February 2020 Newsletter

Posted on February 2, 2020February 4, 2020 by admin

February brings a wonderful guest speaker to our guild – Paula Nadelstern.

Paula comes to us from New York. In fact, she makes quilts on the same block in the Bronx where she grew up. A wonderful quote from her: “Until I met quilts, I thought I was creative but not talented. To find something you love to do is a gift. To achieve recognition for it is a miracle.”

Guild Meeting - February 13, 2020

Paula Nadelstern – Lecture: The Kaleidoscope as Design Inspiration

Non-members: There is a $5 Fee for this National Speaker

Kaleidoscope, the very word promises surprise and magic. Exploding with visual excitement, a kaleidoscopic design organizes an abundance of light and color, form and motion into a complex and coherent image. Paula’s goal is to harmoniously integrate the idea of a kaleidoscope with the techniques and materials of quilt making.

It is so exciting how Community Service is becoming an important part of our guild. We are getting more and more people involved, making it a win-win situation that can only get better.

Our guild members are able to use their love of quilting to help others and our organizations are getting lots and lots of items to give to the people they are helping.

Last month we gave out 94 quilts, 105 pillowcases, 26 cuddles, 19 baby hats, and 8 taggies. This was a big month for us since we did not distribute in December, but then again, they are collections we made during the holidays. Great Job.

Dates to remember:

February 11 – Community Service sew day at Plano Sewing Center, 10 am – 2 pm.
February 29 – Community Service sew day at Best Little Retreat Center, 10 am – 2 pm
March 21 – Basting Day at Monica Hendewerk’s house, 10 am – 3 pm
And most important, Quilting Day at the Best Little Retreat Center, 10 am – 3 pm on April 14.

The quilting day is open to all members who want to quilt community service quilts and for all newer quilters who want to learn and practice quilting. We will have demonstrations on how to quilt using your walking foot and how to do free-hand quilting. There will be door prizes and goodies to eat. Come and have some fun!

Are you working on your quilt(s) for the show? The entry forms are now online. Each member may enter up to 4 quilts. This show is the guild showcase. It’s time to let people see your work. Be proud of your efforts and enter your quilt.

I have encouraged each of our show committee members to be finding their future replacements. The Vendor Chair committee needs another person to join in this year and fill in the chair position for 2021. If you are interested in this position, please talk to Carol Long, Rose Davis, or me. It’s a very interesting position and is vital to our show.

May will be the month that we roll out the show information, start sign-ups for volunteers, and feature some of our demos. If you are interested in doing demos at the meeting and/or the show, be sure to contact Tina Connolly.

Please continue to pick up and pay for your raffle tickets at the meeting. If you can take the raffle quilts to other meetings to sell tickets, please contact Joan Hammett.

So many projects... So little time!

I have so many projects I am trying to finish, and so many more I want to start. It’s been hard to stay focused and finish anything lately with the holidays. But now that February is here, I hope to get a handle on my “to-do” list. Lately, the only things I have finished are those projects that have deadlines. Some deadlines are self-imposed and other deadlines are set by the small groups I belong to or retreats I attend. And the list keeps growing!

We have so many activities going on in the guild: the pillow challenge with Guild Activities, Community Service quilting challenge, mini quilts for our Quilt Show, Christmas stockings, pillowcases, birthday quilts, block challenges, pin cushion exchanges AND I need to finish my quilt to enter in our show! Whew! No wonder I feel overwhelmed! And NOW my small group started their yearly UFO challenge! Really??!!

I wise woman (Alice Wilhoit) once said to me, “Linda, how do you eat an elephant?... One bite at a time!” So, with that, I will start my list. I will set small goals that I know I can accomplish. I will prioritize those items on the list that are most important (finish a quilt for the show) and maybe a few items will need to be scratched off the list, and that is OK too. Plus I want to leave room on my list for new projects I might want to start.

With my list in hand, I am ready to get started. I have several retreats planned--that should help. I am hoping for some cold weather in February. That will make me want to stay home in my warm studio and sew all day. And housework? That’s NOT on my list, so it will have to wait.

Have a great month and see you at the guild meeting with our speaker Paula Nadelstern.

The Pillow Project

We are starting 2020 with a guild exchange activity! Click on the link for the Jordan Fabrics Tempting Triangle Pillow Covers (I love their FREE patterns!)

Now the cover of the pattern says the pattern makes 3 pillows. We are only making 1 for the exchange. Feel free to make as many as your heart desires, but you only need 1.

One addition to the project: MAKE SURE YOU SIGN AND DATE YOUR PILLOW.

I have been informed that the 16” pillow form from Wal-Mart is the perfect fit and it is only $5.

Bring your finished pillow to the March Guild meeting for the exchange. You do not need to wrap it up or put it in a bag.

Click here to go to the instructions.

We had 102 members present.

There were 9 visitors: Marie Rees, Sue Kuisis, Pat Brown, Grace Culbertson, Stephanie Beaty, Doris Sanderegger, Marsha Kammeyer, May Coffey and Linda Smith.

The 8 new members were: Rhonda Briscoe, Michelle Parker, Jeana Kubik, Glenna Brabant, Susan Berger, Donna Blackman, Sarah Newell, and Deb VanWinkle.

We continue to take member renewal fees.

The following quilt stores and people made donations for the door prizes:

Annette Plog
Sew Let’s Quilt It
Stitched With Love
Stitchin’ Heaven
Fabrics For You
Linda’s Electric Quilters
Savvy Quilters
The Quilt Asylum
Not your Mama’s Quilt Store
Quilt Country

We are off to a great start with our stockings. I had 5 turned in at guild, and lots of goodies to fill stockings.

Please remember that we are not responsible for filling the stockings, but anything that we give is appreciated. Also, remember that hand-made items are especially appreciated because it gives a personal touch, and makes these folks feel loved.

If you would like to write a batch of cards, that would be great, too. My favorite from last year was done by a one-year-old toddler, and had the caption, “(baby’s name) age 1 says thank you for your service to our country.” I am quite sure that this touched the heart of someone.

The email notifying you of our newsletter release has been automated with MailChimp since the launch of the new website. This newsletter email is automatically sent on the 2^nd of every month and looks like the pictures on the right.

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January 2020 Newsletter

Posted on December 31, 2019December 31, 2019 by admin

Are you ready for 2020? It is a new year and a new decade – perfect for all the wonderful events coming our way! The first new item is the ability for members (non-members will be included soon) to sign up for Workshops through the guild website. Follow these steps:

Go to qgplano.org and sign in.
Choose Membership (due to members only at this time).
Choose QGPStore.
Find your Workshop/s and add to Cart.
Choose Shopping Cart and fill in the blanks.

Now, how easy is that? A lot like Amazon!

We are restarting the Community Service Quilting Challenge. The contest starts in January, 2020, and will run through October, 2020. The drawing for fantastic prizes will be at the November Meeting.

The way this contest works is you will have your name submitted for every Community Service Quilt you quilt. It can be done on a long-arm machine or your home machine. Just be sure to add your name when you turn in the quilts. Turn-in will be at the Community Service table at each meeting.

You get one entry per quilt you quilted.

Good Luck!

Congratulations to the winners for the 2019 Birthday Quilt Challenge: Valerie Salter, Donna Wall, and Judy Johnson. Last year we had 17 Birthday quilts turned in. Let’s see if we can double that number in 2020.

We will start a new challenge for 2020 at the January meeting. The rule is that you turn in a completed quilt to Community Service. It doesn’t have to be your birthday month. Any month during the year is fine. The only stipulation is that you made the quilt and it is completed. A second party may quilt the quilt.

When you turn in your quilt, you can choose which Charity it goes to. You will fill out the form with your name, email, and phone number and the name of the charity. The contest runs for the calendar year. All quilts turned in by the start of the December business meeting will be eligible for prizes.

Part of my job as VP of Community Service is to take all the quilts home that are turned in at the Guild Meeting. I get to see our donations as I sort them out. Every month there seems to be more and more coming in. December’s meeting had a small member turnout, but we still had 23 finished quilts turned in. We also had 12 pillowcases and 2 tops.

It is so great that our membership is so supportive of the Community Service project – when the quilts are finished they go to children and families in need to bring them some form of comfort. It lets them know that they have not been forgotten.

Happy New Year! I hope everyone enjoyed the guild Christmas party. It was great seeing everyone’s holiday quilts and gifts. Thank you to all of the GQP board members who provided the food for the party. It was nice to have time to visit with each other and meet new members.

We have lots of great speakers and activities scheduled for this year. Now that we have all recovered from the holidays, it’s time to get busy! Community Service and Guild Activities are rolling out their guild challenges. All of the guild workshops are listed on the guild website. Workshops can now be signed up and paid for online. It’s so easy!

Until the next guild meeting, stay warm and keep on stitching! It won’t be long until entries are due for Quilt Plano 2020.

Happy 2020 Quilting Friends! We had so much fun at our Holiday gathering in December and such a fun show & tell! Which made me wonder how everyone is doing on those workshop projects you made in 2019? Even if they are not quilted and bound, please bring them for show and tell. Need a goal for 2020? Finish those projects and enter them into the Special Exhibits category for our 2020 quilt show!

Also, it is time for a Guilt Activity. We are going to have a Pillow Exchange. On our website, go to the Activities tab, then click on Challenge. There, I will have pictures and instructions for the pillow project.

We will exchange the pillows at our March guild meeting. I hope everyone will participate.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Have fun and see you soon.

Show activities are happening. We are working behind the scenes getting ready for entries. The Registration/Entries Chair reviews the current entry information with the Show Chair and Judging Chairs to determine any changes that need to happen. There are minor changes this year so be prepared to read the documents when they are posted on the website. The forms are being prepared now and will be posted by February 1st, 2020. Other duties of the Registration/Entries chair include keeping the database for entries that then feed other documents for the show—judging, programs, layout, etc.

The Registration/Entries Chair is in charge of take-in and give-back of the quilts, producing the winners list, creating the winner’s information for award payment, as well as other documents needed for the show. Tisha Harms is this year’s Registration Chair. She is a new member to the guild and has jumped right in to volunteer her time and talents. Be sure to take time to meet her.

The board members have discussed how to recover volunteer hours for the calendar year 2019 so that people can still receive the recognition for time they donate to the guild. For 2019, we have decided to accept the honor system and let all of you tell us the hours you worked, and we would accept them as is.

Please email your 2019 hour information to Julie Schaefer as soon as possible. Hours must be received no later than January 31st, 2020. No exceptions. juliescha@sbcglobal.net

We will have a reporting system in place for 2020 hours in the near future.

So what makes up your volunteer hours?

Anything you do for the guild counts. In the past we recorded hours under Board (general activities), Community Service, Education, and Show. Travel time to events, like selling raffle tickets at a shop, is included in the time you report. For 2019 you do not have to break down the hours unless you happen to already have them recorded. Just the bulk hours will be acceptable.

Annual service bars are given for doing 30 hours of volunteer time for the guild. The Presidential Service Awards are given for 100 to 249 hours (Bronze pin), 250 to 499 hours (Silver pin), 500 hours and above (Gold pin). The lifetime award has been given for 4000 hours and above. For some reason the government has been working on a change for the lifetime and have not yet released the requirements.

The guild cannot function without all the time freely given by the members. We are all grateful for your time and energy. These pins are tokens of our appreciation.

Sherrie Tootle 1/2
Barbara Rylander 1/4
Sharla Brockway 1/6
Joe Ellen Ticknor 1/6
Tina Steenburg 1/7
Shirley Weaver 1/9
Pat Wykoff 1/12
Diane Worley 1/13
Debra "Debby" Fleming 1/14
Carol Bourland 1/15
Stephanie Parrish 1/15
Patti Fulwiler 1/16
Maudie Auvershine 1/17
Ginny Cherry 1/17
Debra DeSeure 1/19
Connie Elliott 1/20
Jennifer Sheckells 1/20
Susie Ager 1/25
Peggy Cord 1/26
Kathy Dyas 1/26
Joe Levy 1/26
Terry Reese 1/26
Debbie Saul 1/26
Alma Cone 1/28
Roxanne Garrett 1/29
Judy Beskow 1/30

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. Erin came up in time for Christmas day and Nathan and Kelly came up a few days later, as they spent Christmas with her family.

Don and I bought a new shelf unit for the stocking fabric. 78 inches tall, 60 inches wide, and 24 inches deep. I love it. All the fabric that y’all have so generously donated is now organized on four big shelves. The top shelf has fabric for the stocking bodies, and on the other shelves, I have each color group stacked neatly where I can find it. I also have a place for all the other stuff that I use: Ziplocs, ribbon, paper, my iron and cover for the island in my kitchen, and so on. It is now very easy to find what I need for each step. And it looks so much better!

Also, I made new instructions. I wanted the print to be larger, and, at the time, my computer was not working. I decided that it was a good time to start over. Unfortunately, I left out the part about making the cuff. So, I must apologize for that blunder. Oops.

If you are a new member to the guild, you should have received two emails:

One from WordPress containing your username and password.
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These automated emails are sometimes sent directly to your Junk/Spam folder or other folders such as a Promotions. Please check these folders and add email@qgplano.org to your safe list. Don’t worry, we don’t send emails very often!

If you are having issues logging in to the website, please email Caroline at email@qgplano.org.

December 2019 Newsletter

Posted on December 1, 2019December 23, 2019 by admin

Holiday Party

Please join us at the December 12th meeting for a Christmas Party. QGP board members will bring snacks and bottled water will be provided. We will have a short business meeting starting at 6:45 to be followed by a Christmas themed show and tell. Please bring your Christmas/winter themed quilts or wall hangings to show. Or, if you made something for a gift at Christmas, we would LOVE to see it first! Afterwards we will have lots of time to socialize with other members. It will be a fun and festive night. Submitted by Linda Neal

No Workshops this month.

Get ready for 2020 to have a variety of guest speakers and workshops to meet anyone and everyone’s quilting genre!

Dot, Dot, Dash pattern in True Blue Quilts book

We will learn to machine piece curved blocks. The templates are located in the True Blue Quilts book. You can choose to make the book project, a smaller table runner, or an all scrappy quilt.

There are still available spots for Annette’s Friday workshop! QGP Members can sign up and pay online from the Member Dashboard! Non-members can download the form and mail it with a cheque to the address on the form. Contact programs@qgplano.org for any question.

Members of the guild worked very hard for community service last month. We received 41 completed quilts, 43 completed pillowcases, and 6 tops. Our members can really pat themselves on the back for the number of quilts and pillowcases made each month. Our charities really appreciate the donations, especially now that the weather has turned so cold.

What do we do with the finished quilts? We have a list of charities that we distribute the quilts and pillowcases to. At first, we only gave pillowcases to one of our charities, but then found out all the charities like the pillowcases, so every quilt now goes out with a pillowcase. We even have some charities that would like extra pillowcases. The pillowcases are very helpful when you have children that would normally have to use a garbage bag to pack their worldly possessions; they are now able to put their items in a pillowcase.

So where do the quilts and pillowcases go? We have a number of charities we donate to monthly:

My Friend’s House (City House)
Samaritan Inn
Children’s Medical Center of Plano
Children’s Advocacy Center
The Turning Point

We also support the Plano ISD’s program for teenage parents. We donate to them twice a year.

Another big project is Christmas Stockings for the soldiers.

And then for our furry friends at Pet Shelters, we turn in dog and cat beds made from quilting scraps.

Keep up the good work and support our needy neighbors.

Guild Free Table

There will not be a Guild Free Table at the December meeting. We will be having our Holiday Party.

What great speakers we have had the last 3 months - Bethanne Nemesh, Melinda Bula, and Edyta Sitar. I feel so inspired! Each speaker traveled a long distance to come speak to our guild. They all gave great presentations, showed lots of amazing quilts, and taught wonderful classes. Having great speakers is one of the many reasons I love being a part of this guild and attending meetings.

The other reason I love being a part of this guild is spending time with other guild members. You are my quilting family. We spend time together learning and talking about quilting. We share tips and ideas. We retreat together, eat together, and even work together. I am very thankful to have such a wonderful quilting family. I am looking forward to our guild Christmas party, where we will spend some quality time together. We will have fun seeing each other’s holiday quilts and feast on some not so healthy snacks. Please come to the December 12th guild meeting and hang out with your quilting family!

Our guild’s new Beekeeper is Heather Ewald. Two years ago she took a beginner class at a local quilt store and has been hooked ever since. Block of the month programs have helped enhance her skills, especially her favorite which is applique. Collecting beautiful jellyrolls, new tools and sewing machines is also a pastime. Heather has found her passion in quilting and appreciates meeting fellow quilters and gaining the knowledge they have to share. It's a dream to one day start a business pursuing this passion full time.

Some may ask, “What is a beekeeper?” According to our bylaws, the position of beekeeper has the following duties:

Maintain a list of small groups, including groups seeking new members.
Assist members in finding small group affiliations.

We have compiled information about our bees from several different sources, but it is undoubtedly out-of-date. Heather will be contacting each group via email to learn the following:

Is the member list for your small group correct? Should other names be added or removed?
Does your group have a leader?
What day and time do you meet?
Are you open to new members?

Please assist Heather in updating this information regarding our bees. Also, if you are a new member and wish to find a bee in which to participate, please reach out to Heather.

We want more people to know about the quilt show committee, about what it takes to put on the wonderful quilt shows we have been producing since 1991. To “Be in the Know about the Show”, one of the committee members will give a brief overview of her own area at the monthly guild meeting and we will follow up by posting it in the newsletter. Sara Lindsay did a great job this past month. Our “kid’s area” (multi-generational area) has always been a highlight of the show. Linda Burton will be heading up that section this year with the help of Sara Lindsay and Dana Braden, along with any of you who want to volunteer.

We hope you are working on your entry for the quilt show. This is our show, to showcase the work of our members. Remember, you are showing your work to interest people in what you have done. Maybe it’s the color combination, the skill of your handwork, or producing a visual impact you want to share with others. If you haven’t entered before, make this the year you place your quilt in the show. If you have entered before, keep it up. We all enjoy seeing the work of our fellow quilters. Your quilt may be the one that inspires someone to make their first quilt.

The entry registration forms for Quilt Plano 2020 will be on the web site on January 1, 2020. Please submit the forms as soon as you have your information ready. The final deadline for submitting the forms will be June 11, 2020, at the guild meeting. The quilts will be turned in on August 4, 2020.

– Spotlight on Children’s Activity Area – aka Multigenerational Room – from Sara Lindsay’s presentation at the November meeting

The Children’s Activity Room is so much more than what you may presume. We are not providing babysitting or childcare for attendees of the show. Our room provides activities with Make & Takes that teach sewing and quilting skills and encourage creativity!

We are a multigenerational activity room focused on interactive learning for all ages. There are grandparents and grandchildren and even great-grandchildren that come into our room to participate. It is a bonding moment for many.

This past show we prepared 11 activities and projects with our goal to teach a younger generation sewing and quilting skills that they can enjoy life-long. We also want to teach quilt and fabric appreciation and develop our quilt industry shoppers, designers, and producers of quilts of the future. We want them to love fabric the way we do!

As a guild, we have the privilege and responsibility to our community to encourage everyone to learn, no matter their age. If you want to be a part of the basic introduction to quilt culture and have a lot of fun or have ideas to share, please consider volunteering in the Children’s Activity Room, aka Multigenerational Room, next year!

With the creation of the new website a few months ago, we also integrated a Google Calendar for Quilters Guild of Plano. The calendar is located in two places:

At the bottom of the Home
On its own Calendar page under About & Contact.

If you're already a Google Calendar user, you can copy the events that interest you directly to your calendar. Simply click on the event and click on copy to my calendar.

If you have a guild-related event that you would like added to the calendar, you can send your request to Caroline at email@qgplano.org.

November 2019 Newsletter

Posted on November 1, 2019November 28, 2019 by admin

Edyta Sitar - Lecture: Reasons for Quilting

Non-members: There is a $5 fee for this national speaker.

Edyta Sitar will be your guide on a walk through historical, political, and personal events that have inspired generations of quilters. In her presentation, Edyta reflects on the quilters’ work and how they found inspiration to create, to express, and to mark milestones in their lives. The program is full of historical information as well as touching personal stories. She will show a large collection of quilts that will entertain and inspire you with many reasons to continue to create and enjoy quilting even more than you do now.

Friday Workshop – January 10, 2020

Dot, Dot, Dash pattern in True Blue Quilts book

Dot Dot Dash uses curved piecing. Don't be intimidated, it is not that hard. This quilt is a variation on the traditional Drunkard's Path quilt block popular in the late 1800s. In class, we will learn to machine piece curved blocks. The templates are located in the book, and you can choose to make the book project, a smaller table runner or an all scrappy quilt. The block is the same, the variety comes with how the student places light and dark fabrics and how the blocks are sewn together. The techniques we learn in class will help with piecing other curved blocks.

Saturday Workshop – January 11, 2020

Vicksburg Stars pattern in True Blue Quilts Book

Vicksburg Stars is a quilt project featuring Sawtooth Stars, an all time favorite, set on point, arranged in rows and sashed to complete the quilt. In class we will make stars, working on perfect points, and cut the side and corner triangles and sew them together in rows. We will talk about piecing with bias and cutting to avoid bias edges. We will also discuss cutting border prints and directional printed fabrics. At the end of the class the student will have much of the project completed with the knowledge to continue and get this beautiful quilt finished.

COMING SOON!!!!! Quilt Sewing Day. On November 5th, we will be at The Best Little Retreat Center in Texas from 9 am to 9pm sewing community service quilts. Come for the entire day or a few hours.

The quilts are smaller ones that have been spray basted and are ready for quilting. Bring your sewing machine and sewing supplies, we will supply the quilts.

We will have several people on hand that will help you learn different methods of quilting.

If you are new to quilting on your domestic machine, this is a good place to learn how to use your machine for quilting, both free hand and using your walking foot.

Please let me know if you can make it to our quilting day: quiltingpony@hotmail.com.

In October we had quite a haul in quilts: 24 finished quilts came in for distribution to our charities. We also received 26 tops, 16 pillowcases, and one quilted quilt needing binding also came in. We actually delivered 37 quilts, 54 pillowcases and 6 soft soap bottles. Keep up the good work.

I will be bringing giveaway goodies at the meeting again. Please take what you want. The items will be discarded if they are not picked up.

Fall is officially here. It is cold and damp outside as I write this newsletter - the perfect weather to curl up with a comfy quilt and good book. The quilts we make provide comfort for our families and our community. Quilting provides us with instant quilting friends and a whole quilting community at our fingertips. We have small groups, guilds, retreats, and classes to meet other quilters. We have quilt stores, quilt shows, and websites to inspire our creativity. What a wonderful quilting “family” we have created. Like all families, we have tasks, budgets, and “do-to” lists, which aren’t always fun, but necessary.

Quilters Guild of Plano is your quilting family. Get involved! Volunteer for the quilt show, sew for community service, sell raffle tickets, or start a small group to meet other members. Our family is growing bigger, and now it’s time to grow together.

Thank you to all of my board members who help run this crazy quilting family. It truly takes every person doing their job to make this guild run smoothly.

Happy Stitching

We would like to welcome our 5 visitors: Gayle Meador, Celene Bishop, Patti Garbure, Menie Rees, Cynthia Nolen.

Please help welcome our two new members: Sharon Laney and Sue Hurth (returning member). Please look for these new members and show them how the Guild welcomes them.

October door prizes were donated by Dye Happy, Quarter Square Quilt Co., Quilt Country in Lewisville, Best Little Retreat Center in Texas, Best of Bernina, and Pumpkin Patch Quilt Shop.

We look forward to seeing everyone at the November meeting. Carole and Sue, thank you for helping during this learning time as Connie picked up where Carole left off.

Rayetta Finefrock 11/2
Terry Reisinger 11/3
Cynthia Caldwell 11/4
Lynne Haley 11/4
Christina Cisnero 11/5
Judy Loftin 11/5
Carole Murray 11/5
Marjorie Sener 11/5
Margaret Neyman 11/6
LuGay Chiang 11/10
Victoria Dean 11/10
Marie Richard 11/10
Michael Davison 11/12
Gloria Kahle 11/12
Victoria Venner 11/12
Jeanne Smith 11/13
Loren Wilhelm 11/14
Judy Horton 11/16
Kim Jenkins 11/16
Lisa Terry 11/17
Sue Dexheimer 11/19
Melinda Propes 11/19
Pamela Crocker 11/20
Linda Newman 11/20
Carol Surrells 11/22
Virginia "Ginny" Braley 11/24
Kim Imel 11/24
Madelyn Beachboard 11/27
Rose Davis 11/27
Julie Rushin 11/28
Sue Morris 11/30

In the Know About the Show

Thank you to Joan Hammett for filling in for me at the October meeting. And thanks to all of you who have picked up your raffle tickets. The tickets will be at each meeting for you to get your $20 worth. Please pay for them when you first get them. We need all members to buy and/or sell their 24 tickets ($1 each or 6 for $5). If you would be willing to take the raffle quilts to another guild meeting or event to sell tickets please let Joan Hammett know so that she can track where and when the quilts are being shown.

Show Committee Needs:

Program Ads – We need someone to join the show committee to sell the program ads for the show. There are a number of shops who are happy to place their ads with us. Current sponsors and vendors will buy some ad space. The job is active from January through May or early June. I’ve sold ads for the past few years and have samples of what has been done for these times to get you started. --- Just got this position filled. Yea! Thank you Nancy Worst for stepping up.

Logistics – This is a new position on the show committee. One person is needed to contact moving companies to find the best price for moving our show equipment from the guild storage unit to Plano Event Center on Tuesday of quilt show week and back again to the storage unit on Saturday at the end of the quilt show. You will supervise the move, but not have to do any of the moving.

Publicity – One or two people work together to find places to advertise the quilt show and to deliver the show posters to advertise our show. We already have a list of places, so you will not have to start from scratch. Several magazines will list our show in their calendars if given the information on a timely basis. Information needs to be given out to a number of retirement centers as they will bring their residents to the show.

If you would be interested in any of these positions, please text me at 972-571-0083 or email petrickdl@outlook.com. Working on the show committee is a great way to meet people and to learn what it takes to put on the quilt show. Your guild is more successful when you are active in the guild.

The raffle tickets for the QP2020 raffle quilt with companion quilt are available. Members are asked to take a packet of 24 tickets for $20. Paid for as you pick them up ($1 each or 6 for $5). Sell them to your friends and family. Buy them for yourself. But please sell as many tickets as you can on these beautiful quilts. This money goes to help the guild pay for educational scholarships or supplies, pay towards our delightful speakers and fund other activities of the guild.

We also need members to take the quilt to visit other guilds and events in order to maximize our sales. If you would like to take them, please contact Joan Hammett to schedule (972) 489-9925 or joanhammett@verizon.net.

As our guild starts its new year, I start a new chapter. I have been using my formal dining room as my “factory” for making kits, with the thought that if we needed the formal dining room, it could be cleared out in about 5 minutes with a little help.

We have installed new hardwood flooring and painted this room. I no longer find it acceptable to have 6 giant tubs overflowing with fabric in there. Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate all the donations of fabric, ribbon and supplies, as well as all the other efforts from Community Service. I love this office. It is SOO much fun. But the room is just too pretty to pile up.

Don ordered a shelf unit 78x60x24 to replace all the tubs. I ordered drapes to cover it that match my new drapes. This way I can have the best of both worlds. I now have lots of fabric and lots of storage and we get our room back.

In the past, I have had a lot of help washing and ironing fabric. Boy, do I ever appreciate the help! I now have a lot of work to do. I am asking anyone who can to come help ADHD Martha to get organized. I am opening my home from 10 AM to 8:30 PM the Monday after guild meeting for you to come help me. Come when you can, leave when you must, bring your own brown bag.

Here is a link to some cute ornaments to make as stocking stuffers.

https://pin.it/skqw2smjffbln4

I look forward to a great year!

While I am the webmaster, it truly takes a village to take care of a website!

Let me introduce you to my extraordinary helpers:

Dena Smith: Dena uploads and curates all photos you see in the Gallery. She is also the one who gathers all necessary information and creates our online Newsletter.

Jeanne Vogel: Jeanne is my unofficial Editor in Chief. She reads each page and emails me if she finds errors or when the Resources page needs updating. She also formats pictures members send to her for the Member Directory.

Sue Rentz and Connie Elliot: Sue and Connie are in charge of the membership system. They upload new members to the system, update their information, and manage members' payments.

Board: Each board member is in charge of making sure the information pertaining to their committee is accurate and up to date. They email me when things need to be modified. They are also in charge of adding their events to the Calendar.

October 2019 Newsletter

Posted on September 30, 2019September 30, 2019 by admin

Edyta Sitar – Reasons for Quilts

Nonmembers: There is a $5 fee for this national speaker

Edyta’s love for fabric began at a very young age - when she used her mother’s drapes to create her first fabric project!

Fortunately, for all of us, Edyta's mother recognized her passion for fabric and thus began her journey with fabric and sewing. One of Edyta’s biggest blessings is her marriage to husband, Michael. She not only fell in love -- she was introduced to a Sitar family tradition of quilting by her mother-in-law, Carol, and grandmother-in-law, Anna.

Quilting has enabled Edyta to express herself about the objects or occasions of her surroundings -- her designs are her avenue to release passion! “My children and my husband are my greatest motivation. This is the Cinderella dream for me. Being able to do what I love and share this love with others is the greatest feeling and reward I could imagine!"

The combination of inspiration, a love for fabric, a keen eye for color, and her family teachings blended into the recipe for a talent in constructing amazing quilts, creating innovative quilting patterns for Laundry Basket Quilts, designing beautiful Traditional and Batik fabrics for Moda (10 years) and now for Andover (Present). She has published numerous books to date, been featured in many magazines, and her quilts have been honored in displays around the world.

As the founder and owner of her company, Laundry Basket Quilts (www.laundrybasketquilts.com), Edyta is proud to carry on her family tradition that fabrics and threads have seamlessly stitched together through the generations. Her true passion and quilter’s spirit shine through her classes, workshops, and presentations. She travels all over the world sharing her experiences and connecting with quilters of all levels through the inspiring stories about the quilts she makes.

Valerie Salter and I are very happy to be taking over Community Service. We are hoping to have an active and fun year.

The CS group meets monthly and makes kits for the quilts. The kits are sewn at our Community Sew Day, the 2nd Tuesday of the month at Plano Sewing Center, from 10 am to 2 pm. We would love to have you join us on our sewing days. Bring your machine and sewing supplies. We will furnish the kits. Contact Donna Petrick at petrickdl@outlook.com if you are able to attend.

We also have a sewing day on the 3rd Saturday at the Best Little Retreat Center in Texas from 10 am to 2 pm. Again bring sewing supplies and we will furnish the kits. Contact Kaye Dunn at scottnkaye@att.net if you are able to come and sew.

The kits produce tops. The rest of the process is done at the guild meetings. The CS group gets the quilts ready for quilting and gives them out at the meeting. The quilted quilts come back and are trimmed and go out again to have binding put on. Then the quilts are ready to be washed and given to our charities.

We also give pillowcases to the charities. The CS group makes the pillowcase kits and gives them to members at the meetings. The finished pillowcases are matched with a quilt when we get them ready for distribution.

There are a lot of steps to get the quilts ready for our charities and we can use help in whatever area you are comfortable doing. Please stop by the table and see us at the guild meeting and we can answer any questions you have.

Dolores Williams -- quiltingpony@hotmail.com

Our guild has received a number of donations lately through the CS group. Mostly we get fabric. We use the quilting fabric and disperse with the non-quilting fabric. Lately, we have received a couple of donations of complete sewing rooms – supplies, books, magazines and sewing machines. A large part of the supplies have gone toward door prizes – some were at the Quilt Show, others will be at the guild retreat. And we still have a lot of things to give away.

CS will be bringing books and supplies, patterns, fabrics, etc. to the meetings. They will be on a free table for you to take all you want. What is not taken will be disposed of, so PLEASE take stuff.

We also have three sewing machines that need new homes. Each machine is free to the first guild member that wants it. You just have to come to Princeton and pick it up.

A Brown Singer Sewing machine, Model 401A. It has the knee pedal for sewing. It is in a brown wooden case. There is no cord with it so I don’t know if it runs. It does have a box with CAMS and bobbins with it.
A Black Singer. I could not find a model number. It is in a white case. There is one leg on the case that has cracked and will need repair. There is no cord with this machine.
A Portable Singer. Possible model number 4832 C. The number is on the side. It has a foot pedal and runs. It is white and in a white case.

Photos are below.

Interested? Call Dolores Williams at 972-832-1134 or email me at quiltingpony@hotmail.com.

Community Service is getting a lot of quilt tops stockpiled again. We need them quilted! Please come to our Quilting Day.
When: November 5, 2019
Where: Best Little Retreat Center in Texas
Time: 9 am to 9 pm -- Come when you can, stay as long as you can. We have the room all day.
Bring: Your sewing machine, thread and supplies. We will have the quilts basted and ready to go.
There will be door prizes and snacks.

Remember, you don’t need to do free arm quilting. You can use your walking foot and do a great job.
Please let us know if you are coming:
Dolores Williams: quiltingpony@hotmail.com
Valerie Salter: salter125@hotmail.com

I just returned from the Holly Girls Retreat in Northern Michigan. We sewed and took classes for 5 days. It was great! I am happy to report that fall is actually starting in that part of the country. Surely it will cool off in Texas soon, and maybe we will have some fall color too.

We have lots of new members joining our guild plus lots of past members coming back. We are really growing fast. That is great! But, with that being said, it can be hard to meet everyone and learn everyone’s name. And, as President, I want to get to know all of the members and their quilting story. It would be very helpful if everyone would wear their name tags and introduce themselves to the members around you at guild meetings. Remember: We are ALL ambassadors for the guild.

One of the best ways for new members to join in and connect with a guild is to get involved. Volunteer for anything that interests you. Find or start a small group. Volunteer for the show committee. As a growing guild, we have lots of jobs that need to be filled. Guild activities, VP Leigh Knox, will be hosting a newcomer day retreat/ice cream social at The Best Little Retreat Center in Texas on Sunday, October 6th. More information can be found in this newsletter under Guild Activities.

We have lots of great speakers and classes scheduled this year. A big thank you to our quilt show committee members that made the show successful. The profit from the quilt show allows us to schedule top national speakers.

I would like to thank all of the incoming board members who stepped up and agreed to serve this year and all of the outgoing board members who worked so hard this past year. It is my honor to serve as President and I will do my best to keep the guild running smoothly and efficiently. If you have any questions/suggestions please email me at: lindanealmck@hotmail.com

Happy Stitching.

2020 Raffle Quilt

By Linda Neal

Our guild raffle quilts for 2020, Fellowship in Scarlet and Little Red, are done and tickets are being printed. They will be given out at the November meeting. The cost of the tickets will be 1 ticket for $1 or 6 tickets for $5. The winner of the drawing will win both quilts.

Information about the construction of the guilds as well as photos of the quilts can be found on the guild website under Activities at Red and White Group Quilt. We had 80 members participate in creating the blocks and a small group, The Wednesday Girls, to sew them together. They were Quilted by Richard Larson and Pam Wingate.

Hi All. Woohooo! October is here so surely we will see at least one day of fall weather (fingers crossed). So for October we have a Day Retreat planned for Sunday, October 6. This is a newcomer retreat but of course I hope all of you, who can, will come by and sew for a while. This will also be an ice cream social, after all, you learn a lot about a person based on their favorite flavor of ice cream, right? To sign up, fill out this form. The cost is only $20 (that is a $5 savings) and you can sew from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

I hope to see you there. If you have any questions feel free to email me at LAK76248@gmail.com.

Happy sewing.

At September’s meeting, we had 112 members present, with 4 new members added, and 10 visitors.

We would like to welcome our 10 visitors: Gayle Meador, Tommy and Suzie Harris, Jerry Vaughan, Barb Clark, Diana Ball, Marie Rees, Peggy O’Neal, Grace Culbertson and Susan Corbett.

Please help welcome our four new members: Susan Autry, Jennifer Sheckells, Diane Morris, and Christina Vilmar. Please look for these new members and show them how the Guild welcomes them.

September door prizes were donated by Sew Let’s Quit It, Stitched with Love, Not Your Mama’s Quilt Store, Mineola Needle Works, Happiness is Quilting, and Quilt Country.

Look forward to seeing everyone at the October meeting. Connie Elliot takes over in my place as Co-VP of Membership next month and I know you all will welcome her and make here feel welcome. A big thank you to Sue Rentz for being a great Co-VP with me and making it seem so easy.

Carole

Karen Finch 10/1
JoAnn Langloys 10/1
Pam Lane 10/3
Heather Ewald 10/4
Linda Burton 10/5
Rebecca Williams 10/6
J "Michelle" Watts 10/6
Jackie Galubenski 10/7
Judy Johnson 10/7
Barbara Pena 10/7
Mistey Jones 10/11
Caryn Pesek 10/13
Margaret (Peggy) Dull 10/14
Marge Krempl 10/14
Karen Rainville 10/17
Carroll Thune 10/17
Monica Hendewerk 10/17
Rachel Carithers 10/18
Debbie Seher 10/18
Ruth Bernabo 10/22
Kim Imel 10/24
Rebecca Ellis 10/25
Cheryl Morschauser 10/27
Linda Castellano 10/28
Tressa Nisankarao 10/29
Sarah Lee 10/31
Sandra Vinzant 10/31
Diana Collins 10/31

Quilt Plano 2020

By Donna Petrick

First off, “Thank You” for all the work and volunteer hours you put in for QP2019. We had a very successful show—beautiful quilts, wonderful vendors and great crowds. The financials for the show will be posted on Membership – Guild Documents – Financials. It’s a lot of work to put on such a great show. Without the show, we would not be able to have such wonderful speakers for our programs. It is definitely worth the effort.

Just as we finish one show, we get started on the next. Contract is already signed with Plano Event Center. Our show will be August 7th and 8th in 2020. It’s a week early but this is turning out to be a happy accident. That puts us a week before the sales tax-free weekend, a week before school starts in Plano, and a week before the Original Sewing/Quilting event in Irving.

I’m adding several new positions to the committee list this year. I’ll write the job descriptions and get them posted to the documents page under quilt show shortly. The new positions are:

Announcements/Show
Logistics (moving the materials from the storage unit to the Plano Event Center and back)
Preview Night Setup
Publicity-Website
Security/First Aid

We also have openings for:

Artwork
Hospitality
Info Booth
Program Ads
Publicity-General
Quilt Angels

If you are interested in leading or working on any of these committees, please contact me. Text 972-571-0083 or email to petrickdl@outlook.com. We would also like to have additional help with Demos and Children’s Areas so that these ladies can rotate off to other jobs.

Looking forward to working with all of you for our next show.

What Are All Those Pins?

By Donna Petrick

It’s been some time since any of us have talked about the different guild pins that we have to offer. I do have a display that I bring to most meetings as well as the pins themselves. Please see me at the next meeting to look them over.

Guild Pin – Designed by a former member/past president for our 25th anniversary quilt and is our current design. Cost is $5.

Sewing Machine Pin – Designed to hold the annual bars and charms. Cost is $5.

Annual Bars – Awarded for volunteering 30 hours annually of service to the guild. Service can be sewing community service items, selling raffle tickets at an event, working the quilt show or any other job that needs to be done for the guild. No charge.

Show Pins – A new pin is designed each year for our quilt show. We do have most of the past show pins available for those who collect. Current pin cost is $5 and past year pins are $1.

Show Charms – Awarded for working for the quilt show. No charge.

PVSA – Presidential Volunteer Service Awards – Started by President Reagan for honoring volunteers in America.

For 100 – 249 annual hours you receive a bronze pin.

For 250 – 499 annual hours you receive a silver pin.

For 500+ annual hours you receive a gold pin.

After accumulating 4000 hours you are awarded a lifetime pin. The pins and certificates are free to the recipient. The guild does pay for them.

Anniversary Pins – Awarded at 5-year intervals, beginning with 10 years membership. Years must be continuous. No charge.

Thanks everyone for understanding that my life got in the way of our fun. Also for doing such a fabulous job of completing stockings early so that I could go forward with the long list of my own events over the last few months.

I delivered 1321 stockings to Soldiers Angels, along with a bag of stuffings and cards. We are not responsible for filling the stockings. This is strictly YOUR generosity. Thank you.

There is a small group that meets third Saturdays at Plano Sewing Center and they like to make stockings to give to Soldiers Angels. They are quite prolific and generous and the stockings are consistently well made. However, this last time, one of the ladies hand-cut and assembled 500, but instead of putting the ribbon inside the stocking then the cuff and turning it for the “TA-DAH,” she put both on the outside. The stocking came out with an extension instead of a cuff. Since we had already exceeded our goal of 1000 for Soldiers Angels, we thought why not use them for another charity. That way the ones for Soldiers Angels are consistent and we are not hurting one charity to bless another.

The charity is called Binky Patrol. They make quilts for underprivileged children. For these children whatever Binky Patrol gives them is probably their only Christmas. So, here, my dear Guild is where each of you can help. I am going to have a container to gather money to give along with the stockings. The hospitals like to have control of what children are given, so this is our best choice.

I thought of something we can try for next year. We all use a startie-stoppie. Usually, this is a scrap of fabric, or a pair of pieces for another quilt. Well, how about instead, it is a coaster. Precut 5 or 6 inch squares of fabric and batting. Make pre-assembled units; each turned 45 degrees in its stack. Zigzag the outside edge as startie-stoppie, with some sort of simple quilting in the middle. Yes, it really is that simple! Oh, and it is a good use for left over batting and fabric.

Quilters Guild of Plano, Inc.

To bring to the next meeting...

Programs

February

March

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Community Service

In the Know About the Show - QP 2020

Letter from the President

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Guild Activities

Membership

February Birthdays

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Lost and Found

Stocking and Pet Beds Report

Stockings

Shelter Pet Beds

Tech Corner

Newsletter Email

Monthly Meeting Photos

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General Meeting Minutes

Board Meeting Minutes

Quilters Guild of Plano, Inc.

To bring to the next meeting...

Programs

January

February

Community Service

Community Service Quilting Challenge

Birthday Quilt Challenge Continues

Community Service

Letter from the President

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Guild Activities

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CLASSIFIED: For Sale

Quilt Plano 2020

Show Chair Information

In the Know about the Show

Volunteer Hours Information

Membership

Month Birthdays

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Stocking and Pet Beds Report

Stocking

Shelter Pet Beds

Tech Corner

Note to New Members

Workshops Online

Month Meeting Photos

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General Meeting Minutes

Board Meeting Minutes

Quilters Guild of Plano, Inc.

To bring to the next meeting...

Programs

Guild Meeting – December 12, 2019

Guild Meeting - January 9, 2020

Friday Workshop – January 10, 2020

Saturday Workshop – January 11, 2020

Update: This class has been cancelled.

Guild Meeting - February 13, 2020

Friday Workshop – February 14, 2020

Saturday Workshop – February 15, 2020

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Community Service

Guild Free Table

Letter from the President

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Membership

Heather Ewald

Meet our new Beekeeper

December Birthdays

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For Sale $3,500

Quilt Plano 2020

Be in the Know About the Show

Nan Jordan and her great-granddaughter