February 2015 Meeting

It was a good meeting last Saturday.

Mike, the MQG Liasion, gave us a tour of one section of the MQG. The goal is to get us more familiar with the benefits of that site since our BAMQG membership includes an MQG membership.

Karen, the 2015 Challenge Coordinator, gave us a small lecture on "What is Modern?". Stop with the eye rolling! It was interesting and a little off the beaten track. She took some principles of 'modern quilting' and showed us these elements in modern quilts as well as 'non-modern' quilts, including quilts from the 1980s and 1990s as well as vintage quilts. It was a cool presentation! Some of the elements she included were:

• Improv
• Pictorial
• Graphic
• Negative Space
• Bright Colors
• Alternative Grid (drop an element to mess up symmetry, space elements oddly, irregular spacing between element, etc)
• Text was added in during the discussion.

The result of this fabulous presentation is a challenge quilt due in July (??) using an alternative grid. Charity presented two completed quilts and a new charity block. You can download the Stair step piecing directions (PDF) or go to the guild website and look at the directions.




Some of the Hawaiian quilts are finished. Angela handed out binding and talked about the quilts. I think she got some other people who couldn't attend the Sew Day to take some pieces and parts and finish them.

Joy-Lily is the 2015 Swaps Coordinator and the first swap will be in April. We are each to bring a quilt book with which we have finished and trade with someone else for one. In the future, there will be a 'Sew As You Go" bag swap.
 Upcoming events:

• Amish Exhibit at the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles ends 2/28/2015
• Manteca Quilt Show, March 7-8, 2015
• SCVQA Show-March 14-15, 2015
• Playcrafts has a challenge going using the Pantone Color of the Year, Marsala

Binding Bee: After the meeting ended, a bunch of us sat around finishing up the binding of the guild's opportunity quilt. The quilt is a monster, but it is also an amazing monster.

Ruth designed it and the design is very unique. Marci Gore designed the quilting and stitched it out on her computerized longarm.

The first opportunity to buy raffle tickets will be at the Santa Clara Valley Quilt Association Show. It was fun. People would walk up and comment that it was just like an old fashioned quilting bee. The next Sew Day will be at The Intrepid Thread, which will be dangerous. ;-)