January/February 2011

 

AN EXPLOSION !!!

Well, it finally happened! The Peace by Piece Quilters stash closet has exploded. The stash closet was sooo full of stuff that the cat couldn't even get in there for a nap! In an attempt to get it back in the closet I found myself working tirelessly for days on end. I was freaking dreaming about yards and yards of unruly fabric! I found some of it was best controlled by placing small quantities into ziplock bags. I brought several of these controlled quantities to the January bee and told everyone they were 'Kit Kits'. All of these 'Kit Kits' were carried home by many of you to be turned into kits. Some of you thought the process of turning them into kits was so much FUN that you contacted me asking for more!

 

   Stash Explosion!

 

Kit Kits

 

 

MO' DOUGH... $$$

In the past couple of months I've been sharing with you the continuing effort to raise Mo' Money to get us through 2011. Quilts and other donated items have been offered on eBay and a matching grant was applied for and received from the Tempe  company MicroChip Technologies. 

The Mo' Money bag has continued to grow in the last two months. We just received a grant check from AZB4K in the amount of $225.

AND...

 Mo' Money funds have also grown in a very unexpected way...

We have received two memorial donations in the names of Lena Morriston and Ida Peacock totaling $165.

No matter what you choose to call it - Angels, God, Carma or the Universe... we do seem to receive what we truly need.

 

 
DIFFERENT KINDA NUMBERS...

 

Moving from $$$$ numbers onto quilt numbers. It's what we do, turn dollars into quilts. I fired up the calculator to find out just exactly how many quilts the Peace by Piece Quilters made last year. And the calculator said... drum roll... 333. We made 42 Preemies and 291 Child/Teen during 2010.

Pretty cool, huh.

 

 

 

BOOK CLUB...

The 'It just Kinda Happened Book Club' has been such a popular idea with bee goers that the selection of books just keeps growing and growing. We sometimes remove the old ones to make room for the new ones that are added. At last months bee it was decided that the whole library needed to be freshened up, so ALL the books were donated to charity. Due to the EVENT mentioned in paragraph #1 the books can no longer be stored in the stash closet. We also discussed where to store and how to manage the books. Good ideas were discussed and I seem to remember someone saying they would take responsibility of the books. So, if you have read a good book lately and would like to share it with your fellow quilters bring it to the bee.

 

  BEE REPORT...   

 

 

 

 

Even though December is a very busy month for most people, especially volunteers, we had a very successful bee. We were able to send 37 quilts out into the world. They were all carrying the holiday spirit with them to make the season better for some kids that needed a smile and a hug. 

The January bee was again very well attended. Quilters just love to make quilts to help others. We completed 14 Child/Teen quilts and 1 Preemie. And then there were all those 'Kit Kits' - see paragraph #1. If you are one of the people lucky enough to spend one on one time with some Peace by Piece Kit Kits it is now time to bring them to the next bee so we can all have FUN sewing on them.

      

 

QUOTES & TIDBITS...    

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on my life. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.

~ Charles Swindoll~

 

When you learn - teach.

~ Maya Angelou ~

 

More people make a New Years resolution to start a new habit (84%) than to break an old one.

~www.roostershamblin.wordpress.com/2011/01/06/new-year-resolutions/~

 

Here's the link to a very inspiring quilting story that Nina  shared with me. 


 

 

 

JUST FOR GRINS...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On my way home from a quilting bee, I stopped at an ice cream parlor to get a quart for the evenings dessert. "We don't sell it by the quart", the clerk snapped. "Okay, then give me two pints, please." I replied. I'm proud to say I held my tongue when she asked, "Do you want it in one container?"

 

 

AZ BLANKETS 4 KIDS HAPPENINGS...

AZB4K has two sewing bee scheduled in the upcoming months. La Hacienda RV Resort Bee in Apache Junction will be hosting a bee on Saturday, February 26 and Palmas Del Sol in Mesa will be hosting on Saturday, March 26.

Check the AZB4K website at www.azblankets4kids.com for more details and all the latest bee information. 

 

 

Peace By Piece Quilters

UPCOMING BEE DATES...

Our next sewing bee will be Thursday, February 17 at the Cutting Edge Quiltworks. We'll have lots of new kits for you to sew. I also anticipate a pile waiting for binding so they can get out there an make a kid smile.

 

~Wanda Dix~