Highlights from the December 2018 meeting

Our Annual Holiday Party and Auction!

This month we celebrated a great year for Greenville MQG with a holiday party!

Many thanks to our 2018 party planners, Darlene, Sandy, Jill and Dana! Thank you also to Leslie for decorating and hosting, all of those who brought food and dessert and everyone who contributed items for our auction.

 As you can tell from all the smiling faces, a festive time was had by all!

We enjoyed a beautiful holiday atmosphere, wonderful food and many went home with one or more gorgeous raffle wins.

Announcements

• Thank you to the 2018 GMQG Board Members and anyone who volunteered this year! 
• Thank you to Leslie and the staff at the Bernina Store for hosting our guild the past several years!
• Reminder: Our meetings will be moving to St. Giles Church and we will be switching to the first Saturday of the month. For January 5th only, the meeting will be held from 12-2 pm. The meetings will be held the first Saturday of the month from 1-3 pm for the remainder of 2019.
• Your 2019 dues of $50 are due by the end of December. Checks can be mailed to Paige Alexander.
• The December BOMs, the Chicken and Dog Gone Cute blocks, can be turned in at the January meeting.
• Cheryl Brickey is presenting a workshop, "EQ8 for Beginners" on January 26th, from 2-5 pm at the Taylors Library. The workshop is free, but you must register. Find all the details here.
• The 2019 Retreat will be held April 25-28. Registration will open at the January meeting and is limited to 24.
• Our program for January will feature longarm quilters, Johellen George, Fannie Wengerd and Carol Alperin. They will be sharing all you need to know about having your quilt tops quilted.

Kitty Wilkin Lecture and Workshops

• We are excited to announce that GMQG will be hosting Kitty Wilkin from Night Quilter in 2019! She will be doing a lecture on Friday evening, May 31st and two classes: a 3 hour class on May 31st and a 6 hour class on June 1st.
• We would like to have your input before choosing which of Kitty's classes to offer. A description of all the lectures and classes are listed below. Please read through them and use the Survey Monkey link below to rank your favorite topics. We'll be announcing the results in a future post and you'll be able to start signing up for classes at the January meeting. The survey will be available until December 19th.
• Kitty Wilkin (Night Quilter) Lecture and Workshop Survey

Lectures

Meticulous Magic: The Many Faces of Fussy Cutting
Explore the world of fussy cutting and see the many ways you can apply it to your projects to take your quilting to another level. Fussy cutting, or the practice of intentionally cutting a specific motif from a fabric design, is a fun technique that can be applied to any project. There are many different ways to add a touch of meticulous to your quilting projects, whether traditionally pieced, foundation paper pieced, or English paper pieced. Kitty will show examples of the many ways fussy cutting can be applied to quilting, will show ideas on how to make your own planning templates, and will share tips and tricks on successfully cutting, basting (if applicable), and accurately stitching your carefully cut fabrics so that you can use some meticulous magic to transform your next project.

Quilts to Mark Milestones

What do you get when you combine journaling with quilting, and add a little bit of photography? Milestone quilts! Come explore the world of quilts created to mark milestones, and see why these quilts are a fun and meaningful solution to joyful sewing in this busy world. Join Kitty as she shares the milestone quilt she created for her third child to mark his first year of life, and explores other life events that can be documented through the creation of a quilt. Leave feeling inspired and ready to document your days through quilt-making, one attainable goal at a time.

Three-Hour Workshop Topics

Fearless Foundation Paper Piecing

In this workshop, you will learn the basics of foundation paper piecing, but also an arsenal of tips and tricks to ensure you never have to rip seams again (well, or at least very, very rarely!). Foundation paper piecing is a quilting technique with which you sew fabric pieces to a paper foundation by sewing along predrawn lines, allowing for perfect points, easily duplicated blocks, and the creation of just about any pictorial or geometric design sewn with fabric. With a bit of practice and some helpful hints along the way, foundation paper piecing opens a whole new world of quilting.

Tiny Piecing

Come sew tiny with Kitty! Explore the world of tiny piecing in this playful class where we’ll experiment with sewing blocks that finish at a whopping 1 1/4” square! Kitty will share tips and tricks for sewing tiny so that you can set yourself up for success in your future tiny stitching endeavors. Beginning with traditionally pieced and improv blocks, and moving to more intricate and precise foundation paper pieced blocks, you’ll leave this class giggling at the absurdity and marveling in amazement at your teeny tiny sampler-style quilt blocks.

Pollinate EPP

In this workshop suitable for all skill levels, you will learn all about English Paper Piecing using Kitty’s Pollinate Quilt pattern. The class will cover everything you need to know to get you started on your Pollinate Quilt, including how to choose fabrics, the basics of English Paper Piecing, and tips for how to use fussy cutting to create stunning secondary designs within the quilt. Kitty will share different methods of basting and stitching, tips and tricks for success in EPP, and will share examples of the diversity of designs that can be emphasized through fabric choices and placement in Pollinate. (This workshop will require the purchase of a kit.)

Tips for Meticulous Cutting (AKA Fussy Cutting Fun)

In this workshop, we will talk about the practice of intentionally cutting during the piecing of a quilt, often called fussy cutting, and what it can bring to your quilt making. Kitty will teach methods and share tips and tricks for incorporating fussy cutting into traditional piecing, foundation paper piecing, and English Paper Piecing. We will talk about identifying the focal fabric feature, making your own fussy cutting templates, and how to piece your meticulously cut features accurately. Students will be able to practice their new skills in the beginning of a fussy cutting project of their choosing, and will leave feeling ready to meticulously cut to their heart’s desire.

Photographing your Quilts

You’ve spent countless hours planning, cutting, sewing, trimming, basting, quilting, and binding your quilt, now how do you document your masterpiece!? Whether you have a point and shoot, a fancy DSLR but simply don't know how to use it, or even a smartphone, Kitty will teach you how to make the most of the tools you have to get great quilt photos for your blog and Instagram. Kitty will discuss photography basics, lighting, composition, and staging, and will share a few inexpensive tools that you can find around your house to take your photos from good to great! Complete with hands on practice, you will leave feeling confident that you, too, can take great quilt photos without buying any fancy equipment. Please bring your camera or smart phone, and a finished quilt (optional—and if time permits)!

Six-Hour Workshop Topics

Pollinate EPP

In this workshop suitable for all skill levels, you will learn all about English Paper Piecing using Kitty’s Pollinate Quilt pattern. The class will cover everything you need to know to get you started on your Pollinate Quilt, including how to choose fabrics, the basics of English Paper Piecing, and tips for how to use fussy cutting to create stunning secondary designs within the quilt. Kitty will share different methods of basting and stitching, tips and tricks for success in EPP, and will share examples of the diversity of designs that can be emphasized through fabric choices and placement in Pollinate. (This workshop will require the purchase of a kit.)

Photographing your Quilts

You’ve spent countless hours planning, cutting, sewing, trimming, basting, quilting, and binding your quilt, now how do you document your masterpiece!? Whether you have a point and shoot, a fancy DSLR but simply don't know how to use it, or even a smartphone, Kitty will teach you how to make the most of the tools you have to get great quilt photos for your blog and Instagram. Kitty will discuss photography basics, lighting, composition, and staging, and will share a few inexpensive tools that you can find around your house to take your photos from good to great! Complete with hands on practice, you will leave feeling confident that you, too, can take great quilt photos without buying any fancy equipment. Please bring your camera or smart phone, and a finished quilt (optional—and if time permits)!

Our next meeting will be Saturday, January 5, 2019 from noon-2pm at:

St. Giles Church

1021 Hudson Rd.

Greenville, SC 29615