January 13, 2010 - “Calling all quilters, sewers and crafters!” American Patchwork & Quilting has thrown down a million-pillowcase gauntlet and is challenging quilt shops across America to join their effort to “Make a Pillowcase, Make a Difference.” Throughout 2010, Quilted Threads will be hosting a variety of events designed to facilitate the construction and donation of pillowcases to help achieve that goal, and to make a difference in our local communities. Pillowcases can provide comfort for a cancer patient, hope for a foster child, encouragement for a battered woman, or beauty for a nursing home resident. As a committed quilting community, we are looking forward to sharing our talents and resources in responding to those needs.

We have set a personal shop goal of 1,000 pillowcases to be donated to local charities by the end of 2010, and will be keeping a shop “counter” (for all of you to see!) updated with our own pillowcase count. How wonderful it would be if we sailed past that goal of 1,000! Keep an eye on this page, as we’ll be posting events and news as our schedule fills in.

What can you do to help?
1. Participate in Quilted Threads’ Pillowcase activities.
2. Make your own pillowcases at home and deliver them to the shop for donation to local charities.

• We’ve promised the Antrim Girls’ Shelter 15-20 pillowcases per month, and have already made our first delivery! Contribute some pillowcases made especially for girls between the ages of 11 and 18.
• We’ve promised pillowcases to veterans’ long-term care facilities in NH and VT. Make some soft, flannel pillowcases to comfort and protect their fragile skin; or military/patriotic-themed cases to show our support of their sacrifice and dedication.
• We’re supporting local children’s cancer facilities. Donate pillowcases made with young boys and girls in mind.
• The New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic & Sexual Violence is very excited about the possibility of presenting 600-700 of our pillowcases to their shelters and safe houses in October, which is domestic violence awareness month. It is devastating to think that that number represents the volume of women and children who pass through their system in a year’s time.
• The Childhood Cancer Lifeline, a NH organization that provides support for children with cancer and their families, will greatly appreciate the gift of 100 pillowcases suitable for babies and children up to 18 years of age.
• And we’ve promised the Crotched Mountain Foundation pillowcases for their students who are young men and women between the ages of 12 to 21, and hospital clients, male and female, ranging in age from 20 to 50.
• We have lots of sewing to do!

3. Organize your own pillowcase-sewing days at Quilted Threads. Use our workrooms (as the class schedule allows), take advantage of our bins of free fabric, and enjoy a discount on fabrics purchased for the immediate construction of pillowcases.

• 3-5 attendees = organizer gets a free yard of fabric or 4 FQ’s
• 6-9 attendees = organizer picks from a basket of giveaways.
• 10+ attendees = organizer may enjoy a day of shopping at 15% off.

4. Suggest local charities that would appreciate the donation of pillowcases and make the delivery for us.
5. Donate fabric.
6. Volunteer to wash, iron, and package some of the new pillowcases for us.
7. Encourage your friends and guild members to donate pillowcases, too!

We’ve started a list of donors with running totals, but need to add names of those who participated in the Superbowl Pillowcase Event, and of those who donated pillowcases in the months of Jan and Feb. Please give a call or email your count so we can keep an accurate list. We should have done this from the beginning, and apologize for the late start. The recipient organizations have asked about all of you, and we want to give them an accurate representation of the generosity and dedication of our customers.

Monday, April 12: 4pm - 8:30 pm
Join us for a “Sew with the Staff” Pillowcase Evening.
Bring your fabric, cut and ready to transform into pillowcases, and a dish for a potluck dinner, and spend the evening sewing and dining with the staff of Quilted Threads. Space will be limited, so sign up soon!

Sunday, April 25: 1pm - 4pm
April Showers Bring May Flowers Pillowcase Event
Help Priscilla Roy and Marlene LaTulippe usher in a beautiful May with a late-April afternoon of pillowcase-making, Sunday April 25, from 1-4. Bring fabric, cut and ready to sew, pin them into tubes, and “turn” them into  pillowcases for our Million Pillowcase Challenge! We are already hearing back from some of our pillowcase recipients, and the word is “Thank you so very much,” and “Keep them coming!” Your generosity is touching many, many people in need of TLC – in homes, shelters, and hospitals – and we have lots more to reach. Thanks for your help.

Saturday, June 5:
9am - 12:30pm &
1:30pm - 5pm
On June 5th, American Patchwork & Quilting will be hosting a pillowcase event at Quilted Threads! The head of their crafts group will join us for a day of pillowcase-making dedicated to our veterans. Surrounded by patriotic holidays – Memorial Day, Flag Day, 4th of July – early June is a perfect time to pull out your reds/whites/&blues or your Americana/military/camouflage prints and transform them into pillowcases for our wounded or aging servicemen and women. We’ve scheduled two sessions so we can include as many sewers as possible. It’s a free event, but requires registration, so sign up soon to be sure to reserve your spot. The day will be filled with high spirits and fun – and is not to be missed!

Our first event was held on Sunday, Feb 7 - a Superbowl (Sew-perbowl) Pillowcase Challenge....
...and it was a huge success! Whether our 20 “players” were sewing for the Saints or Colts, a victory was assured as they worked together to produce 104 pillowcases in just over three hours! Our classrooms were filled with captains and cheerleaders, with sewers and pressers, and piles of pre-cut fabric all ready to be assembled into pillowcases. One by one, each was pinned into a tube, sewn, turned, sewn, flipped, and sewn again, and finally hung on the wall to be admired by all.

We are now in the process of washing, pressing, and bagging each pillowcase, preparing them for distribution to their designated charities or organizations: some to children with cancer; some to women and children in shelters and safe houses around the state; and some to veterans in long-term care facilities. As of Feb 21st our pillowcase-count was up to 165 – one sixth of our goal for the year! We are planning more events in the coming months, combining fun with philanthropy, and invite all of you to share them with us. Dig into your stashes, assemble a few pillowcases, and help us reach (or surpass!) our goal of 1,000. We’re on our way – thanks so much for your support!

 

 

Pillowcase Count: 1,255

(As of June 10)