Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Fall Activities

Lois MacDonald and Postage Stamp quilt
How can it be the end of November already? The months are flying by! Back in October, a number of members had a tour of the Collections Centre at Kings Landing Historical Settlement. After Lois MacDonald spoke to us last spring and shared a number of quilts from their collection (you can read about that here), there was a good deal of interest in seeing more! So on a beautiful fall day in late October we ventured upriver for a two hour tour. I think for most of us it certainly exceeded our expectations. Not only did we see the quilts, table linens, coverlets, hooked mats and other textiles, we also viewed stitched samplers and other needlework, original clothing from the 1800's, furniture and household artifacts, dishes, glassware, and more. We learned how the quilts and other household linens are stored for the winter once they are removed from the "village" onsite. The freezing process was explained to us and we viewed the huge freezer that is used to get rid of any insects or larvae that might be in the textiles after the summer onsite. Many of us were amazed at the intricate documentation system used for every single
Donna examining the hand quilting
artifact in the Collections Centre. Kings Landing is very fortunate to have such knowledgeable experienced staff in their Collections Centre, as Lois MacDonald, Evelyn Fidler and Rhona Hoyt. Our thanks to them for a most enjoyable morning. Below are a number of photos from that visit.
Look at the fine hand quilting!




















Beautiful!!

Red and white quilts- an old NB tradition
Quilts are rolled and tied for crease-free storage
More quilts!

An old Crazy Quilt- look at that hand done Feather stitch
Woven  coverlets
Postage Stamp quilts- all stitched by hand
Who doesn't love a Log Cabin quilt?
An old Signature quilt

Our Nov. workshop on Machine Quilting with Gail Mitchell is now past as well. I hear it was a great success. If anyone has photos from that day, I'd be happy to post them.

Next up is our Christmas Social. Remember it's Tues. Dec. 4th at 6:30pm, at the Stepping Stones Centre on Saunders St. Come and enjoy some Christmas music, treats, fellowship and don't forget to bring your Show and Tell items. Also we'll be collecting the Christmas placemats for Meals on Wheels. Come and join the fun!