Sunny blocks on a winters day.

It's been snowing here in the Blue Mountains and while outside looks like a winter wonderland, inside has been a hive of activity as the committee members work their blocks for the raffle quilt.

 Here are just a couple of blocks hot off the presses and shining like a warm summers day! 

Isn't it great to see all those dots playing so well together?

Stay warm with happy stitching and we'll be back with more raffle quilt blocks soon.

Work has begun...

...on the 2016 raffle quilt! 

Ever since the decision to make Chris Jurd's Lots of Dots as the raffle quilt the committee members have been having fun rounding up dotty fabrics from their stash. Quite a few new fabrics were bought too, after all it's always fun to have a particular theme to search for and an excuse to go shopping. Once you start looking there are so many wonderful and irresistible dots out there. 

So at Sunday's sewing day, as you can imagine, the table was a happy parade of colourful fabrics as everyone shared their contributions. Lots of dots in all sizes and colours!! The next step was to allocate different blocks to all the raffle quilt sewers and then came the fun part where fabrics were mixed and matched to create the wonderful combinations that make this pattern so eye catching. 

Check out the sneak peek of the beautiful hexagon quilt Chris has on her design wall in the background. Let's hope she finishes that one in time for next years show as one of her featured quilts.

We can hardly wait for show and tell of the Lots of Dots blocks!! They are all going to be spectacular! In the meantime it's the perfect weather for sewing so we hope you're all working on your quilts for next years show too. 

Chris Jurd- The Featured Quilter for 2016

It's time to cheer for our Featured Quilter for the 11th Annual Springwood Community Quilt Show in 2016. 

Drum roll...

It's The One and Only Chris Jurd!!!

Chris's innovative quilts featuring foundation piecing and other clever techniques have led her on a journey to international acclaim and a reputation as a very popular teacher. The 2016 Springwood Community Quilt Show will be a great opportunity to see lots of Chris's quilts up close and meet her in person.
We asked Chris a few questions so you could get to know her a little better


Hi Chris , tell us a bit about yourself?
I am a full-time quilt maker, pattern designer and teacher living in the Blue Mountains outside Sydney. I have two adult children and have just become a grandmother for the second time.

How long have you been quilting?
I’ve been quilting since my son was a baby. I started in the early 80s before rotary
cutters came to Australia. We ruled lines and cut with scissors! Seems hard to believe doesn’t it?

What enticed you to start quilting?

As a stay-at-home mum I looked on it as a way to make some money while at home with the kids. After that I was hooked. I made the obligatory sampler quilt then branched out into other designs.

What do you love about quilting?
All the beautiful fabric available and how you can use it make something so usable. I like the whole process from cutting the fabric to quilting the quilt.

Is there any part of the process that you don't like?
Not really. Piecing is the design coming together and the quilting is what enhances all your hard work.

Do you have a favourite sewing saying or motto?
I tell my students – “Finished is better than perfect”. Don’t stress too much – it’s supposed to be fun!

What model sewing machine do you use?
I have a Bernina 150 which is quite a few years old now but it's still going well and it gets quite a workout.

Do you listen to music while you sew? What is your favourite type or cd?
I usually have the radio on in the house – Triple J is my station.

What is your favourite food? 
I have a real weakness for cake or a biscuit with my cuppa. Closely followed by a glass of wine or three every evening. Seafood/Asian would be my menu choice.

Thanks Chris, I think a few of us are partial to cake and biscuits with our cuppas.

Now with Chris Jurd as the Featured Quilter the choice of raffle quilt was an easy one - Lots of Dots with its floating compass and beauty blocks. The committee members have already been collecting dotty fabrics and have the sewing day planned. We look forward to showing progress photos. 

In the meantime you can pop over to Chris's blog Patchwork Fundamentals to see what she's been up to. And if you're inspired to sew Chris's quilts her quilt patterns are available at PatchworkFun.

Our Beautiful Show Quilt

It was great to see the Anniversary Quilt in all it's glory hanging at the Sydney Quilt Show. 

Although it didn't win a prize we had lots of wonderful compliments and lovely feedback about what a beautiful quilt it is. 

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In our next post we'll be announcing the Featured Quilter for the 2016 Show so stay tuned for that!

Record results from the 10th Annual Show!

And so the 10th Annual Springwood Community Quilt Show comes to end, the banners have been packed away and white gloves washed and folded. The big job of the accounting has been done and the committee is very  pleased to announce that a record amount of $10,000 was donated to the Blue Mountains Rural Fire Service. The RFS is a volunteer organisation that play a significant role in our community not only preventing and fighting fires but also rescue services, motor car accidents and storm damage. They are the heros of the mountains!!

But that's not all, a cheque for $1,500 was also donated to Springwood High School, some of which is used for the textiles department ensuring good equipment for the next generation of sewers and quilts. The school's motto is "Press Onward" - that sounds like a quilters motto!!

This brings the total donations over the past 5 years to nearly $30,000!! Woohoo!! 
That achievement deserves a round of applause for everyone who help contribute to make the Springwood Community Quilt Show such a success -

• the helpful and much appreciated volunteers
• the quilters who share their beautiful quilts
• the generous sponsors
• all of you who attended the show and bought raffle tickets
• the stall holders with their wonderful wares
• and last but definitely not least the tireless and dedicated Quilt Show Committee!!

For those going to the Sydney Quilt Show this week look out for our raffle quilt The 10th Anniversary Quilt.  It's even better in real life with all the colourful 30's prints, clever border and beautiful quilting! If you want to you could always choose it for your viewers choice :)

Alice's Tea Party

We've added another quilt to the page of raffle quilts.

Alice's Tea Party was Springwood Community Quilt Show's raffle quilt for 2008.

Designed by Blue Mountains quilter Lynne Alchin, Alice's Tea Party takes its inspiration from the Mad Hatter's Tea Party. Fun applique designs and sweet stitches perfectly capture the whimsical tale from Alice in Wonderland. Don't you just love that polka dot teapot?

This beautiful quilt is a feast of festive colours and delicious blocks of cakes and flowers...

a tower of tea cups!

This jug would brighten up any table with it's beautiful flowery pattern. 

Alice's Tea Party won 1st prize in the Group category at the 2008 Sydney Quilt Show.

Very sadly this beautiful quilt was destroyed in the October 2013 Fires in Winmalee, Blue Mountains. These were devastating fires that destroyed many homes, but thanks to the Blue Mountains Rural Fire Service, who is our designated charity, no lives were lost. 

Linking up to the Blogger's Quilt Festival,  a fun event where you see all types of quilts from all around the world.  You can see our other beautiful quilt entry in the festival, Homage here. 

Homage, a raffle quilt.

It's Bloggers Quilt Festival time, what a great excuse to revisit a raffle quilts from the past. Let's travel back to 2013 to see the Springwood Quilt Show's raffle quilt, Homage. 

This beautiful quilt gained the name Homage as a tribute to the early patchwork pioneers of Australia and also a commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the crossing of the Blue Mountains, a major, and important achievement in the settlement of Australia.

Homage started with the committee member sharing fabrics from their stashes. This ensured an even mix of colours and prints whilst introducing variety. It was great helping each other pick fun fabric combinations. Then it was a matter of starting to cut out the shapes and english paper piecing the blocks. 

Each member had approx 20 hexies to piece as homework. 

By the next meeting the hexies were ready to lay out. As you can see they looked wonderful together. There was lots of oohhing and ahhing over the different hexies, it was like an I-spy of pretty fabrics and clever piecing.

Marilyn and Moira carefully measuring the center so the John Hewson panel is centered properly.

The committee hard at work piecing the quilt top.

And it came together perfectly. Susie Anderson added a whole other layer of beauty with her amazing quilting. 

Homage was much admired and was a very popular raffle quilt at the 2013 Springwood Community Quilt Show. 

And then the cherry on the cake was the wonderful news that it won First Place for Group Quilts category at the Quilters Guild of NSW Quilt Show in Sydney. 

To see more of the Springwood Community Quilt Show raffle quilts go to our raffle quilts page at the top of the page.

And for a past Bloggers Quilt Festival entry of a different type of quilt, read about Mountain Magic here