Many Thanks Jill, Kim and Kathie

Jill Khong (Vic) very kindly dropped off these 2 beautiful quilts as well as 3 fleece blankets for children and 21 lovely Santa Sacks.

Jill is a skilled knitter and also donated these 2 beautiful knitted beanies and 6 beautiful hand knitted baby jackets.

Kim Court from Queensland has very kindly donated another of your beautiful crocheted blankets to keep someone warm.

Kathie Williamson from Victoria has donated some new tops, jumpers and a green frog soft toy.

Thank you so much for your generous donations which will help so many in need.

Hugs, Jan Mac 

 

Thanks From Khancoban.

 I received a lovely email of thanks from a Khancoban resident:

To the very kind Fishbowlers Sewists and Robin Walker (Tas),

This week I received a beautiful gift.  A quilt made by some wonderful, kindhearted and very generous souls from Launceston.

We live just out of Khancoban and are Rural Fire Service (RFS) members.  We had a pretty stressful time at the start of 2020 with the threat of being burnt out threatening our valley and township from many different fronts over a period of several weeks.  Our little town was evacuated and it was just our small crew left to defend local properties and our small town.  We had no outside help as resources were being utilised in other places as a huge part of the country was impacted by multiple bushfires. We were completely isolated both geographically and communications wise.  There were losses throughout our district but on the whole we managed to come out of the bushfires so much better off than many others.

Tragically, 3 young men in our community have taken their own lives since then.  It is hard to know just how deeply an event as terrifying as those fires were, can affect individuals in so many ways.  I think that Covid and multiple border restrictions and lockdowns have also impeded the healing process and meant that some of the Oz Comfort Quilts did not get to where they were destined until recently.  Our major centre is Corryong but because it is on the Vic side of the river and we are on the NSW side, your beautiful gift has been carefully stored with some others until now.  We held our RFS AGM at the start of June and that was the perfect opportunity for the lady who had been storing the quilts for Khancoban to start the process of getting them to their new homes.

Thank you so much for such a beautiful gesture.  The work that has gone into this quilt is just amazing.  It is a beautiful piece and makes me feel warm inside just to look at it.  It is reassuring to know that fellow Australians were thinking of those on the fire fronts and did something so special to send their love and best wishes.  This quilt has become a significant part of our family history and will be treasured for generations.

Yours sincerely,

Nat M.

It's heart warming to hear that the quilts you've donated have helped the communities to heal.

Hugs, Jan Mac

Keeping Busy with More Finishes.

It's been a productive week with 5 quilts finished, the first was made from donated QAYG blocks and I never tire of these.

Sunnybank Quilters (Qld) donated this lovely top and batting.

Mary Anne Rooney's friend, Li (Vic), donated this lovely flannel top,  backing and batting.

Sandra O. from ACT donated the lovely quilt top with floral circles.

This lovely bright top didn't have a name attached so please let me know if you recognise it. 

Jo Calder's friend, Jean Harvey (Vic) donated lots of knitted squares and I crocheted around these and then crocheted them together.  I also made baby burp cloths and the bunny received her pink knitted vest. I finished more knitted vests but forgot to photograph them yet.

I had received some lovely large pieces of fleece fabric to back the quilt tops or to make track suits, but there's a real need of blankets so I overlocked the fleece and made 5 large fleece blankets. 

Two more baby jackets finished as well as pink burp cloths,  so 6 of those in total. It's very quiet without the boys but it gives me time to finish some more items to donate and pack more donations, ready for delivery.  Stay safe everyone and many thanks for your generous donations and support. 

Hugs, Jan Mac 

 

Many Thanks Marg, Lauris and Vikki.

Marg Coulthard (Vic) is a very generous supporter of Oz Comfort Quilts and she has donated another large box of goodies.  There were 7 teddy bears with their new knitted vests as well as 10 more knitted vests for teddy bears waiting for their new vests.

Marg also donated 5 pairs of beautifully knitted baby booties which are in big demand.

She included 11 QAYG blocks made from lovely bright colours. 

Marg also included 2 of her beautiful appliqued quilt tops for children, with one having a "monster" theme and the other was a "teddy bear" theme. All of her beautiful handwork will result in lots more lovely donations. 

Lauris Hope also donated 2 beautiful quilt tops made by her lovely DD, Vikki (recently

deceased).  Vicki's lovely quilt tops will bring comfort to someone in need of a warm hug, and hopefully comfort her family to know that their donations will make a difference to others. 

   I hope you're all safe and well after our recent severe storm and floods in Victoria.  Surely Gippsland has suffered enough with the bushfire season and pandemic.  I guess it's  a reminder that there are still many people in need of some help.

Hugs, Jan Mac 
 

Family Time.

Our DD had her surgery for the kidney stones and we looked after the boys for 3 days and Sophie for a day while she was in surgery. Even though it's tiring we love being able to spend so much time with them and it's wonderful watching them grow and develop. Sophie is 7 weeks old and a very easy baby who sleeps well.

Aidan has just turned 2 and he speaks in 8 word sentences,  loves to sing, is fearless with his climbing and is currently obsessed with penguins. 

 Jake is 3 and a half, loves working with Papa, doing puzzles and trying out lots of new words. His latest favourite word is "incredible" and he loves having lots of talks and cuddles. He loves building things and has a better idea of where things are kept than Papa does. Lol

    Thankfully the surgery went well and the kids were well behaved and happy to stay with us without fretting.  We'll sleep well tonight and get back to quilting tomorrow. 

Hugs, Jan Mac 

Many Thanks Laurel.

Laurel Box from Victoria is a generous supporter of Oz Comfort Quilts and she has sent another large parcel of donations for people who are in need of some help.  Laurel sent these very cute 6 teddy bears as well as 27 lovely QAYG blocks and binding,  and 7 lovely and colourful drawstring bags. 

Thank you so much for your generous ongoing and donations, Laurel. 

Hugs, Jan Mac 
 

Instructions for Knitted Teddy Bear Vest.

 I buy teddy bears from Op Shops and give them a good soak in Napisan and a little wool wash. Then rinse and spin them in the washing machine. If they have ribbon etc tied around the neck then I remove that as it can be a choking risk for little ones.

I knit a sleeveless vest using 8 ply and size 9 needles. For most bears I cast on about 30 stitches but it depends on the size of the bear. Also I sometimes use less stitches for the back and add more to the front if the bear is a bit tubby in front. I knit a knit 2 purl 2 rib and purl every 4th row. That gives it a look of a twisted cable and also makes it easy to keep count of how many rows you need to knit for the second matching piece. I measure against the bear as I go. Mostly I knit 12 rows or 16 rows, then decrease both ends of the rows for 3 rows, then continue until it's long enough to reach the top of the arms. Then change to number 8 needles and knit same pattern for another 10 rows before casting off loosely. That makes it loose enough to fit over the bear's head and also enough stretch to turn down the rolled collar.

Sew up under the arm and then sew with flat seam from neck edge down to fit the top of the arms. The 1st row is on the wrong side so the purl row is on the outside.

If knitting for a larger bear then I knit on size 8 needles and size 7 for the neck.

I hope you can follow these instructions. I think it makes the bears look a little more special and they will be lovely gifts for kids in foster care who are usually removed with no belongings. I'm also going to see if they would like some for the Child Abuse Investigation Team at Knox.

I don't buy bears which are too big as the kids won't have much room for toys and I can usually buy them for 50 cents to $3 or $4. I'm also buying dolls in good condition and plan to make clothes for them to be given as Christmas gifts for kids in care too.

Please ask if you have any questions. Xx

I also finished off another donated quilt from Cranbourne U3A. It had been quilted and just needed binding.

Here we go again with another lockdown in Victoria and people are panic buying toilet paper again. I, on the other hand, have made a quick visit to local Op Shops to stock up on rescue teddy bears. I found 18, mostly bears, but also a dog, mouse and rabbit. These will keep me busy when I'm not finishing off quilts so the time will pass quickly. I'm very grateful that I was able to ship off so many boxes beforehand and this will give me a chance to catch up on sorting donations.

If you have any to send please hold onto them for a bit longer while I get the recent arrivals organised.

Please stay safe everyone and keep working your way through your stash to help pass the time. We'll be in need of more quilts, QAYG blocks, Santa Sacks, drawstring bags etc when we can start distribution again. Xx

I have more information about what the organizations are needing and the details for the drawstring bags. Anything you care to donate will help to make life a little easier for children and families in need.

Kids fleeing domestic violence, setting up housing for families fleeing domestic violence, Homelessness, Pallative care & disadvantaged elderly in the aged care settings.

Drawstring/Toiletry Bags that we can use -

Male/ Female/Girls/Boys all ages including babies & toddlers

Size 40 x 50 cm

Size 50cm x 110cm - the length is doubled but joined is also fine if the edges are either french seamed or overlocked

Drawstring can be Single.

Tape, Ribbon anything that looks nice.

Quilts -

Sizes - Cot, SB kids young to older kids to Adults, DB Adults/Older kids

Playmat size

Knitted or crocheted knee rugs, Males & Females

Throw rugs - knitted, crocheted or quilted for males & female

Any knitted/sewn small/crocheted soft toys for kids/babies.

For the knitters/crocheters, any hats, scarves, bed socks, kids/babies jumpers or cardigans etc are all welcome as well as knitted or crocheted squares.

I think I've caught up now and hope not to get so far behind again. Today was busy making fleece blankets, pin basting 4 quilts, quilting one and a half quilts and sorting fabric for backings. I hope to have some more finishes to share very soon.

Many thanks everyone for all of your generous donations and support which is really needed to help those badly affected by the economic effects of the pandemic.

Stay safe. Hugs, Jan Mac