The Raffle Quilt is at Sew Can I

The raffle quilt has been on the move again. It's travelled from one side of the mountains to the other side and you can now find it hanging at Sew Can I in Werrington County.

I asked Karen Stewart a few questions about the shop and her reply sums them up all up perfectly:

"Sew Can I, is a full service craft shop, we pride ourselves in our friendly and helpful service.

We sell quality fabric, if you are looking for something a little different through to traditional we have it. We stock Tula Pink, Anna Maria Horner, Kaffe Fasset, Tilda, Cotton + Steel and Moda just to name a few. We also stock wool, scrapbooking supplies, gift ware, handmade candles and melts.
Sew Can I are authorised Bernina Dealers with a great range of machines in store.

We offer a range of classes from beginner to guided workshops, dressmaking, machine embroidery, knitting and crochet. We have Anne Sommerlad and Chris Jurd teaching in our shop on a monthly basis also.

The shop has recently expanded and is located at Shop 3, 21 Lavin Crescent, Werrington County.

If you would like more information in regards to classes please call us on 02 9623 4570.
Keep up to date with the latest news at Sew Can I please like our Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/Sew-Can-I-365040850348537/?ref=hl "

Now it's time to sit back and enjoy the photo tour of the shop.

So pop on over to Sew Can I and see our Lots Of Dots raffle quilt. You'll be able to buy raffle tickets and stock up on crafting goodies. Karen is one of the traders at the Springwood Community Quilt Show so you'll be able say hello to her there too. 

What happens next?

It's less than a month until the show so it's all go go go from here on in.

A huge thank you to everyone who have entered their quilts. We wouldn't have a quilt show if it wasn't for you. So now we have all the entries what happens next?

All the information about the quilts is compiled into spread sheets. Using this information Marilyn does the huge job of creating a hanging plan. She is a wonder woman with figures and organising and always does an amazing job. The hanging plan is important for a few reasons. Firstly so we know how many quilt frames and what size quilt frames we need to order. It's the master plan that everyone follows on the day of hanging the show. In addition to that each quilt is allocated a number that corresponds with where it hangs and this is invaluable for organising the collection of the quilts at the end of the show.

Volunteers will get an email in a few weeks to notify them of their shifts.We believe that "Many hands make light work" so the more volunteers the better. If you can spare some time to help set up or during the show just fill in the Volunteer Form on the right hand side of the screen or email us at springwoodquiltshow@hotmail.com. If you want to know more about the different ways you can help out during the show read this post .

In the meantime you can get your quilts ready by making sure they have a label and a hanging sleeve with a minimum of 8cm. If you're not quite sure how to make a hanging sleeve follow this link to an easy tutorial.

We'll be back soon to tell you the next stop on the raffle quilt hop.

Next stop on the raffle quilt hop

The count down is on!! - Entries for the quilt show close this coming Friday18th March. We want lots of quilts so please, please join in and share your quilts. You can find the online or printable entry forms on the right hand side of this page or email us with any queries you may have at springwoodquiltshow@hotmail.com.

Okay now onto what our raffle quilt has been up too... 

Lots of Dots has made it's way to the upper mountains...

and is now hanging for all to see at The Stitching Post, 100 Lurline St in Katoomba.

The Stitching Post is set in a beautiful cottage filled to the brim with a great range of fabrics and inspiring quilts. Their motto is "Where friends gather together for simpler times". 

With all the warm weather we've had lately I thought you might enjoy a cool, refreshing photo of the shop taken a few years ago in on a snowy day. 

Whether the sun is shining or snow is falling I'm sure we all agree that every day is a good day for sewing!!

Visit The Stitching Post from Tuesday - Saturday to see our raffle quilt, buy some tickets and while you're there you're sure to find wonderful stash boosters or fabrics that will inspire new quilts, who knows, it could be the beginning of your next year's show entry.

If you can't make it to The Stitching Post shop in person they have a great website with lots of sewing goodies and information about an upcoming Patchwork and Quilting Retreat.
The Stitching Post - http://thestitchingpost.com.au/

Or call them on: (02) 4782 5809 Tuesday - Saturday.

Calling for quilts!

To all you wonderful Blue Mountains quilters - It's only ten days to go until entries close for our 2016 quilt show. We need more quilts so please get your entries in and remind your friends to enter their quilts too. The deadline for entries is the 18th of March.

If there's anyone who's not sure about entering their quilts remember it's a great way to help raise money for the Blue Mountains RFS and for the Springwood High School.

If you are shy about sharing your quilts you really don't need to be. The show is non-juried so you don't have to feel as though your quilts will be judged. We only ever hear the most positive comments about the quilts on show.

I've heard some people say they don't think their quilt is good enough. Every quilt is beautiful whether it's a simple patchwork of squares or a complicated applique quilt, modern, art or traditional. It's the variety of different quilts that can make a show interesting.

You can enter up to 3 quilts so if you have already entered one why not pick out a few more to enter. They don't have to be your most recent quilts, we'd love to see your old favourites too.

You'll find the link for the online entry form on the right hand side column. There is also an option to print a form out and send it to us at the address provided. If you would like us to send you a paper entry form or if you have any questions let us know by emailing springwoodquiltshow@hotmail.com.

We look forward to receiving your wonderful entries!

Volunteering is fun!

The first day of March means the time is flying by and before we know it we'll all be enjoying the 2016 Springwood Community Quilt Show. Here's a friendly reminder to get your quilt entries in before the 18th of March.

The other big part of running a quilt show besides having lots of beautiful quilts is the greatly needed help from volunteers. We couldn't do it without all the wonderful people filling in the required roles necessary to make the show the success that it is.

Here are some great reasons for volunteering some of your time during the show

• It's a great way to be involved in something that benefits the community, not only your fellow quilters but the wider community. The money raised is used to make donations to the Blue Mountains Rural Fire Service and the Springwood High School. In 2015 we made a donation of $10,000 which was greatly helped by the contribution of the team of wonderful volunteers. 
• It's interesting to experience the quilt show as a participant. A sense of being part of the team that makes it all happen.
• You get free entry during the show when you arrive for your shift.
• Each day we pull out a name of a volunteer to receive prizes.
• You don't have to have a quilt in the show to be a volunteer. Maybe you didn't have time to make a quilt this year, you can still take part by volunteering some of your time.
• There's a job for everyone, if you need to sit down you'll be perfect for being on the front desk welcoming people and selling tickets. 
• There's 5 days and lots of different times to suit everyone.
• The blocks are of 2 hours so the time passes by quickly.
• Volunteer with a friend or take the opportunity to make new friends. 
• We have broken the volunteer times into blocks of 2 hours so the time passes quickly. You can choose to do more shifts on one day or do shifts every day if you like

So now we've listed all the reasons why it's fun to volunteer lets look at some of the tasks you can help with.

Wednesday 20th April: Building frames and setting up the hall. 2-4pm

This is the day we assemble the hanging equipment and set up tables and chairs. Setting up the frames isn't as hard as it sounds. The frames although solid are light enough for anyone to carry and come together easily. This is a great day for getting husbands involved, and everyone else too for that matter. Many hands make light work and when everyone pitches in everything gets set up quite quickly.

Thursday 21st April 

This is such a fun and rewarding day. You get to see the hall transformed as the empty frames are filled with beautiful quilts.

Receiving Quilts, 10am -12midday:  Help receive the quilts and follow a list to allocate them to the correct rows.

Hanging Quilts, 12.30-3pm, 3pm-4.30pm: Don't be worried if you don't want to climb a ladder because there are plenty of other tasks, like pinning up small quilts, helping to unfold and pass up quilts, attaching quilt show labels etc, If you do enjoy climbing up a ladder you get the bonus of seeing the hall from a birds eye view.

Fri 22nd-Sunday 24th: During the show

The following are the 3 areas we need volunteer help. The times are in blocks of 2 hours but you can volunteer for more shifts, and in different ares for variety if you like.

White Glove Duty - This is a great way to wander around and have a good look at the quilts. whilst being on hand to show a backing of a quilt or a closer detail if someone would like to see. Most people know not to touch the quilts. There are at least two white glove people at any given time.

Front Desk The time flies by when you're on the front desk. It's fun to welcome people to the show. One person sells entry tickets and another sells raffle tickets.

Cafe support- People love volunteering for the cafe. You work with a great team serving delicious food to happy showgoers.

Sun 24th April from 4pm-6pm onwards: Takedown. 

Once again this is one of those times where the more hands on deck the faster and more efficient it will be. There are jobs that will suit everyone - Getting the quilts down, unpinning small quilts, folding the quilts, assisting people with the collection of their quilts. As always husbands are very welcome and we find they especially enjoy helping pack up frames and getting the quilts down from the walls.

So please volunteer some of your time. Let us know what days and times suit you by using the online forms or download a paper forms. If you have any questions please email us at springwoodquiltshow@hotmail.com

And please keep all those wonderful quilt entries coming in! I'm sure we all agree - the more quilts the merrier!