December Meeting Recap

Even though the snow threatened to push us to another week, our December meeting went off without a hitch! Though we did miss some of you, we hope you'll return in January (cross your fingers for no snow).

News:

• If you haven't done so already, please bring your dues for 2014 ($50) to the January meeting! Looking forward to a great year!

 

• Membership pins are in - if you didn't get one in December, we'll have one for you in Jan. Any new members will get them next year.

 

• I (Jess S.) distributed a survey at the Dec. meeting about 2013 and suggestions for 2014 - I will bring more to the Jan. meeting for members to complete. This helps us plan for the new year - thanks!

• If you are interested in being on the ballot for the new year's officers (President, VP, Secretary, and Treasurer), please email the account (centraljerseymqg(at)gmail(dot)com) ASAP. So far all current officers are running unopposed (though Jess and Jess are running for opposite positions). Elections will be in January. Please email me if you are interested in being the guild bee chair (take over/run it), events chair (help us plan events, arrange guest speakers and instructors), or philanthropy chair. We could really use your help!

• Secret Quilter Gift Exchange - papers were given out at the December meeting - please bring your gift wrapped with the person's name on it (though not your name), and in a bag - we will try to guess who the sewist is. This event was wildly popular last January!

• Information about our Guild Quilt-A-Long (QAL) for 2014 can be found on this post. The first blocks will be due at the January meeting!* (*does not mean you have to make all of them!). This QAL is laid back and is meant to get everyone working on the same quilt with their own choices of fabrics and blocks. You can choose not to participate if you wish (no registrations, no stress, no finish, no worries)! Of course, we'd love to see as many people participating as possible and sharing their progress! 

• Please enjoy our giveaway/freebie table at meetings - thanks, Neva, for taking the responsibility of all items that don't find a new home. Please, no overly large items and please only bring quilt shop quality fabric.

• We are exhibiting our modern quilts at the NJ Quilt Fest from March 6-9! This is a UNIQUE opportunity to exhibit our guild's quilts that we might not have again for a long time. Please submit two pictures of your quilt (a good picture of the front, and a detailed shot of the quilting), plus the title and size of your quilt, to centraljerseymqg(at)gmail(dot)com BY January 3. Quilts should fit the modern aesthetic which means they should be inspired by modern art and design, but all skill levels are welcome. Quilts should include 1 or more of the following criteria:
• lots of negative space
• alternate grid layout
• bold colors
• asymmetry
• minimalism
• solid fabrics
• improvisational piecing (including seams that aren't always straight or even)
• modern traditionalism
• We only have a few submissions, so if you've been wavering or putting it off, PLEASE consider submitting one of your modern quilts! Submissions will be screened by a committee of 5 volunteers from our guild, and there will be a checklist used to evaluate each quilt, based on the above criteria. Thanks! 

• Riley Blake MQG Challenge - fabric was distributed and you can bring your quilted item in through February. You can use any brand solids or other Riley Blake prints. The national deadline is Feb. 17. You can use the following to share your creation online:
• To show your process photos and see those of others: http://community.themodernquiltguild.com/groups/riley-blake-process-photos
• To show your final product and officially enter the competition: http://community.themodernquiltguild.com/groups/finished-riley-blake-challenge-photos
• Use the hashtag #mqgrileyblakechallenge on Instagram

Upcoming Events:

• Sewcial at Hopewell Train Station - tentatively Sun. Jan. 12, 9 am - 6 pm - room for 13 max. Look for an email - first come, first served.
• First meeting of the year! Tuesday, January 14, 2013

Meeting:
First,  we talked about the goals we had for 2014. Many people stated that they wanted to finish up WIPs or UFOs. Some said they wanted to do more "selfish" sewing with no deadlines (I personally couldn't agree more!).

• Our own Meg Cox gave a very informative, eye-opening lecture/demonstration on how to take the best photos of your quilts. She offers this lecture in more detail to groups.
• We shared completed bee blocks.

For Sandy

 For Carol

• Spotlight on Christina - she shared her journey of making quilts. This year, she finished upwards of 30! Wow!

 Show and Tell, Riley Blake Challenge:

 Kathleen

Neva

 Amy

 

 Neva again!

 

 Tatiana

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January Meeting

Tuesday, January 14, 2013

Pennington Quilt Works, 7-9:30

• Officer Elections
• Distribution of more End of the Year surveys
• Challenge: Riley Blake
• Secret Quilter Gift Exchange (see "News" above for more info)
• Share any blocks from Guild QAL (goal: make 6 to start) 
• More TBA!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

-Jess S.

December Meeting Reminder

Please join us on Tuesday, December 10 for our last meeting of 2013!
7 - 9:30, Pennington Quilt Works
RSVP here or email the account if you are a guest (centraljerseymqg(at)gmail(dot)com).

At this meeting we will:
- Have a presentation on taking better pictures of your quilts by Meg Cox
- Spotlight on new member Christina
- Share something you're giving as a gift this year
- Share Riley Blake challenges that are complete
- Go over our guild quilt along details (starts in January)
- Pass out assignments for our Secret Quilter Gift Exchange in January
- General business
-Show and Tell

*You may bring your check of $50 for next year's dues!

See you then!
-Jess S.

November Meeting Recap

 We continue to have visitors and potential new members at our meetings! Welcome! :) There was a lot of news this month, so read on below... also, check out the general layout of the December meeting at the bottom of the post.

News:

• Make sure you subscribe to our group on the MQG website. If you are having trouble, email the account (centraljerseymqg(at)gmail(dot)com).

• Mid-Atlantic Mod has SOLD OUT! If you'd like to get on the waiting list, fill out the registration form at this link.
 

• Information about our Guild Quilt-A-Long (QAL) for 2014 can be found on this post. The first blocks will be due at the January meeting!* (*does not mean you have to make all of them!). This QAL is laid back and is meant to get everyone working on the same quilt with their own choices of fabrics and blocks. You can choose not to participate if you wish (no registrations, no stress, no finish, no worries)! Of course, we'd love to see as many people participating as possible and sharing their progress!
 

• Please continue to bring donate to our freebie/giveaway table. Please refrain from donating any fabric that isn't quilt shop quality cotton or any overly large items.

• We are exhibiting our modern quilts at the NJ Quilt Fest from March 6-9! This is a UNIQUE opportunity to exhibit our guild's quilts that we might not have again for a long time. Please submit two pictures of your quilt (a good picture of the front, and a detailed shot of the quilting), plus the title and size of your quilt, to centraljerseymqg(at)gmail(dot)com BY January 3. Quilts should fit the modern aesthetic which means they should be inspired by modern art and design, but all skill levels are welcome. Quilts should include 1 or more of the following criteria:
• lots of negative space
• alternate grid layout
• bold colors
• asymmetry
• minimalism
• solid fabrics
• improvisational piecing (including seams that aren't always straight or even)
• modern traditionalism
• We only have a few submissions so far so if you've been wavering or putting it off, PLEASE consider submitting one of your modern quilts! Submissions will be screened by a committee (if you haven't expressed your interest to be on the committee, also email the account). Thanks!

• An email went out recently about the secret quilter gift swap. The sign ups are all online (on a Google form in that email) and are very simple to complete. Assignments are at random and should be sent out before the December meeting. We will exchange secret gifts at the January meeting, which will be a fun time for all! :)

• You can bring in any of your Riley Blake challenge quilts/quilted creations from Dec. to Feb.

Meeting:

•  Jess gave away some goodies from Quilt Market (thanks, Jess!). Janet and Judith won!
• Sandy received her blocks from the Guild Bee.
• We discussed favorite fabrics and favorite designers. Guild members mentioned well-known names to lesser known names - but altogether, I think it's safe to say we LOVE fabric! :)

 

 

 

• Show and Tell:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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December Meeting

• Please bring dues for next year ($50).
• Meg Cox lecture - how to take better pictures of your quilts
• Spotlight (?) (anyone want to volunteer?)
• Challenge: Share a gift you are giving for the holidays

See you in December!
-Jess S.

Guild Quilt-a-long (QAL)!

Here is the link for the quilt-a-long we have chosen for 2014. We will start with the first 6 blocks due at the January meeting.

The QAL is called Modern Monday at 42 Quilts. Click the link here to see the blocks and links to tutorials! Here is Jenifer's Pinterest board, which will show you all the blocks at once.

Remember:
Your goal is to make about 6 blocks a month - they come out to 6" per block.
YOU pick the colors and fabrics! There is no limit to your creativity here!
You can redesign the blocks, if you want, to make them bigger (or smaller if you dare!)

Can't wait to see what you come up with!

-Jess S.

November Meeting Reminder

 Please join us (and RSVP) for our November meeting! Guests welcome!

When: Tue Nov 12, 2013, 7-9:30 pm
Where: Pennington Quilt Works, Pennington, NJ

At this meeting we will:
-discuss officers/leadership for next year - please contact Jess L. if you are interested in learning more about the responsibilities - if you are currently an officer and are willing to stay on, let Jess L. know
-have a discussion on your favorite fabric designers - bring samples of some of your favoritess and be ready to talk about what you love in a fabric collection!
- share our Riley Blake Challenge - UPDATE - you may have already seen, but there are now fabric prizes for this challenge and the new deadline is mid February - so please take your time and you can bring it any meeting until February.

Here's a great summary about the challenge from the Seattle MQG:

• Deadline for submitting projects for national prizes:  February 17, 2014
• For national prizes, completed photos must be posted on the MQG site in the FINISHED forum here.
• Members can make anything they want as long as it is quilted.
• Add in any solids fabric or Riley Blake printed fabric.
• You do not need to use all the fabrics given to you.
• Upload and share your photos to the Fabric Challenge Forum on the MQG Community site here.
• Ten finalists for national prizes will be announced February 19, 2014. Riley Blake will pick three winners and announce the final winners on February 24, 2014.
• Don’t forget to use the #mqgrileyblakechallenge on Instagram and Twitter!

-kick off a guild Quilt-along
-giveaway goodies from quilt market
-general business
-Show and Tell - don't forget to bring your quilted quilts if you used Barbara's Persing's advice to finish one


See you there!
-Jess S.

Blog updates

Today, I updated our Calendar tab at the top, which will show you upcoming events for our guild through Google Calendar. I will update this at least once a month. In addition, I've updated the Past Meetings tab, which provides links to all of such meetings and activities. I continue to take requests/suggestions for the blog, so please don't hesitate to ask. Enjoy!
-Jess S.

Recap: Barbara Persing Trunk Show, Lecture, and Demonstration

This past Tuesday, in place of our regular October meeting, Barbara Persing visited us. She is a well-known long arm quilter and author of StrataVarious Quilts (written with her sister, Mary Hoover) and Listen to Your Quilt. I think it's safe to say we were completely mesmerized with her quilts, quilting, and ideas.

 The stunning cover quilt, "The Sampler," from Listen to Your Quilt. It has a different quilting design in each orange peel/cathedral window block. When she passed this quilt around, everyone took their time when it came to passing it to the next person!

A traditional version of the same quilt

 Robin helped hold many of the quilts. She is a champ!

As she shared her quilts, Barbara listed the ways in which you can approach quilting your quilts.

1. Categorize your quilt - is it an art quilt? For kids? Modern? Traditional? She suggested you "marry the quilting to the style of the quilt." For example, a traditional quilt might have feathers that are in the same exact place on all sides. A modern quilt with traditional elements might have feathers scattered all over.

2. Determine the intended use of the quilt. Will it be for a bed (all-over quilting/less quilting works best with a lot of washes)? How about the wall, which gives you more freedom to quilt densely? Is it for a show?

3. Decide how much impact you want the quilting to have. This connects with #2.

4. Decide the kind of thread and color you want to use. Barbara believes that 9/10 times, a matching thread color will be best, though a contrasting color definitely has its place.

She chose a brown thread color for this quilt, which was designed by her sister.

She suggested learning how to free-motion quilt (FMQ) stippling, loops, and short lines first, because all of the designs you can make come from those.

Finally, Barbara took many of our quilt tops and suggested how we can quilt them. The individualized attention we received was priceless! Thanks again, Barbara, for an inspiring presentation!

Barbara drawing designs for Andi to quilt on to her traditional Christmas quilt

-Jess S.

Mid-Atlantic Mod Registration OPEN for guild members!

 Hi all! Glad I got to see many of you at the Barbara Persing talk tonight (pictures and recap up this weekend!). I'm posting to remind you that sign ups for Mid-Atlantic Mod, a modern quilting retreat are open TODAY for guild members. Just what is that, exactly? Scroll down to find out!

If you've heard of modern sewing retreats like Sewing Summit in Utah and Sew South, our retreat is similar but with a focus on social quilting. That means that for the majority of the weekend, members of the CJMQG, DCMQG and Philly MQG will be sewing in one big ol' room together! Many of you know how much fun we have in our sewcial days... imagine that times 6 (60 people can attend altogether, so 20 for each guild). The Presidents of the three guilds are planning activities, sponsors, and mini workshops (if you want to teach, see this post).  Anyway, it's going to be a total blast, and you KNOW you want to join us!!

When: Thurs - Sun April 3-6, 2014
Where: Doubletree Hilton in Lancaster, PA
Cost: $90 for the large room for sewing, pay your own hotel ($129 a night, can split with a roommate) and food. Hotel stay is required with registration, though you do not have to stay all 3 nights). 
For more information: http://midatlanticmod.blogspot.com

*****To register, please fill out the registration form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/11kWcE_qjxXIr74m4kFIRSdl1abo9hdlK1CY6N6B4FGI/viewform
After receiving your registration you will be sent payment instructions to secure your place, as well as instructions for reserving a hotel room.

General registration will open on Nov. 1st and we hope to attract attendees from all over the mid-Atlantic region. If you have friends in other guilds or just quilty friends in general, encourage them to sign up right away on the 1st! Yay!


-Jess S.

September Recap and October Reminder

**Reminder - there is no general guild meeting in October! Members only can attend a lecture/trunk show/demonstration with Barbara Persing, author of Listen to Your Quilts, this Tuesday, October 8 from 6 -10 PM at Pennington Quilt Works (please note the time change). If you are at the lecture and signed up for the Riley Blake fabric challenge, you will receive your fabric at this time. Guild bee members should also bring their completed blocks for September (if not already turned in) and October. PLEASE RSVP HERE so we have an idea of how many to expect! If you want to bring a quilt top to ask Barbara about, please say so here (on the new site). Thank you!

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At the September meeting, we were bursting at our seams again! We had 32 quilters, including several visitors and new members. Let's keep up the enthusiasm for our guild!
 

If ever you are looking for more information about what happened at our meetings, please do not hesitate to read our meeting minutes, submitted by our wonderful secretary, Kathleen. This meeting's minutes are a download in BigTent and can be accessed here.

Upcoming Events:

• Tues. Oct. 8 - Barbara Persing lecture - NO OCTOBER MEETING!
• Tues. Oct. 8 - Registration opens for all guild members for Mid-Atlantic Mod, a modern quilting retreat. One of the organizers is our very own Jessica Levitt! Our guild, the DCMQG, and the Philly MQG will be in attendance (up to 60), and quilters outside the guilds can sign up on November 1.
• Fri.- Sat. Oct. 11-12 - Keystone Quilters show in Quakertown - click here for more info.
• Sat. - Sun. Oct. 26-27 - Evening Star Quilters Guild of Belvidere, NJ show (I'll be there one of the days!)
• Tues. Nov. 12 - November meeting, CJMQG
• Thurs. - Sun. April 3-6-  Mid-Atlantic Mod! See the new website to sign up for email notifications (right sidebar).

 
Guild News:

• Bring any unwanted but gently used quilting fabric (no smaller than 1/4 yard, quilt shop quality only please), batting, books, notions, patterns, etc. to our freebie table at meetings! We will not have a freebie table at the October lecture.

• Want to be an officer? Let us know before the November meeting. We are hoping for volunteers! The four positions are as follows: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

• Have a suggestion for a guild quilt along? This would start in a couple of months (but no commitment)  - everyone makes the same quilt at the same time and shares their progress. The ideal QAL would be already written in full, online and thus easily accessible, and free. Check out this thread on our group website, where we've discussed a few. Let us know what your favorites are at the link, or suggest another you might have seen around quilty blogland. 

• Riley Blake Challenge - The Modern Quilt Guild is hosting another challenge, just like the Madrona Road challenge from last year that many of us participated in. This time, members who signed up will receive a fat eighth bundle of some great Riley Blake basics. Here's more info:

• The item you make must be quilted, but it can be anything!
• You do not have to use all of the fabrics you receive.
• You can add solids or another Riley Blake fabric.
• The challenge runs from now until December (I could be wrong, but I think the picture has to be uploaded to the MQG Fabric Challenge forum, which is part of the new site, by Dec. 31. We will confirm the date ASAP).
• Time to get your thinking caps on... what will you make this time?

Meeting:
Jess L. showed us how to access the new MQG website and to get to our group. We talked about the pros and cons of the site so far. Once you sign in, you can access our group here. You can share anything about the guild, possible events, or your creations on our site! We will be phasing out BigTent as time goes on, but for now, we are still using it for RSVPs. As always, if you have trouble signing on or finding your way about the site, please don't hesitate to email us.

Carol did a great job demonstrating how to make a wonky 5-point star. This tutorial can be found in two parts: here and here, thanks to Carmen Rose Prose. And thanks, Carol, for an awesome demo!


Swap: Members swapped mug rugs with each other at random. Great job, ladies! So many modern techniques!

 

Those who are participating in the Guild Bee gave Jess L. her house blocks. This is going to be a gorgeous quilt!

 

Challenge: Members submitted blocks for the Guild Banner (more info soon! I'm working on it!).

Show and Tell:

 

 

Thanks to Lori Saporito for taking pictures at this meeting!

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 November Meeting (Tues. Nov. 12, 7 PM, Pennington Quilt Works)
Discussion: Fabric designer - who are your favorites? Bring some fabric to show us!
Challenge: Any complete projects from the Riley Blake challenge.
Spotlight: If you'd like to explain your story as a quilter and show us the quilts you have, let us know!

-Jess S.