET swap.

To prepare: You need 4 fat quarters. On a card include your full name with three words that best describe you or your style. Bring these items to the November meeting. Cheryl Mills will have a paper bag for your swap so that they are all the same. During the meeting the swap will take place. Cheryl will record swap partners secretly so that no bag goes missing.

Next steps: Create a quilted piece using the four fat quarters PLUS a fat quarter of your choice that you think will complement the project. At the May meeting bring the completed piece and the leftover material to return to the owner.

Beth S. 2019

New Plan to finish the Guild Challenges:

• Be sure to complete the item you made with the 4 fat quarters you received plus the 1 you provided.
• Send a phot of the project, the message or words you got with the fabric at the original exchange.
• Provide e the name of the person who you got the “paper bad” of fabric form (intended recipient of competed item).
• Send photos by the end of June (try for last week of June if not sooner).
• All projects will be posted in a virtual show and tell (end of June early July).
• The recipient and he quilter can then connect via email or telephone to work out how the actual exchange of the project will take place.

Other guild challenges

• Negative Space Mini Quilt
• 2020 Time Capsule Quilt

Keep working on finishing your entries. Details for how we’ll finish these challenges coming soon.

June 2019 Year End Challenge Competition

June 220 FNQG Virtual Show and Tell

june-2020-virtual-show-and-tell-2Download

CQA June 2020 Newsletter

cqa-june-2020-newsletterDownload

Find out what’s new at CQA this summer:

• Volunteer positions available
• Upcoming AGM
• Bookkeeping RFP
• Celebrating Canadian Quilters – A Virtual Canada Day Quilt Show

Tara M Oct 2019

News for our Guild

Hopefully you are all surviving this time of isolation and perhaps even getting some time in your quilting room. It is good to try to stay updated with one another, so if there is anything you would like the rest to know, please send an email to myself or Shirley C. If someone is in need of a card of encouragement, please let Carla L know.

We are wishing Linda B a swift recovery from major surgery. We hope that she will get back to her sewing machine soon and in the meantime, rest and recuperate with some warm cups of tea in front of some great quilting videos. All the best in your recovery, Linda, and lots of hugs and kisses from all of us.
We also wish Mary D a big happy birthday on one of her ‘big’ ones! Well done, Mary! You are such a faithful worker and giver in our guild and we are all so thankful for you.
Blessings to both of you wonderful ladies!

Love to you all,

Beth

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Keeping in touch, Well wishes, and Congratulations!

May 21,2020

Keeping in touch

Hi, everyone,

These are challenging times made even harder by not being able to have the gatherings and visits that are the core of our lives.  Despite our isolation, we still can keep connected through email, text, Zoom or Facebook.  Not the same but even more important now. 

Another great way to stay connected and brighten the day of a friend is through mail.  A card or a handwritten note takes the place of sitting beside that friend even if only for a moment.  But it can also be a reminder of that special friendship you share over and over as it sits on your table or you pick it up to reread.

And so, if you know of one of our members who is needing  a boost to their spirits with a ‘thinking of you’ card, please let me know and I will get one out to them from all of us.  Life goes on with normal things as well and a get well or sympathy cards might also be needed.

Please let me know about these kinds of needs and events so we can remind our members that while we are apart, we will always be together in our hearts.

Take care, stay safe and well.  Carla 

Well wishes

We are wishing Linda B a swift recovery from major surgery. We hope that she will get back to her sewing machine soon and in the meantime, have some warm cups of tea in front of some great quilting videos. All the best in your recovery, Linda. and lots of hugs and kisses from all of us.

Congratulations

We also wish Mary D a big happy birthday on one of her ‘big’ ones! Well done, Mary! You are such a faithful worker and giver in our guild and we are all so thankful for you.

Blessings to both of you wonderful ladies!

As full of spirit as the month of May…

That’s the start of a quote form William Shakespeare. Here’s hoping that this spirit will bring all kinds of creativity and beauty into our experience of the world this month.

Sent in by one of our members:  Thought people might be able to identify with this

Quilts for Everyday Heroes

Hello everyone;   I hope everyone is staying safe during these challenging times.  I know many of us are enjoying the time to get into our sewing rooms and work through ufos and our stash.

I wanted to send a thank you to everyone who has been so generous with their time, talent and support for our first responders.  As you well know, those on the front lines are being taxed beyond their wildest dreams and are making huge sacrifices with their physical and mental health, not to mention the toll it takes on their loved ones.

In the last week, sixteen quilts have gone out to peer trauma support groups, RCMP members, Calgary City Police, corrections officers, and firefighter/paramedics.  This couldn’t happen without your help, so thank you!  Under normal circumstances, we usually meet and wrap the majority of the heroes in the quilts, share a few tears, and experience the emotion of these first responders who so desperately need to know that what they do does not go unnoticed. At this time, we rely on contacts to get the quilts out, but know that they appreciation and support that they offer is still heartfelt.

I look forward to when we are able to gather again. Carry on with your creativity!  Show and Tell should be fabulous!

If you wish to see what we are about, our website is quilts4everydayheroes.com. And we can be reached at quilts4everydayheroes@gmail.com.

Kindly, Patti-Jo

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April 30, 2020

Hello ladies,

With some awesome teamwork by Elly, Pat S and Fiona we have the first Guild block project finished and ready to pass to Patti-Jo for the Quilts for Everyday Heroes project.  Thanks to these three great ladies and everyone who contributed blocks to this awesome quilt, you can be sure it is going to a very deserving individual!

With hugs, Chris B

FNQG annual challenges

Stay tuned for details on how paper bag challenge items can be showcased and exchanged safely. Also for the other guild challenges – we’re looking into ways that we can do a virtual showcase of wheat we’d usually do at our May meeting where we vote on our picks for best challenge entries. So you’re not off the hook in terms of finishing these challenges. Get them done and we’ll let you know how we’ll showcase them all.

CQA Memo April 30, 2020

Summary, Show in Edmonton has been cancelled. Efforts are underway to determine a way to have a virtual quilt show to present many of the quilts that would have been in the show. Read the memo for more details.  CQA Memo April 30,2020

Virtual Show and Tell

May 2020 Show and Tell

April FNQG News

Virtual Show and Tell

Since we’ve missed 2 months of meetings and will likely miss at least one or two more – let’s have a virtual Show and Tell.  Send photos of projects that you’re working on or would have brought to guild for Show and Tell to Shirley C. She will put them together into something we can post on the blog. You can also send a quick note or story about something you learned during this time. Like when you use a plastic spatula to stir very hot, sugary desserts they melt and the dessert tastes of plastic! Note to self! Sigh.

Keep working on your hobbies and things that are fun for you. That’s a sure way to help maintain good mental health during this time of physical distancing. Get your photos or funny stories submitted by April 20 and we’ll try to get the blog with all of this out by the first week of May.

Comfort Quilts

Good morning!
I hope this finds you well and keeping busy during this most difficult time in life. I woke up early today and for some reason was thinking about the comfort quilt blocks that our members had made over the winter and that the sew day had had to be cancelled.  I was talking with PatyJo (Everyday Heroes – EMS, Police and RCMP) and as I suspected she has been receiving an increasing number of calls for quilts now.  So, my question is “can we get those blocks made up into quilts sooner rather than later and perhaps start more blocks in the fall?”

I am very willing to take the sports blocks and know of other ladies who would be willing to take other sets.  If we can get the tops made up to between 52×72 and 60×80 could we then pass them to PattyJo.  I will get backs and batting organized and find longarm-ers unless you have ladies who have already volunteered?  None of the agencies my small group usually supports are able to take quilts at this time because of the virus but I don’t know if this is the case with all agencies.  I have to come out Priddis way early next week so could connect with you if you agree with my proposal.

Thanks for hearing me out and I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Take care,
With hugs, Chris

Note: We really can’t be in contact with one another physically – so it would need to be dropped off somehow. The other idea is to wait on the group project and ask people to make one on their own using the original patterns from Cheryl.

The church building is closed, so it would not work as a drop off. So it is probably better not to have a physical drop off right now. Let’s get through the worst of it first and then rethink how we can get those original blocks together.

It was noted that if people knew the need they would step up to it.

Thank you for your continued care. Beth

Heritage Park Quilt Festival

This event is postponed for now. Pauline will let us know more information as it becomes available.

Mask Makers YYC – Note from Jo

If anyone would like to help out, the Facebook group called MASK MAKERS YYC, now has over 1700 members. They are concentrating on making masks and scrub caps, first for front line workers & then to compromised individuals. Recommended patterns are in files. They also have people that are making ties & cutting wire, picking up inventory, etc.

Blessings, Jo💜

Guild meetings cancelled for the time being

Hello, dear Guild members,

Sadly we will have to cancel our guild meetings until further notice. Our church is suspended from meetings, as well. We are carrying on with online meetings for church on our church website, if anyone is interested, Millarville Community Church

We are very concerned for one another. Please let me know if this is anything you need help with. I’m sure you are not surprised at this announcement. This is temporary until our world gets back to normal. Until you hear from us, there are no guild meetings scheduled.

Take care and keep healthy until we see each other again face-to-face!

Love to all,

Beth

March Guild Cancelled

Greetings to you all! Each one of you are important and with this in mind we are cancelling the March Guild Meeting because of the recent Covid-19 pandemic situation.

Although we do fall within Alberta’s suggested guidelines for continuing (less than 250 in attendance – at least at last count), many in our guild are at risk because of age or immune-compromise issues. Plus, how do you hold a guild event without food or coffee!!??

We very much are hoping that you are all well and are safe in your situations, whatever that may be. If there is anyone in need, please let us know as perhaps we may be able to help.

We will keep you posted regarding the April meeting currently scheduled for April 4. Please be sure to check your blog post.

All the best to each of you as we weather this current storm together. Things are well in hand with all the appropriate responses being taken by our governments and so many organizations. We can be thankful for that.

And perhaps these days can be viewed as a gift to stay home and quilt.

Beth