Knit & Natter: Thursday

It's Knit & Natter time! Bring along your unfinished knitting projects, your tapestries and your paper-craft - or anything else you have on the go. It's nearly Christmas time, so why not try your hand at making Christmas ornaments?

We'll be meeting this Thursday 24th of October from 6.30 – 8.30pm. 

We're meeting at The Coborn Arms, 8 Coborn Road, Mile End, London E3 2DA. Click here for a map.

This EEWI-inspired group is open to anyone who feels like popping in with a project - knitting or otherwise. It will be a casual meeting, and everyone is invited – not only knitters. Bring along your stitching or paper crafts, or simply join us for a few drinks and a good catch-up. New knitters are welcome too.

Looking forward to seeing you all there!

Country Living Christmas Fair

Congratulations to Regina and Marie who were the lucky winners in the draw thsi week for tickets for the Country Living Christmas Fair. With a wide range of quality stalls to browse, food stalls to sample and expert advice on hand, a day out at the Fair is a great way to start your Christmas Shopping and find inspiration for the festive season. There will also be some other exciting features this year, from a special performance by the West End's Jersey Boys at Thursday's Gala Evening, to inspiring talks and tastings in the Lifestyle Theatre. So embrace the atmosphere, discover a vast array of exhibitors and start ticking off that shopping list early. 

You'll find the Fair at the Islington Business Design Centre from 30th October until 3rd November. Details here. And members, don't forget, you can get a discount on tickets - check your newsletter, or email us for details.

an evening of miscellany

Our little local history group pulled no punches with the quiz they prepared for us after delving into the archives at Bishopsgate Institute.  It was a tough one, but with so much to learn about the East End. So thanks are due to Carolyn, Annie, Heather and local polymath and writer Linda Wilkinson who did the research, and to Afia Begum at the Institute who so ably facilitated the project. Well done, Barbara, Natasha and Rachel who were the top team. And thanks to those who brought along photos for us to see - I loved Karen's photos of her uncle's 60's wedding in Leyton.  If you could not get along on Tuesday, I have a few more copies of the quiz - with answers - tucked away for you.

We managed to fit a lot more in...   Lindsay Burns from Kid's Company told us about the wide range of work they undertake with and for troubled youngsters, including the project to support social enterprises set up by young people who have benefitted from the support of the charity. If you are interested in volunteering, check here. And if you know of a local organisation that might be interested in hearing about the project, let us know and we'll pass the information on.

At the end of the evening when things had quietened down, Martha from Shoreditch Sisters intereviewed me and Clare about East End WI. We may have been a bit gaga by that time, although Clare was very composed and sat there doing her knitting. You can tell for yourself if you listen in to Longwave Ladies radio shortly.

I'll be off next week to Tower Hamlets Foodbank with the toiletries that you donated. As ever, many thanks for your generosity. And if you missed out this time, we'll still be taking donations next month too. More of which shortly...

Enjoy Apple Day this weekend. Natasha and Elizabeth will be going along to the Friends of City Gardens Apple Day event on Saturday, 11.30am - 3pm, at Golden Lane Community Hall with a few cakes. If you're staying at home, you could always try baking a cake of your own to celebrate the days when there were orchards in Stepney Green...

where do you think you are?

How much do you know about the place where you live? A little while back, a small group of intrepid members spent several afternoons at Bishopsgate Institute researching the archives to find out more about the corner of East London where we live. This month we're going to be sharing some of that research with you. We have a quiz, one you might want to do with one or two of your EEWI buddies and, yes, there will be prizes. We'd love it too if you could share some of your memories or pictures of the place you live(d) with us too - somewhere you worked perhaps, jolly days out, where you went to school (we promise we'll take very good care of them.) So join us for an evening of exploration and memories. And because it's October, members can bring a friend for free. You may need some help with that quiz, you know.

We're meeting on Tuesday 15th October at St Margaret's House, Old Ford Road, in the hall behind the Gallery Cafe, doors open at 7pm from a 7.30pm start. Free tea and coffee, other drinks and refreshments by donation. If you'd like to bring some cake or savouries to share that would be lovely. Gives you a chance to keep your hand in with the baking. We'll also be having a short talk from Jan O'Brien from Tower Hamlets Befriending Service. We'll also be collecting items for users of Tower Hamlets Foodbank - not food, but toiletries like shampoo, shower gel, toilet rolls, detergent etc.

If you fancy a bit of company over a cup of something, pop along to our coffee morning at 10.30am on Friday18th October.  We'll be meeting at The Larder in Globe Road, E2.

And if you fancy coming out one evening,  our bookclub meeting is on Tuesday 22nd (contact us for details), and Knit and Natter is at the Coborn Arms on Thursday 24th, 6.30pm - 8.30pm.

Hope to see you soon.

it's all a bit of a blur

You had to be there to understand.

Scottie from Swing Patrol* was a marvellous teacher - charming, patient and beautifully turned out.

And we tried really hard to shimmy. Feet flying, arms variously akimbo and up in the air.  When Julie sent me the photos she took she said they were a bit blurry, but I  don't think it was the light levels, we were just moving so fast. And it's still a bit of a blur. I mean, which foot went forward first, and when exactly did you have to put your arms up?

That was only one of the things we got our feet round in September. We served tea and cakes at Tea Dance in Queen Elizabeth Park with Laura and Adzove from  Forest Gate WI*. It rained, but as we were inside a pod made of recycled materials we only got wet when we ventured out to join the few intrepid dancers who managed to find us in the deluge.

We had a tea stall at Park Life where they just about managed to parade the lovely dogs before it rained again.

On the quiet days, we had coffee at Stepney City Farm, a lovely bookclub evening at Annie's, some knitting and nattering at the Coborn.

And then, we worked our socks off baking all week and running the tea stall  for two days at Countryside Live where we sold gallons of tea and mountains of cake until by late Sunday afternoon...

Massive thanks to everyone who made September so memorable, even if it went by in a flash - to all our talented and hardworking bakers and tea makers (you know who you are);' to Scott and Swing Patrol; to Sophie or inviting us to the tea dance; to the Friends of Mile End Park and the lovely chaps at Park Life who shared their power with us; and to the fabulous Lee Valley staff  - Naomi, Amy, and Tom who drove me home to get more cake - who shared dancing sheep and pretty otters with us on Leyton Marshes on such a fine September weekend.

So, on to October - see our next post coming right up.

* If you fancy learning how to dance, you'll find Swing Patrol at Royal Inn on the Park, Victoria Park

** There's an inspiring article in the latest WI Life about Forest Gate's efforts to save the High Street