December Meeting - by Nicky P

After a very wet day, the warmth and bright lights of Shirley Quilters were welcome. There were plenty of Christmas jumpers and sparkly hair bands and we were in for a really enjoyable evening.

Deirdre read the notices, including several upcoming events. Kate’s bag-making workshop on Saturday 10 February 2024 filled up very quickly. We have received a certificate for raising an impressive £200 for breast cancer research at our October meeting. Tonight there was also an ingredients table and plenty of Linus quilt packs to take away for completion. Also, we were reminded that a sewing machine cleaner/servicer man named Kevin will visit Ann in the new year and we can contact her to be included on his job list.

In groups around tables we played our first game, which was a fun way to get to know others better. Into a box we each wrote one fact about ourselves that others may not know. Then we had to work out/own up to some very unusual and interesting facts! Perfect for chatting. Thanks to Kate for organising this.



We then moved on to Jenny’s Christmas Trivia quiz, completed in smaller groups. The winning team received a very welcome fat quarter each. We all now know that in Japan people eat KFC food at Christmas- how did that catch on?!

We then had a hot drink and scoffed chocolate cakes and mince pies, which were very welcome and well earned, we thought.

Our final game was Kim’s game, trying to recall 20 sewing items on a tray, seen for a short time. Group work definitely helped us score well, though two groups faced a tie breaker for the ultimate prize. All of this while eating our way through a box of Quality Street.

Jenny showed a quilt she has recently completed, which was much admired.

We had a busy and very enjoyable evening. Thanks go to the organisers who did such a perfect job. Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year to all at Shirley Quilters. The next meeting is on Tuesday 16 January 2024.