November News....

October’s meeting was on a cold dark, night which was perfect for Kim Thomson to show us how to produce our own light graffiti.  For a lot of first timers, we did pretty well.

November is our last meeting of the year and what better than getting the creative juices following with a lino printing workshop hosted by Lucy Dabner.  Lucy started learning printmaking techniques in the late 1990s whilst attending Chelsea College of Art and Design (The London Institute) and Falmouth College of Art.  Although her career then took her into another direction, she has recently taken up lino printing again focusing mainly on Arabic/Islamic patterns. 

Lucy will be showing us the lino printing process from choosing and transferring an image onto the lino, through to a final finished print in a single colour.  As it will be the run-up to Christmas, we will be producing lino cut Christmas cards and festive tags to take-away. All the tools and ink will be provided, but please bring any card or tags you would like to print on.  As we will be using ink, you may want to bring something to cover your clothes as the ink can stain.

All members now have the opportunity to vote for the WI resolutions which will go to the WI AGM in June 2017.  The 2017 resolutions are:

1. Alleviating loneliness.
2. FGM. More awareness for more action.
3. Equal access for all who need specialised maternal mental health services.
4. Provision of appropriate welfare and safe spaces for women & children in refugee camps.
5. Supporting women's refuges.
6. Plastic Soup. Keep microplastic fibres out of our oceans.

Voting slips and further details of the resolutions are in this month’s WI Life.  Please bring your voting slip along to the meeting.

We hope to see you on Wednesday 30^th for our last meeting of 2016.  If you are not able to make it, we wish you best for the festive period and see you in January 2017.

October news...

September’s meeting saw us upcycling courtesy of Sarah from My English Home.  We got to learn about different upcycling techniques using Annie Sloan paints.  If you have caught the upcycling bug, Sarah would love you to visit her at My English Home.  Don’t forget your voucher for a 10% discount.

October means it’s time to celebrate as it will be Malago WI’s 8^th birthday.  This year we will have a Diwali theme, so we will be enjoying a feast of savoury and sweet snacks.  For those bringing refreshments, you might like to try creating some Diwali inspired treats.  Here are some delicious recipes to inspire you!

Autumn is well and truly here and although we might not like the nights during in, it is perfect for our October meeting hosted by Kim Thomson.  Kim is a multi-disciplinary artist specialising in silversmithing and alternative photography.  She has been delivering creative art workshops to a range of groups in Bristol for over 12 years.  Kim will be teaching us to create light graffiti where we will be designing and producing our own light graffiti light pictures using a range of light sources and digital SLR cameras.  Kim will be providing all the equipment required and we will have the opportunity to get prints of the finished articles.

We look forward to seeing you all for our birthday celebration on Wednesday 26^th.

MWIx

September News....

After a summer of outings and with the night’s drawing in, we are returning to the hall to be treated to a feast of upcycling!!

We will be joined by Sarah from My English Home  exclusive Bristol stockists of Annie Sloan paint and products in the beautiful Clifton Arcade. Sarah was trained by Annie herself and now holds courses using these paints for furniture renovations. Annie first developed the paint some 25 years ago wanting something that allowed her to be creative and spontaneous with no need for prep!  Once you’ve tried it – you won’t go back to sanding!

Sarah will be showing us all how to upcycle and revive that old piece of furniture you keep thinking you should throw out! She will be giving us demonstrations of painting, upholstering, and various effects and finishes.  You be will inspired to go home and breathe new life into your own chairs and tables!

You will then get a chance to create your own Annie Sloan piece – please bring a small photo frame (or mirror) to try your hand at the 2 colour paint effect! Please do wear something you don’t mind getting paint on!

You will have the opportunity to buy a number of products including books, brushes and mini project packs consisting of two 100ml tester pots of Annie Sloan chalk paint, Annie Sloan clear and dark and an Annie Sloan natural bristle brush. The pack retails for £29.95.

You will also be able to order 1 litre tins of paint and anything else that takes your fancy!   Sarah will accept cash or cheque.  All attendees will be given 10% off their purchase on their 1st visit to Sarah’s shop.

We look forward to seeing you back at Bedminster Methodist Church on 28^th September.

MWIx

August News.....

Hello Malagoers

July saw us leave the Bedminster Methodist Hall and venture to Windmill Hill City Farm for an evening full of food.  Thank you to our members and guests who were able to attend and take part in an extremely enjoyable evening.  We were able to taste a number of local cheeses provided Rosie Morgan aka The Bristol Cheesemonger and everyone had a go at making their own pizzas which were delicious.

Summer is still with us, so we are out and about once more in August.  Many of you attended our June meeting where Tim Mowl gave us an alternative view of the architecture in Bristol. We are delighted that Tim will be leading a walk to bring this to life.  From a pugilistic pub to a hospital of alternative medicine, our route will start at The Hatchet Inn and take us via the Red Lodge to various medieval buildings and alms-houses, then on to Lodge Street, round Christmas Steps and by Hotel du Vin.  We will then tackle St Michael's Hill to the Homeopathic Hospital where we will be rewarded with its lovely gardens, finishing at the Highbury Vaults for a well-deserved drink.

If you are thinking of attending, drop us an email so we can gage numbers or just come along on the night.

For any of you who are inspired by our walk around Bristol, The Architecture Centre are asking local bakers, designers and architects to recreate their favourite Bristol building in a cake to help celebrate their 20^th anniversary.  Visit The Architecture Centre - Architectural Cake Competition for more information.

We will be starting the meeting a bit earlier than normal, meeting at the Hatchet at 7:15 for a 7:30 start. We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 31^st.

MWI x

July news...

Hello Malagoers

After a highly entertaining meeting with Tim Mowl, it is time for us to leave Bedminster Methodist Hall, enjoy the evening sunshine and go for our annual summer outing.

This year’s outing will be to Windmill Hill City Farm on Philip Street, Bedminster.  We have been able to arrange a packed evening for you to take part in.  We will start the evening with a tutored cheese tasting hosted by Rosie Morgan aka The Bristol Cheesemonger.  Already a regular at food markets, Rosie now has a permanent shop in St Nicholas Street which stocks up to 100 different cheeses mainly from the West Country.  Continuing on with the food theme, we will be cooking our own pizzas in the Farm’s wood burning oven.  Dough, sauce and toppings will be provided.  Soft drinks will be available, but please feel free to bring along any other drinks such as wine or beer.

In order to fit everyone into the barn and ensure it is not too much of a squeeze, we have to limit numbers.  Places will be allocated on a first come, first serve basis.  If you would like to attend, please email us by Monday 18^th July to reserve your space and let us know if you have any particular dietary requirements. We will be allocating spaces to members first and we can then offer places to guests at a cost of £10.  This will also be allocated on a first come first served basis.

There were sunshine and showers on 25^th June where we had a very successful day at the North Street Summer Fair raising nearly £300.  Thank you to everyone who helped out with setup, staffing the stall and baking a range of delicious cakes.  Without your continued help and support, we would not be able to take part in such fundraising events which are essential to fund activities such as our summer outing.

We will be starting the meeting a bit earlier than normal at 7:15 for a welcome glass of fizz and be finishing by 9:30. We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 27^th  at Windmill Hill City Farm.

MWI x

June news.....

 

 

Hello Malagoers

Our May meeting was jam packed with talks and demonstrations from Mary Hall on lip reading and Zoe Hunt from Mini First Aid on paediatric first aid.  Both speakers contributed to a highly entertaining meeting.

This month we are delighted to welcome well known writer Tim Mowl. Aside from his many architectural and landscape books he recently published a series of 12 urban walks called Bristol Explored. Unlike conventional guide books he encourages the walker to view the city through fresh eyes giving a light hearted but fascinating insight into its architectural past as well as social history, new buildings, sculptures and even street art.  Tim will also touch on his current project a book on Regency gardens to coincide with the bicentenaries of Jane Austen and Humphry Repton, entitled ‘All around is Fairy ground – Pleasure and the Regency Garden’.  Then for our August meeting, Tim has offered to lead a walk around the Harbourside finishing at a suitable waterfront pub.

In addition to our monthly meetings, we have set up other groups to allow our members to explore some of their interests.  The Sock club has already met on two occasions and three knitters are learning the tricks of the trade with Judi Edwards.  The Craft club and Cocktail club have held their first meetings and a great time was had by all.  The Craft club will be meeting next on 23^rd June and the Cocktail Club at the beginning of July with an outing to The Pump House.  If you are a member and would like take part in these clubs, but haven’t had a chance to sign up, please email us.

The National Federation of Women’s Institutes AGM was held at the beginning of June.  Over 5300 women attended and that both motions, avoid food waste, address food poverty and appropriate care in hospitals for people with dementia, were carried by a significant majority.

We are hoping that the sun will be shining on Saturday 25^th June when Malago WI will have a stall at the very popular North Street Summer Fair.  Thank you to those who have volunteered to help out on the stall and bake cakes.  We would like to exceed the funds we raised last year of over £600, so if you can bake a cake or spare some time on the day, please email us.  We will have cake drop off points the day before as well for those who aren’t able to come to the stall on the day.

We look forward to seeing you at 8pm on Wednesday 29^th.

May news...

Hello Malagoers

Thank you to everyone who was able to come to our April meeting.  The creative juices were following and we were able to make some fantastic bunting to help brighten up the hall and decorate the Malago WI stall at upcoming fairs.  If you took some home to finish, it would be great if you could bring it with you.

This month, we are lucky to have two speakers, Mary Hall and Zoe Hunt.

Mary has been teaching lip-reading classes to hard of hearing, and deaf people, for over 15 years.  Having grown up with two profoundly deaf parents, she feels strongly that deafness is an isolating condition but that it needn’t be like that.   Lip-reading lessons helps empower people to learn skills to help overcome communication barriers.  Mary will talk about her experience, explain the mechanics of lip reading and take us through a hands on exercise.

Zoe is a mumpreneur.  She set up the first franchise of Mini First Aid nearly 3 years ago.  The organisation provides training in infant and paediatric first aid to parents, grandparents and carers.  There are now 14 franchises across the country and it continues to expand week by week.  Mini First Aid was the winner of the Mumpreneur Awards 2015.  As well as sharing her experience of setting up a new business, Zoe will also demonstrate techniques for dealing with choking incidents.

We have now set up a number of additional groups outside of our monthly meeting for Malago WI members and dates for the initial meetings have been arranged.  If you would like to take part in these and haven’t signed up yet, please email wearemalagowi@gmail.com.

Sock Knitting
The first course of sock knitting with Judi Edwards is taking place over 4 sessions in June and is now full. There will be an update about the possibility of a further course if you missed out.

Cocktail Club
Following a great response from members to the Cocktail Club will launch on Thursday 9 June from 8pm.  At this meeting we will have some celebratory drinks and plan how we want to go forward to suit people’s interest in different activities, possible themed visits and rough costs depending on numbers.

Craft Club
The initial meeting will be taking place on Thursday 19^th May.  It's a chance to hang out, chat and make stuff (with tea and cake of course!).  You can bring whatever you're working on or just come and browse crafty books for inspiration!  Further dates will be arranged shortly.

As part of the May meeting, we will be asking members to vote For or Against this year’s WI resolutions:
 

• Avoid food waste, address food poverty
• Appropriate care in hospitals for people with dementia

Further information is available in on the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) website. The outcome of our vote will be taken to the NFWI AGM in June.

To help with our fundraising, Malago WI will have a stall at this year’s North Street Summer Fair on Saturday 25^th June.  We had a very successful day last year and raised over £600.  We still need volunteers to provide cakes and help out on the stall.  Sign-up sheets will be circulated during the meeting.  Any help you can provide, either baking a cake or staffing the stall for an hour or so, means we can make this year’s fair even more successful.

We look forward to seeing you at 8pm on Wednesday 25^th

April News....

Hello Malagoers

March’s meeting was a fascinating look at the making of BBC Natural History programmes by Sara Douglas assistant producer and researcher.  Sara shared her experience of working on a number of ground-breaking programmes including the recent Big Blue Live.

This month, we are going to get crafty, with bunting making workshop hosted by Kirsten Clark from Make and Do.  Kirsten and her team, provide inspiration for novice and experienced Crafters, including a wide range of materials for all types of crafts and regular workshops.  Kirsten will be teaching us all about bunting making from cutting to sewing and embellishment with applique techniques.

As the Malago WI bunting is in need of a bit of a refresh, will be focusing on making bunting to help decorate our stall at up and coming events.  All materials and equipment will be provided, but if you have any materials you are able to donate in Malago WI colours, leaf green and cerise pink, they will be grateful received.

At the March meeting, we circulated sign-up sheets for a number of additional groups for Malago WI members; cocktail club, craft club, sock knitting and a number of our members have signed up.  We have also had a request for a Pub Quiz team.  The sign-up sheets will be circulated again at the April meeting, and following this will contact those interested with details of initial meetings.

The National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) AGM will be taking place in June and Malago WI has been fortunate to be able to send a delegate this year.  As part of the AGM, we will be required to vote For or Against this year’s WI resolutions:
 

• Avoid food waste, address food poverty
• Appropriate care in hospitals for people with dementia

Further information is available in on the NFWI website.  We will also be providing information at the April meeting and will be asking members to vote at the May meeting.

To help with our fundraising, Malago WI will have a stall at this year’s North Street Summer Fair on Saturday 25^th June.  We had a very successful day last year and raised enough funds to pay for two outings in 2015 and are hoping to do even better this year.  We will be asking for volunteers to provide cakes and help out on the stall.  Sign-up sheets will be circulated during the meeting.  Those who have helped out previously can tell you what a fun day it is.

For those of you who are thinking of becoming a member but haven’t got round to it yet, membership fees are £28.10 for the rest of the year.  This includes for eight meetings, two of which are summer outings!

We look forward to seeing you at 8pm on Wednesday 27^th.

MWI x

March news...

Hello Malagoers

February at Malago WI saw us enjoy the delicious delights of Zara’s chocolates who very generously provided samples of her incredible chocolate and we learnt that chocolate is a lot more than your favourite bar.

For this month’s meeting we are delighted to be hosting Sara Douglas.  Sara works in natural history film making.  Sara spent 2 and a half years with the BBC Natural History Unit as assistant producer/researcher on several ground-breaking series including;  the recent Big Blue Live – from Monterey Bay in California and Japan – Earths Enchanted Islands as well as favourites such as Springwatch.  She is currently with Keo Films, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s company, working on a documentary Pushed to Extinction.

Sara will give an insight into how wildlife programmes are made from the initial research and filming to the final edits and screenings. We will get the chance to see extracts from various programmes she has worked on; including 'Big Blue Live' and we will be providing some cinema related treats.  Sara will be delighted to answer any questions you have about her work or natural history film making.

We hope as the days are getting longer and the nights are not so chilly, that we will see many familiar and new faces at our March meeting.  We appreciate for those of you who drive, parking can be tricky, but there is ample parking on West Street and at the free car park on Diamond Street.

We try to shape the meetings around our members and their interests.  If you have any suggestions for future meetings, please let us know.
                                                                                                                                                                                                      
We look forward to seeing you at 8pm on Wednesday 30^th  

February news....

 

January saw us learn more about herbal medicine especially all things bitter courtesy of Max Drake from the Urban Fringe Dispensary.  February’s meeting looks at another type of medicine – Chocolate.

Zara Narrocott, will be joining us from Zara’s Chocolates.  Zara started making chocolates in 2010.  Starting from home, and selling markets, the company started to grow and in 2013 opened a shop on North Street, partnering with Ivory Flowers. All chocolates are made on site, using fairly traded chocolate, good quality ingredients and no unnecessary nasties!

Zara will be talking about the history of chocolate and chocolate making.  But perhaps, more importantly, there will be the opportunity to do some chocolate tasting!  You will also be able to buy some of Zara’s fabulous chocolates.  It would be helpful if you would bring cash along if you think you will be interesting in buying anything.

If haven’t had the chance to do so, you can still renew your membership at the meeting.

We will also be holding a raffle to help raise funds for Malago WI.  If you have any unwanted gifts you would like to donate, please bring them along.

Don’t forget to visit the Malago WI website for information about future meetings!

We look forward to seeing you at 8pm on Wednesday 24^th.

 

Malago WI - January Meeting

Happy New Year Malagoers – hope you all had a good festive break.  Congratulations to Kelly Cotter who had a baby girl Cora on New Year’s Eve!!

With January well underway and Christmas seeming like a distant memory, you may be feeling the winter blues.  If you are in need of a boost on these cold winter nights or some new ideas, then don’t miss this month’s meeting, on Wednesday 27^th January focusing on herbal medicine and treatments from the Urban Fringe Dispensary on Christmas Steps.

This traditional herbal apothecary provides accessible, professional herbal medicine to the including free expert over-the-counter advice, private consultations, and high quality bespoke herbal medicines, many of which are made from locally grown herbs. There are also three lovely treatment rooms which offer a range of other complementary therapies and treatments.

January is also membership renewal time so if you could arrive a bit earlier it will give us time to sort out renewals before the meeting starts. This year’s WI membership is £37.50.  We are also have a special new year offer of a lovely Malago tea towel, designed by Emily Ketteringham, for only £3 when you renew.   If you have any unwanted Christmas presents, bring them along as we will raffle these at February’s meeting.

We still need additional help on the committee.  If you are a new or existing member and would be able to spare a few hours a month, then we would love to hear from you.  We are particularly looking for those who are good with spreadsheets to help maintain the register or anyone who can turn their hand to a bit of web design, although any offers for help will be gratefully received.

Finally, a big thank you to all our bakers and helpers at the December North Street Fair, who braved the elements in November.  Despite the horrendous weather, which meant the Fair closed early, we made a welcome £199 which will go towards this year’s events and trips!

We look forward to another exciting year at the Malago WI and seeing you on January 27^th.

Malago WI - November meeting

 Hello Malagowers

Last month we brought a little bit of magic to Bedminster in the form of Tony Griffith who shared his close up magic with us.  We also held our AGM were we celebrated some of the great things that we have done this year and voted in a few new committee members.

This month’s meeting on Wednesday 25^th November will be a must for all you foodies.  We are delighted that Professor Peter Barham, Emeritus Professor of Physics at University of Bristol will be taken us on a culinary journey of molecular gastronomy.  Peter, who has collaborated with Heston Blumenthal, will be sharing the mysteries of making speedy ice –cream, the physics of black forest gateau and his love of all things penguin.  You are welcome to bring a guest, but please let us know so can ensure there are enough seats.

Don’t forget that if you want to get some Christmas shopping done, Malago WI tea towels will be available to buy at the meeting.

Members will be receiving their WI Life magazine this week.   This will contain details of the WI resolution for 2016 and voting slips.  We would be grateful if you could bring your completed voting slip to the meeting.

We are still looking for volunteers for our stall at the North Street Christmas Fair on Saturday 28^th November, taking place from 10am to 5pm. If are able to make cakes or volunteer on the stand for an hour or two, please let us know.  We are grateful for any help at this festive event, but if you are planning to make and bring a cake on the day, please let us know to save the Committee having to stay up all night to make cakes. We will also be selling Christmas decorations and our signature Malago WI tea towels.

We look forward to seeing you at our last official meeting of 2015.

MWI x

Malago WI October Meeting

Well, hello Malagowers

Our next meeting is on the horizon – Wednesday October 28^th 8pm-10pm at the Methodist Church, British Road.

September's meeting saw us making clever things from paper with expert instruction from origami artist Judith Lang. This months’ photo shows a few of the fantastic folded creations from the night.

October – it’s the annual fabulousness of the Malago WI AGM where we can look back at all the great things we have done this year and celebrate our 7^th anniversary. We are going to have a twinkly ‘magic’ evening with magician Tony Griffith, with his fantastic close-up magic – so don’t be late or Tony may be tempted to pull a rabbit out of your bag!Paper Villlage have been making Maisie cats to raise money to buy things to enhance the lives of people with Dementia. For those who would like to do some knitting and craft projects, we will be talking about how you can get involved.

Then we’ll enjoy an extended break with cake and delicious autumnal savoury nibbles.

See you next Wednesday night!

MWIx

September news...

Hello Malagowers What a lovely time we had at Windmill Hill City Farm in August. Chris Lambert was such an enthusiastic and knowledgeable speaker and we had fun looking round the Farm’s growing areas, not to mention sampling the chillies! Don’t forget the Farm’s ‘Eat Local’ event this Sunday 27th September.   So after a couple of months taking Malago WI on tour over the Summer, the nights are drawing in and we are back in the hall and ‘getting crafty’ with an evening delving into the intriguing world of origami on Wednesday 30th September.    The word "origami" comes from the Japanese "oru" meaning "to fold" and "kami" or "gami" meaning paper, and a lot of its traditions, techniques and experts come from Japan.   Teaching us will be origami artist Judith Laing who has been a specialist in origami for over 25 years. She has taught all over the world and exhibited her own creations widely as well as being a long standing member of The British Origami Society.   Judith will demonstrate the various techniques involved and then teach us all how to make our own origami pieces, including some lovely Christmas decorations. She will be providing all the materials required for this crafty session, so just bring yourselves!   Priority will be given to full Malago WI members should numbers exceed our capacity.   See you on the 30th! Until Wednesday... MWI x

August news...

Well, hello Malagowers

Everyone seemed to really enjoy our lovely Summer outing last Month. The weather held for our open top bus tour, glass of fizz and photo opportunity on the Downs, followed by that scrumptious cream tea at the Avon Gorge Hotel. It was great to see so many members, guests and also friends from other WIs.

Having got a taste for the great outdoors we thought we would make the most of the last of the summer by arranging another outing for our August meeting – this time to Windmill Hill City Farm.

Please note that instead of meeting at the hall for 8pm as usual you will need to make your way to the Farm for 7.15pm prompt.
(Philip Street, Bedminster, BS3 4EA)

We will start in the  outdoor Barn Terrace where Chris Lambert, the Farm’s Gardens Manager give an introduction to the Farm and then give his expert advice and tips on how you can grow your own veg and fruit in small urban gardens, raised beds and containers and other tiny spaces.

After a break for tea and cakes Chris will give a guided tour around the Farm taking questions en route. He will show their various growing areas and also some of the allotments, giving tips  and do’s and don’ts of planting, composting, pest control and what to grow when. We will be finishing by 9.15pm as it will be starting to get dark.

You are welcome to park in the Farm car park plus there is usually on street parking nearby as well.

Also advance notice that the Crafty Women centenary celebration of arts and crafts by Avon Federation of WI members is on at M Shed over the weekend of 19 & 20 September. £5 entry (£4 for WI members)

Until Wednesday 26th.....

MWI x

Malago WI on tour...

On Wednesday 29 July, our next meeting, we are having our summer outing! We won't be in the Methodist hall, so please don't turn up there, you'll be disappointed. We'll be enjoying an open top bus tour through Bristol, a glass of Prosecco on the Downs and a cream tea at the Avon Gorge Hotel - it will be fabulous.   All places have to be pre-booked, so if you've somehow missed this you can email us at wearemalagowi@gmail.com to find out the details - you may find yourself on a waiting list at this stage, but it might be worth a try! Those that are already booked on will receive an email with details of the times and pick up point.     See you there! MWI x

June news...

Well, hello Malagowers We hope you enjoyed our little introduction to the world of burlesque last month - the hall looked like the scene of a particularly colourful pillow fight by the end of the evening, but I think we had a good time! At our meeting on Wednesday 24th June there'll be a bit more audience participation as we're having a drumming workshop.  The workshop revolves around the use of common or garden objects such as biscuit tins, food containers, pots and pans, buckets and baking trays for example; in fact anything that makes a ‘good noise’ when hit - avoiding fragile objects such as glass or pottery etc for obvious reasons! So please bring along something to hit and something to hit it with (or just your hand if you prefer). Lastly,  it's North Street Summer Fair next weekend and we need more people to help out on our stall and bake cakes to sell.  Please, give up a little time to do something for your lovely WI.  Thank you to all who've signed up to help already, but we do need more of you so please email us to let us know what you're able to do, or if you'll be at our meeting on Wednesday you'll be able to sign up then.  Please do! Until Wednesday... MWI x

May news...

Hello ladies!

I hope you all enjoyed last month’s meeting with Camilla from Stella and Dot – such a lovely selection of gems and jewels and some great tips on accessorising your outfit.  We also raised £36 in the raffle which goes in to our funds, thanks to Camilla’s prize donation.

Our meeting this month, Wednesday 27th May, also requires accessories, albeit of a slightly different kind as we’ll be having a demonstration workshop in the art of burlesque dancing.

 Mala says ‘Burlesque is for ALL women, regardless of age, shape or size and is a powerful tool in promoting well being , thus raising our levels of self confidence, self esteem and body image. Not to mention having lots of fun and a great experience of female camaraderie!’

so slip on a pair of heels and prepare to have some fun.

We mentioned the WI bulb scheme at last month’s meeting, no orders were placed then so just to remind you all that anyone who does want to place an order will need to do this at Wednesday’s meeting and payment will be required at the same time.

We have confirmed Malago WI’s presence at North Street Fair on Saturday 27^th June.  We’ll be selling cakes and our lovely Emily Ketteringham designed tea towels.  Of course, we’ll need your help with baking cakes and helping out on the day itself, so let us know what you can do to help and prepare to have sign up sheets waved in your face at the next meeting!!

While on the subject of helping out, we’re also keen to get a couple more people on to the Malago WI committee.  The 5 of us do our best, but a couple of extra pairs of hands would be a great help.  

Again, let us know if you want to know a bit more about what’s involved (nothing too arduous, I promise.)  

On a similar note, if any budding photographers among you would like to bring along your camera and take a few photo’s during our meetings for us to use on our newsletters and social media pages, it’d be great to have a more visual record of what we get up to. 

Finally, we’d like to say congratulations to 2 of our members, Gerry Prescott and Karen Bowers.  Both were awarded ‘Gold’ for their entry in to the regional heats for the Avon Federation Arts and Crafts exhibition, so their work will be on display at the exhibition itself at M-Shed on 19^th and 20th September.

So, with that said, we hope to see lots of you on Wednesday!

Until then,

MWI x

Here's what's happening in April...

Hello ladies,

As the evenings get lighter and longer and Spring continues to blossom and bloom, so does Malago WI!

We’ve seen lots of new members join us this year and are still happy to welcome more. Our new, pro-rata membership means the price for the rest of 2015 is just £27.00.

We really want Malago WI to be a place where any woman can come and expect to be welcomed, included and make friends and as our membership grows with more and more individual members it’s important that we all put in the effort to keep it that way – I hope you all agree?!

We know we have members that join seeking new friendships with like-minded, local women. Some are new to this wonderful city, some regaining their social life after starting families and others just craving new and stimulating company. Whatever the reason, coming along without knowing any other members (as we know many do) takes courage, and we’d like to ask all our members to make a special effort towards anyone they see sitting alone.

It’s easy for us longer standing members, or those that have joined up with friends, to carry on in our usual circles, but next time, just look around and see if you can get chatting to someone you’ve not really spoken to before.

Our March meeting was a great opportunity for interaction with other members as the air filled with wonderful aromas as Philippa Lovemore of Pure Scents Natural Skincare tempted us with a bewildering range of amazing scented oils to choose from, as we made up our own serum before settling down to produce some lovely bath bombs to take home.

Our April meeting will be one of style and accessories, Camilla will (among other things) show us how to make one outfit work for the day and the evening with the use of accessories. You’re invited to bring along an outfit or item of clothing for advice on how you can adapt it for different occasions – she might not be able to get through everything, but you’re sure to pick up some hints and tips.

Camilla is a stylist for jewellery and accessories specialist Stella and Dot, so she knows her stuff and is also kindly donating an item from the Stella and Dot range for us to raffle, so make sure to bring some cash along too!

We hope to see you on Wednesday,


MWI x

March newsletter...

Thank you to those that came to our February meeting, in which we welcomed Shelley, who taught us a few reflexology tips and explained some of the many benefits to this treatment.
We all came away with enough knowledge of how to perform a decent hand massage so I hope you’ve all been putting that to good use!

Now, for this month’s meeting we’ll be putting our beautifully massaged hands to good use in the making of bath bombs and a face serum with Philippa.

Philippa has been making her own skin care products for several years now. What started out as pure curiosity has turned into a lifestyle choice looking at skin care recipe alternatives to mainstream cosmetic products. Her biggest motivator to continue to explore different skin care recipes was the effect it has had on her skin.
When one of Philippa's friends was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer and set up Tash's Bashes to fund raise for Cancer Research UK, Philippa decided to help raise money by running workshops to teach people to make their own skin care setting up Pure Scents Natural Skincare. The workshops are not aimed at an academic teaching, but more a hands on experience to learn in a fun environment. All profits from these workshops go to the charity and time is given voluntarily by Philippa.

It’s sure to be a really fun evening, Philippa will provide everything for making the products but we do need everyone to bring a few pieces of equipment as Philippa doesn’t usually run workshops for so many people in one go.

The items to bring are as follows:

• Flexible ice cube trays (to use as moulds for the bath bombs, ideally you will all bring 1 or 2 as the bath bombs will be best left in them for a few hours to set properly)
• A small mixing bowl
• Measuring spoons

Apart from that, just bring your good selves and we’ll see you there!
As always, we welcome guests as well as our members, but where numbers exceed capacity, priority will be given to full members of Malago WI.

Until Wednesday,
MWI x

February news...

Malago WI 2015 got off to a fantastic start in January with Nell Gifford entertaining us with touching, warm and witty tales of her life, from rural country girl to Circus owner and director and all that happened in between.

I could happily have listened to Nell for much longer and judging by all the questions at the end of the evening, you all felt the same way!

If you missed this meeting – shame on you, but it’s not too late to become a member.  Join up at our February meeting instead, just £36.00 cash or cheque and membership for the rest of 2015 is yours.

This month we’ll be getting hands on with a demonstration in reflexology, so bring along your favourite moisturiser for a bit of tuition in hand massage.

Shelley will also be after a willing volunteer for a lovely foot massage treatment, so brush the fluff balls from between your toes and prepare to be pampered!

Don’t forget to bring your unwanted/surplus Christmas gifts to donate to our raffle, and some cash to buy some tickets for the chance to win something you want!  Money raised will go in to the Malago WI funds towards future meetings.

Finally, our committee is dwindling in numbers so if you’re interested in getting involved with the running of Malago WI, let us know and we’ll be happy to give you more information about what that entails.

See you on Wednesday

MWI x

Roll up, roll up, roll up...

The circus is coming to town!

It really is, sort of, because our first guest of 2015 is Nell Gifford.
Nell is the driving force behind the magical Gifford’s Circus and is going to talk to us about how she went from Oxford University English Graduate to Circus supremo. 
She’s written a couple of books on the subject too, they’ll be available for sale on the night, so bring your cheque book or cash so you don’t miss out.  It’s going to be a fabulous evening, behind the scenes tales of circus life - I can’t wait!

Hopefully we’ll see plenty of you next Wednesday, all refreshed after a fun and festive Christmas season and happily settled in to a bright new year.  
 Did lots of you get to Treefest at St Mary Redcliffe church and see our lovely tree, or get to Windmill Hill City Farm Christmas fayre, where we had a successful stall?  There was no meeting in December, but it was still an active month for Malago WI!

Anyway, membership is open now for new members and it’s also renewal time for our existing members.  It’s £36.00 for 2015 membership or we continue to welcome guests at £5 per meeting, if you’re undecided about joining.  Again, cash or cheque is the accepted form of currency on the night!

We’ve still got our lovely Malago WI tea towels for sale, so since you’ll be bringing cash with you, you might as well buy a tea towel too, don’t you think?

It’s very important that we have enough cake to eat next week, of course!  We’ve got a few confirmed, but another 1 or 2 would be great, so please drop us a line here if you can bring along some form of baked goods.

Looking ahead to February, we’ll be holding a raffle of unwanted/surplus/duplicate Christmas pressies , so if you’ve got anything lying around that you know isn’t going to get used (unused, in good condition), bring it along to the January meeting and we’ll hold on to it and co-ordinate the prizes for our February raffle.  The money we raise will go in to our funds so we can continue to bring in exciting and interesting guests throughout the year.

Phew, lots going on, but that's all for now.

Until Wednesday...
MWI x

Christmas is coming...

There, I said it! 
Apologies if you’re in the ‘not before December 1^st’ brigade, but it’ll be a real struggle to bring you up to date without mentioning the ‘C’ word.

First off, October’s meeting was a craft fest of starry proportions with origami, crochet, sewing and salt dough decorations being created for our Christmas tree at the lovely Treefest event at St Mary Redcliffe Church.  
It takes place the week beginning 8^th December and we’ll need a few people to help set up and decorate (and possibly a tree too…details, details)!  Let us know if you’ve got a couple of spare hours on the Monday and want to be involved.

If you’ve continued with your crafty talents and made more decorations at home, please bring them along to our meeting next week.

Speaking of which, we’ll be welcoming back Liz Ferguson next week – she taught us how to make fabulous tissue paper pompoms last time she was with us.  This time she’ll be sharing and demonstrating her gift wrapping ideas, from the budget end through to the more luxurious, with a generous smattering of funny tales from the life of Liz!

We’re still after volunteers to help on our stall at the Windmill Hill City Farm Christmas Fair, on Sunday 14^th December – have you put your name down for an hour or 2 yet?  If not why not?!  Come on, season of goodwill and all that…

Finally, bring along some cash to next week’s meeting, there’ll be opportunities-a-plenty to part with it.
If you’re not already a member of Malago WI, membership is open so why not join us for 2015 – we just need to relieve you of a mere £36.00.

We have received our beautiful, tea towels, designed by the very talented artist and Malago member Emily Ketteringham, so they’ll be on sale for £6.00 each.
Finally, we’re clearing out our cupboard to make way for a new load of goodies, so we’ll be flogging stuff such as glitter, beads, sequins, art pad and anything else we can find!

Any money raised will go back in to making Malago WI as fabulous as we can.

See you on Wednesday,
MWI x

A starry night...

Well, let me start with a big Happy 6^th Birthday to Malago WI!

It’s really been 6 years since this lovely little branch of the WI began to grow – have you been with us since the start?  No?  Well it’s never too late to jump on board.

If you’re not a fully fledged Malago WI members, October is the perfect time to change that.  New membership opens so you can register for 2015 for £36 and you will get the last 2 meetings of 2014 for free, so come, join us, we’ve so much great stuff planned.

Last month the serious topic of personal safety and awareness was delivered in a fun and practical manner by Andras Millward from FAST Defence.   Simple skills to take forward through everyday life, others that we hope we won’t ever have the need to use – Set, knee!

However, on to our October meeting, we’ll be getting crafty once again making a variety of star decorations.

We’ll have several demonstrated star crafts, including origami, crochet and sewing as well as committee made decorations ready to be embellished.  These will go towards our entry in toTreefest and for selling on our stall at the Windmill Hill City Farm Christmas Fair on Sunday 14^th December – more on that next week!

We’d love you to bring along any of your own ideas that fit the star decoration theme if you’d prefer to ‘freestyle’, or maybe you’re a dab hand at a craft that adapts to our theme and you could share with us – contact us if that’s the case!

We have a fairly decent supply of stuff, but it’d be really helpful if you have anything you could bring to use or share such as gel pens, glitter glue, paint pens,  odds and ends of fabric, felt and wool, paper – and if colours are glittery or festive, then so much the better!

Also, please bring a crochet hook if you fancy having a go at crochet stars – we don’t have enough of those to go round.

This is going to be a lovely informal meeting, in which everyone will be able to produce a few star decorations using a variety of techniques, and enjoy a good chat with fellow members and of course enjoy a slice of cake because we’re also celebrating the 6^th birthday of Malago WI!

In addition to all of those goings on, we’ll also be unveiling our first, bespoke, designer Malago WI tea towel – you’ll be able to get your orders in first to beat the rush when they go on sale at the Windmill Hill City Farm Christmas Fair.

Finally, for those that are already Malago WI members and  would like to get a bit more involved, we’d love to have  some more of you  joining our committee - as someone once said, teamwork divides the work and multiplies the success, so who’s up for it?

See you all on Wednesday,

MWI x

September news...

Hello Malagowers!

Thanks to all who came to last month’s meeting with John Wright.  He knew a thing or 2 about mushrooms, but has anyone been brave enough to go mushroom foraging after listening to his stories?
Not me!  I’ll stick to spotting them and taking a photo but I was thoroughly entertained listening to all he had to tell!

Now, September’s meeting is approaching and the nights are drawing in.  We’ll be covering the subject of personal safety and self-defence, with tips and strategies about awareness and boundaries and using assertive body language and verbal strategies to dissuade an attacker.
 Dress in comfortable clothing and be prepared to get involved a bit too.

We’ll also have some news about a new WI choir group, so if you fancy stretching your vocal chords, you’ll want to come along and hear about the plans for this.

Finally, we’ve started to look for local winter or Christmas fairs that Malago WI could get involved with in order to raise both funds and our profile.  We’ve made some enquiries and will hopefully have news by next week, but if you know of an event that you think would benefit from a Malago WI presence, then do let us know,
 
Until Wednesday 24th,
 
MWI x

What's happening in August...?

Hello Malagowers!

Thanks to all who came along to Aldwick Court Farm for our summer outing last month – I think it was a grape success, don’t you agree?! (See what I did there?)

I don’t think they were anticipating selling as much wine as they did to a Women’s Institute group, although we did tell them beforehand , we’re not your regular WI bunch (unintentional grape related pun).

So from wine to mushrooms in one short month, August’s meeting is just over a week away and we’re really looking forward to welcoming John Wright, wild food and foraging expert.  You’ll probably know him best for sharing his knowledge with us and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall on the River Cottage TV series.

Don’t forget, you can bring along a friend to a meeting too – they’ll just need to pay £5.00 as a guest, which is a bit of a bargain for an evening with a fungi like John Wright.  (Foraging related pun – geddit?!)

Also, bring some cash as John will have copies of his book for sale.

We’re expecting it to be a popular night, so please arrive in good time for an 8pm start or you may find there’s not mushroom left!  (That’s anoth… oh, okay, I’ll get my coat…)

See you on Wednesday 27^th August, don’t be late!

Until then,

MWI x

Hittin' the road...

Hello there!

As the title says, this month we're hittin' the road! That's to say our regular meeting in the hall has been replaced by a lovely little outing to Aldwick Court Farm for a vineyard tour and a spot of wine tasting and at this moment, the weather forecast continues to be pretty darn fabulous.

If you've booked and paid for your place, we'll see you at 7.15pm for a prompt 7.30pm departure on Wednesday 30th July from the site of the old Gala Bingo hall on North Street. (that's the end nearest the Steam Crane pub.)
There's a couple of spaces left, so if you've not got round to booking your place email now to ensure you don't miss out!

Finally, can you help us out for an hour or so on Saturday 9th August please? Malago WI have been offered a stall at Lark in the Park - the launch of the new South Street Park, just near our meeting hall. It's a great opportunity for us to support a community initiative and also promote ourselves locally. There are lots of family friendly stalls and activities taking place on the day for anyone to join in.

Avril Baker is happy to run and co-ordinate a stand making simple childrens kites from packs and also badges from cup cake cases but we need some extra pairs of hands to help out on the day. If you can come along and help for an hour or so please get in touch with Avril via email or call during the day on 0117 977 2002

Thank you!
Until Wednesday...
MWI x