Quilt Camp is Almost Here! (no August meeting)

Just a reminder that we will not be having our normal guild meeting in August. Instead we are excited to be hosting our annual summer retreat at Luther Heights outside of Stanley, near Alturas Lake. If you can’t join us for camp, we will miss you, but hope to see you next time.

See you at the September 23 meeting, when we’ll have an open sew day and show & tell!

July meeting recap

Thanks for joining us in the park despite the heat! A few notes from our meeting:

Quilts for organ donor families: Thanks to Matt Coffin, RN for sharing about the Cascade Life Alliance’s efforts to give a quilt to families of deceased organ donors. These quilts become family heirlooms and tangible reminders of the deceased donor. Here are some general guidelines Matt provided:

  • size: lap size quilts are best; they can be placed on the donor’s lap/legs, without interfering in the medical team’s work
  • colors & themes: there are considerably more male donors in our area, so consider gender-neutral designs and colors (green, blue, red, brown, orange, low-volume); there is less need for pinks and florals
  • wash and label: please wash your finished quilt and add a BMQG label (available at meetings)
  • a few other things: please no religious symbols, logos, political references, etc.; and there is little need for pinks and floral quilts; no need for children’s fabrics or designs

Bring completed quilts to monthly meetings. Finally, if you haven’t already, please consider becoming an organ donor yourself.

Faces Collage entry for BBQ Quilt Show: All of those cute faces will go on display at the Boise Basin Quilters annual quilt show, Sept. 29-30 at Expo Idaho. Thanks to Pam P. for volunteering to oversee this effort! The quilts will be entered in the Group Challenge, non-judged category. To participate, members can communicate directly with Pam (watch your email for details).

July 22 Meeting at Winstead Park

For our July meeting, we’re headed to the park, where we’ll circle our chairs and enjoy the outdoors.

When: July 22, 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Where: Winstead Park, 6150 W Northview St. in Boise

What to bring:

  • chair, water and any show & tell you have to share
  • completed Scaled Triangle blocks for our Modern Quilt Bee and scrappy leader/ender blocks
  • your face collage to show — finished or at any stage of completion; we’ll also talk about submitting these as an entry in the small group category of the Boise Basin Quilters annual quilt show, Sept. 29-30 at Expo Idaho (thanks to Nancy England for the fun idea, and if we move ahead with this, we’re looking for a volunteer or two to help with paperwork, gathering the entries, delivering and picking up from the show)
  • community giving quilts — completed or ready to pass along for quilting or binding (huge thanks to Anna Yates for delivering and tracking our work!)

June 24 Meeting with Steph Skardal!

Join us for our next meeting, featuring guest speaker, award-winning quilter and designer Steph Skardal at one of our very favorite locations!

When: Saturday, June 24, 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Where: Sewfinity, 800 S Industry Way, Suite 360, Meridian (please, no children at this location due to safety precautions)

Steph Skardal will join us via Zoom with her lecture “On Creativity: Pushing Your Creative Boundaries.” Steph is a quilt designer, educator, and maker who loves finding the balance between order and chaos in her quilts, mixing hard geometric lines and structure with an element of randomness in texture, color, or layout. With a background in software engineering, she is motivated to experiment with different techniques and technology to create original quilt designs. You can find her most recent blend of quilting and technology in a color app called “A Quilty Solid” – available for iOS and Android devices and follow her on Instagram

And, it’s a chance to come back to the wonderful Sewfinity space! Our appreciation to Angela Bowman for hosting us again. Whether or not you’ve been there before, you’re in for a treat and a feast for the eyes.

We hope to see you there!

May 27 Meeting

When: Saturday, May 27 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Where: Bown Library in east Boise, 2153 E. Riverwalk Dr.

  • We’ll start with a short presentation from Susan Elcox of the Treasure Valley Rug Hookers. She’ll bring some rugs and tools, and give a preview of a July travelling show of more than 100 hooked rugs, all with a fairy tale theme.
  • The rest of the meeting is open sew! Bring your projects, machines, tools and say hello.
  • Also, it’s last chance to help yourself to free exchange fabrics, books and patterns before they all find new homes. Some donated fabric was recently sorted, and you might want to snag some of the Debbie Mumm collections, or a large chunk of Kaffe Fassett watermelon print, or antique Sun Bonnet Sue squares from a cutter quilt.
  • Bring your Modern Quilt Bee blocks and leader/ender blocks (don’t worry if these don’t measure 6.5“ exactly, they’ll all work together).
  • If you’re working on your face collage, here are some tips for finishing:
    • Once all the pieces are where you want them, glue everything down, simply using a glue stick.
    • Add batting and a backing and then quilt it, using either your domestic machine or a long arm.
    • Then, you can use free motion quilting to outline the face, neck, hair, eyes, nose, lips, etc. and anything else that might need outlining. You can use thicker black thread, or any other dark thread you like to create the outline.
    • Sew an outline of the face at least two or three times; and just once around the hair, eyes, nose, etc. unless you prefer the outline thicker on these elements. Make it however you like! And don’t worry about making the lines perfect — you can be a little loose on the outlining and get really charming results.
    • Bind it and it’s finished! We look forward to seeing your finished face collage at the July meeting.

Thanks to everyone who responded to our survey about a 2024 workshop. Stay tuned for information.
Hope to see you on Saturday!

P.S. Mark your calendars for Quilt Camp, Aug. 17-20 at Luther Heights. Watch for registration information in coming weeks.

April meeting was a hoot!

Our April meeting making face collages was so fun and energetic! A huge thanks to Cathy R. for coaching us through the process and for her design inspiration! And, we’d love to see your face when it’s complete — members, watch your email for a future group show & tell.

  • July target for Scaled Triangles & Leader/Ender: Turn everything in by the July meeting, and from there we’ll start assembling quilt tops for donation. So far we’ve received 22 of the large Scaled Triangle blocks (wow!), and quite a stack of completed scrappy leader/ender blocks. If you’re working on the leader/ender blocks, you can bring completed, or partially-completed chunks (pairs or half blocks) to the next meeting; you may want to exchange other partially-completed blocks to mix up fabrics. Finished leader-ender blocks should turn out 6.5“ but you might find yours are a little skinny. No worries, they’ll all go together great!!
  • Community Giving: We’ve already delivered 26 quilts so far this year – that’s so amazing! Thank you Linda J., Jamie H. and Mary S. for some recent long arm quilting, and to everyone who has helped with binding, piecing and delivering. Warm Spring Counseling Center expressed an interest in receiving four “cozy” quilts to use in therapy offices during sessions with children clients — so if you’re inclined to sew with minky or flannel, this might be the project for you.
  • Drawstring backpacks & zipper pouches: This week we’ve delivered more than 20 finished drawstring backpacks and 30 zipper pouches for sustainable period packs to the Faces of Hope Victim Center. Thank you Pam P. for helping with deliveries!
  • Spring cleaning: We’ll be clearing out the burgeoning collection of donated fabric, orphan blocks, books and patterns in the coming months. If you’re doing the same, please refrain from bringing your unwanted items to BMQG, and instead find another good home.

To see photos from everyone’s show & tell, check out our Facebook and Instagram feeds (this is thanks to Apryl!). And, the May 27 meeting is open sew! Bring your projects, machines, tools and say hello. We’ll be at the Bown Library in east Boise (2153 E. Riverwalk Dr., 83706), 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

April 22 Meeting & Faces Fun!

We hope you can join us for the April meeting, when we’ll be making Faces Collages!

April 22, 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Library at Cole & Ustick (7557 W Ustick Rd, Boise)

Cathy Rogers will lead us in making whimsical collage portrait mini quilts, inspired by Jean Impey. No sewing machine needed, but plan on bringing these supplies:

  • Fabric for the background; you can use just about any kind of fabric you want and any size will work — a good starting place is a fat quarter or larger; you can also come with a pieced background of two or more fabrics to create additional visual interest
  • Fabric for the skin; again just about anything works; think traditional skin colors, or go wild with colors like purple, green, blue, even prints, stripes, dots or anything else.
  • Fabric scraps to share; anything works, and novelty fabric is especially good for this purpose! We’ll also bring the guild’s supply of fabric, so there should be an ample amount available.
  • Scissors rather than rotary cutters; this is an improv approach so no rulers needed either.
  • Water-soluble glue sticks to attach your pieces to the background; no need for interfacing or fusible web.

You can expect to leave the meeting with a face collage complete (or mostly complete) and ready to finish at home. Use your domestic sewing machine or a long arm machine for quilting. We’ll have a few completed examples and tips for how to finish your face. Some example pictures are attached.

Also, bring zipper pouches (we need about 20 more of the 9×11-ish size to give to Faces of Hope for sustainable period packs) and drawstring backpacks (we’ll have additional cording if you need some to finish up). You can also turn in any completed scrappy leader/ender and scaled triangle blocks.

Hope to see you next Saturday the 22nd!

March meeting recap

We had a fun and super productive meeting! Thanks to everyone who worked on making drawstring backpacks! Here’s a recap of our day:

Drawstring backpacks & zipper pouches: We had 20 finished drawstring backpacks (wow!) by the end of the meeting. Nicely done all! We still have a few pre-cut packs ready to sew (thanks Anna for cutting and Marilyn for fabric!), and if you’d like one or two of these pre-cuts before the next meeting, please send a note to [email protected]. We’ll bring more cording to the April meeting for those who have backpacks in the works. And, we are looking for some more zipper pouches that will hold sustainable period packs. These items will all be gifted to Faces of Hope Victim Center.

Community Giving: We received a treasure trove of finished quilts for donating (thank you Carol M. and Marilyn for your generosity), plus others ready for  quilting — and yahoo! our amazing long arm quilters Linda A. and Jamie volunteered to quilt them. Mary brought a completed whole-cloth quilt, which was snatched up for binding. Thanks everyone for helping out!  (notes about backing: if passing a quilt to a long arm quilter, please make your quilt back 3-4 inches bigger than the front on all four sides; this extra fabric allows the quilt to be attached to the long arm rollers)

Scaled Triangles & Leader/Ender: Our Modern Quilt Bee is well underway, with nine blocks already completed. We’re looking for more blocks (see attached instructions). And as Marilyn says, any red, orange, or pink will work! Marilyn also brought pre-cut scrappy fabrics for a simple leader ender quilt. If you took some home to sew, bring them back next month. Ultimately, both quilts will be donated to a local organization.

April 22 Meeting Faces Collage: Our own Cathy R. will lead us in making whimsical collage portrait mini quilts. No sewing machine needed; just bring scraps to share, scissors and glue sticks (watch your email for details). We’ll be at the Library at Cole & Ustick (7557 W Ustick Rd, Boise) 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Thanks to Linda Armstrong for her wonderful show & tell! What a variety of beautiful and charming pieces she shared. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out her member spotlight. And, to see photos from everyone’s show & tell, keep an eye on our Facebook and Instagram feeds.

Join us March 25 for Drawstring Backpacks!

When: Saturday, March 25, 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Where: Library at Cole & Ustick, Sagebrush Room, 7557 W. Ustick Rd.
What: We’ll have a sew day making drawstring backpacks. The meeting will feature Linda Armstrong in the Member Spotlight .

Things to know:

  • Bring your show & tell and community giving quilts: We want to see what you’ve been working on! And, if you have any community giving quilts (in any phase) to pass along to a new home, or for a next step toward completion, bring those, too! As a reminder, the Guild provides batting for these donation quilts. Please contact Millissa Masters (BMQG Secretary) to get the batting you need (members, check your email for Millissa’s contact info).
  • We can use 30 more zipper pouches by late April: Faces Victim Center is working with a high school student to create kits with sustainable menstrual products (like period cups and underwear, washable cloth pads, and organic cotton tampons). They asked if BMQG members would be willing to provide more zipper pouches to package the items, instead of using plastic ziploc bags. If you’re interested in making another pouch, any pattern works. Here’s one we have used: https://blog.noodle-head.com/2012/06/open-wide-zippered-pouch-diy-tutorial.html

Member Spotlight: Linda Armstrong

How did you first get involved with Boise Modern Quilt Guild?
I moved to Boise during the pandemic and I was looking for a new sisterhood of quilters. I noticed a scheduled meeting in the park on BMQG website and decided to check it out. The members were so friendly and so kind to each other that I knew it was the right place for me.

What is your first memory related to quilting or sewing?
As a young child, I was fascinated to watch my Louisiana grandmother sew dresses for my three cousins on her treadle sewing machine. We could also count on my Mother’s expertise to sew costumes for Halloween and other themed parties. No one in my family quilted.

What’s your most memorable or favorite quilting project?
My most memorable quilt project is a mini quilt entitled “Summer Village” which I completed at home via YouTube tutorials during the first snowy winter living in the Boise foothills in 2020. Quilt friends from Oregon and Washington did the class at the same time and we shared photos and comments through email and text. It helped us find some joy in the isolation of Covid shutdown.

How would you describe your quilting design style or aesthetic?
I learned to quilt at Temecula Quilt Co. and the shop was filled with Civil War reproduction fabrics. For years, I sewed Civil War reproduction scrappy designs until my first batik quilt at a women’s quilt retreat. My talented quilt friends helped me choose the light, medium and dark batiks I needed to create a colorful sailboat quilt for my husband.

What colors, shapes, fabrics do you gravitate to? What do you use most in your designs?
My favorite color to use in 1800’s reproduction quilts is red. I am venturing out by using solid, bright fabrics on my current quilt project which is Tula Pink’s 100 Modern Quilt Blocks. My new favorite whimsical fabric is Tilda by designer Tone Finnanger. I enjoy incorporating pinwheels into baby quilts. I also find satisfaction working with wool on wool appliqué and wool on cotton appliqué.

Is there someone or something that has influenced your quilting?
My travel friend Ellen encouraged me to quilt and she and another friend gifted me with a cutting mat, acrylic ruler, rotary cutter, scissors and fat quarters as a housewarming gift. Sheryl Johnson, of Temecula Quilt Co., taught me to quilt and instilled a love for Civil War Reproduction fabrics. Edyta Sitar and Kim Diehl have inspired me with their fabric and design styles.

What do you do when you are not quilting?
I love to read, work in my garden, and travel to new places.

What’s the project that you always intended to do (quilting or otherwise) but haven’t yet?
DEAR JANE

What do you listen to or watch while sewing? Do you have any recommendations?
I enjoy listening to different kinds of audiobooks, including historical fiction and mysteries. I listened to the complete Louise Penny Inspector Gamache series set in Three Pines last winter. I balanced it with the CJ Box Joe Pickett series. For me, reading and sewing at the same time is magic.