Meeting Recap (July 10th, 2021)

Talk about hot girl summer! The STLMQG hosted the HOT ladies of the Color of Connections Quilt over zoom to hear all about their mission and connection through quilting. 

Porfiria, Keyana, and Michelle - Color of Connection Quilt Ladies

May of 2020 was a rough time for America. The world was going through a massive pandemic and injustices and racism in America were making global headlines, again. Many people were feeling very unsettled and upset at things going on around them. So one woman, Michelle (GA) reached out on Instagram to check on how a fellow quilter, Porfira (NY) was feeling. One simple question became the springboard for an amazing idea. We connect over our love for quilts - what else can we connect over? They used their love of quilting as a way to open the door to talk. Three women from different parts of the United States with different skin tones, different communities all connecting over their love of quilting and each other. The more that they talked the more they wanted to share that feeling with other people.

As the two ladies talked more they roped in Keyana (OH) into their group decided to work on a pattern for their QAL. They approached a Georgia jewelry maker for help and inspiration, she was thrilled to help and her only request was that the money made from their pattern be donated to a non-profit. As the women began to search for a non-profit that fit their vision, they came to realize that maybe they should start their OWN non-profit. And this is how their non-profit was born. This was a movement. A movement for colorful change through the joy of quilting. 

Their goals were straightforward - they wanted to use the love of quilting to connect folks and give back to their communities through quilt workshops and building a supportive online community. In each of their hometowns, they would host quilting workshops with underprivileged populations. They wanted to teach, empower, and connect the next generation of quilters to share their stories through textile art.

They held their first QAL in February online to help raise awareness for their mission and build that online community and help raise money! Then their first workshop took place in Atlanta Georgia. They taught the young women of Jesse’s House how to not only sew but make their first quilt. Girls who started the day off as grumpy teens rolling their eyes at the idea of quilting - turned into smiling faces thrilled with the exciting feeling of seeing a quilt top come together. They each completed a top that day and longarmers all over the country donated their services have finished up their tops - so they can be delivered back to the girls. They will not only have a beautiful quilt that they themselves made they also now have a whole new set of skills to feel proud of. 

They will be hosting workshops in Ohio and in New York coming up this year. 

These ladies shared a lot about what this experience has taught them - mainly to pursue diversity and love through a shared love of quilting and to remember to have grace for one another. Grace, encouragement, and love are key.

Many folks in the community have donated to help make their workshops possible - if you are interested in donating you can of course buy their pattern, donate, sign up for their newsletter, join their next QAL (coming Feb 2022) and make sure to get out there and talk about it! Sometimes getting out there can be difficult - it can be uncomfortable to confront the hard things going in the world around us as the ladies say - 

"Get comfortable with being uncomfortable!" 

Michelle, @meeshquilts   |   Porfiria, @mrsporfiria   |   Keyana, @collectivequilts

If you're interested in working with fellow guild members to work on similar initiatives here in STL let us know! We would love to give back to the STL community and get more folks involved - email us at stlmqg@gmail.com

Guild Items Covered:

• Around Town Quilt Happenings
   - Perennial is having a weaving class Saturday, July 17th - Check it out >
   - City Sewing Room is having a 12-hour sew-in on July 25th 10a-10p $25 - Learn more >
  
  
• QuiltCon 2022 - The 2022 Catalog is here! Make sure to check it out so that when Registration opens on Aug 4th you are ready to sign up - they fill up fast!
  
  
• In-Person meetings are BACK in August!!! August Saturday 14th 10a-12:30 at the Shrewsbury Center It's been a while we know! If you are new or need a little refresher check out this blog post for some of the things you can expect. We will hear a little from our previous president Kristy Duam about what modern quilting means and mostly we just plan on having a fun time catching up with everyone and seeing all those projects you've been saving up! (we will be following the CDC mask recommendations at that time)
  
  
• Membership up to date? Are you ready to come back in person but aren't a current member - check out this post to read how to join. Dues are half price for the remainder of the year!
  
  
• Remaining Monthly Events  
  August: IN PERSON WELCOME BACK !!! Shrewsbury City Center 10-12:30
  September: In-Person - Quilt Photographer Shrewsbury City Center 10-12:30
  October: Stay Tuned
  November: In-Person - Shrewsbury City Center 10-12:30
  December: In-Person Raffle Shrewsbury City Center 10-12:30
  
  
• Monthly Skill Builder July - Guild member Octavia Pitts will be teaching us Improv Piecing on July 21st from 7-8pm. You can always read more on the Monthly Skill Builder blog. We will also be recording the monthly sessions and sending them out within 48 hours. 
  
  
• QuiltCon Community Quilt Challenge - this year it's all about angles (specifically not 90º ones!) Leila, Laura, and Lilo are heading up the charge and we could use some volunteers. Let us know if you're interested - we will be on a tight timeline to turn this around - so stayed tuned for more information to come!
  
  
• Save the Date for STLMQG Quilt Show 2022 - July 16 – 17, 2022 - Kirkwood Community Center, set up July 15
  
  
• Hand Sew *Home* Happy Hour July 27th, 6-9PM come and go as you please - join us to sew or just to chat!
  
  
• 4x5 Quarterly Bees are underway - your blocks are due at the August Meeting - make sure to post pictures on IG and use the hashtag #stlmqg4x5bee
  
  
• Guild Merch - Thanks to everyone that ordered! When they are ready for pick up we will let you know and you can pick them up from Lilo or at the August meeting if you did not have them shipped. We will also have a limited number of extras for sale at the August meeting if you missed the chance to order online. 

Fabric & Pattern Raffle

We had some gorgeous bright FQ Basics Bundles from Libs Elliot's Dear Diary provided by Cotton Cuts. Winners were Jaymie Norber & Pam Hartig. 

If you want to get beautiful fabric delivered to your door and support a local STLMQG member and fabric shop check out Cotton Cuts and sign up today!