Scrub Stitchin' - What did I sew?

When I go on a retreat, I always have a list or plan of what I will sew.  Over time I have become a good judge of what I will get done and although I always have an extra - in case...(I could get rained in or have to stay longer???)...I can take what I need and focus on those things.

First up was an I Spy quilt for charity.  A friend recently gave me all her Novelty fabrics and included were quite a lot of 5" squares.  So I added more, cut some half blocks, and did a rough layout at home.  Then I stacked the blocks and was able to sew two rows at a time.  (There isn't too much spare room).   

Then I worked on the "optional" project - Moda Love Charm Quilt.  It is a free pattern here.
I plan this to be the middle of a quilt that I will work on over a period of time.

The third main project was strippy blocks.  A few months back Chooky had a Zoom day to support Breast Cancer.   We made a donation and Chooky sent an invite to the meeting.
At the same time, Jude from News from Jude offered some goodies for sale and donated a portion of the sales to Breast Cancer. ..... Well, I had to join in didn't I?
So, I bought this very cute suitcase filled with strips and vilene squares.

I sewed 18 blocks during the retreat and then another 9 at home, so am well on the way to another charity top.

I also did a bit of crochet in the car on the way there and on Saturday night after I had packed my gear.

This post is a bit late being posted - it was sitting as a Draft and I'd forgotten about it....nevermind!

Scrub Stitchin' - Make It, Bake It, Fake It Swap

Every year at Scrub Stitching there is an optional Make It, Bake It, Fake It Swap.

I like to Make It and as we are all sewers, I usually chose a sewing "thing".

I saw this design recently on a machine embroidery site and thought "This is it!!"

Of course, I added a matchy-matchy item - a pincushion.
I also included some Cottage Garden Thread and a small pair of scissors.

On the back I used the decorative stitches on my machine to add some stars, the words "Happy Sewing" and some machines.

It went to Chooky......😀

I received this lovely scissor fob, (aka doo-dad, dingly dangley thing) from Pat.
Lucky me as it was wrapped in a purple ribbon and has purply beads.

For now, I have it hanging in my room - waiting to decide where I will use it.

It was a fun swap - some Aussie themed gifts, mostly hand made.
And no "Bake It" gifts.

Scrub Stitchin' 2023

Another Scrub Stitchin' Retreat.

This year - a number of overseas bloggers decided to travel a very long way to join Chooky at Camp Cypress at Baradine NSW.
I complain that it is a long way !!! (695 km)

Raewyn from NZ has been a number of times, but this year we also met Lou from NZ, Chris from Canada, Gail and Deana (& her sister Tracy) from USA and Sylvia from Germany.

Isn't amazing what can be done with blogging and Zoom meetings???

Three of us traveled together from Brisbane/Ipswich - my car is not huge and it was full when we left.  We left early on Tuesday morning and stayed in Moree for the night - not a very glamorous motel...but the bed was OK.
We chose Moree as it's a reasonable drive and there is a lovely patchwork shop.   We visited Wednesday morning and we all found some fabrics we had to have...I found some great children's fabrics at $10 a metre - great for backings at that price.
Outside was a yarn-bombed tree.

AND next door was a shop that was closing down - very reduced prices for children's toys etc.
Again we all found some purchases we had to have....(think of how much we saved...LOL...one blanket was originally $90 - selling for $10).
We squeezed the bags into spare spots we didn't know were there and continued on our way.

None of us took photos along the way and our lunch stop was also very quick.

Of course, we needed to make another stop at the new patchwork shop in Coonabarabran, so again there were more bags to fit into those spots we didn't know were there...LOL

Finally arrived at Camp Cypress and unloaded.

Chooky always has a bag of goodies for us.  This year the theme is "Australia".  Our goody bag had a mug, a bag with the names of the attendees, some magnets, a pincushion and a name tag.  We also each received a bookmark.
A lot of effort went into these gifts - many thanks to all concerned.

For Friday night dinner we were asked to dress in "What Australia means to me".

The table was decorated in an Australian theme with this lovely table runner and some gum leaves and blossoms.

and Brenda brought along a goanna to add to the setting:

There were some very creative outfits.  This one in particular...Gail had already left home (in the USA) before Chooky told us what the dress-up theme was.  So Gail hunted high and low to find a T-Shirt that just had Australia on it, and then wrote on all the places and things that she had enjoyed or experienced in Australia. 

Sylvia also put in a lot of effort -  a snake around her neck with a mouse attached for the snake to eat.............an apron with a pocket for a baby joey....... a teapot on her head, for high tea..........a crocodile along her arm..
It was a lot of fun!

We had gumnut babies, swaggies, tourists (Deana and Tracy from USA), cringeworthy Kath & Kim.

I have a smallish quilt showing the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House, so I wore that along with some Opera House Earrings.  

Here is the ex Brisbane contingent:

I had my nails painted to suit the theme.

There was so much more - some wonderful projects, fantastic show & tell, lots of sharing stories, lots of laughs, a drink or two.
A bit of a downer when COVID reared its ugly head, but I won't dwell on that.

It was so wonderful to meet people I see on Zoom, and I'd like to say a thank you to everyone who came - a HUGE thank you to all the overseas travelers for making the effort.
And an even "HUGER" thankyou to Chooky (aka Donna) for being the instigator of getting so many people with a common love together - both via Zoom and Scrub Stitchin'.
And for her organising and adapting to the ever changing situation.

Scrub Stitchin' 2020 Project

The project for 2020 Scrub Stitchin' was a pouch - designed by Anni Downs.

It has been languishing in the "To Do" pile since about April 2020 and as I am going to Scrub Stitchin' in 2023, I decided I better finish it off for Show & Tell.

It's a good size for a small project - about 12" x 7.5".