Happy Fourth of July (a little early)

Just got this picture from Gig to put in the newsletter even tho it will be coming out after the fourth. I love this. She is such a wonderful artist and quilter!
Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Friendship quilt top

Here's the top all finished. I'll take it to Debra next week some time.

My scrappy quilt

This is the last quilt I finished. I thought it was interesting how similar it was to what Mary just posted yesterday. For a while all I used was off-white and beige as background, but I love the bright white with these colors.

Rabbit's Lair in Rogers

Just received an e-mail from the Rabbit's Lair in Rogers, AR. Their latest newsletter is available on their web-site:

Rabbit's Lair

Charm Square Exchange

This from Brenda J.:

Now making plans for the charm square exchange. It will be 12 people exchanging 5" squares twice a month from 4 different fabrics for 11 months. The fabric must be all cotton - quilt shop quality - washed. All the same fabric in each 12 squares to be exchanged - no duplicates. If they begin the exchange must finish - I will keep records. I'm looking at an afternoon meeting/exchanging time, but can be flexible. Rules will be finalized at the first meeting.

I would like to begin in August and finish in May if we get this going.
I don't want to set a date yet, I just want to know who is interested at this point. If we get more than 12, we'll start another group.

The way it works is: each person chooses 4 different fabric, cuts each fabric into 12- 5" squares, therefore, bringing 48 squares to each meeting. At the end we'll have over 1000 charm square with no duplicates - our goal. Some call this a 'beggars' quilt, since we need to get friends to share fabrics

Gloria talks about California trip

Just received this from Gloria:

Yes, most of my fabrics do come from California because when I bought the book which shows where all of the quilt shops in Calif were my husband was working out of town and you know the old saying "when the cats away the mice can play". Well I went up and down the coast from where I lived in Carmel, Cal. and filled up the entire car, trunk. backseat, front seat and floor boards until it was full. Every night I took some bags into the motel and petted the material and dreamed what patterns I would sew when I arrived back home. I had taken my little dog with me and on my return trip she was almost touching the roof of the car perched on all of the bags. This was a glorious highlight of my life and I was hyperventilating on my return home. Thus my email address: Quiltaholic.

More about our President Gloria:
Here

Here's a picture of Gloria's quilt that she showed at the last Guild meeting.
"I love the feel and bright colors of the Japanese fabrics and will finish another to show and tell next Guild Meeting"
You should be able to click on the picture to make it larger.
Oh, and BTW, it looks like you need to sign in to post but not to comment.

For sale or wanted Bulletin Board

Did everyone see our newest information project, the What's New bulletin board?
You can apply your ad to buy and sell to the board with magnets, paper, and pens that are available on the table by the sign in sheet. It will cost you $1.00 per month and your ad, notice or item will appear in the newsletter also. Whatever item you want to announce will be accepted here, such as: sewing machines,books and patterns, yard sales, grandbaby photos, vegetables, church picnics announcement, etc.
Looking forward to your contributions to our bulletin. Gig is doing this and the proceeds go to the Guild Library.

Hey Town & Country Quilters, do we want to get a group together and go to the Missouri Quilt Guild Conference? It sounds like a good time! I'll drive, it doesn't bother me. I'm always up for a "field trip".

Friendship blocks quilt design

Here's the design I chose to do for the maple leaf blocks in my Friendship Quilt. I stumbled through Electric Quilt to create it. More borders on the real thing. Had the quilt top all put together and then - noticed that I have two blocks that are facing the wrong direction! Does this ever happen to you? Guess I'll just have to wait to take it to Debra because that will just drive me crazy, am going to have to rip those two out and redo.

Missouri State Quilters Guild

The State meeting and Fall Retreat is scheduled for September 25, 26, 27, 2009 at the Inn of the Grand Glaize, Osage Beach Missouri. Registration opens July 1 and ends August 15.
Some of the classes that intrigued me were: the Chenille Sweatshirt Jacket class (altho Gloria could probably teach a class for us), Silk Flower Mystery (no machine required), and Waltzing Flowers (learn how to make a circle block without pins, templates or rotary cutter and not appliqued). Is this like what Myra did?. Billie Lauder is the keynote speaker and she is teaching a class called Tea Time which uses a foundation paper method. It's a table runner and I could use a nice table runner.

More information available on their web-site, which is www.msqg.org

Well, I'll try again. I guess this could be useful.
B

Creating a local listing

I am going to be creating a listing of local quilt related links - quilt stores, quilters, organizations, and anything else that I can come up with for quilters.

If you have any links that I could add let me know - including other professional quilters in the 4 state area - if they have a web site I will add them.

Great blog Alta

Debra

Friendship Quilts

Next Monday is the big week-long sale at Country Store for the guild members. Terry said if you bring your guild membership card you get 25% off all fabric in the store. I just finished up the quilt top made from all my Friendship blocks, so need to run over and find some backing fabric. I was so pleased with all the maple leaf blocks I received from my fellow quild members. What a great group of ladies.

Friendship blocks are given to each member in the order they have joined the Guild. Each member that makes a block is asked to sign it, so it's a good way to remember our friends. The latest member to receive a block is Barbara F. Can hardly wait to see what she makes with this block. It is irregular in shape, and looks complicated but if you carefully follow the pattern shouldn't be too hard. Barbara's quilts are easily recognized because she uses soft, summery colors and her stitching is meticulous. Maybe you can read this scanned copy of her pattern.

Library displays Tuesday Group's quilts

The Tuesday Stitch Group started a nine-patch challenge beginning Sept. 2007 and ending 2008.There was a total of 198 nine-patch blocks which the group exchanged and used to put together into their own quilts. It was amazing to see how different each one is, to see the different colors and arrangements for the same nine-patches. These quilts were exhibited as a group at the 2009 Quilt Show at Joplin Museum April 2009 and are on display in the Joplin Public Library through this month.

A new means of communication

Just decided it was about time for us to get on board with our own blog for the Quilt Guild. Am hoping that there will be many entries and we can all use this, not just me.

We enjoyed a full day at the June guild meeting this week, with a large attendance in the afternoon. In the morning we had a workshop with Billie Lauder. She demonstrated some of her Quilting tricks - such as how to quickly make a scrap quilt of four-patches and also how to push that four patch into a nine patch, quick as a wink. Since I have lots of small amounts of fabric, I feel a bit guilty buying the layer cakes or charm packs or such; but if you buy packs of coordinated fabric it does guarantee color success. And also, there is little or no waste, so maybe it would be justified.

Billie Lauder is a lot of fun and an easy person to be around. Her trunk show was great - a real inspiration. I have some pictures but not sure how to post those yet.