Gatherings and groups today Pt2

Another long running SCQuilters group in the Melbourne area occurs at Carrum Downs on the first Wednesday of every month. The group has a blog http://carrumdownsscquilters.blogspot.com/ which records (loosely) the facts and frivolity that take place  when Scquilters from around the south/east of Melbourne, as well as any who happen to be visiting the area, get together.  Coordinator Helen says, "I think one of our best meetings ever was the one before the Bendigo retreat several years ago when we had visitors from all over Australia. Anyway, we have been meeting for over 13 years, sharing our highs and lows in quilting and in life in general."


Kate's Bedford mystery quilt - aiding the Bedford foundation in S.A. which helps disabled children

"We try have regular charity days, including the "biggest Morning Tea" for cancer research, visiting speakers, travelling "suitcase" quilt shows and occasional classes."

working on Breast cancer comfort cushion and bag sets

"We have a fabulous lending library too. It is a very welcoming group and we willingly share our expertise (or lack of it) with other members of the group. And our Christmas parties each December are really something special. Read our blog and see what you think."

Gatherings and groups today Pt1

Seventeen years later, SCQuilters continue the great tradition of gatherings and groups.  Some states have formal groups that meet regularly; other gatherings occur when someone decides to organise something. 

Our longest running SCQuilters group is probably the SCQuilty Tarts, in Melbourne. This group meets on the third Tuesday of the month in Glen Waverley in Melbourne. It is a lovely well lit room and parking is no problem. Unfortunately at the moment we are quite a small group, but the numbers do fluctuate. The group has a blog http://www.scquiltytarts.blogspot.com/ and a Yahoogroup.

You will see that as well as sewing, we usually have a good supper with our tea/coffee.

Real World Groups

SCQuilters began in the virtual world, with a small group of quilters who met on a US-based e-group. But it was only a short time until the group spilled over into the real world. Early projects were the SCQuilters logo, seen at the top of this blog, which was designed by Leanne McGill as a quilt block and soon became a car sticker. Soon afterwards, the first batch of SCQuilters badges were produced, so members could recognise one another at large quilt shows. No state show was complete without a gathering of SCQuilters, all wearing their badges or carrying bags with the SCQ logo. And then there were the local gatherings, Christmas parties, and picnics. A Tasmanian SCQuilter, Fran Williams, stayed with an interstate SCQuilter for the first time in about 1996, with many jokes in the group about the dangers of meeting axe-murderers through the Internet. 

In 1996, the first Christmas get together for Sydney SCQuilters was held at Jan Powell’s house, followed by a picnic the following year. In 1997, Melbourne had a Christmas gathering at the old Meat Market.


back row: Kath Reiper, Jeanette Holkner, Kate Irving, Jo Botherway,
front row: Cherry Jackson, Cynthia Hess , Gillian Nicholson, Hilly van Zuylekom

By 1998, the social life of SCQuilters was well underway. Bathurst hosted several Bun Fights over the years; there were regular lunchtime meetings in the city of Sydney; there were gatherings in the Blue Mountains, NSW, in different parts of Melbourne and on the Central Coast of NSW. SCQuilters were fascinated to find other like-minded people on the web and the first thing they wanted to do was meet them!