Annual Extravaganza Recycle Sale
FEBRUARY 1, 2025
9am – 3pm
AT St. Edwards Catholic Church IN NORTH PLAINS.
Time to start your yearly sewing room decluttering marathon: What to save and where to put it.
To help you out we are HAPPY to accept your extras! All cottons ( fleece, flannel, minky and panels too) can be used for our Recycle Sale. All sewing notions, threads, rotary cutters, rulers and related gadgets will be able to find a new home. All donations are very welcome!!
This recycle sale is our major fundraiser for the year and it serves many purposes other than raising money. There is fun, fellowship, the opportunity to volunteer and a reason to declutter your sewing space. Some of you have already started choosing the things that once WOWED you but now need a new home. The most important thing I can say while sorting is to ask yourself, “Would I buy this?” before putting it in the bag. What we ask for is:
*All things sewing, and craft related as long as it’s clean and in good condition.
*Yardage, precuts, fat quarters, kits
*Sewing and quilting notions
The fabric (yardage) will be sold for $4 a pound. This will make prep time easier and the prices of the fabric more consistent. Please price everything else (notions, precuts, kits,bundles of specific fabrics) in the following increments: .50, .75, $1, $2, $3, $4, $5, $7, $10, $15, $20 and we have a slot for other prices. IE: you have a kit. you can price it for $60. enJOY your cleaner space!
FAQ’s – Recycle Sale
Q: I’m finished sorting. Where can I drop it off?
A: There will be drop off locations in Aloha (Sue Nichols), and Forest Grove (Fran Warren), Hillsboro (Joan Courtney), Beaverton (Bekki Jamison) – check the Wednesday Patch or look them up in the directory.
Q: Can I drop off my donation if I’m not on the set-up committee?
A: Yes. Individual donations can be dropped off between 7:00 and 8:30 the day of the sale.
Q: If I drop off my donation on the morning of the sale, can I shop at that time?
A: No. It is chaotic and we won’t be ready to accept any money. The sale starts at 9AM.
Q: What is the most fun job to do for the sale?
A: That is really hard to answer because they are all really fun. Here is a list of all the jobs with a description and an advantage. You can pick one or two that fits you.
Drop off point: Do you have space and a fairly large vehicle? Example: I have a donation but want to go to the sale in the afternoon. I will set up a time with you to drop it off. You store it until the sale. You load up all that you have accepted and deliver to St Edward at 8AM. And you might as well stay and help set up, too. See what I did there?
Set up: You show up with your donations and some of your friends’ donations, open the boxes and put them on the marked tables. The tables will be set up already when you get there. You open a box and there is an iron in it marked $10. You set it on the $10 table. Easy! Plus, you get to see all the good stuff first and it’s good exercise.
Greeters: This is a fun job. You say “hi” to everyone that comes in the door and explain the process. Give them a price sheet, pencil and a magazine that is theirs to keep….I like this job.
Rovers: This is fun too. Familiarize yourself with where things are so you help people find what they are looking for.
Scale Master: you’re going to be weighing fabric and multiplying the weight by $5 and writing the total on their price sheet.
Clean up: The cool thing about this job is….it’s a really appreciated job!
There are other small things to do like put up flyers around town….
Q: How long are the shifts:
A: 2 and a half hours
Q: What happens to all the things left over?
A: Some things are saved and set aside for Mini Raffle Prizes. Some fabric is saved for charity. The rest is donated to other local charities.
Q: If I donate something and it doesn’t sell, can I have it back?
A: Yes, you can but you must let someone know. Ideally you would be there at the end of the sale to retrieve it.
Q: In your first answer you said to pick one or two jobs. Does that mean I can’t pick 3?
A: NOPE If you know what job(s) you want you can text it to me ( number in the directory). Same thing if you have any questions. Text is always best! Email and I are not good friends.
Sue Nichols – Ways and Means
Shall I Keep My Scraps?
Have you ever considered disposing of your quilting scraps but been unsure which ones to keep, which to use to make new quilts, and which ones to donate for charity projects?
If you have made a quilt for a loved one that gets used and washed regularly, it is a great idea to keep the quilt scraps so that if accidents occur you can fix that special comfy quilt. This is especially a good idea if the quilt was made for a baby or small child that may ultimately hold onto their quilt for many years using it as a “lovey” and dragging it with them wherever they may go. These quilts get lots of time in the washer and dryer and are subject to developing “character” over the years.
If your scrap assortment contains lots of “odd” color fabrics or ones that don’t coordinate well with your other fabrics, these may be perfect for donation to charity quilts, dog bed fillers, cat mats, etc. Small scraps are great for use in dog beds and since they will not be seen, it makes no difference what colors or sizes they are.
The most important thing to remember is that your scraps can be used, so there is no reason to throw them away, keep them for potential repair of lovies, make a new quilt that is a great collection of memories from past projects, or bless others by using your scraps for donations.
Loose Ends – Finishing Projects Loved Ones Left Behind
How many of you have had someone ask about the quilt, on the wall behind you, on a Zoom call? A Zoom call, last month, with a social work professor who works in end-of-life care (who did inquire about my quilt), led me to an organization called Loose Ends, a small LLC out of Seattle, WA and Portland, ME, which finishes craft projects loved ones have left behind. I was immediately hooked, and I registered online to be a “finisher.”
A call to Jen Simonic, one of the founders of Loose Ends, revealed that I was one of 2,000 finishers worldwide. Loose Ends serves as the matchmaker between the “finisher” and the individual whose deceased loved one has left an unfinished knitting, crochet, or quilt project. “People are amazing – the amount of expertise is extraordinary” she beamed, “and, despite the fact that they underestimate their skill level, finishers go way beyond.” (The quilt above was 75% when the finisher received it.) One particularly touching experience sparks Jen’s memory. A finisher received a sweater missing the last sleeve. The “customer’s” deceased grandma had intended the item for her great grandson. The finisher expertly completed the sleeve and knit in a small heart where the grandma had stopped knitting.
When asked what was the biggest challenge in getting projects completed, Jen replied, “We sometimes have a hard time matching customer to finisher – shipping plays a big part. Right now, we only have one finisher in HI. We try to match customer and finisher based on proximity, skill level, and druthers (what the finisher puts on their registration form). And we get people from all walks of life.”
Loose Ends
Feb. 8 Washington Post article.
Martha Robertson
Project Homeless Connect Mending Table
Thank you, to our generous guild members, who donated their time to host a mending table at the 2023 Project Homeless Connect (PHC) on January 27th .
PHC partners with city government, nonprofits and the private sector to provide a one–stop shop of health and human services for homeless Washington County residents. Services include medical, dental, mental health, substance abuse, housing information, veteran services, free eyeglasses, haircuts, food, wheelchair repair, and more.
Martha Robertson
