During February, the women’s quilting class continued with renewed enthusiasm, as three new women were accepted into the program.  After just 2 weeks with the new ladies, it was observed that they are determined, resourceful and dedicated to the task of improving their sewing skills.  As with the Intermediate class, it is a constant exercise [...]

The Intermediate Level Quilting Course has now opened, with the same women who successfully completed the 2009 Beginning Quilting Course. This time, the women are busy making placemats and table runners so they can show their skills and produce an attractive marketable product. This takes time, and with a program that only runs [...]

After an extension of the Course for 4 more weeks, the Pilot Project Beginning Quilting Course was completed. The women were each awarded a certificate of completion, stating that they have successfully mastered on a beginning level the skills of piecing, hand quilting, and machine quilting.
Discussion and planning for the next step led the [...]

The Pilot project for women continued into Feb. with vigor, after a few dropped out who were not able to continue. These determined women began learning how to choose fabric and colors, how to cut accurately using a rotary cutter with mat and ruler, and how to construct simple blocks and triangles to make [...]

Plans were made to open a Six-Week Beginning Quilting course, teaching the very basic traditional quilt blocks, emphasizing precision in piecing of fabrics.
Invitations were dispersed, applications made and interviews conducted to determine the initial intake of women for the course. The women who qualified were those who already had some skills in sewing, either [...]

The planning and purchasing of basic equipment and furnishings for the Women’s Sewing Project was begun. It was decided that four simple treadle sewing machines would be purchased. A number of large tables and shelves were purchased, along with basic local fabrics and supplies.
Several interested women began inquiring about the program, and information [...]

This month, research and development of the Women’s program for ATN began with visits to several existing ministries in Kigali. Interviews were conducted with various directors of programs such as Dream Center, Amahoro Crafts, Gahiya Hands, etc. in order to become acquainted with programs already underway, and with the levels of success of women’s [...]