CRVC Newsletter -- November 2003

ABOVE IS OUR WEBSITE ADDRESS: Just a reminder....Let Lisa Green know at klg7641@comcast.net if you have a new email account.

Several of us are just back from the EGA National Seminar in Rye Brook, New York. The classes were very good, the faculty even better, and the facility proved to be comfortable. Many a long walk occurred as our rooms were distributed along extra long corridors, but the exercise did us all good as we sat and stitched and ate lots of good food in the hotel and at local restaurants. Now it's time to get back to our usual routines and plan for the events ahead.

CRVC is making a change. We are offering the class at the December meeting to every CRVC member FREE OF CHARGE. The seminar in May was a financial success, thanks to everyone's contributions, so we are passing along some of the proceeds to you. Please join us to learn a form of whitework that is new to most of us. TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS HOLIDAY GIFT FROM CRVC, you must email or call Lisa Green (klg7641@comcast.net or 860-658-6082) by November 14^th. The picture of Diana's design is shown below.

This design may become a pin cushion, a small purse or adorn a name tag. The linen fabric may be either 32 or 36 count in white or natural (tan). Threads are coton a broider in sizes 12, 16, 20 and 25, depending on fabric selection. Thread colors may be white or ecru. See the enlarged image of this design on our website.

This program day will also feature an ornament exchange. This ornament may be something you have stitched or sewn, or it may be a creative or unique ornament in any form. We will also enjoy show and tell, so bring something to share or display.

Program Schedule for Saturday, December 13, 2003:
9:30 - 12:00 Diana Snyder Class (part 1)
12:00 - 1:15 Lunch, Business Meeting, Ornament Exchange, Show and Tell
1:15 - 3:00 Class (part 2)
High Street School, South Glastonbury, CT

Lunch: You may bring your own lunch or we will be ordering sandwiches from the deli at the grocery store across the street. If you would like to order a sandwich, please arrive promptly to select your sandwich from the menu.

IMPORTANT CHAPTER NEWS:
(For those of you receiving communications via email, this is a repeated message and an additional reminder to let Julia or Susan know of your interest.)
When your current co-presidents took office, one of our goals was to offer the membership as many opportunities as possible to further our love and enjoyment of needlework. Getting together in small groups in areas closer to where each of us resides seemed an obvious answer.

Therefore we are proposing area groups, one west of the river and one east of the river. The members of Pequot Colony Chapter who folded their membership back into CRVC are at present meeting monthly as the Pequot Colony Area group. By adding two new area groups we would be providing our membership with three options for getting together to work on a community outreach project, a correspondence course, sharing your own personal project, or simply spending time with others who share your interest and passion.

These groups will be what the participants want them to be. No rules or regulations will apply other than those you set for yourselves. To determine the interest and availability of members to participate in this endeavor, we have scheduled an "Interest and Information" meeting in two locations, one in Farmington and one in Manchester, to be held on Wednesday, November 19, 2003, at 7pm.

Location 1 (Farmington) Julia Appell 860-677-9125 juliaappell@comcast.net
Location 2 (Manchester) Susan Jones 860-643-8119 sjones7@aol.com

How often a group meets, on what day, at what time, will depend on your replies and the general consensus of the group. You need to make your wants and needs known by participating in this first gathering. Please contact either Julia or Susan to indicate your attendance at the scheduled meeting. If you are unable to attend but have an interest in being part of one of these groups, please take a moment to express your preferences to either Julia or Susan.

It is our hope that these less formal gatherings of our membership will help to keep us in better touch with all of our members and provide more opportunities for all of us to further our interest and passion for needlework.

News from the Pequot Colony Group:
Pequot Colony Group is an area group that meets from 9:30am to 11:30am on the third Thursday of every month (with the exception of December) at the New London Library. They work in different media, most of them stitching on workshop pieces that they have started. The set meeting day provides a time when old friends know they can meet for a morning of work and visiting. They welcome anyone who would like to join them. The library is easy to find, and Doris Boas (ndboas@worldnet.att.net) will be happy to send instructions to the building.

The group was approached by the Groton Public Library to have another display during the month of December. They have decided to include examples of the different types of work that they do with a short explanation of the technique attached. Included will be various counted thread techniques, Hardanger, crewel, silk ribbon, and silk and metal embroidery. They have shown at the library before and the exhibit always receives a lot of attention.

Election of new officers: The following is a list of members who have agreed to stand for election on April 17^th (Note: This is the third Saturday in the month!):

President: Chris Paul Vice Presidents/Program & Education: Julia Appell and Lisa Green

Treasurer: Linda Berry Communications: Lisa Green NER Representative: Julia Appell

Our meeting will be held at the brand new Hilton Garden Inn in Glastonbury (across from Thistle Needleworks) and will feature a presentation by Judie Solomon on "What's New in Needlework". A delicious luncheon will be followed by our election and the installation of new officers. Region officers will assist with the transition. Put this date on your calendar!

Another reminder: The New England Region will be presenting an exhibit at EGA's National Headquarters beginning March 2004. Pieces need to arrive 2 weeks prior to the exhibit (by February 15^th) and will be on display for approximately one month. It is up to the individual exhibitor to send in pieces, although they may be sent as a group. Julia Appell has forms that need to be completed and included in your package. There is no limit on the size of the items, but they do need to be finished and ready for display. Please use this deadline as a reason to complete one or more of your favorites. CRVC would like to provide at least ten pieces for the exhibit, so get in touch with any of the board members if you have questions.

One last bit of information came out of our attendance at Rye Brook. Gay Ann Rogers has a new stitching offering that will take place over two years. A group is being formed by Susan Sutherland. If you would like to participate, here is her message:

Patterns for My Needle (can be viewed at www.NeonFlamingo.com/GayAnn)
There are four installments, each one costing $36.00 plus s/h. The installments will be sent on 2/15/04, 7/15/04, 2/15/05 and 7/15/05. If you are interested in purchasing this project, please either send me $144 (for the total project) or $72 for (two installments, then you can send me another check for $72 after the second installment). I will let you know how much s/h is. I can mail it to you. We need 8 people to order this project. The deadline to sign-up with Gay Ann is February 1, 2004, so please send me your information (name, address, phone number, and email address) and check payable to Gay Ann Rogers by January 1, 2004.

If you are interested, send all orders to:
    Susan Sutherland
    360 Westchester Avenue #508
    Port Chester, NY 10573

On Saturday, February 14^th, Virginia McCarthy will lead us in this non-sewing finishing technique. Kits will be handed out at the December meeting to be stitched by our February meeting date. We will then complete the finishing during this program following the clever methods of Judy Odell. The snow date for this meeting is Saturday, February 21^st.