QuiltaidUSA™– helping the world, one quilt at a time
12 designers join with 6 shops to bring you a wonderful choice of quilts to make with the added benefit of supporting a charity!
QuiltaidUSA, a charity quilting project launches on the 1st of November online worldwide. Women from around the world can make a difference simply by participating and doing what they love – quilting.
Twelve of our favourite quilt and stitchery designers have donated their time and a block design to the project and six of our most respected stores will be selling them in their online stores so that everyone can participate.
Participants can visit www.quiltaidusa.com to begin the purchase of their 12 block kits and then choose their favourite finishing kit. A significant portion of profits from the designer, the store and the fabric sold in each kit will be donated to the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital in Ethiopia through The Fistula Foundation in the USA and the Hamlin Fistula® Relief and Aid Fund in Australia.
After two successful Quiltaid Australia programmes in 2009 and 2010 Administrator Helen Stubbings of Hugs ‘n Kisses and Pattern Press Australia expanded the project to provide for avid stitchers and quilters of America in 2010. With twelve prominent Australian Designers and wonderful support from Moda Fabrics and Presencia Threads the second US based program will launch in November. Designers include Helen Stubbings of Hugs ‘n Kisses, Lynette Anderson, Natalie Lymer of Cinderberry Stitches, Bronwyn Hayes of Red Brolly, Natalie Bird of The Birdhouse, Liz Stanway of Teddlywinks, Janet Rowe of Wildcraft Farm, Catherine Baynes of WillowValley Store, Natalie Ross of Natalie Ross in Stitches, Gail Pan, Janelle Wind and Brenda Ryan of Thimblestitch.
The blocks are designed using combinations of piecing, appliqué and stitchery and all use the Ruby fabric range by Bonnie and Camille from Moda. Each of the participating stores which include Rossville Quilts, Happiness is… Quilting, The Material Girls, Homestead Hearth, Cabbage Rose Quilting and Pastimes Online in Canada have designed a different finished quilt to place your blocks into.
About the Charity: The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital was founded by Dr Catherine Hamlin AC and her late husband, Dr Reg Hamlin OBE, and is dedicated to the treatment and care of women who suffer horrendous childbirth injuries, known as obstetric fistula.
Obstetric fistula is caused by prolonged obstructed labour when a woman will spend days in labour without any medical help or pain relief. If she survives this ordeal she will give birth to a still born child and her internal injuries will cause her to be incontinent of urine and sometimes bowel contents as well.
She will spend the rest of her life a destitute outcast unless she can get to the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital or one of its outreach centres.
The surgical technique developed by the Hamlin’s successfully cures 93% of obstetric fistula cases. The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital has established a purpose–built village called Desta Mender (“Village of Joy”) to provide long term care for women whose childbirth injuries are so severe that they cannot return to live a normal Ethiopian village life. At Desta Mender the women are trained in new skills so that eventually they can re–enter Ethiopian society as “citizens of the world” once again.
The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital is committed to the UN Millennium Development Goals and particularly those directed towards improving maternal health, reducing infant mortality and empowering women. It has established the Hamlin College of Midwives to train young Ethiopian women as midwives to work in the Ethiopian countryside amongst women who presently have little or no access to medical help during their pregnancy and labour. The mission of the Hamlin College of Midwives is to have a midwife in every Ethiopian village.
The Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital relies entirely on donations from overseas to fund its vital work of improving maternal health, reducing infant mortality and empowering women.
Quiltaid has thus far raised and donated approximately $20,000 to the Addis Ababa Fistula hospital through the various programmes.
About the Company: Pattern Press is a Publisher and Distributor of quality patterns and books to the quilting and soft craft industry worldwide. Featuring many of Australia’s top designers they strive to offer a complete service to their customers and continually work to encourage and promote craft and quilting as a therapy for women and men. The passion of owner Helen Stubbings is to inspire stitchers to make a difference through their craft and to give to those who are not fortunate enough to be able to also stitch with beautiful fabrics and thread as we are.
QuiltaidUSA details:
Links:
http://www.hamlinfistula.org.au/
