Three "Grannies" Share More than Quilting
by Lilo Bowman

Nestled in the farming belt of the Lockyer Valley of Queensland, Australia, in the town of Gatton, Gail Chalker and her co-owners and friends, Janelle Diete and Jenny Harch, have built a quilting community within the walls of their cozy shop, known to the locals as Sew Creative. Wanting to do more than just quilt for family and friends, these three "grannies" bought and transformed an old, rundown craft shop into what has become a welcoming place for young and old alike to drop in for a "cuppa and a biscuit" (tea and cookie), as well as to learn more about quilting.

Along with classes for adults, the ladies also provide after-school hand-sewing lessons for children ages 5 - 14. Young students begin their introduction to sewing by hand stitching their own beaded needlecase and scissor fob. (Gail says that by making their own sewing supplies, the children are more likely to keep track of them.) Boys, as well as girls, attend these classes, which are geared around the school schedule. Due to their more demanding school work, teens attend classes on the weekends, working on more advanced projects, such as bags or pillowcases. The idea behind the classes is to encourage the love of handwork and creativity at an early age. 

                              
                                       Children's class projects courtesy of Sew Creative Quilt Shop

Gail and the other "grannies" are always looking for ways to share their love of quilting through a variety of community-oriented projects. "The World's Largest Hexagon Quilt" project was started as a way to share their love of traditional quilts, and also as a quest to make the world's largest quilt of its type...pieced entirely by hand! After researching the Guinness Book of World Records, the three women set out to achieve this immense goal by talking it up with and enlisting the help of their friends, students, and customers. The request the trio put out was minimal: that each person donate as many rosettes or rounds as they liked. The only stipulation was that all contributions be stitched entirely by hand. Word quickly spread across the internet...and the world!  Within a very short time, little bundles began arriving at the store.  By December 2009, the shop had received almost 11,000 rosettes; in total, almost 66,000 hexagons! 

 
Donated hexagon rosettes and rounds.

Donations came from young and old. The youngest to contribute was nine years old, the oldest a 92-year-old lady living in a nursing home. Quilters in 18 countries, from as far away and diverse as Cyprus, China, Finland, and Chile, sent donations. One set of hexagons was made with pieces from a wedding dress! The overwhelming response to this project was more than the "grannies" ever had imagined.  As donations poured in, each contributor was sent a thank-you note for his or her time and efforts toward advancing the project. 

Quilting sections of the quilt

As hexagons arrived in all colors, it was decided that additional green hexagons would be used to unify the design. Work progressed as still more donations continued to arrive.  The plan was to have the entire quilt completed in time for the annual Queensland Quilter's Picnic on May 12, 2010, where an assessment would determine if the quilt indeed could claim a Guinness Record. Four hours before the official determination, the last bit of quilting and binding were done. The completed quilt was indeed deemed to be the recordholder: it measured 108.8 meters (357 feet), weighed in at 146.7 Kg (321 lbs.), contained 152,636 hexagons, and took 160 hours to quilt and bind!  What an amazing feat! 

The World's Largest Quilt displayed at the annual Queensland Quilter's Picnic in Gatton on May 11, 2010.

Once the quilt had been displayed, the "grannies" decided it would the be cut into smaller quilts that could be sent to those in need. Gail admits that cutting into the quilt was a bit scary after all those months of sewing, but in the end, anxiety was overcome, and the World's Largest Hexagon Quilt was cut into 115 individual quilts that were given to those in nursing homes or with disabilities. 

 
Cutting into the World's Largest Quilt.                                 Cut quilts ready for donation.

Not women to rest on their laurels, these dynamic "grannies" have given themselves a new challenge for 2011. They have pledged to make 1,000 pillowcases for the Pillowcase Challenge.  The majority of the pillowcases will go to those in Queensland, with the remainder going to soldiers in Afghanistan. These three ladies truly stand behind their shop motto: "Sew Helpful, Sew Friendly, and Sew Creative. Service Like the Good Old Days!"  As Gail says "The kettle is always on, and we look forward to meeting you. Bring your friends, bring a bus, just let us know and we will have a 'cuppa' and biscuits upon your arrival."

Thank you, ladies, for all you do in sharing your service and love of quilting with others. If you ever are in the Queensland area, do be sure to drop by this dynamic little quilt shop in the Lockyer Valley.

Visit the Sew Creative website at http://www.sewcreativegatton.com.au/  or click here.