Parade of Children's Quilts; Christmas in July

We encourage all our members to make at least one children's quilt during the year, and these are paraded around the room for a viewers' choice vote at the July meeting. Thirty new quilts were brought in.
Many of these quiltmakers also participate in the monthly meetings to work on quilts all year long, and we could not comfort as many children without this help. We were given ballots to vote for our choice. There were so many charming quilts that it was difficult to choose, but Sally Henderson's teddy bear quilt was the winner. Two prizes were awarded--hand-dyed fabric furnished by Kelley's Pins & Needles (dyed by Mary Nell Magee). The names of each quilter who brought in quilts were put in a hat and Elaine Magee's name was drawn to receive the second prize.

Sally Henderson's teddy bear quilt, also Vivian Plummer holding Paula Jones' cowboy quilt

Kelley McKenzie of Kelley's Pins & Needles was our vendor, and we were treated to shopping time before and after our potluck lunch. We gave lots of door prizes, many patterns furnished by Lucy A. Fazely. We had a hundred members and guests at this meeting, so the food was a real feast.

We gave away 80 completed quilts at this meeting. Pictured above receiving quilts are Cherie Wright from Wesley Medical Center, who will deliver the quilts to Angie Stringer, director of Women's Services. Natisha Polk from South Mississippi Children's Services and Lisa Mann from Shafer Center for Crisis Intervention each received 20 quilts for children their agencies serve.

Forrest General's representative, Tangela Boutwell (not pictured) picked up her 20 quilts later. She also received 11 more isolette covers for the Forrest General new NICU. We had previously given Tangela 10 isolette covers, and this completes our 20 covers we promised, plus an extra! These covers had to be made in so many odd-shaped pieces that we lost count and overshot our goal. We are proud to have this interaction with FGH and be able to share our talents in ways that minister to children.

Bonnie Bolt showed us several of her Christmas decorative projects that she will be teaching at the Christmas in July workshop. She will have three patterns from which to choose. What a good way to get an early start on Christmas gifts!

Gulf States Quilting Association Show

Several Pine Belt Quilters participated in the Gulf States Quilting Association show "Treasures of the Gulf States" at the Northshore Harbor Convention Center in Slidell, La., June 18-20. The show exhibited more than 300 quilts and offered shopping with 14 vendors. Marcus Weekley, Violet Newby, Betty Bingham, Martha Ginn, Leslie Kiger, and JoAnn Kenney had quilts in the show. Ribbon winners were:
"Covington Medallion" by Leslie Kiger, quilted by JoAn Knight, Best Machine Quilting
"Asian Elegance," by JoAnn Kenney, quilted by Diann Loper, 3rd place in Large/2-Person/Pieced/Longarm
"Fairies in My Garden," by Betty Bingham, quilted by Diann Loper, 2nd place in Small/2-Person/Applique/Longarm
"Pacific Coast," by Martha Ginn, 3rd place in Pictorial

Nickel Quilts and Kids' Quilt Camp in June

Seven young girls, ages 7-12, participated in a Kids' Quilt Camp at Kelley's Pins & Needles, taught by Mary Nell Magee. Each girl was required to have a parent/grandparent with her, so there was always an adult to help in case the teacher was involved with someone else. The girls selected their own fabric and sewed the strips and joined the squares. Pictured above with their quilts are Destiny Golden, Kali Lodrigues, Harley Blanchard, Kayla Anastasio, and Hanisee's grandmother holding Hanisee's quilt. The girls are all eager to enter their quilts in the Youth Category of the Pine Belt Quilters show in October.

Our June program was by Mary Nell Magee on Pat Speth's Nickel Quilts. Mary Nell showed several examples of the scrappy quilts that can be made using Pat Speth's techniques or shortcuts. She encouraged quilters to add as much variety into their fabrics as they could for more interesting scrap quilts. There are many cuts ready to purchase, such as fat quarters, layer cakes, and charm packs. We can build our stash (or fabric inventory) by cutting ends from all the other fabrics we use for other purposes. These squares, strips, and rectangles will then be available for specific cuts needed in projects such as the Nickel Quilts.

Applique with Violet Newby

Destiny Golden, 10-year-old granddaughter of Wanda Wallace proudly participates in Show & Tell at our May guild meeting by showing the quilt she designed, sewed, and quilted. We have several young people who are learning to quilt and preparing to enter the Youth Division of our show in October.

Our program was by Violet Newby, who has recently moved to Mississippi. Her son, Marcus Weekley, (also pictured) has been a PBQ member for several years, and they enjoy expressing themselves through their quilting both individually and as a team. Violet also led the May Workshop on Applique.

Violet began quilting in 1993 after many years of making clothing for herself and her children. When one of her 10 siblings asked for her help in making a quilt, Violet quickly learned how to quilt and has become a prolific quilter, though the sister has only made two or three quilts after getting Violet hooked on quilting.

Violet's passion is hand applique and she pays close attention to use of color in her applique. She demonstrated using opposing textures of background and applique fabrics for greater interest. She said to try combining stripes and circles, using an unexpected patterned background behind solid colored pieces. She reminded us to look at our fabrics during different times of the day, under different lighting conditions before settling on choices for a quilt. Fabrics look different at the store under the flourescent lights than they do in our homes. Take the fabric to the front windows for natural light.

Violet said "There is music in all of us...Find your own voice." Remember that the work does not have to be perfect; enjoy what your are creating and let it express yourself, thereby adding your voice to the music all around us."

Back to Basics

We have lots of new members who want to learn the basics, and more experienced quilters are always generous in their sharing of information. At our April meeting four of our members presented an excellent overview of what we all need to remember.

Betty Allen (top picture) stressed the importance of an accurate 1/4" seam allowance. She suggested (1) purchasing a 1/4" foot for our machines, (2) placing a guide on the throatplate (something like a stack of Post-It notes), and (3) testing by sewing three strips together and measuring the center one. If it is not what you were trying to stitch, make an adjustment so that the finished product is accurate.
Rhoda Libiez (far left) gave a rotary cutter demonstration, stressing (1) using the right ruler for the task, (2) holding the cutter upright and tight against the ruler, (3) squaring up and then keeping the excess on the correct side--right for right-handed, left for left-handed.

Gloria Green (center) discussed blocking and squaring up. Dritz dressmaking boards are useful for this task, using more than one board if necessary. Large quilts can be pinned to the carpet, pinning every inch to get the edges true. Use a square ruler to get accurate corners and mark the cutting line on all four sides. The quilt can be spritzed with water and allowed to dry in place. Blocking can be done before and after applying the binding.

Ella Lucas (far right) demonstrated measuring and applying borders, stressing that the quilt should be measured through the centers both vertically and horizontlly for getting accurate size for the borders. For the most economical use of fabric, side borders should be sewn on first, then the top/bottom ones. Multiple borders should be sewn together and applied in one operation. Multiple borders require mitering corners, whereas block borders can be butted. Ella recommended her favorite resource book to the group: Better Homes & Gardens Complete Guide to Quilting.

Many people have been generous in their donations of fabric for our Children's Quilt projects. We sort these fabrics and group by color and size, often cutting smaller pieces into squares as kits for others to take home and sew into a quilt. Larger pieces are reserved for backings. Batting and solids and children-themed fabric often has to be purchased, so sometimes these donations contain quilt tops that can be converted to money for this purpose. We recently received four tops and auctioned them to our members, gaining $475 for our batting fund.

Workshop participants Susan Ellis, Frances Good, Betty Bingham, Shirley Wiltshire, and Vivian Plummer show their little sewing bags made by Polly Duggan's Razzle Dazzle instructions. Polly taught the group how to spice up their projects with sparkling threads and embellishments.

Susan Cleveland Piping Hot Curves

Susan Cleveland taught her Piping Hot Curves technique to a class of eager Pine Belt Quilters on April 19. Comments from the participants ranged from, "It was a great class!" to "The best teacher we've ever had!" Susan is nationally known for her neat, crisp pipings and bindings. She was the featured speaker at Gulf States Quilting Association's April quarterly meeting in Mobile and taught several other guilds while on this trip--her first time to the Deep South. She was very impressed with the beauty of the azaleas and other spring blooms--very different from the melting snow and remains of cold Minnesota winters.

Showing Mary Ann Scruggs how to set her machine for the best results.

Susan is the author of Piping Hot Curves, Piping Hot Binding (booklet, tool, cording), and Marvelous Miters. It was agreed that we hope this isn't her last trip to the South. See Susan's website: http://www.piecesbewithyou.com/.

Julia Graber Presents Trunk Show

Julia Graber with her quilt "Seven Sisters--Leaving Home"

Nearly 100 quilters were awed and inspired by the quilting of our guest speaker at the March meeting, Julia Graber. Her family lives on a farm and has a trucking business and are part of a large Mennonite community in Brooksville, Mississippi. Julia is a quintessential quilter in a large family of quilters. She has six sisters and a brother; she and her husband Paul are the proud parents of six children. She and her family often meet for retreats to quilt and share good fellowship. Not surprisingly, they are teaching the younger generations to enjoy this family tradition.

Julia Graber with "Family Circle--Farmer's Delight"

Julia Graber with "A Plate of Pineapples"

Julia has had quilts displayed at the American Quilters Society shows and the National Quilt Museum in Paducah many times, and she and her sisters often are finalists in the New Quilts from Old Favorites exhibits. Visit Julia's blog at http://www.xanga.com/pauljuliagraber.

Kaley Anastasio (8), Emily Bingham (9), Gracyee Boyd (10)

This meeting occured during spring break, and four members brought granddaughters to enjoy this trunk show. Three are pictured here. All have made at least one quilt, and Kaley brought hers for Show & Tell. We look forward to seeing more from these enthusiastic young quilters. Gracyee has already asked if she can skip school to attend our April meeting.

Our website has been updated to include quilt show information. Show dates are October 8-9-10, 2010. More special events and hotel rates will be added later. Categories and Entry Forms are available in pdf format and can be printed. Deadline for receipt of Entry Forms is July 21--that date is coming up fast! http://www.pinebeltquilters.com/.