Electricity and sun back this week......

The sun shone this week so the hall seemed a little warmer than it has been the last couple of weeks, even though we had to make a drastic cut in the number of heaters used after I got told off for using so many appliances when I went to the town hall last week with cap in hand asking them to sort out the fuse box for us when it went bang from being overloaded!
Twenty three ladies came with a variety of things to show each other.  First off were two of Rozanne's beautiful quilts, as always, worked entirely by hand.  One was a very large white wholecloth quilt which unfortunately doesn't photograph too easily.  The other, a smaller strippy quilt in subtle colouring.  Rozanne says these quilts each take approximately six months to complete.

Detail from Rozanne's wholecloth quilt

Jenny continues to work on the traditional quilt left with her to be finished by a neighbour, and is now nearing the end of the commission, with just the layering up with wadding and backing fabric, then adding the quilting.

  Jill is enjoying making "yo-yos" with scraps of fabric for a lap quilt for her lounge and heard Yvonne say she had made a quilt many years ago using "suffolk puffs" as they used to be called before Clover made a plastic gadget to make the puffs more easily.  Yvonne made them the traditional way by running a gathering thread around the fabric edge and pulling it tight to create the puff shapes, and brought in her quilt to show us.

Yvonne's quilt above, made 10 years ago, with details of the Suffolk Puffs below

Louise showed us two crochet projects she has completed recently.  The striking hexagonal design blanket is to be used in her home, while the lilac and lemon blanket is a baby gift

Even though Linda is taking part in the Row-by-Row project she has found time to complete this small  stained-glass wall hanging.

Linda and Louise working on the Row-by-Row project

Ann working on the individual modules in her next Row

Pam working on the modules in her Row, while members in the background admire Yvonne's Suffolk Puff quilt

Some of Pam's paper pieced blocks

Jill and Helen working on their modules  

At the other end of the hall it was buy too, with various projects being worked on from cross stitch to applique projects.  Christine seen above in a white jacket, has just completed her Mackintosh Rose cross stitch. Christine says it just needs a press and then its ready for framing.  

Jenny continues to bind her quilt while Jan helps Katherine un-jam her machine.

Before Yvonne could complete the quilting on a sampler quilt she needed a stencil.  As she couldn't find the original one, thinking she'd loaned it to someone and it hadn't been returned, Yvonne spent the morning drafting and cutting out a new stencil from stiff template plastic, then as she was getting packed up ready to leave, she discovered the original one in the depths of her bag!!  Carol seen here with Yvonne, spent the session stitching the applique letters to a quilt she's making for her niece Savanah.

It was great to welcome Margaret ( sitting in the back of the photo above) back from her extended stay in the UK after knee surgery.  Margaret seems like a different person after the successful surgery has put paid to the pain she's really struggled with for the last ten years.  Margaret says she can walk pain free for some distance these days and actually enjoys going out and about again enjoying the countryside.

Merlynne working on her cross stitch project

Christine taking a break from the Row-by-Row project she's teaching, is binding a runner

The Blackwork design above, is being made by Ann .  Ann tells me that for her daughter's eighteenth birthday she paid to have her room decorated, but didn´t "give" her a present so said she'd make something for her later.  The delicate variegated grey thread will match her room perfectly says Mum Ann.

Jacqueline working on her latest cross stitch project

Vanessa spent the whole morning standing cutting triangles out of fabrics she bought for a new project after finding  a new Patchwork shop nearby in Rincon de La Victoria.  She can be seen here looking at the instructions for this project which she has downloaded on to her Kindle.  Vanessa says this is proving a really helpful gadget and says she finds it very easy to download patterns for patchwork or crochet and can so easily carry them around with her wherever she works

Vanessa with a crochet project she began last week while waiting to buy her fabrics

Part way through the morning we gathered round to have a chat about the plans for our future exhibition in the Autumn.  While I was in the town hall last week, the Mayor gave his approval for the event to be held in our regular meeting hall in Viñuela, so after a show of hands from Group Members, it was decided that this will be the venue for the exhibition this year.  Members put forward various thoughts and ideas and once we have confirmed the date, plans will go ahead in earnest.  The earliest thing we have to do is send advertising copy to the big patchwork magazines as they require  these details months ahead of events.  

I hope you enjoy seeing what our members get up to each week, and please don't forget to pop over to our Website to see the Members' Gallery updates which change each week.  Rachel

                                                                           

Well attended meeting cut short........

It was great to see twenty eight of our regular members in this week's meeting, with so many varied projects  on the go.

The Row-by-Row workshop ladies continued with their project, above Christine can be seen helping Ann decide on the placement of shapes and colours in her next panel, while below, Pam can be seen making her fabric choices.

Linda working on her panel, with Helen doing Redwork stitching, and Cath deciding on her fabric choices and placements.  Below, Louise getting to grips with techniques in her first ever patchwork project.

Christine's class sample showing the latest panel of tulips and checkerboard

Sheila  knitting her latest project

Jacqueline brought a new cross stitch project to work on

Sue, Margaret and Maureen working on their knitting and crochet projects, while Gladys has begun working  again on a patchwork quilt project started some time ago.

Jenny (centre) seeking advice from Yvonne and Kath, on which fabric is best for the next border on the quilt she has been commissioned  to complete by a Dutch neighbour.  This is proving quite a challenge for Jenny as there is insufficient of the project fabrics to complete the quilt to the size the she has been asked to make the quilt to.  The project was started many, many years ago, and Jenny is finding it almost impossible to find modern day fabrics that are compatible with those already in the quilt, but she is not giving up!

Jenny then showed us another quilt she has been working on for herself.  This project cleverly combines modern patchwork designs with traditional style blocks.  Jenny is taking part in a Craftsy free sampler workshop and is using machine embroidery stitches to quilt each block.  With only the binding to be hemmed down, the quilt will soon be in use.

One of the blocks with traditional hexagons and embroidery stitch quilting

It was good to see Merlynne and Christine back after extended trips to the UK, Christine has almost finished her cross stitch version of a distinctive Rennie Mackintosh  rose design seen below  

Rozanne is working on a quilt, which again has been pieced entirely by hand, reproducing a quilt design layout originally made in approximately 1924 and featured in a book showing the original quilts together with details of their makers, seen below

Rozanne marking the quilting lines on her quilt, using a glass as a template as it's the perfect size circle!

Helen is still working on her gold-work embroidery design, saying she feels it seems like it's never going to get finished!  The work is designed by Helen and uses numerous types of gold thread, together with tiny seed beads, and small amounts of padded applique in the center of some of the flowers.  Maybe Helen will finish it in time to display it at the Group exhibition later this year.

Elle too is working on an embroidered picture, but is working in silk Ribbon on a pre-printed background, one of the Di van Niekerk designs Elle is distributor for in Spain.

Last but not least this week, we must welcome our newest member Katherine, who will be coming to our Tuesday meetings with Jenny and Louise from Sedella.  Katherine has just bought herself a new machine and plans bringing it next time to try out the embroidery stitches before deciding what project she will work on.

Unfortunately, despite such good attendance today, the session came to an abrupt halt with bang at 12.30 as there was an overload on the electric panel.  No amount of persuasion by removing appliances would get it back on so without any warmth from heaters or hot drinks, most members called it a day by 1.30pm.

I hope to see you all again next week, with normal service resumed!  Rachel

                                                               

Another New Year for our VSS group ...........

A belated Happy New Year to you all.  It's been a bit of a hectic week for me, so I'm a bit late with our first blog of the year!
 Despite all sorts of illnesses going around here and some regular members still away on holidays , eighteen of our regular members were keen to get back into their creative zones this Tuesday.
After a general show-and-tell amongst ourselves and a  chat about what we had been doing since our last meeting, we had a more formal discussion concerning a few changes to Group membership, which have been needed for some time as the we are growing in size, and about plans for this coming year for the Group.  Members are keen to take part in the making of a Group quilt to be raffled to raise funds for charity and a general discussion ensued about our forthcoming exhibition in the Autumn.  Dates and the venue will be announced once confirmed with the relevant parties.
It was great to see Helen with us again seen here with Yvonne and Jill

I forgot to ask Jill why she is standing up crocheting. Each time I looked across at her she was busy making a long crochet chain but was standing up doing it!

Carole turning up trousers for a change, instead of doing her usual patchwork

Kath setting up the new library service

Margaret, Gladys, Sue and Sheila knitting and chatting

Margaret brought in two projects she has been working on and says they were a lot kinder to her fingers than the topsy-turvy dolls which she had been making, as they used much bigger needles.

This thick jacket still needs it's toggles and the fish bellow needs his eyes, then they'll be complete

HelenH has been making cushion covers for her niece (I think I have that right!) and herself.

Above and below one side of one of Helen's cushions

One of a pair of cushion's for Helen's niece

I brought in one of my current projects to show members.  While I should have been working on the Creative Sketchbook course I am taking part in on the Internet, run by The Kemshalls, instead I have been working on an applique wall hanging over the Holiday period.  I have incorporated fabric painted leaves and used Inktense crayons, (which act like watercolour when water and fabric medium are added), to the fabric appliqued flower shapes to give them some depth.  All the fabrics used are some of my own hand-dyed fabrics.   I used a design and layout for the upper irises made available by The Kemshalls , but the jug and lower flower stem are my own additions to the original design  

This is my hanging with all the paint and Inktense crayon work heat set with the iron, ready to be layered up with wadding and a backing

The iris above is fussy-cut from one piece of fabric, then the petal outlines and shadows have been added with Inktense crayons to give the flower some definition, as seen in the photo below.  They appear different colours because I took one photo with artificial light at night and the other in daylight.  I'm no photographer!!

I have really enjoyed this way of working, mixing traditional applique with art materials, and intend using more of  my ice-dyed fabrics in this way on future projects.

Yvonne brought in her framed silk ribbon embroidery, made during a recent workshop taught by Elle.

While Christine works on her Row-by-Row project in the background, Pam showed me some of the denim fabrics cut and ready to be used in her latest quilt project.  Pam is asking for donations of  denim please, it can be old jeans, or denim shirts from anyone who has them stashed away.  All donations will be gratefully received by Pam.  Pam intends backing the quilt with flannel or warm brushed cottons in place of regular patchwork cotton fabric.

Next week the Row-by-Row workshop led by Christine will continue, and I for one will be continuing my silk ribbon workshop with Elle in between taking photos for the next blog!  

Until then, have a good week, don't forget to check into our Group website where members galleries are updated regularly and at present there is a new video to watch.  Hope to see you next time.

                                                                                                                                        Rachel