the latest deliveries

The week before Christmas was a busy.  I took a packed SUV of doggy beds to AHeintz 57 dog shelter. I believe it was 9 beds that measured 36X 36.

They were extremely nice and let me drop them off just a wee bit earlier than I should have been there.  They officially open at 11:00 on Saturdays, and I was there about 10:30.  I was heading out of town and was lucky enough to catch one of the volunteers at the Pit Stop.  They were very grateful for the dog beds, and I was able to talk to one of the gals about maybe using the high school students to cut up the fabric for the beds....for community service.  So it may be a win win situation for us all.  I still have some details to work out on that.

I also took 11 quilts to the center about a week before Christmas. 

The timing was wonderful, because they were using some of the small quilts as Christmas gifts for families with children.... and they had depleted their entire stock... and still had a need. 

Officially  I took quilts  106, 107, 114, 117,120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126 and 127.  

You can see them all in the 2013 photo gallery.

This donation was extra special, because along with the quilts Nancy donated these cute little beanie babies.

So each and everyone of the the small quilts had a Beanie Baby pinned to it as a little something extra for that child.

You should have seen me trying to match the best beanie for each quilt!  The green frog, went with quilt #127, because it had The Princess and the Frog fabric in it.  The brown Teddy Bear went with #124 because it had a brown teddy bear hugging the duck.... you get the picture.  Not all of my matches were as perfect as those two, but I have no doubt that they will all be truly appreciated.

Thank you Nancy for sharing your beanie babies with those that are less fortunate.  I can tell you that when I dropped them off and showed the staff the little extra they had this time, one gal teared up.  Please thank your girls for me also.

Since this is the last post of 2013, I would like to thank each and everyone of you who has helped with Iowa Comfort this year!  I have quickly learned that I can not do it all by myself, and although 2014 will be a slower year for production of quilts.  It will continue to be a special way to give back.

Hope you have a safe evening, and I will see you all next year.

Merry Christmas

Just wanted to wish you all a wonderful Christmas.  I hope you get to spend that with loved ones, and your day is full of love and laughter. (and no family drama)

I also hope that for those of you who have had a love on pass on this past year, that you remember them with love and know that they are still with you in spirit and they would not want you sad.

Merry Christmas!

Donations!

Betty W. stopped by last week with a few more donations.

Just in time for the Christmas gifting at the center.  Betty brought these three quilts.

This cute little monkey quilt, just waiting for a little boy to play with.

 This little quilt had a Princess and the frog, themed fabric in it.

And how adorable are these ducks?  I just want a hug!

These quilts came to me ready to label and donate.  Thank you so much Betty.  You are going to brighten a child's life with your generosity.

Officially these are ICQ # 125, 126 & 127.  Which means that with all of your help and generosity there have been 63 quilts donated this year to Dallas and Madison county charities. 

Betty not only brought me these three quilts.....but she also brought me these bags.

Those are scraps from her the group of ladies that get together to quilt at her church.

Several months ago Betty called to see how I cut those scraps for the Doggy Beds.

Betty cuts them all down for me before she brings them to me.  All I have to do is make the bed and stuff it.  Makes the process so much more enjoyable!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season.

The process

I really like keeping fabric out of the landfill.  And lets face it not all fabric is appropriate to go into a utility quilt.  That is where the doggy beds come into play.....but there is a process.

This is how I normally get doggy bed supplies.  A trash bag full of odds and ends.  Sometimes it is yardage, sometimes it is just little snippets of material, most of the time it is somewhere in between.

Through trial and error I have learned what the stuffing needs to be before it goes into a bed.  So at night I sit downstairs and whack away at the fabric to get it into a usable form.  The jest of it is that the material really can't be any wider that about two inches, smaller is better...but strips of about 2 inches will work. Most of the time, I cut down to about 2 X 2 squares. Anything larger and the dog can't get the bed to nest right.  And all animals tend to nest in the beds.  (I have three that have proven that theory)

This is not one of my favorite activities!  I got myself in trouble experimenting with the paper shredder.... if it had worked that would have been the perfect bed filling.  We'll just say that my husband might need to purchase a  brand new paper shredder that I am sure I will not allowed to touch anymore. (and rightly so)

So I cut until I fill up my container, and then when I have time, I work on getting a bed and sham sewn up.

Sewing doggy beds are on the agenda this week.  I think I am also going to talk to Amy this week to see if I can use any of her high school volunteers to help with the cutting.  It is worth a shot, and would make me so HAPPY!

Hope you have a wonderful week!

WHY DID I DO THAT?????

I fell of the wagon and broke my 2013 New Years resolutions.  I was doing so well, but I let the labeling of the quilts and the paper work associated with their donations slide for way to long. And I paid for it!

I spent all day yesterday working on getting a donation ready for the center.  Almost all of the quilts were little people quilts.  Quilts that I know will be given to a small child at Christmas.

I had my time sheets...but they were not attached to the quilts.... and of course I quilted a few (4) quilts without attaching the labels first.... so the quilts in my possession were not lining up with my times sheets.

After several hours, I have everything straightened out, paper work done and the 2013 photo gallery updated.

Tonight I have four labels to get sewn on.  Later this week I need to free up some space in the closet....so I will need to make some doggy beds.

So far this year we have donated 59 quilts, 20 afghans of various sizes, 60 pillowcases and 30 doggy beds.

And I know that none of it would have been possible without the support of all of you. So thank you to everyone that helped make these donations possible!