Everyone had a catch up and we managed to accommodate everyone and maintain a certain level of distancing.
We are really pleased to welcome Sue as our new Programme Secretary with our thanks to the outgoing post holder Clare for all her work over the last few years.
We've had a bit of a production line going getting prepared for Yarndale. There have been projects to bag and buttons to sew onto cards. Looking forward to Saturday!
Nearly there! Our AGM and first proper meeting since lockdown will be this coming Monday, 20th September, 10-3ish. The AGM will be short so don't let that put you off! We just have some formal bits and pieces to sort out. Membership forms will be available on the day or previous members can do an e-return. If technology doesn't cooperate, which isn't unusual, then just turn up on the day and sort it out then! Margaret (membership secretary) and I have been less than pleased with our Google Drive which has been throwing tantrum and needed a good talking to; we've had to have a cunning plan to get forms and e-receipts out to people. Anyway, IT aside, if you would like to come and join us you would be very welcome. Apart from the AGM we will be sorting a few bits and bobs for Yarndale and then having a good old stitch and natter and catch up with friends we haven't seen for a while.
We are obviously mindful of the Covid situation and will be sanitising surfaces etc; with this in mind the kitchen won't be available so please bring a drink and some lunch.
Really looking forward to seeing everyone again!
Phew, is all I can say! We've been beavering away trying to get the programme up and running for the rest of this year and next year. I've even been optimistic and set up the 2023 document ready which is very forward thinking, but I'm on a roll! So, the programme was looking a bit sparse to say the least and we have been a bit hampered by the loss of our funds to EG HQ - we had plans for that money and the £250 start up fund we received back falls well short of what we had saved up. It's all a bit challenging to say the least. Anyway, ever onward...
It's a bit of a relief and we're just waiting on a couple of confirmations to fill the final spaces but I think we are pretty much done with the programme for the next 18 months or so. We have some fun workshops coming up - the months may jiggle around a bit depending on the speaker confirmations in the next few weeks, but overall we're very pleased.
Those of you who are eagle eyed will have spotted that we are now having an August meeting; in our previous incarnation we had August off but decided to just go for it and have a meeting each month.
We have also switched up the raffle a bit, so for those of you who are/will be members, you might want to have a peek and see what's coming up.
We're looking forward to getting back to something like normal. If anyone reading would like to give us a talk/workshop we have room in 2023!! 😆 Please drop us an email and we'd love to sort something out.
So, check out the Programme tab! Hope to see you at Yarndale if not at the September meeting.
Our monthly 4" square challenge has come round again and September's colour is pink. A few of us have been quick off the mark!
The weather is lovely at the moment but, no doubt it won't last and we'll be into Autumn before too long. I love Autumn though - beautiful colours and light.
We are having a meeting Monday 16th; we don't normally have an August meeting but given the lack of face to face get togethers over the last year we decided it would be a good idea. That said, I'm not sure how many people will be there as a good few of us are escaping and visiting family and friends or holidaying now we can; anyway, hope those who are able to attend have a good chat and we'll see each other in September at our AGM where we will officially constitute our ISG.
Plans are progressing for our Yarndale stand - watch this space!
The programme is progressing too and looking a lot healthier! Have a look on the tab.
In case you needed another excuse...
Just keeping up with these tags is a challenge! This week's involved a bit of bling and because I forgot, last week's brooches.
As far as brooches are concerned Claire and I have been working on some ideas for brooches to sell as little kits at Yarndale; if you want a sneaky peak there are two free tutorials in links on the Resources tab that go with our kits. As we are now an independent stitch group and our funds from our old branch were 'acquired' by Embroiderers' Guild head office we are a bit short in the funds department (let's not get into the ins and outs of HO gathering branch monies), so we decided a bit of fund raising was in order. Yarndale will be our first outing and we will have the brooch kits, a little fabric book kit and some big lucky dip bundles of fabric and trimmings on sale - more details to follow. There will be more free tutorials in our Resources to give some ideas; we hope you'll all take advantage of them.
Here's another example form one of our members, Lynda, of a Zara Day online course she's been on. This one was another coral based one but previously members have enjoyed other courses Zara has done.
So, I'm not a sun worshipper, it's been way too hot for my liking I have to say, although not too hot for stitching. My friends from the group think I'm a bad influence because I keep tempting them with the threads I've been buying - it's the heat - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.😂
I'm a little bit addicted to Paint-Box Threads and got a bit carried away (not for the first time!):
