On behalf of the other Officers and myself, let me send a Big Thank You to everyone who attended Saturday's meeting at our new venue, The Heights. It was a full house...I mean, seriously we had nearly 50 people in attendance, I cannot think of a better way to kick off the new year.
- Lynne, our Secretary, discussed our membership #s which were at 36 prior to that day's meeting...and presumably are closer to 50 now. She gave recognition to those that had a Birthday in January and even had a little drawing to celebrate.
- Rene, our Treasurer, announced how much we raised during December's Ticket Raffle and continued to provide us with other financials as well.
- As part of our ongoing series about Notions/Gadgets, Nancy and Callie shared with us a notion they couldn't live without.
- Mary Claire, our Vice President, talked about the Charitable Collection we are doing as part of American Patchwork & Quilting's 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge. All of the pillowcases are due at February's meeting and we hope to reach our goal of 150 by then. There are some great prizes at stake including an Iron, a fabric store gift certificate, and even some scrappy fabric bundles. If you have any questions about this project, just check out the Charitable Activities tab along the top of our blog.
- We discussed several of the events that are already planned this year including 4 Sew-In Saturdays (March 31st, April 28th, July 28th and September 29th) as well as a few swaps and challenges that our Swap/Challenge Committee is cooking up. We also wanted to get our member's suggestions and opened the floor to discussion. Here are a few of the suggestions that we received:
- Shop Hop
- Retreat
- Social Media Presentation/Demonstration
- Various Demonstrations
- Opportunities to get to know the other members
- Etc
- Mary Claire announced our next swap which is due in February. It's an Itty-Bitty Magnet swap inspired by the lovely little ones that Nova created. The only rule/suggestion is that your magnet stay around the 1 1/2" range. We can't wait to see the lovely little creations everyone makes.
- Show & Tell was exciting and we saw a variety of items from recently finished quilts to quilt tops and even some blocks.
- We closed out the meeting with introductions from our new faces and established friends. It was certainly nice to hear everyone talking about how much they love our STLMQG and how it has challenged them to step outside their comfort zone, try new techniques and meet new people.
Here are a handful of the things that were mentioned during the meeting or are happening around the net.
100 Days of Modern Quilting::: No matter if you are new to Modern Quilting or gleefully call yourself a Modern Quilter, it's certainly worth checking out the MQG's series and you might just see some of your fellow STLMQGers recognized.
MQG Newsletter::: While you are visiting the Modern Quilt Guild's website, make sure you sign-up for their newsletter. Right now, they are still in the beginning stages; but it sounds like a pretty cool way to find out more once things get under way.
Tangerine Tango Challenge::: If you love orange, or want to be challenged by it, this is a great opportunity to show everyone how creative you can be. Check out this Flickr group to learn more.
Swoon-Along::: Do you love the Swoon? Have no idea what it is? If you want to learn more and join in the fun, head on over to the Swoon-Along Flickr group and quilt-along with the other 400+ who are venturing to make a Swoon Quilt.
Solstice Stars Series::: Fresh Lemons is starting a new series this week showing you how to make a handful of star blocks. If stars are your thing, head on over to Faith's blog.
Sparkle Punch Quilt-Along::: Oh, Fransson! is starting another Quilt-Along.
SewCalGal::: If Freemotion quilting isn't your thing; but you'd like to learn more, a member suggested you check out this site.
Fanfare of Quilts::: The Bits & Pieces Quilt Guild is hosting a big quilt show March 17th & 18th at Queeny Park. There will be a special exhibit showcasing some of our STLMQG member's quilts as part of our Solids Only Challenge last year. Mark your calendars.
We all have lots of things on our plate and are continually juggling several projects as well as family, careers, etc. Even if you don't have time to participate in any of the above right now, sometimes it's good to bookmark them for later reading.
To help you in that endeavor, our guild has started a Pinterest account.
For those of you not familiar with Pinterest, here's how it works: Pinterest is a great site that allows it's users to create "boards" which you then use to "pin" things you find on the internet. For example, you just came across a photo that is great inspiration for a quilt, or maybe you found a recipe that sounds super yummy. While you can save the file to your hard-drive, imagine a month or so from now when you want to remember what blog or site that recipe was on...well, with Pinterest, it remembers that for you. It's free to use, just request an invite, and within a few short days you can start pinning everything/anything.
Head on over to
http://www.pinterest.com/ to check it out.
We'll see you next month!
