A Colorful April Meeting

I hope you have a couple of minutes to sit down and read because this meeting was jam packed with Modern Quilt Guild information, fun fabric challenges, and show and tell.

We started off this meeting by passing out MQG membership cards and pins. Unfortunately, we weren't sent enough pins, and some name tags were missing but they should (hopefully!) be here for the next meeting.   For those who attend the meetings and didn't get one, just shoot Michelle your email on our Facebook page. For those who have a hard time attending, your best bet may be to become an individual member and have the card and pin sent directly to you. (Click here for the Individual Membership page.) You want that membership card! Some stores, like Jo-Ann's, offer a discount with it.

Another perk of being part of the MQG is the fabric challenges. Michael Miller has donated fabric called
Petal Pinwheels. Don't you love it? For those participating, you can find information at this link.  Your project needs to be quilted and finished by June 23rd. For those looking for coordinating fabrics, check out Hawthorne Threads online. Let the creating begin!

Michael Miller Fabrics

I know, I know! When will we see some quilts?

Just one more thing about the MQG. With membership you can watch Modern Quilt Webinars for free. What is Modern Quilting? Watch the webinar, and see whether you agree. (You must be a Group or Individual member to watch the webinar.)

Now, look at these blocks!

This month our group decided to play around with some Half-Square Triangles (HST) for the monthly block raffle. The colors of the fabrics were bright and springy, a real delight after this long winter.

As luck would have it, these blocks went to Lori. On point or not? We shall see what direction this quilt takes. No pressure, Lori! :)

Of course, this led to more eye candy.  We just love show and tell. 

One of our members, Sheri, took a trip to Hawaii last month, so Lori brought in some Hawaiian quilts to share with us. They were hand appliqued and hand quilted for her children by her mother. They took at least five years to make. Simply amazing, and beautiful!

Sheri then showed us the treats from her trip to Hawaii. Quilters NEVER  plan a trip without a visit to the local quilt store or stores.

She then wowed us with this quilt made out of a good friends clothes. How much fun is this pattern? Just look at those adorable dresses. She even told us where to find it!  

And a little dress detail..

Betsy made us think blue with this fun quilt design. We love how certain shapes pop, and your eye can catch so many patterns in it. Her tool recommendation this week: The Strip Stick, which makes ironing seams easier and smoother.

Suzanne updated us on her economy block quilts. Absolutely love the attention to detail, and how they will cater to each of her daughter's interests. These will be some fun "I Spy Quilts" for her daughters (and future grandchildren).

Eileen brought in a colorful quilt full of Kaffe Fassett fabrics, and...

 ...a variation on a strip quilt. Notice the darker squares amid all the  reds, pinks, and yellows.

She shared with us a creative venture with parrot bookmarks and a band aid. Look closer and you'll find more interesting details.

Lastly, Eileen showed us a quilt that reminds her of her mom. They had picked the fabric out together, and she created a quilt from it. Love those dancing figures in the middle, and the colors. We are honored she shared it with us.

Jen brought this favorite back as a finished project. She also mentioned that she color treats her quilts by placing 1/4 cup of white vinegar in the pre-rinse cycle.

This quilt was motivated by shadows and sunshine.

The minky on the back is really cute.

Carol Anne, hidden behind the quilt, shared her rendition of Fabric Fling by Ginny Murphy Design. Look at the variety of fabrics!

Sharon and Terrie demonstrated a little bit of the process of fussy cutting a one block wonder.

Sharon also mentioned a new use for a wooden wallpaper roller. It seems that they are great at opening up paper piecing seams.

We get to see projects of all  sizes. Here's a little quilt with the name Josh on it.

Parthena brought in a memory quilt in progress for her very special nephew.

Michelle shared a block from a paper piecing block of the month several of us are putting together. Very pretty colors! A little motivation for some of us that have fallen behind.

She also shared the linear quilting on her quilt top.  Her machine actually makes knots at the beginning of a stitch. Now that is cool!

A close up look...

Finally, our crafty group branches out into other creative endeavors. Gail asked our opinion on her linen stitch scarf. I think we all agreed we loved it the way it was. The yarn was gorgeous!

Overall, a lovely meeting filled with quilting inspiration. Hope to see you at the next meeting on May 10th in Weston! Check out our Facebook page for more information.

The Quilt Shop in Danbury

This month's meeting took place at the Quilt Shop in Danbury. What better place than a local quilt shop to have a meeting?  We fed our fabric addictions and then got down to the business at hand. 

Economy blocks are all the rage for I Spy Quilts so we thought we'd join in and make our own. Our only parameters for our block-of-the-month were spring colors. All these adorable blocks were won by Michelle who graciously opted to give them to Kathy, who simply could not live without them. We can't wait to see what will become of these cuties. 

After our block giveaway, the fun of show and tell began. 

 Gail shared these gorgeous folded fabric potholders she made. 

 Jen shared a quilt she free-motion quilted herself. She also brought in an amazing quilt of squares.   We all got a kick out of that gray square in the middle.  Her son was the inspiration for that orange strip.  Just love it when our kids help.

Betsy showed us her six inch blocks. Paper piecing fever has hit the SCMQG, and it has come in an array of beautiful colors. 

 Cyndy brought us a little piece of  history with this special Boy Scout quilt she created for a charity event.  

 Michelle shared her Toes in the Sand Quilt.  All those fabulous fabrics came straight from the Quilt Shop.

The end of our meeting, and the highlight of our time at the Quilt Shop was Ginny Murphy, the owner, and  our gracious host. Not only did she generously donate items for a raffle, she shared some neat new tools with us.  One of our favorites, which she demonstrated, was the quilt curve ruler, an easy way to venture into curves. 

Overall, a great morning spent with crafty, quilty friends. 

February General Meeting

Our February meeting was held at the Westport Public Library. The challenge for the month was to make a Wonky Log Cabin using Spring Colors. Here is what we came up with:



The lucky winner was Parthena. Can't wait to see what she makes out of them! Next month we will be doing an Economy Block. If you wish to participate, the tutorial is here.

We had some lovely projects for Show and Tell:

Sheri did this lovely one with some fabric that she bought from Denyse Schmidt



Susie did this one, its a charm quilt, and not one fabric is repeated. Its fantastic!



Betsy did this one with the Quick Curve Ruler



This table runner looks like the ocean, and even has some real shells inside of tulle



Here is the inspiration for the Economy Block challenge



Our next meeting will be on Saturday, March 8 at the Quilt Shop in Danbury from 10:30-12:30. I'm planning to get there a little early for some shopping, how about you?

January General Meeting

Our January meeting took place at the studio of Christina Blaise, located in the American Fabric Arts building in Bridgeport. I had met her during the buildings open studio back in November, and she generously offered to host our meeting. Christina gave a fantastic talk about her work, and some of her inspiration. The first photo is one of her very first quilts, followed by one of her later works.

We then had our usual show and tell. Here is Sharon with her "Wise Guys" quilt in progress. This quilt will be up for auction at the Project Return Bird House Auction. 

Sheri was so inspired with paper piecing that she did a few fun ones for a friend. 

Suzanne had another beautiful one to show us.

Then it was on to our paper pieced hearts. The winner was Teri! Can't wait to see what she makes out of these. 

Here are some close ups of another piece by Christina. 

Our next meeting is Saturday, February 8 at the Westport Public Library. Hope to see you there!

December Meeting

Due to last months inclement weather, our meeting had to be rescheduled to the following week. Even with the impending holidays, we had a great turnout. Our block challenge was a success as you can see in the photo below. Suzanne was the lucky winner, and we look forward to seeing what she makes out of them.

Our next challenge is paper piecing, and was inspired by several things. The first being Terri and Sharon's  paper pieced owls.

The next was this fabulous heart quilt

Thus our challenge for January is Paper Pieced Hearts. You can print out the pattern at this link:

http://piecemealquilts.com/patterns/
Scroll down until you see eight hearts, and print out the one you like on printer paper. 
There is more information on our Facebook page under Events. 

Other show and tell at the meeting included:

Our next meeting will take place this coming Sunday, January 12 from 10:30-12:30 at the studio of Christina Blaise at the American Fabric Arts building, 1069 Connecticut Avenue in Bridgeport. Bring a folding chair as she has space but limited seating. 

Until then, Happy Quilting!