Five sewing machines + one serger + a passionate group of fiber art enthusiasts from the
Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild = 31 dog and cat blankets and 9 pillows for animal care facilities in the Chattanooga area.
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Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild members sewed fleece, flannel and terry towel
blankets and bed liners to provide warmth and comfort to animals and pets. |
The February guild meeting began with a
presentation and videos about rehabilitation services for animals that was given by Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practictioner, Cassy Englert. Many pets and service dogs have benefited from the underwater treadmill, neuromuscular electrical stimulation, athletic conditioning and other theraputic services available at
RIVER and similar facilities.
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| Carbon, a flat coated retriever, uses the underwater treadmill. |
After the presentation, guild members got to work cutting fleece, flannel and terry towels for the animal blankets.
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| Cutting terry towels for a dog blanket. |
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| Measuring and trimming fleece fabric to size. |
Flannel pillow cases were stuffed with knit and fleece trimmings to make dog beds and crate liners.
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| Stuffing pillow cases with trimmings and fabric scraps. |
Sewing machines and servers were humming. Pillow cases that were stuffed with scraps were sewn closed.
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| Sewing the pillow cases closed to create dog beds. |
Pieces of fleece, flannel and terry towels were sewn together to make cat and dog blankets. Old flannel shirts can also be cut and repurposed for these blankets. Step-by-step
instructions for making dog blankets with flannel shirts can be found
here.
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| Serging and sewing per blankets. |
At this meeting, guild members completed 31 blankets of various sizes and 9 dog beds for their annual community service project. It all went to the dogs... and cats.
Show and Tell
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Left: Neckwear woven on the triangle loom with bead embellishments.
Right: Knitted items with alpaca yarns. |
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| Woven cotton dish towel. |
