"Things to Bring" for January Meeting

For the January meeting, here are your "Things to Bring!"

1.  MUG RUG
As a follow-up to our great mug rug tutorial from the December meeting, we are having a mug rug swap!  Please bring in one (or more) completed mug rugs that you would like to swap with other members.  Mug rugs can be any size, but 6 inches by 9 inches is usually a good standard.

For those who are asking "What the heck is a mug rug?," check out this link:  http://www.twomoreseconds.com/2011/03/mug-rug-madness-what-of-mug-rugs.html

For those who need mug rug inspiration, check out these great links:
http://www.twomoreseconds.com/p/mug-rug-madness.html
http://www.flickr.com/groups/mugrugmadness/


2.  STRIPS FOR OUR GROUP QUILT

Size:  Please bring in at least one "strip" of fabric that is 44/45 inches wide (the width of typical quilting fabric from selvage edge to selvage edge).  It can be any height, but should probably be at least 2.5 inches tall.

Pattern:  You can piece the strip with interesting patterns (such as flying geese, stripes, log cabins, etc).  Alternatively, you can just bring plain strips (or bring in excess Jelly Roll strips).

Color:  If you piece your strips, please include at least a bit of white in the strip.  If you bring in plain fabric strips, any color is fine.  

Here are example photos from the New York Metro Mod Guild, who created their own strip quilt a year or two ago:

Strips that each member brought.  Some were plain, some were pieced.  All were beautiful!

The finished quilt!

Detail of the finished quilt.

Of course, don't forget your standard "Things to Bring" for each meeting (you can see the standards items HERE).  Feel free to email if you have any questions.  See you on Saturday, January 21st at Stitchcraft!

Guild Discount - Pumpkinvine Corner!

For those who couldn't attend December's guild meeting, we have been offered a special discount by the owner of Pumpkinvine Corner!  This online store is a great supplier of discount Aurifil thread (a wonderful thread that quilters love for piecing and quilting).  Here is the special offer for South Florida Mod members:


1.  Decorative wire quilt hangers are 25% OFF!

Samples.  Lots of styles available on the website!

2.  Spools of Aurifil 40wt thread have been reduced to $7.75!  The 40wt spools (green plastic spools) are slightly heavier and stronger than the 50wt spools (orange plastic spools).  They are great for machine and hand quilting, and the quilting stitch stands out a little more.



The offer is good until January 31, 2012.  If you are interested, please email us for the special discount code.  Thanks to Pumpkinvine Corner for this amazing offer!  

December Meeting Recap

We had a great meeting in December, and it was so much fun seeing everyone again!





For those who didn't have a chance to attend, here is a quick recap:

1. We welcomed everyone and recapped the concept of modern quilting and what it means to be part of the Modern Quilt Guild movement.
1. We discussed examples of modern versus traditional quilts, including "Jelly Roll race" quilts.
2. We discussed the goals of South Florida Mod:  the education of quilters in modern quilting techniques, the creation of community through swaps, group challenges, members teaching members, sewing days, charity activities and possible group quilt shows.
3. We discussed what we needed to do to reach our goals for South Florida Mod:
1. We discussed advertising the guild and handed out fliers.
2. We discussed the idea of a Guild sewing day, possibly in February.
3. We discussed the possibility of a field trip to a quilt show in Fort Lauderdale, which will be held in March.
4. We heard all about Project Linus and how we can help children in need by making small quilts for donation.
5. We discussed a virtual quilting bee for the Guild.
4. We talked about quilt news in the area:
1. We handed out fliers for upcoming quilting events in the area.
5. We had a "ten minute tutorial" from a member discussing mug rugs!
6. We had a brief break while we explored the shop, ate some snacks and chatted.  :)
7. We had a great show and tell session, where members displayed their beautiful quilts and works in progress!
8. We held a ninepatch swap.
9. We decided on next month's swap and group quilt.
10. We wrapped up the meeting by holding a raffle, of quilt books and various items!

Here are some photos that I took, which showed some of the beautiful show and tell examples.  Feel free to email me with your photos!

Learning about mug rugs.

Other Information:  
If anyone is interested in joining our Guild's virtual monthly quilting bee, we will be starting that up soon.  Email us if you're interested in participating.  Find out what a "virtual monthly quilting bee" is HERE (this was a sample for another guild)!

I will post the "things to bring" for January in another post soon.   The next meeting is on Saturday, January 21st from 10am to 12pm!

PS:  For those who are interested in Jelly Roll races, here is a video!

Sun Sentinel Article - Stitchcraft and South Florida Mod!

I wanted to share this great new article that appeared in The Sun Sentinel today!  The story discusses the opening of Stitchcraft (the beautiful quilt shop where we hold our meetings) in Boca Raton and the resurgence of quilting as a popular hobby.

We also got a quick mention in the article...check out the highlighted sentence!

We're (almost) famous!  You can read the entire article HERE.  Congratulations to Johanna for the fabulous article about Stitchcraft.  It's well-deserved.

See everyone on Saturday for our second meeting.  Don't forget to bring a folding chair (or two), a show-and tell-item and a ninepatch block for our swap!

More Holiday Ninepatch Blocks

Two of our members sent photos of their completed holiday ninepatch blocks for next week's holiday block swap!

Charlotte sent in a picture of the numerous ninepatch blocks she made.  She notes, "I had some scraps left over from a old Moda holiday square package and couldn't stop making these cute little 9 patch wreaths."  Great job!

Carolyn states, "I went with a Halloween theme and used the fat quarter that I received in last month's fat quarter swap.  I sewed some scrap strips together then cut out the half square triangles."  Looks fabulous, and I'm so happy that you got to use the swap fabric from last month's meeting!

 

Keep sending in your great photos, and I look forward to seeing everyone next Saturday!

Holiday Ninepatch Tutorial

For our upcoming December meeting, we have asked everyone to bring in a "holiday" ninepatch block for a swap.  It can be any holiday, not just December-based ones!  I made two blocks the other day and wanted to share some ideas with you.

A few people in the last meeting mentioned the site 15 Minutes Play, and the concept of "making" fabric from scraps.  It is a great way to use up your scrap bin and add a modern, freeform element to your quilts!  HERE is the basic tutorial.

I decided to use up a bunch of my red scraps and make a basic Valentine's Day ninepatch block!

Step one:  find lots of fabric scraps!

Step two:  sew scraps together to make larger pieces.

Step three:  slice and dice into smaller segments!

Step four:  sew into larger pieces.  You've just "made" fabric!

Step five:  cut the "made" fabric into 4.5 inch squares.  I got a bunch of squares out of the scraps (you only need five for the ninepatch block).

Step six:  add four 4.5 inch squares of other fabric (plain or patterned).

Done!  Measures 12.5 inches square.

You can use this technique for any type of patchwork block.  I had a few "made" fabric blocks left over, so I decided to make a July 4th themed block as well.  I just added some 4.5 inch Half-Square Triangles in blue and white:

Another block done!

You can make any type of ninepatch you like (it does not have to be a basic one).  Please feel free to send me an email of your completed blocks, and I can add them to the blog!

Like this concept of "making fabric" and want to try more?  Check out the 15 Minutes Play site and their block of the month tutorials!

Restoration and Repair of Antique Quilts - Show and Workshop

The Coral Springs Quilt Guild is hosting a special event lecture and workshop in January, and they have just opened the events to non-members!  Have a bunch of Grandma's quilts that need repair?  Found a quilt treasure at the flea market?  Learn how to repair and restore those quilts!

Both sample photos from Alley Flo's Antique Quilts website

Restoration & Repair of Antique Quilts Lecture with Trunk Show
January 25th, 2012, 7:15pm
Cypress Hall at Cyprus Hammock Park, Coral Springs, Florida
by Tracey Snyder-Stone  (http://www.alleyflosantiques.com/)
$5 non-member special event fee.


Antique Quilt Restoration and Repair Workshop
Saturday, January 28th, 2012, 10am to 4pm
Cypress Hall at Cyprus Hammock Park, Coral Springs, Florida
by Tracey Snyder-Stone  (http://www.alleyflosantiques.com/)
$45 non-member fee


Interested?  Check out the informational flyer here!  Enjoy!

January Meeting Date Added

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and is enjoying the holiday season.  I just wanted to send a quick update:  we have added a January meeting date!

Please mark your calendars for Saturday, January 21st, from 10am to 12pm.

As a reminder, the December meeting date is Saturday, December 17th, from 10am to 12pm.  As we mentioned in the previous meeting, please bring a completed festive nine-patch block for a swap!  You can find out the instructions and details HERE. 

Break out those scraps and start sewing!

See you soon!