Being a Bee!

One of the ways quilts have been made for Siblings Together is through one of the quilting bees started up just for that purpose.

The first one, the Siblings Together Quilting Bee, was started by Lynne Goldsworthy and though the membership has changed over the years we are still making at least one quilt every month for the charity.

I have been in it from the beginning and I love this bee and our lovely members as everyone seems so generous and supportive of each other.  Making quilts with these ladies really is a great experience.  

Here are some of the quilts we have made in the last year:

We use tutorials online or create our own to make large, simple blocks from stash.  I have started a page on this blog with links to tutorials we have used.  It will take a while to list them all but I hope to be adding to it.

Here is the block I was asking for in November:

Could it get any simpler?

Well I added a bit of extra work for my bee mates by asking them to add a square of wadding, backing fabric and asking for it to be quilted.

Here is the finished quilt

There is a second bee called Siblings Together Quilting Bee 2.   They are looking for a few new members if you would like to join them.

Alternately, I wondered if there were other generous people out there who would be able and willing to start other Siblings Together Bees.

Maybe you have heard about bees and never been in one before?  Here is your chance to try it out! 

Maria and I were thinking of trying out the idea of mini bees, set up for a shorter period (perhaps for just a few months), with fewer people, working together to make quilts for Siblings Together. The blocks will be simple and varied - it is a good opportunity to learn as you work for a great cause.  So if you want to know more, please add a comment below and we will be in touch. 

Please make sure we can contact you - leave an email in your comment if you are in any doubt please.

Siblings Together Quilt Group are hosting a pre-Christmas destash!

Imagine how great it would be to clear out some space for all those lovely quilty Christmas gifts you'll soon be receiving at the same time as giving a gift to a child at this festive time of year.  Maybe you'd like to contribute to the charity but are unable to commit to making a whole quilt. Well, we're here to help at Siblings Together Quilt group by hosting a pre-Christmas destash .

So, if you have any of the following to destash please leave a comment. Claim something by adding a reply to the donor.  Anything not claimed immediately will be added to the "Donated Supplies" page above until someone finds it.

We'd love to receive:

• Fabric such as fat quarters, Jelly rolls, yardage, layer cakes etc.
• Usable sized scraps
• Wadding
• Quilt tops that are waiting to be turned into a quilt
• Orphan blocks
• Binding

Please do keep visiting to see what's being offered .

If you're on Instagram use the hashtag #siblingstogetherquiltgroupdestash to see what's there too.

The quilts really are loved by the children, this lovely comment was left on our launch post.

"I just wanted to leave a quick comment to say a big thank you to all who take the time to make these amazing quilts! I've volunteered at three of the residential camps which Siblings Together run, and as I'm sure Delma has said before - the quilts mean so much to the children. Every single time they are given, the children wrap themselves tightly around them and are so touched that someone hand-made it especially for them. One little girl was amazed when that someone all the way from Scotland thought about her and made a beautiful quilt that she was inseparable from. They are stunning, and seeing how much it means to them first hand is a blessing! Thank you :"


Thanks so much and enjoy clearing out that space!

Quilt story - How some orphan blocks became a quilt top forSiblingsTogether

I received some orphan blocks some months back from my lovely friend and Bee a Brit Stingy beemate Catherine !

From early on I thought they would make a good border to a medallion quilt. I researched some complicated centre blocks but then I thought I should just keep it simple.   I made a quilt in my Siblings Together Bee out of this simple tile type block and I thought it would work here too.

As my donated blocks are orphans I don't have the fabrics these were made from so what could I use from my stash to make a quilt top?  I found what I had in the tones already used - they weren't an exact match but I find that a scrappy quilt is quite forgiving as long as you mix it up throughout the quilt.

Then I decided I wanted a colour that would bring a bit of a sparkle to the quilt!  I tried green but it wasn't working, then tried aqua, which seemed to bring that 'je ne said quoi'!

It was getting there but not big enough.

 When I asked for suggested borders on Instagram (nickyeglinton - if you want to find me) two were suggested : nine patches from Alison; and piano keys from Trudi !  So both went in the mix and I ended up with nine patch corner stones that echo my centre block and stripy piano key borders ...

I think I was right about that medallion style and my friends were right about those borders don't you? 

I just finished it off with a light orange plaid strip all the way round just to make it a smidge bigger and to tidy up all those stripy ends!   Less likely to stretch in ways I don't want it to.  

I was then kindly offered this fabric as backing for this quilt from  [IG account] @nantucks. [that macaroon bar has long gone by the way]

And then I quilted it and bound it in some leftover backing fabric.

This quilt is ready to be sent to Siblings Together.  Mission accomplished.

Publicise your Siblings Together event

Are you planning to hold an event in aid of our campaign to make 100 quilts for Siblings Together?

Maybe you have a quilt shop with a workshop space and want to hold a community based quilt or block drive for the charity?

Perhaps you are part of a group of quilters or guild and would like to host an event for Siblings Together?


We have now created  a poster on google docs  that you can download, copy and amend to publicise your Siblings Together event!

It looks like this....

100 Quilts for Siblings Together

This is a campaign run by the Siblings Together Quilt Group to provide quilts for children in the UK Care System.

We coordinate the supply of quilts to the registered charity Siblings Together.  The charity arranges holiday camps and day events in the UK to ensure that children in the care system, who are not always placed with their siblings, can retain these crucial family bonds.  The quilts are presented to the children as a reminder of the times shared with their siblings.

Please make quilts suitable for boys and girls, 7-17 years old, measuring 50” min. - 80”max, square or rectangular.

Send completed quilts to: Siblings Together, 351 Southwark Park Road, London, SE16 2JW

For further information about the charity, please visit http://siblingstogether.co.uk/

For further information about the 100 quilts for Siblings Together, please visit:

http://siblingstogetherquiltgroup.blogspot.co.uk  http://instagram.com/siblingstogetherquiltgroup

Join our event for Siblings Together!

What we are doing:

When:

Where:


So if you have a venue: a quiltshop workshop space; a guild meeting room; a retreat space,  please use this poster to let everyone know what you are doing and when.

If you are a customer/member of any of the above please alert your venue owner/leader to the campaign and organise a stitching session, a quilt drive, a block drive to make quilts for Siblings Together!  

Thank you for your support!

A quilt story from Jude!

Have you got a Siblings Together quilt story to tell?

If so, follow Jude's example and send us your text and photos, and we will publish it here on the blog.

I'm sure you will enjoy seeing what Jude has to share - thanks Jude! 

Hi, my name is Judith from Just Jude and it has been my privilege to be involved in Siblings Together from its inception.

When Lynn first put out the call for quilts, the response grew and grew.  At that time I was co-running a charity quilting bee called Bee Blessed, and the ladies there also got behind Siblings Together.

One of the highlights of the 2013 Fat Quarterly Retreat was seeing the donated ST quilts being handed over to Delma (from the Siblings Together charity).

And then started the Siblings Together Bees!  What a brilliant idea to get even more quilts made each year!

Last year I had the opportunity to join the Siblings Together Bee 2, and have had great fun making a wide range of blocks. 

In September I was Queen Bee, and I set the Mama Hen block from Lori Holt's book 'Farm Girl Vintage'.

My bee mates didn't disappoint, and a lovely family of hens came home to roost with me in Belfast!

I've recently got the quilt top to this stage, just needing to add a border to bring it up to size!

Also last year, I contributed another girly quilt to the 2015 ST camps, after being donated some fabric from a friend in Ireland.

Scrappy quilts are my favourite kind!  I always think something magical happens when seemingly 'random' prints and colours are unified with a background fabric or some other common denominator.

It is my hope and prayer that the time, love and joy that goes into making these quilts will be transferred as comfort and blessing to the children who receive them.

Siblings Together Quilting Bee - February block request

Hannah is Queen Bee for February and this is what our Queen wants:

"We're making 4 patch snowball blocks measuring 16.5" unfinished.

Limited colour palette please of reds, blues and greys. Any reds and greys are fine and any blue from pale powder blue through to dark navy but true blue rather than aqua please.

This is Joanne's block from Instagram:

I don't mind what prints particularly but nothing too fugly or novelty please as they are biggish cuts so will be noticable. For my background I will be using Kona Snow but any solid white or off white will do just nicely!

The instructions will make one 16.5" 4 patch snowball block. Last time I added an extra row and column to the quilt so if anyone wants to make any extra lonely 8.5" blocks I'd be very grateful. That is optional though!

Instructions as follows then:

From each of four different prints in a limited colour palette please – reds, blues and greys:
Cut 1 square, 8 1/2” for a total of 4

From 2 strips 3” by WOF of white/ off white neutral (I used Kona snow):
Cut 16 squares, 3”

Making The Snowball Blocks:
Take 1 print 8 1/2” square and one solid 3” square marked with a diagonal line.
Place the solid 3” square RST on the top right corner of the print 8 1/2” square.
Pin in place. Sew along the marked line. Repeat with each of the other 3 print 8 1/2” squares and with the other 3 corners of all 4 print squares.
Trim each corner 1/4” from the sewn line and press seams open or to the darker side.
This will give 4 individual snowball blocks 8 1/2” unfinished.
Lay them out into a block of 4.
Sew the top 2 blocks together and press the seam to the right. Sew the bottom 2 blocks together and press the seam to the left.
Sew the top and bottom rows together, locking the centre seam and press to make a 4–patch snowball block 16 1/2” unfinished.

That's it!

Thanks
Hannah x

Please contact Hannah first before you send your blocks!

Mini bees are go!

I am very happy to announce that we have two mini bees starting to make quilts for Siblings Together.

What is a mini bee, do I hear you say?

It is an online bee that runs for four months and has four members in it.

As with most other quilting bees, one person will be Queen bee (QB) each month, and will choose a block for the group to make.   The QB will link to a tutorial, or write one, to give instruction on constructing the block.  It should be a simple block so it can be made easily and quickly.   Preferably the block should measure about 20" so that nine blocks will make one quilt.   

Each Bee, or member of the group, will make two blocks and the QB will make an extra one.  It is helpful for the group if the QB makes a sample block, to check that the tutorial is easy to follow, and to give an idea of colours and fabrics required.    The QB should clearly state the colour scheme for the quilt.

Bees will then make the block, as requested, and send them to the QB, within the month they are set.   The QB will then complete the quilt and send it to the charity Siblings Together.

In a nutshell, that is a mini bee, but this excludes all the fun, chatter, getting to make new friends online, and making a quilt for someone who really will appreciate it! 

Do you want to join in the fun? 

You don't have to have experience of being in a bee before, and this might just be the perfect opportunity to find out what it is like.  

 Our first mini bee is making these pretty blocks made by February Queen Bee, Tanya

Can't wait to see the finished quilt...!  Can you? 

So let's go and make quilts!