December 2017

December 12, 2017

       Our december meeting was the occasion of our Holiday Pot Luck. I neglected to take a photo of the spread but can say that the requested finger foods tended to run more towards the dessert end of the table rather than the appetizer/entree end.  My kind of meal! Yum!!

Habitat for Humanity

This quilt is destined for a dedication of a home in Sterling, Connecticut on the 7th of January. 

Show & Tell

Barbara B started us off with a velvet hanging she made for her Church.

Barbara C and Ginny G displayed the results of the 

Cut and Fold Wreath workshop they took last month with Judy Lancaster.

Ginny G made this Winnie the Pooh quilt for the grandchild of a close friend.

Ginny designed this using drawings from coloring books.

Ginny made a matching mug rug for her friend,
the grandmother of the quilt recipient.

Kathy L made this great table runner.

Alona C has almost finished her first quilt. She used 40 t-shirts from her husband's theater 

t-shirt collection. She used her Father-in-Law's old ties for borders around 25 of the blocks.

Alona went to Stitch Chicks in Connecticut with her mom (see below) and learned

to quilt this on their long-arm machine.

Alona used this panel as the centerpiece of the backing of her quilt.

Ellie C was inspired by Bonnie Hunter to save her 1.5" squares of leftover fabric.

The box got full so Ellie started playing with them and made this great table runner.

Nancy B displayed this 35 year old quilt. 

She based the blocks on Christmas card designs.

Lovely!

Jane has been using her late sister's stash to make quilts for each
of her sister's grandchildren as they graduate from college. This
green version is destined for Jane's great nephew who is a
Green Bay Packer and Celtics fan.  The quilting design uses various 

sports ball motifs.

Pam B finished this Habitat for Humanity quilt begun by Tora. 

She used a cool rainbow puzzle fabric for the backing.

Lynn C made this kaleidoscope hanging from a kit she purchased on eBay.

Very cool!

Sheila H made this Frogs and Bird and Bears Oh My 

quilt for her grandson who was born at 2:23 on the day of our meeting.  

Diane H used this quilt to try out her new long arm skills 

at Stitch Chicks in North Franklin, CT. 

(with daughter Alona - see t-shirt quilt above).

This is destined for a grandson.

Tina C made this for her 7th great nephew. 

The Woodland Critter applique pattern is 

from Wendy Gratz of Shiny Happy World. 

(name was blocked out for privacy)

Tina C also made an English Paper Pieced Moravian Star from a pattern 

from Jenn Strauser. Tina says this may be a one-time project!

Molly O finished 3 projects since our last meeting.
The first is a variation of a Twisted

Tree based on a photo on pinterest.

Molly's second project was the product of an October workshop at 

Clamshell Quilters by Linda Hahn titled 

New York Beauty Simplified.  

Linda also offers this as an iQuilt class. 

Molly's last project was a lap quilt destined to
be a Christmas gift for her sister-in-law.
The design was based on a raffle quilt
pictured on Pinterest.

Happy Holidays to One and All!!

November 2017

Our November meeting featured Judy Lancaster, a guest lecturer at Ryco in Lincoln.

Judy taught 4th grade for 31 years and brought ten bags of quilts, each featuring a different set of techniques. Several of these techniques are highlighted in her class schedule at Ryco.

This paper pieced quilt was from Ruth McDowell's book When Quilters Gather.

An Australian Quilting Magazine featured this Paper Pieced Swirl. 

Square Peg in a Round Hole taught Judy to sew next to her paper piece

 pattern rather than sew through the paper and have to 

remove all those little pieces.

The second bag featured flowers. This initial hydrangea was a pattern 

from Keepsake Quilting. Each flower petal was cut out separately and 

glue fused in the center to create a 3-D effect.

One of Judy's current classes features this technique in this flower vase project. The quilted background effect was achieved by using a Matellaise fabric which is pre-quilted. The 'table' effect was achieved by affixing a piece of lace to the background.

Judy's next bag featured Fabric and Thread painting. 

 Judy took classes from Christine Fries Ureel

at Keepsake Quilting in New Hampshire.

This is Judy's version of Christine's most 

well known work - Miranda The Tempest.

 Judy now teaches a simplified version of this as a class at Ryco.

This is one of Judy's favorite works and hangs in her home.  

Pine Trees on the Mountain.

This class is often featured at Ryco.

 Judy's next bag featured the 10º ruler. 

One of her students said sewing this Spicy Swirl together 

was a zen-like experience.

Chained Melody is from a book called 

Quilts without Corners by Cheryl Phillips and uses the same ruler.

This quilt for Judy's great nephew upon completion of his 

Eagle Scout project was based on this technique.

Carol Nartowicz’s Teach Yourself Cut & Fold Quilting is the 

basis of the workshop Judy is teaching for Ninigret Quilters.

A cut n fold sampler quilt.

Judy had a lot of fun with Bargello quilts and now uses this as a class.

This Earth & Sky quilts combines three different blocks. 

Dependent upon the assembly, students can make several quilt designs.

Judy's tree quilt bag has some really neat quilts in it. 

One of her (and my) favorites was Cabin in the Woods.

Another of Judy's classes features birch trees in all their glory.

This paneled quilt features the same scene seen through the different seasons.

Judy's last bag featured her favorite quilts.  This life history bookcase quilt was based on one Judy saw at the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show in Oregon. The books chronicle the events of Judy's married life. The upper left book is 'Once upon a Time' and the lower right is 'Happily Ever After'.  Fabulous!
I've included some close up shots of Judy's bookcase quilt. 

This Water Garden quilt honors the beautiful water garden 

Judy's husband created in their backyard upon his retirement. 

Lastly, the Labryinth Walk from Christopher Florence is on the 2018 schedule at Ryco.

Thank you for a wonderful lecture Judy!

Show & Tell

Barbara B started us off with her submission to the Paducah National Quilt Museum.  This challenge specified using unusual materials. Barbara was one of the finalists with this quilt using Budweiser beer cans, metal wire and screening material.  It is titled Not Your Grandmothers Drunken Path.

 

Catherine D showed two of the tops she worked on during last weeks Quilt In.  

These feature the half square triangle blocks she works on by hand while traveling.

Very different looks come out of arranging the blocks in varying ways.

Emily K displayed her log cabin quilt featuring material from 

the curtains from their first house. 

14 buttons will be added to the centers of each block.

Margaret T combined 400 2" squares to create this over/under woven quilt

as a Christmas gift for a friend.

And a tote bag to gift it in! 

Barbara C played with her new Go-Cutter 

and 'other peoples fabrics' to create this hanging.

Margaret S took the recent Dresden Neighborhood workshop and made this fun village.

Betsey W crafted a sewing machine case.

Appropriate!

Carolyn S made this from her stash as part of her Church program

to provide quilts to ill parishioners.

Fran W made her Dresden Neighborhood in a color wheel.

While Fran was in Maui, she bought this fabric and pattern and

made a memento of a wonderful trip.

Cindy made this star quilt ten years ago, 

she had it machine quilted at Sew Debbie in Groton.

Pat G designed this Totoro baby quilt upon request from a daughter's friend.

Totoro is a Japanese anime character whose popularity in Japan

is akin to Winnie the Pooh or Mickey Mouse in the US.

Tora S made this Habitat for Humanity top at the Sew-In.

Steven displayed this quilt that he and wife Brenda made for their son Alex who likes green!

See you next month at the Pot Luck!

Only 23 months till our next Quilt Show!!