Developing a Theme

Decorations/Nametags

Think through why folks would gather in the fall. Most of the time the gathering took place to help a neighbor or to celebrate. From harvesting to barn raising to weddings . . . a gathering would and most often did take place. Decorate with apples, decorated wagons, harvested grain centerpieces, and loose leaves throughout the room. Pumpkin toppers can be made by using peat grass, grape clusters, plastic fruit, etc. and a hot glue gun. You can also drill holes in mini pumpkins and apples and put tea lights in them for a candle-lit meal or centerpiece. Hay bales make for nice seating, but you may want to use quilts to avoid having guests get poked. For nametags, pumpkin or apple-shaped tags or even a horn of plenty could be used to add to the overall theme.

Refreshments

Apples are the most common fruit in the fall. You could do a pie baking contest or a turnover contest. The gummy worm in the apple would add humor as well. You could also have fruit or finger foods coming out of a horn of plenty. Caramel sauce and cut-up apples make a nice “harvesty” fondue.

Games/Icebreaker

Set up a carnival for ladies. Can you guess the weight of a bag of flour? Who can build a barn the fastest using popsicle sticks? Who can bite into a hanging apple the fastest? Who is the fastest apple peeler? Another quick but fun game is pin the leaf on the tree.

Devotional

You could transition from the pleasure of earthly gatherings to the eternal joy of our heavenly gathering. Or, you could talk about the purpose of gatherings: fellowship, encouragement, aid, etc. How can we ladies gather more often to encourage and help another? Answer the question, “Who is my neighbor?”

Quilting Bee Gathering

Decorations/Nametags

You can hang an assortment of quilts (baby, etc.) on the walls, plus use an arbor/greenery giving the room an outdoorsy look since quilting was quite often done outdoors for more room. Wooden chairs to give the “olden” feeling could be used. Ladderback chairs were quite often used to prop the quilting frame to a comfortable level. Arranging the chairs in a circle would also set the stage for the gathering. For nametags, little pieces of cloth—quilting “squares” (probably with interfacing to make them stiff)—with names either stitched, glued, or laundry-markered on.

Refreshments

After quilting they would have a huge meal for everyone. I would suggest small sandwiches, crackers and cheese . . . something a little more substantial than just sweets to represent the huge “feast”! Tea would be good since tea cups were used to mark the quilting pattern.

Games/Icebreaker

Provide a thimble for everyone (possible take-home gift), and ladies can either make their own quilting “square” or bring one already made. It might be fun to have the ladies put together a miniature quilt as an afternoon project/activity . . . something that could be displayed in the church nursery or given to a shut-in or put in the missionary closet (if the end result is nice enough).

Devotional

Quilting is putting many patches into a beautiful pattern. Some of the patches are ugly when they stand alone; but when put together with other patches, a beautiful design is formed. Not only is it beautiful, but the quilt also has a purpose. A single patch would not offer the comfort and weight needed to provide warmth, but an entire quilt made up of many patches can provide warmth. A devotional that centers on the body of Christ becomes an excellent topic to cover when using the quilting illustration.