Sew Day March 3

As mentioned, there will be no meeting in March (sniff!). As such, there is still time to attend the private sew day Cynthia is hosting to which BAMQGers are invited.

When: Saturday, March 3

Where: The Whisman Station community clubhouse in Mountain View

Time: 9:30 am - 4:30 pm
Cost: $20

Please RSVP to cynthiammarshall [at] att [dot] net NOW. You can pay the day of the event. Cash or checks made out to Melodee Wade are accepted.

Celebrate March and indulge in a day of sewing, inspiration, and camaraderie with Melodee Wade and Cynthia Marshall. Finish up a pesky UFO or tackle something new with expert instruction and the support of your quilting community. Local teacher and long-arm quilter, Melodee Wade, will be on hand all day to help you with your quilting challenges and to support your progress with any other assistance you need.

The day begins at 9:30 am with coffee and a little something. We’ll also bring in a light lunch. Twenty dollars covers…

 

•      A full day of sewing with expert assistance from Melodee.

•      The cost of the room rental.

•      Set up and take down of tables and chairs.

•      Special areas and equipment for ironing and cutting.

•      Morning coffee and treat.

•      Lunch and beverages.

 

All you do is bring your projects and your sunny dispositions! This event is not restricted to BAMQG members, so feel free to bring a friend -- and make new ones. It's a friendly, creative group of people you'll be glad to meet.

Please RSVP to cynthiammarshall [at] att [dot] net NOW so we can make plans! We'll send directions a few days before the event.

New Member Coordinator

The New Member Coordinator is one of the first people you will meet when you join!

• Your name Sara M.
• Your position New Member Coordinator
• Your understanding of what the position entails I welcome new members and answer any questions they might have. I also make name badges and membership cards and approve new people on our forum.
• Your hopes and dreams for the position My hope is to make new members and potential members feel welcomed into the guild and make the process of becoming a member as easy as possible.
• The successes so far :  I have already met many new people this year. We already have 45 official members for 2012! I am excited to see us grow even more as we continue this year!
• How you are planning to pass information and what you have learned to the next person
  I like the idea of creating an informal 'best practices' guidelines as we figure how to best communicate with people who are new to the guild.

New Member Coordinator is a really important position! This coordinator can make or break first impressions. When Sara isn't around we all need to step up and welcome new people.

Great work, Sara!

If you have comments or suggestions, please comment below.

Charity Co-Coordinator

• Your name:  Jennifer A.
• Your position:  Charity Coordinator (Along with Deborah)
• Your understanding of what the position entails:  Organizing charity events for the guild, including picking projects along with charities, collection donations, making kits, organizing volunteers for completing quilts and distributing finished quilts to the various charities.
• Your hopes and dreams for the position:  My hopes and dreams WERE for the group to complete 24 quilts this year, but I think we are going to do even better than what Deborah and I had hoped for! 
• The successes so far:   Below are the finished quilts we have so far!  We also have quite a few quilts distributed to various guild members who have volunteered to finishing the quilts.

• How you are planning to pass information and what you have learned to the next person:    I think this has and continues to be a great learning experience for me.  Deborah and I are in contact with each other through-out the month.  We continue to adjust our plans according to the feed-back we receive from the guild.  We want to make this as rewarding for all as we do good for others.  By the end of the year we will know what works and what does not, and will happily pass this information on.     

With charity quilts, every little bit helps. Can you make one block? Yes, that puts the guild one block closer to a finished quilt. Want to practice binding? Charity quilts are a great way to practice. Tired of a project? Donate it to the charity bin and something gorgeous will be made from it.

Comment below with ideas!

Charity Co-Coordinator

The Charity Coordinators, Deborah and Jennifer, have made a big splash with the group in the charity arena. They have encouraged members to participate every month by bringing back blocks and quilts, binding and generally working together to spread some quilty love.

• Your name Deborah A.
• Your position Charity Co-Coordinator
• Your understanding of what the position entails Organize charity quilting projects.  Coordinate volunteers for piecing, quilting, binding and labeling the guild's charity quilts.  Communicate opportunities outside of the guild's projects for members to get involved in charity sewing.
• Your hopes and dreams for the position Hoping to inspire members to do some charity sewing, though it looks like the inspiration was already there judging by the enthusiasm so far!  The plan is 24 quilts in 2012: four quarterly projects, six quilts per quarter, and a different charitable organization for each quarter. 
• The successes so far :  We have 3 finished quilts, and 6 quilts in the hands of guild members in various stages of completion, and we're only in the first quarter!!!  Thanks to all guild members who have generously donated their time and talents making blocks, piecing tops, quilting and binding! 
• How you are planning to pass information and what you have learned to the next person Most probably a recap of the year by quarter.     

Some quilts the group has already finished

Spool quilt

16 patch quilt

Yellow-Green squares

Check out the Flickr Stream for more photos of Charity quilts.

If you have quilts or blocks you want to donate contact Deborah or Jennifer. Pat yourself on the back for your own contributions to this effort.

Sew Day Coordinator

In the blog's continuing effort to inform the membership about what it takes to put on meetings and events, our Sew Day Coordinator, Diana, has this to say:


Name: Diana L.

Position: Sew Day Coordinator

Job: Plan Group Sewing events.  This includes sew-days and the post-meeting sew-cials.

Hopes: I'm hoping to have monthly sewing events. I'm shooting for a varied schedule to accommodate people's needs (Saturdays, Sundays and Friday evenings).  Once the ball is rolling for these events, I might plan activities or challenges for some of these events, such as technique demonstrations and instruction, or challenges to make something in a short period of time. We might also try to run a charity-only sewing event, where our group primarily focuses on charity sewing for the day.

Successes:  One Sew Day in January, two more already booked (March 23 5-11pm and April 21 10am-10pm).

Information: I plan to document a list of potential host locations for group sewing events, along with the contact information and costs involved.  I also plan to list out the "best practices" (once we figure these out) for bringing shared items such as irons, ironing boards/mats, design walls and snacks.

If you have ideas for Diana for locations or anything, leave a comment or contact Diana at a meeting. If you can demonstrate or bring something for an upcoming sew-cial, see Diana as well.

Thanks!

BAMQG Winter Retreat 2012

BAMQG Winter Retreat 2012 is almost here!

Can you believe it??

Here is list of what to bring and other details you should know.  

If you have any questions, feel free to send email to the Retreat Committee and Attendees at bamqgretreat2012 [at] googlegroups [dot] com.

Must Have's

• Sewing supplies & projects
• Sewing machine manual and accessories
• Cutting mat and rotary cutter
• $$ for meals

Optional

• $$ for fabric (see Buying Fabric below) ;-)
• Coffee/tea mug  (to save resouces)
• Water bottles/cups (to save resources)
• Desk lamp if you prefer extra lighting
• Chair Cushion
• Stuff for the Freebie Table
• Scraps for the Scrap Heap - This is your chance to get rid of scraps you're tired of and/or pick up something new and different.  Very informal.  "Have a few, leave a few.  Need a few, take a few."  Leftovers will go to charity projects.
• Extension cord and/or Power Strip if you have them handy.

Just for Fun
Bring a photo of the 1st quilt you ever made!  (Optional)
If you prefer, you can Ning message this in advance to Rhonda or Angela
 

PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL YOUR PHOTO TO THE WHOLE RETREAT GROUP!!

Buying Fabric
If you would like to shop for fabric during the weekend, you have three options.
1)  Our very own Julie Dueck of Intrepid Threads will bring fat quarters from her shop on Friday for you to browse.  She will be taking orders and will bring your fabric, cut-to-order, on Saturday.  How cool is that?

2)  Field trip to Hart's Fabric in Santa Cruz on Saturday morning

3)  Natural Expressions in downtown Los Gatos

Ironing
The Retreat Committee will be providing a common area for ironing.  In addition, each hotel room has its own ironing board and iron that can be brought to the sewing room.  So, unless you have an ironing board or iron that you can't live without, you can leave those items at home.  Feel free to bring a small ironing board for your personal area if you wish.

Cutting Area
The Retreat Committee will be providing a common area for cutting larger projects and/or for pin-basting.  If you have an extra cutting mat to contribute, do bring it.

Snacks
Our contract with Los Gatos Lodge states that we are not permitted to bring outside food and drink into our sewing room.  But do not despair!  The Retreat Committee has arranged for catered snack breaks at various times throughout the weekend.  Snack breaks are included in the fees you have already paid.  Also, the Bar and Grill is right across the hall from the sewing room, and we are permitted to bring food and drinks from the bar into the sewing room.  Of course, you can always take a break outside on the patio, or in your hotel room.  Your room is equipped with a mini fridge for your convenience.

We look forward to seeing you Friday!

Demo Coordinator

• Your name - Rhonda L.
• Your position - Demo Coordinator
• Your understanding of what the position entails  - My job is to arrange demos throughout the year to take place at our normal monthly meetings.
• Your hopes and dreams for the position  - I would like to showcase all the great talent we have in our guild so that the members can learn from one another.  I am also hoping to invite members from nearby guilds to do demos as well so that we can broaden our knowledge base.  I would like to focus on some basic skills like binding and machine quilting for those who are new to quilting, and also mix it up with some intermediate and advanced skills with a focus on "What is Modern?" for members who are ready for more challenges.  I am hoping that many of our demos include a workshop as well so that members will get a chance to try out new skills first hand.
• The successes so far  - We had a great AccuQuilter demo by Patti Schafer at our January meeting, but I don't get credit for that, because I had nothing to do with organizing it.  I am looking forward to organizing our first demo in May.
• How you are planning to pass information and what you have learned to the next person - I plan to set up an area devoted to Demos on our Forum site so that members know where to go for information on upcoming demos.  This will also serve as a historical record of all the talent we have to draw from in the future.

If you have comments, suggestions or want to volunteer to do a demo or help Rhonda, make a comment below.

Swap Coordinator

Here is our second interview with guild swap coordinator, Amanda! Amanda highlights that she can't do it alone and has already been working with other people.

Your name:  Amanda M.

Your position:  Swap Coordinator

Your understanding of what the position entails:  Setting up what I hope are some FABOO and FUN swaps to get us all stretchin' outside our comfort zones, and makin' and swappin' and givin' some great gifties! This year we're shooting for three swaps - the current pillow swap, and then a fun swap in the summer, and a year-end holiday swap like last year's.
 
Your hopes and dreams for the position:  My dreams are small: I'd just like people to have FUN and get some excellent swap items out of the process! And of course, I'm always open to hearing ideas for swaps.  Our second summer swap idea came from one of our members - and not me! :)

The successes so far (charity and retreat, I am looking at you!) ;-):  So far we are in the midst of what I hope will be our first successful swap: THE PILLOW SWAP!  We had 20 members bring in bags of scraps, that were turned into me and then given back out anonymously.  We'll see the reveals in April 2012, and I'm SO looking forward to see what everyone made!

How you are planning to pass information and what you have learned to the next person:  Probably via an email document, and serving as a reference for them when they do swaps.  I think one of the great things about doing swaps is giving the organizer freedom to figure out some fun and exciting ways to do it - let them run with their ideas! But it's good for them to have someone to talk to who has been there before, in case they need help.

Thanks for sharing your plans and dreams, Amanda!

Do you have comments or ideas? Leave them here in the comments area.

Speaker Coordinator

The blog will be highlighting the various coordinators that make our guild work. Here is the first!

• Your name: Cynthia M.
• Your position: Speaker coordinator
• Your understanding of what the position entails: Bringing interesting and relevant speakers to speak to our group.
• Your hopes and dreams for the position: A minimum of two speakers this year.
• The successes so far (charity and retreat, I am looking at you!) ;-): Joy-Lily's presentation in February.

Thanks to Cynthia for stepping up. Leave comments and feedback for Cynthia in the comments section.

Sew Day - March 3

There will be no meeting in March (sniff!). As such, you may want to attend the private sew day Cynthia is hosting to which BAMQGers are invited.

When: Saturday, March 3

Where: The Whisman Station community clubhouse in Mountain View

Time: 9:30 am - 4:30 pm
Cost: $20

Please RSVP to cynthiammarshall [at] att [dot] net. Then you can pay the day of the event. Cash or checks made out to Melodee Wade are accepted.

Celebrate March and indulge in a day of sewing, inspiration, and camaraderie with Melodee Wade and Cynthia Marshall. Finish up a pesky UFO or tackle something new with expert instruction and the support of your quilting community. Local teacher and long-arm quilter, Melodee Wade, will be on hand all day to help you with your quilting challenges and to support your progress with any other assistance you need.

The day begins at 9:30 am with coffee and a little something. We’ll also bring in a light lunch. Twenty dollars covers…

 

•      A full day of sewing with expert assistance from Melodee.

•      The cost of the room rental.

•      Set up and take down of tables and chairs.

•      Special areas and equipment for ironing and cutting.

•      Morning coffee and treat.

•      Lunch and beverages.

 

All you do is bring your projects and your sunny dispositions! This event is not restricted to BAMQG members, so feel free to bring a friend -- and make new ones. It's a friendly, creative group of people you'll be glad to meet.

Please RSVP to cynthiammarshall [at] att [dot] net at your earliest convenience so we can make plans! We'll send directions a few days before the event.

Habitat Quilt Process

This charming story was sent to your editor and demonstrates how process can work in certain circumstances. Enjoy!

Once upon a time, a normally sane and productive quilter walked into a quilt shop and chose eight fabrics at random, while blindfolded.  She brought the fabrics home, sight unseen, and dumped them out on the table.  Lo and behold, there she found one gorgeous fabric (small dots on gray background), and... well... seven others. 

Seizing the opportunity to "help", her enthusiastic cat, Gizmo, promptly leapt up onto the table and barfed on one fabric, and left copious amounts of cat hair on several others.

Totally undaunted, the intrepid quilter set out to make a modern masterpiece.  "I will embrace my inner Wonky!", she declared, as she began to cut out pleasing wedges for her "organic" design.  Several hours later however, she realized that her wedges were more "Wacky" than "Wonky".

Not easily discouraged, she thought, "Never mind.  I can fix this.  I will change my design and add some solids, and it will be fine."  Thinking that the "overly bright" fabrics needed to be "diluted"  (like adding ice to a glass of scotch), she chose three of the palest solids she could find.  "This will help!", she said confidently, and "Yes! Why not have scotch over ice while I'm at it?"

So she poured herself a scotch on the rocks and proceeded to sew strips of pale solids between the wedges of misfortune to create strips of disaster.  "There!  That's better!", she thought, until she stepped back from her design board and realized that things were not moving in the right direction.  "Those strips are too wide!", she exclaimed.  It's too much ice!  I need to add scotch!" But alas, she had no more scotch -- I mean, fabric -- so all she could do was remove "ice".

Feeling much less energetic at this point, she decided not to rip out the strips of pale solids and cut them down.  Instead, she sewed a seam down each strip to narrow it. "No one will even notice.", she thought.

After she sewed the seams and stood back to admire her handiwork, she thought, "Ah! That's much better!  Now I have strips of wedges and solids, and all I need now is a some sashing.  What color should I use?"  She pulled a few candidates out of her stash and showed them to the dog.  "Why not let him choose?," she thought. "He has good taste."  She laid the fabrics on the floor, and without hesitation, he flopped down on his favorite.

"Baby poop brown it is!!  I could not have chosen better myself!"  And as luck would have it, that very color appeared in seven of the eight fabrics...all the fabrics except that lovely gray one with dots.

So she sewed in the sashing with renewed gusto, and was totally delighted with the result.  "Now I need the perfect name for my perfect quilt.  I know!," she said.  "I will call it 'Hangover'"




Thanks to Rhonda for her contributions!


~Jaye

February Meeting Notes

The Bay Area Modern Meeting was yesterday and fun as usual. There is much talk of the upcoming retreat and also of the recent Sew Day. 46, the most EVER!, attended the meeting and the group had its first ever speaker. Lots of firsts.

A-B-C Challenge 

There are about 7-8 participants. Diana just joined by doing one block and Jennifer joined, doing a-J (minus I). I really like this challenge. It is great that I have a reason to make a block every month (not that I really need an excuse).

A-Z challenge blocks

Angela brought two Hawaiian blocks (far left). I love it that she is doing these blocks in Hawaiian fabrics. Most people don't use Hawaiian fabrics as regular fabrics for regular blocks. Michelle is doing her blue and white blocks (also far left). It occurred to me that she might have the hardest job of all since not all blocks are suitable for two colors. Kathleen's blocks are still the black, white and red ones. She is doing a good job choosing how much print to put into each block.

Crayon Quilt

Jennifer's blocks

Jennifer is using the Lazy Girl ruler for her blocks (middle with all the points). She has just started the challenge and is catching up.

Jaye's blocks

Lynnette's Blocks

 My blocks are on the top right. Lynette's are the grey and green on the bottom right. I like the way Lynnette's blocks have an on point sort of look. Many of them have half square triangles in the corners. She made a Glacier Bay block as well and it is really great to see how different it looks from mine. She uses fussy cutting in her blocks and the technique in Glacier Bay is particularly effective.

Speaker

Our Speaker was Joy-Lily. Check out the member spotlight for more background information on her.

Joy-Lily Prep

 
 Joy-Lily brought books, Carefree Quilts,  and quilts to her talk. The quilts she brought were all from her book, so we didn't get a sense of the evolution of her work. She organized the talk to coincide with sections of the book, which was a good idea, especially if one had the book and could follow along. A clever portion of the book is that if you make all the blocks you end up with an extra block from each of the projects with which you can make a sampler quilt. Joy-Lily had someone else make the sampler quilt and the maker did a great job. I really like the colors.

Sampler

All the quilts from the book are all kind of wonky.

Leaf Quilt

Leaf Quilt

Disappearing 9 Patch

Flying Geese

Sewing Time
Adrianne was a madwoman (in a good way!) on getting us to our sewing time. We were done with show and tell at 3:05 and everyone started moving tables, setting up machines and working away. I
I wish I had gotten a photo of the little sewing pod in the middle of the room. Ruth, Adrianne, Kathleen and bunches of other people were set up there. Such a buzz of activity! It was wonderful.

Charity Quiltmaking
Deborah and Jennifer collected bunches of more fabric and quilts and other necessities for the charity quilts the group is making for the NICU at Stanford. It feels good to be helping children and their families in need. People retrieved more packets of fabric to make more of the 16 patch blocks (2.5" squares, 8 of a color and 8 white).  Jennifer confirmed that the background can be any white.Good know in case you have scraps that would cut up to 2.5".

The charity goal is 24 quilts this year. They already have 6 so they think they will surpass that. Ruth quilted on project and handed it off to Angela for binding. Michelle is working in a series on stars and is using the charity project to perfect her star motifs. I think she has 3 charity quilts in progress. Stop for a moment, BAMQGers, and give yourself a pat on the back for your contributions!

Swaps
The Echo challenge is due in April. Ruth, the amazing Challenge coordinator, distributed fabric in January. If you haven't started, now is the time.

Amanda, the fabulous Swap coordinator, started a scrap pillow challenge. People brought bags of scraps and those bags were redistributed to others. Remember:

• fill your pillow with a pillow form
• consider a slightly larger size than the cushion cover you have made
• if your bag says "scraps back", please return the scraps with your finished pillow
• that BAMQG discount at Joann may come in handy if you need to purchase a pillow form
• many of the pillow swaps on the web are 18", but choose any suitable size. Anyone doing a neckroll? ;-)

More on Show and Tell later

February Meeting: Ready? Set! Go!!!!

The meeting is tomorrow! 
 

DATE: Saturday, February 4th

TIME: 1pm-5pm LOCATION: Redwood City Public Library, Main Branch

Agenda

We have another great meeting planned. This meeting will have a speaker!!!
Joy-Lily will speak to us from 1-2pm about her life as a quiltmaker, and about her new book. Please come a few minutes early to get settled in.

• Retreat: Rhonda will give us an update on the retreat. 
• Show and Tell. 
•  New Swap

1-2pm Joy-Lily lecture
2-3pm Show and Tell, Swap, Retreat update
3-5pm Sewing

Stuff To Bring:

• Show & Tell
  
• ABC Blocks, This month's block name should start with letter G
• Charity Blocks (Instructions)
  
• Extra Fabric, batting, or orphan blocks for the Charity Bin
  
• Project to work on
  
• Supplies for your project such as sewing machine, extension cord, etc
  
• Snacks

You can review the full post with many more details. It was posted Wednesday February 2. If you have any questions, contact me (or any of the other officers.

See you tomorrow!

February Meeting Prep

We have a meeting coming up this Saturday and we hope you will all make it.  As always, we will have the meeting between 1-3pm and open sewing from 3-5pm.

Logistics and Particulars

DATE: Saturday, February 4th

TIME: 1pm-5pm LOCATION: Redwood City Public Library, Main Branch

Agenda

We have another great meeting planned. This meeting will have a speaker!!!
Joy-Lily will speak to us from 1-2pm about her life as a quiltmaker, and about her new book. Please come a few minutes early to get settled in.

• Retreat: Rhonda will give us an update on the retreat. 
• Show and Tell. 
•  New Swap

1-2pm Joy-Lily
2-3pm Show and Tell, Swap, Retreat update
3-5pm Sewing

NOTES: 

• NO Question of the Month  
• NO Guild business
• NO Sew Day Report (go read the blog post)
• Joy-Lily's book will be available  for purchase during the meeting for $27.99 (cash or check)

 If you've never been to a meeting, come and join us!! The first meeting is free. 

If you want to see a glimpse of what goes on at our meetings, read the post for new people.

Dues

Last month was the time to renew. Our dues are $30 annually beginning in January. Make your checks out to, "Bay Area Modern Quilt Guild". You can also pay online using your credit card or Paypal account. Click on the BUY NOW button on our membership page.

Swap Info

A new swap for a new year.  Our Swap Coordinator, Amanda, is leading us on a Scrappy Pillow adventure.  If you would like to participate, please remember to bring those scraps.  How many?  A paper bag full.  What size paper bag?  You decide!  Bring a lunch bag, and you might get a sort-of-scrappy pillow.  Bring a large bag, and you will get a super-scrappy pillow.  It's totally up to you.  This swap will be secret (somewhat).  You will *know* you're getting a pillow, but each quiltmaker has full creative license to use your scraps however they want.  Members can read about it more on this forum post.

Stuff To Bring:

• Show & Tell
  
• ABC Blocks, This month's block name should start with letter I and J
• Charity Blocks (Instructions)
  
• Extra Fabric, batting, or orphan blocks for the Charity Bin
  
• Project to work on
  
• Supplies for your project such as sewing machine, extension cord, etc
  
• Snacks

If you have any questions, contact me (or any of the other officers. See you Saturday!

Member Spotlight: Joy-Lily

We are pleased to announce that Joy-Lily will be speaking at the guild's February Meeting on February 4, 2012, 1-5 at Redwood City Library. The address is: 1044 Middlefield Rd., Redwood City, Ca 94063. We meet upstairs Community Room (the elevators are on the far left of the entrance). To get you ready for the meeting, here in a Member Spotlight with Joy-Lily!!!

1. Name:

• Joy-Lily

2. In what city do you live?

• San Francisco

3. How long have you been making quilts? 

• Since 1985

4.  How and where did you learn to quilt?

• SF City College class with Caroline Libermann and through the SF Quilt Guild's various classes and by reading books.

5. Who inspired you to get started?

• A woman for whom I sewed piecework squares into potholders. The patterns intrigued me.

6. Please describe your first quilt:

• It was a log cabin in turquoise, violet and red.

7. Where do you find inspiration?

• I like to manipulate traditional quilt patterns to create new ones.

8. Do you have a quilting "style"?  If so, what is it? 

• Carefree and mismatched.

9. Do you belong to other guilds besides BAMQG? If so, which ones and why?

• San Francisco Quilters Guild is my local guild. It has many resources like a lending library lectures with well known quilters and workshops. I have lots of friends there.

10. What do you generally do with the quilts you make?  Give away? Keep? Sell? Show?  

• Mostly show them. I rotate the large ones on my bed to enjoy them. I give away baby quilts.

11. What is your favorite block pattern? 

• This week I'm messing around with King's Crown, so it's my current favorite.

12. In what room of the house do you sew? Tell us about your sewing/quilting/crafting space. 

• My humongous bedroom is a quilt studio with a corner for sleeping and clothes. The rest is taken up by shelves of fabrics and books. There is a large sewing/cutting table in the middle. Sometimes even the bed doubles for laying out blocks.

13. Do you create in any other areas of craft? Is quilting your main creative outlet?  

• I also dye, paint and print on fabric, sometimes all on the same piece. These fabrics are often for my quilts. My latest passion is for felting I make felt pictures and objects. Felt pieces are starting to wander into quilts too. 

 

14.What is your favorite quilt book? Are there any quilt books you recommend?  

• Naturally I recommend my book: Carefree Quilts – A Freestyle Twist on Classic Designs.  It takes you through the basics of quilting in a stress-free way. Joen Wolfram's  books are a great resource  for learning about color.

Editor's comment: Joy-Lily has recently authored Carefree Quilts and it is available through a variety of bookstores and Amazon. 
15. Are there any must have quilting tools? 

• I couldn't work without rotary cutting tools.

16. What are your favorite shops either online or in the neighborhood?  

• The SF Sewing & Quilting Collaborative. I love working and teaching at the Quilting Collaborative because it is total immersion in everything quilting. Linda, who runs the foundation is a " yes and" person, up for most every new idea. Volunteers drop in and work together in a very collegial way. You've got to see this place to understand why I call it "quilt heaven".The SF Sewing and Quilting Collaborative, called the Quilting Collaborative for short, is at 2189 Bayshore Blvd. in the very southeastern part of SF - right near the Brisbane line. Their website is www.sfsqc.org. It is a non-profit organization whose mission is to make "warm hugs" for the community and to educate quilters. It is open Tuesday - Saturday about 11- 6 PM. One part is a longarm studio (topstitching available by donation and occasional classes that allow you to then use the machines.) Behind that is a classroom with a bunch of electronic Brother machines and every quilt tool one needs. The walls are lined with bolts of fabric used for the donation quilts. I teach a 6 session class there where students can do their own projects, in exchange for volunteering for 3 hours a session (+ my fee of $48). Next door is a fabric shop where the most expensive quilt yardage is $7!

17. Is there an area of quilting you feel you would like to learn more about and why?

•  Free motion quilting on a home machine is a challenge for me.

18. Is there an area of quilting at which you feel you excel? Tell us about it. Do you prefer the process of designing, piecing, or quilting?  

• I love to design piecework and to stitch freehand with a long arm machine.

19.You have to evacuate your home quickly due to a natural disaster.  What 3 things would you grab from your sewing room/space?  

• My laptop, as many quilts as I could carry.

20. Do you have a favorite sewing tip or trick? 

• Check ¼ inch below the edge to match seams. If they don't line up, flip the seam allowances in the opposite directions.  Twisted seams on the inside are invisible.

23.What else do you want your fellow members to know that we have not asked? 

• I am a quilting instructor with 23 years experience.

Check out more of Joy-Lily's work at her website : www.joy-lily.com

Take a look at our other Member Spotlights.