Generous Donation

Cathy Heck, of https://www.cathyhecknurseryart.com/home.html, has generously donated FOUR TUBS of sample baby fabric to the Baby Bundle Project!  We will be having a FUN DAY next week to create some quilts for the Baby Bundle project.




Cathy found us because of the mention of our project that Laurie Evans, of The Quilt Store, put into one of her online newsletters.  Cathy has been looking for a charity outlet for her samples and I assured her that we would put the fabric to good use.  The designs are just too cute for words.  There are flannels and regular cottons.  Glorious fabric!

Here's the first quilt with this fabric - made by Gracie.

2012 QuiltFest

 The 2012 QuiltFest is over.  What a show!

Baby Bundles had a small presence there, exhibiting three quilts that have been donated.  Because we had just made a delivery to Mom's Place, we only had a few in stock.

The blue and yellow one is one of the Super Sized Nine Patch quilts that I described in the previous post.  The one on the back is comprised of bright squares, set with alternating squares of 4 strips of duller fabric.  What a great way to use some of the scraps that pile up!  The bright yellow inner border and bright blue outer border really add life to the quilt.

The third quilt is a study in pastels.  A simple pattern of rectangles which is quite effective. 



We'd love to read a comment from the maker of any of these three quilts!

We also displayed a sign in the booth telling a little about Baby Bundles and showing a couple of pictures of the babies and some thank you notes from some of the children at the Advocacy Center.

Several people stopped by and expressed an interest in contributing.  That's (as Martha Stewart says) a Good Thing.

Super Sized Nine Patch Quilts

Here's an easy way to make some really sweet little quilts.  I made these three tops the other afternoon.

Instructions from  Anita Grossman Solomon, courtesy of Quiltmaker magazine, can be found at  

http://www.quiltmaker.com/patterns/details.html?idx=184

In a nutshell, you layer three pieces of fabric right side up, cut a nine patch through all the layers, shuffle the pieces, and sew them back together.

If you have six one yard pieces of fabric that all go together, you can make three quilts using three for the tops and the other three for the backings.

 Here's one of the backings I'm using:


Keep those Baby bundles coming!
Judy

Sew-In August 2012

On a hot day in August, a dozen guild members gathered at The Quilt Store on Anderson Lane to finish up some Baby Bundles.  Members had turned in tops.  The Coordinators (Gracie, Elizabeth and I) had matched them to backings and cut battings for them.  Gracie did the next step, sewing the three layers together, "birthing" them, and topstitching all the way around.  She brought over two dozen to the gathering.  Some members brought their machines and quilted.  Others tied quilts using embroidery floss or crochet thread.  Others sewed on labels.  A very successful day.  Twenty quilts were delivered to the WIC breastfeeding clinic just in time for National Breastfeeding Month!

About Baby Bundles

The Baby Bundle project is one of several community service projects sponsored by the Austin Area Quilt Guild. Our guild provides quilts to agencies that promote the health and well-being of families with newborns as well as an agency that facilitates services for abused children. The charities then distribute each quilt to infants and children within their programs.

Current Guild agencies are:
Travis County WIC breast feeding support clinics
Healthy Families - Travis County Agency for First child - infant to 3 yrs old Children's Advocacy Center - Children on their way to foster homes, all ages

The Guild furnishes kits to members wishing to participate in this project, although members are also encouraged to create quilts using their own materials. We ask every guild member to make a Baby Bundle quilt during the month of his or her birthday.

This is a year-round project; Baby Bundle Coordinators have a table at every Guild meeting to receive quilts, issue kits, or consult about the making of a quilt.