What a great meeting we had last Saturday despite a few hiccups ! We had to cancel our
afternoon workshop with Sandra Noonan of the Sewing Shed due to Covid. I hope that you are
making a good recovery Sandra. Nikki sent her shop under the care of her twin sons James and
John. They were run off their feet because the shop was so busy. They gave us a really
interesting talk about their mother’s quilting journey and what it was like to grow up surrounded by
all things patchwork and quilting! They had wonderful stories to tell which kept us enthralled and
especially during the lockdown when she launched the Sewing Project Sewcial Distancing By
Nikki.
Then we had our Show and Tell . Lesley showed us two colour ways of her hand dyed fabric. Heidi
had her blocks for the River of Dreams quilt . Mary Palmer had a very striking New York Beauty.
Noreen Brazier had some Appliqué. Hillary had beautiful baby quilts. Simona had her amazing
South African quilts. Next we had the raffle with the lads generously donating additional prizes so everyone won something and went home fired up with ideas for even more sewing!

**PLEASE NOTE** our next meeting has been moved forward to Saturday 3rd June. Moya is confirmed as the shop and Mary Palmer will be our speaker on “The good, bad and sometimes ugly; a retrospective”

Please remember to bring any items which you are contributing for the exhibition in Skibbereen. These should be labelled with your name and telephone number and should have a hanging sleeve.

Has it really been almost a month since we saw each other last? Only two more meetings till the summer and our May meeting is almost upon us.

Here are the meeting details :

Date: Saturday 13^th May

Venue: Sacred Heart Church Hall

Door opens: 10am

Door fee for members: €4

Door fee for non-members: €8 (you are welcome to attend two meetings as a non-member)

Shop: The Sewing Shed

Speaker: Sarah Noonan, of The Sewing Shed

Show and Tell: Please bring your creations to inspire us

Raffle: Only €1 euro per ticket

Coffee and Tea: Provided. Please bring along some sweet treats to share

Library: Please return your books at this meeting or the June meeting as we will be doing a ‘stock check’ over the summer. Thank you.

Afternoon Workshop: After the meeting, Sarah from The Sewing Shed will give a workshop on how to “Design and Make your own basic Foundation Paper Pieced Block” – many of us will know Sarah, an experienced and helpful teacher, who puts the emphasis on fun! Cost: €20  NB due to insurance restrictions, only members of the IPS can attend workshops.

Contact us at this email address to book one of the few remaining places. The Bring list is attached.

Southern Branch Exhibition, July 2023: If you have quilt(s) for our upcoming exhibition, you can bring them to the May or June meetings for collection by Heidi.

Please make sure that each quilt has a standard hanging sleeve, a label with the name and contact details of the maker and a protective bag labelled with the same details. More information will be available at the meeting.

See you there!

Useful links;

Website https://ipscork.com/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/southernbranchips

On Instagram southernbranch_ips

National website https://irishpatchworksociety.wildapricot.org/PS Please remember to be mindful of others as we get back together after Covid. Hand sanitiser is available at the door, wear a mask if you wish and give people the space they require. Thank you.

We had great craic at our AGM this Saturday, as we celebrated the Branch’s achievements over the past few months and welcomed some new blood onto the committee to help plan for the coming months.

After the business of the AGM, our own Sheila Devereux gave us a real treat as she talked us through some of her work. The vast majority of Sheila’s work is hand pieced and hand quilted, and we marvelled at the breadth of styles and techniques used. Here is a taste of her beautiful work…

If that wasn’t enough inspiration, we also had a fabulous Show and Tell from some of our very talented members…

1 to 4 Clare Newell first showed us a wonderful hand pieced quilt with fussy cut details, then a fresh 4-Patch number and finally a trio of pieces, which started with a Variable Star Quilt and ended in a very snazzily patchwork-embellished denim jacket.

5 Dorann Loehr showed off some small pieces, showing her quilting journey.

6 and 7 Tracy Wardle brought in her bed-quilt-in-progress based on the Broken Dishes block and a completed Christmas table runner….stealing a march on the festive season!

8 and 9 Brand new member Simona Damerell dazzled us with a fabulous appliqué quilt and a little floral (stained glass window?) wall-hanging as well as a Gypsy Wife quilt top (not pictured), which I definitely need find out more about.

10 Michelle McGinley brought in a number of cheerful quilts made for charity, using fabrics provided by Hilary O’Kelly. Hilary will be getting these quilts to their new homes soon – well done Michelle and Hilary!

11 Next we saw Mary Barry’s Variable Star and Pinwheel quilt – some really cute fabrics here, including one with colourful tins of tuna!

12 Eilís Watson showed us a fabulously colourful quilt featuring a foundation paper pieced John Deer tractor – pattern available on Etsy!

13 Finally, Heidi Wischniewski brought in a beautiful Snail Trail quilt, replendent in mauve and pink – what a way to finish!

It really was a great meeting, many thanks to all who attended. Thanks to Moya Geraghty of Patchwork Plus, who brought the shop with lots of goodies for us to treat ourselves to – because we’re worth it!

Our next meeting is on Saturday 13th of May, usual time, usual place. Our shop will be The Sewing Shed and our Speaker will be Sarah Noonan. Sarah will also be giving an afternoon workshop on designing FPP blocks – contact us to book a place.

Happy Easter to one and all!
Here are the details of our April meeting, which will also be our AGM:

Date: Saturday 15th April
Venue: Sacred Heart Church Hall
Door opens: 10am
Door fee for members: €4
Door fee for non-members: €8 (you are welcome to attend two meetings as a non-member)
N.B. non-members will not be able to be in attendance for the AGM itself, which will take place at the beginning of the meeting.
Shop: Patchwork Plus
Speaker: Sheila Devereux: A Quilter’s Journey
Show and Tell: Please bring your creations to inspire us
Raffle: Only €5 a strip
Coffee and Tea: Provided. Please bring along some sweet treats to share
Library: A small selection from the library will be available for your perusal. Don’t forget to return previous borrowings!

Looking forward to seeing you there!

It was all go at the March Meeting of the Southern Branch of the IPS. We were delighted to welcome the wonderfully talented Tomomi McElwee of Slaney Quilting Studio, who brought her shop and gave us a spectacular Trunk Show of her quilts.

There was also a huge response to Show and Tell this month and we were treated to an inspiring display of quilts, bags and wall-hangings from our extremely talented members.

Our lovely contributors were: Louise O’Hanlon, Hilary O’Kelly, Mary O’Regan, Jane Horner, Marie Sprott, Anne Dykes, Ann Pasley, Lesley Bell, Assumpta Lydon, Simona Damerell, Cora Quinlan, Mairead Christie, Michelle McGinley, Louise Harrington, Lesley Rowan.

After a wonderful morning of shared excitement over quilts and fabric, a lucky few were privileged to attend an afternoon workshop given by Tomomi on Pieced Circles. They look very happy with their work don’t they?

Our next meeting will be on Saturday 15th April – note this is the THIRD and not our usual second Saturday of the month! This will be our Branch AGM. Please come along and support your hard working committee.

Our March meeting is coming up next weekend…don’t miss it!

*Please note we will finish up a little earlier (around 12.30pm) to give us time to set up for Tomomi’s workshop.

Date: Saturday 11th March

Venue: Sacred Heart Church Hall

Door opens: 10am

Door fee for members: €4

Door fee for non-members: €8 (you are welcome to attend two meetings as a non-member)

Shop: Tomomi McElwee of Slaney Quilts

Speaker: Tomomi McElwee – Trunk Show

Show and Tell: Please bring your creations to inspire us

Raffle: Only €5 a strip

Coffee and Tea: Provided. Please bring along some sweet treats to share

Library: The library will return NEXT month, so be prepared to bring back your books in April.

Come along and get involved!

It was a fantastic meeting this month, as always. Moya Geraghty of Patchwork Plus brought her always-excellent shop and we were all tempted to buy some goodies.

We were all particularly inspired by the talk, given by Sandra Jansen on ‘Luscious Log Cabin and its Variations’. Despite issues with the technology, she won through and enthused us all anew about the Log Cabin block and all of the amazing effects you can achieve. We hope to persuade her to give us a workshop in the not too distant future.

Here’s a taste of the quilts Sandra showed off…

And when it came to our members’ turn to impress, they didn’t let us down…

First we have Siobhán’s plaid quilt, then Clare’s spool bunting and stars quilt, Heidi brought along her mini landscape from the previous month’s workshop and the second row of her delicate appliqué quilt. Then we have Lesley’s award winning mini quilt and the ‘trophy’ she won, which was made by none other than Lynne Edwards!

Next we have Assumpta with another of the pieces from last month’s workshop and Anne’s adorable baby quilt, followed by two quilts from Veronica – one inspired by Frances’ blue and cream quilt last month and a calendar quilt. Mary Palmer brought in three quilts – a beautiful batik grid, a cute modern baby quilt and a One Block Wonder made with an unusual print – see the back. Ann brought in her completed Jolly Holly Table Runner from a workshop by Tracy Wardle, and a pretty in pink baby quilt.

It was a great meeting and we’re looking forward to our next, which will be on Saturday 11th March. See you then!

It was a huge meeting last month and it was fantastic to see so many old and new friends in the Sacred Heart hall. Siobhán’s workshop on mini landscapes was very well received and we anticipate seeing some little masterpieces in Show and Tell at our next meeting, which is coming up this weekend….

Date: Saturday 11th February

Venue: Sacred Heart Church Hall

Door opens: 10am

Door fee for members: €4

Door fee for non-members: €8 (you are welcome to attend two meetings as a non-member)

Shop: Patchwork Plus

Speaker: Sandra Jansen – Luscious Log Cabin and Its Variations

Show and Tell: Please bring your creations to inspire us

Raffle: Only €5 a strip

Coffee and Tea: Provided. Please bring along some sweet treats to share

Library: A small selection from the library will be available for your perusal. Don’t forget to return previous borrowings!

Advance notice

1. After the March meeting there will be a workshop given by Tomomi McElwee on pieced circles. A sign up list will be available on saturday, and a non-refundable deposit of €5 will reserve your place.

2.Our April meeting will be our AGM. Please start thinking about serving on the committee, it’s a lovely group and it’s great to get involved. Speak to one of us about it if you have any questions.

3. May : our final workshop of the year will be given by Nikki Foley after the May meeting. You can register your interest on saturday and more details will be available at the March meeting.

See you there!

PS We ask all our members and visitors to be mindful of others as we get back together after Covid. Hand sanitiser is available at the door, wear a mask if you wish and give people the space they require. Thank you.

There was a fabulous buzz at the meeting on Saturday. We were delighted to welcome a number of new members and some visitors – great to meet you all! We welcomed the lovely Sinéad from Appletree Crafts with their wonderful shop and we were all like bees around a honey pot! It was wonderful to see her again – first time since BC (Before Covid!)

We had a fantastic Show and Tell, as always…

1. Ann Pasley showed off her first ever quilt, a lovely brick style design in soft blues and greens. She also brought in her Wonky Christmas Tree quilt, inspired by Áine Foley’s demonstration back in our December meeting.
2. Assumpta Lydon showed an incredible plaid quilt top and a 7’s and L’s top
3. Hilary O’Kelly’s baby quilt was a real charmer
4. Cora Quinlan brought along an array of bags, a fabulous Christmas scrap quilt and a quilt made using a Twelve Days of Christmas panel (inspired by our Christmas sing song, perhaps?)
5. Cathy Davies showed us her amazing stars quilt for which she made all her own templates before hand piecing it! Take a look at the pieced backing too.
6. Frances McCarthy brought in her completed quilt made using a Massachusetts Cross and Crown design. She used up some indigo dyed fabrics made at a workshop many moons ago.
7. Anne also brought in a charming baby quilt to show us.
8. Finally, Heidi Wischniewski showed us her current work in progreess, an incredibly detailed, asian-inspired appliqué quilt.

After the meeting Sinéad led a group of us in a tremendously enjoyable workshop on layered mini landscapes. Everyone left with a piece to finish at home. Here are the works in progress.

Hope to see you at our next meeting on Saturday 11th February when our shop will be Patchwork Plus. Usual time, usual place. See you there.

Happy New Year, all and welcome to 2023! Our next Branch meeting is coming up this weekend…

Date: Saturday 14th January

Venue: Sacred Heart Church Hall

Door opens: 10am

Door fee for members: €4

Door fee for non-members: €8 (you are welcome to attend two meetings as a non-member)

Shop: Apple Tree Crafts

Speaker: The girls from Apple Tree Crafts will be giving us a talk

Show and Tell: Please bring your creations to inspire us

Raffle: Only €5 a strip

Coffee and Tea: Provided. Please bring along some sweet treats to share

Library: A small selection from the library will be available for your perusal. Don’t forget to return previous borrowings!

Afternoon Workshop: After the meeting, Appletree Crafts will lead a workshop on Mini Landscapes. There are still a few spots left if you would like to join in, contact us via the email for details. Full payment (or the balance if you paid your deposit at the last meeting) should be paid on the day. 

Please note Participants MUST be full members of the IPS due to insurance requirements.

See you on Saturday!