27 Sep '10

Morning Tea and a presentation of quilts was the order of the day when Willow Glen Retirement Village’s Friday Craft Group organised a get together for residents and friends alike early in September.

Ably entertained by resident Elaine Coates and the U3A Chamber Singers (accompanied by Fay Miller) the morning was also a perfect opportunity to showcase 20 quilts, made by the residents (all generously quilted by Rosalie Waters) which have been donated to the Toowoomba Base Hospital.

Two quilts were presented to the village: the Willow Glen Community Centre quilt, made by Elaine Tobin and the ‘Christmas Wish’ quilt made by members of the Friday Craft Group.  Both quilts will hang in the Office reception area at the appropriate times and the year and were accepted on behalf of the village by former Village Manager Robyn Kehoe and current Manager, Margot Leonard.

The quilts are magnificent examples of the groups work and will provide a wonderful artwork and talking point for visitors to the village.

The story behind the Willow Glen Community Centre quilt:

About 2 years ago our then manager, Robyn Kehoe approached me regarding making a quilt for the Community Centre.  For many months designs, colours and styles were shuttled to and fro until a decision was made to adopt this style following the making of a similar quilt for the Victorian Bushfire Appeal.  I started designing and making the quilt in mid 2009 and completed it in mid 2010. 

A little explanation of the quilt design:

IN the centre is a stylised version of our Willow Glen Community Centre in as far as it is possible when working with fabric. Surrounding this is an area of contrasting coloured Log Cabin blocks representing the village residents, units and gardens.  The blue and gold border represents the stars and sky overhead and in each corner is a half Mariners Compass block.  The Mariners Compass was of course used by the ancient Mariners to map their way on the oceans of the world.  I have used it to represent the rays of the sun and also as a reminder that we live in a big world where people are not as privileged as we are here.

The story behind the ‘Christmas Wish’ quilt:

At the beginning of 2010, when planning our projects for the year, I proposed that the group make this quilt as a possible raffle prize at the 2010 Christmas function.  I chose this one because it includes various techniques for them to experiment with.
The ladies have embroidered and embellished, patched and pieced, and as I put it together, it seemed to me too personal a project to let it go.
We therefore decided to donate it to Willow Glen Retirement Village Community to be hung in the Community Centre at Christmas for so long as they wish.  In this way I feel the quilt will remain as part of our group and also bring enjoyment to those who see it.

Elaine Tobin
Resident, Willow Glen Retirement Village
For Friday Craft Group