Philly Modern Quilt Guild

Sewing Night at Cloth and Bobbin

2012-01-31T00:22:00.000-05:00

The Philly Modern Quilt Guild had its first sewing night of the New Year on Friday, January 27, 2012. Several of us spent the evening sewing, chatting and shopping at Cloth and Bobbin in Narberth. Thanks to Johanna for inviting us!

Anna spent the evening hand sewing 2 quilts. She's sewing the binding on her Central Park quilt.

Eileen hand sewing and Danette piecing using cool shades of blue, gray and green. That’s Johanna in the back sitting at the desk!

Angie worked on a star quilt.

We loved her color choice!

Janet plugged away at a jelly roll quilt blocks, but she didn’t use a jelly roll, she used fabric from her stash!

Sher worked on finishing one of the T-Shirt quilts she made for her children.

And of course the photographer didn’t take pictures of her own work! Michelle worked on ½ square triangles for a Kate Spain Central Park quilt, then a little free motion practice.

Members Discuss their Favorite Blogs

2012-01-27T09:26:00.002-05:00

At the January meeting of the Philly MQG, members brought in a link to their favorite quilting blogs and we took turns showing off the blogs and talking about why we liked them. For everyone who couldn't make it, here is a list of the blogs we talked about. What are your favorite modern quilting blogs?

http://exuberantcolor.blogspot.com/
http://www.filminthefridge.com/
http://stitchywitchysisters.blogspot.com/
http://thehappyzombie.com
http://Freshlemonsquilts.com
http://www.filminthefridge.com/
http://www.ohfransson.com/
http://moderndayquilts.tumblr.com/
http://www.stitchedincolor.com
http://www.canoeridgecreations.com
http://www.psiquilt.com/
http://www.redpepperquilts.com/
http://sewkatiedid.wordpress.com/
http://www.stitchedincolor.com/
http://thesillyboodilly.blogspot.com/
http://www.design-seeds.com
http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com
http://gloriousapplique.blogspot.com/
http://imagingermonkey.blogspot.com/
http://www.genxquilters.com/
http://generationqmagazine.com/
http://www.handmadebyalissa.com/
http://pieceandpress.blogspot.com

Philly MQG February 2012 "Scrappy Modern" Challenge Announcement

2012-01-24T09:26:00.000-05:00

Our next challenge is inspired by the upcoming Modern Quilt Guild Showcase (http://callforentriesmodernquilts.com) and we are hoping that it encourages our members to try something new. Here are the details of the challenge:

Use the scraps you received in the swap in January (if you didn't participate in the swap, just go into your own fabrics/scraps and randomly fill a quart-sized zip-top bag of your own scraps to use).

You may add ONE solid fabric (optional - if you can complete your quilt top with only scraps, more power to you!)

Backing and binding can be anything you want (but wouldn't a scrappy binding be awesome for this challenge?)

Make a "modern" quilt project using one (or both) of the following two modern quilt "themes": Improvisational piecing and/or Asymmetry.

Our challenge does not have a specific size requirement; however, if you are interested in entering your quilt in the Modern Quilt Guild Showcase, which will be held at the International Quilt Festival in Houston this fall, then you must make your quilt 36" square or larger. Entries for the modern quilt guild showcase are due March 2nd and details for submission are at: http://callforentriesmodernquilts.com (optional)

Challenge pieces for the Philly Guild will be due at our February meeting on February 21.

Also, this challenge provides a perfect opportunity for those of you who blog or use Flickr to participate in the Stitched in Color "Scrap Attack Quilt-Along".

If you have any questions feel free to e-mail the officers at phillymodernquiltguild@gmail.com.

Have fun!

Spotlight on... Patty Thorell!

2011-12-26T13:14:00.000-05:00

Patty Thorell

Pat has always had a great fondness for sewing. She showed us her first sewing from her childhood. A cross stitch sampler.

Next up we saw the most beautiful Yo-yo quilt. She made this from ages 7-9, using a cardboard circle as the template.

Amazing!

Many of the fabrics were from the 1930's.

Patty then started sewing garments.
Made a dress at age 12!
She was making it when we landed on the moon.

After she got married and had kids, she didn't have much time to sew, so she took up needle point. She did a lot of it in the car.

She would only make quilts for friends when they had children, but wasn't into quilting too much because at that time, calicos were pretty much the only quilting fabric around.

Sweet Baby Quilt. Pat also made the beautiful jacket she is wearing!

Unique Fabric postcards

Patty has always had a fondness for Granny's Sewing Den in Glenside, PA. When the owner moved, she bought the shop with a woman that worked there.

Thank you so much Patty for sharing your love of quilting with us, and letting us see your beautiful quilts in person!

December 2011 Meeting RSVP

2011-12-14T14:00:00.001-05:00

The December meeting of the Philly MQG will be Tuesday, December 20th at 7pm at the normal meeting location (please contact the officers at phillymodernquiltguild@gmail.com if you have questions about the location).

If you would like to attend, please fill out the RSVP form:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGt3cEN4dXhseTlKYjc3QVIyVFdGckE6MA

October and November Meeting Recap {Double post}

2011-11-23T13:48:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!
Here is a special Holiday Edition Double PMQG post!

I am so sad I missed October's meeting due to an ungodly painful double kidney stone attack! So please accept my apologies for missing such an exciting meeting (I heard it was amazing!) and for this belated post.

Our October meeting had 24 in attendance. 20 members and 4 guests.

Here are some photos from the "Finish a UFO Challenge"

Guild members can check out more photos from this meeting on our BigTent.com site.

October 15th was our Charity Day of sewing. A few members met to sew all of the Jay McCarroll blocks together to make quilts to send to Japan's tsunami victims.

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Our November meeting was held on 11/15 and it was packed! We renewed our dues, and showed off our "Anything Pumpkin" challenge.

Pumpkin Tote Bag

In addition to Show-and-Tell, we are also encouraging members to bring in our projects that are in progress to get advice and insite.

Looking for advice on quilting options

Show and Tell

News for our members:
Once you have paid your dues for the year, please head over to our new group site at www.bigtent.com and log into the Philly Modern Quilt Guild. There we can discuss all things Modern Quilting and also post more photos.

Current Quilt exhibits:

Quilt Art: International Expressions in Doylestown: September 10, 2011 through

January 1, 2012 James A. Michener Art Museum, 138 S. Pine St. Doylestown,

New Castle, DE; Civil War Era Quilts, Coverlets, and Medallions October 1 thru

December 31, New Castle Library, 424 Delaware St.

An exhibit and series of education programs, open to the public during regular

library hours. Sponsored by Historic Village Quilts. (302-276-2676)

Congrats to Tricia and Baby Emma!

FREE Quilt Book Raffle at November Philly MQG Meeting

2011-11-14T09:00:00.005-05:00

Hi, everyone - we have some good news to share! The lovely people at Lark Crafts have sent our guild a copy of a brand new book called Pretty in Patchwork: Doll Quilts.

This book includes 24 really fun "little quilt" projects. These are great for when you want to make a quick project, but they could also provide inspiration for larger-sized quilts.

We will be raffling off the book at our next guild meeting on November 15th. The raffle will be open to all paying members who attend the meeting and it will be free to enter! All you have to do to enter is show up at the meeting and pay your dues (if you haven't already)!

See you at the meeting tomorrow! Good luck!

September 2011 PMQG Meeting

2011-10-07T22:36:00.000-04:00

After (what felt like VERY LONG) a summer hiatus, the Philly Modern Quilt Guild has started up again for our 2011-2012 year! At the first meeting of the fall on September 20, we elected new officers, swapped some pin cushions, and enjoyed some show-and-tell followed by general socializing. We were also lucky enough to have Jessica Levitt, author of the new quilting book called Modern Mix, bring a suitcase full of the wonderful projects from her book! It was a long summer and we're all excited to be meeting again!

The new officers for the 2011-2012 guild year are:

President - Andrew J

Vice President (until Feb. 2012) - Becky M.

Vice President (after Feb. 2012) - Anna Z.

Treasurer - Cathy F.

Secretary - Michelle K.

Event Committee Chair/Coordinator - Janet P.

Website/blog Committee Chair/Coordinator - Monica C.

Meeting Space Liaison - Candi W.

Here are some photos from our pin cushion swap. Everyone did an amazing job, but unfortunately the photos don't do their work justice because everything was pretty tiny! Head on over to the Flickr set to see larger versions of the photos.

Now time for some show and tell!

Good times at The White Oak Bed & Breakfast Quilt Retreat!

2011-10-05T20:58:00.000-04:00

Anna and Stephanie enjoying some peaceful sewing time!

The retreat was held at White Oak Bed & Breakfast in Strasburg, PA from September 30 – October 1st. Anna, Stephanie and Cathy were in attendance and all would do it again.

Stephanie laying out her blocks

Everyone arrived on Friday afternoon, had a great dinner and then set up their machines for an evening of sewing. The last person didn't go to bed until about midnight! A big breakfast was served on Saturday before going back to sewing. Although no one was hungry, lunch was served and then the decision was made to do go out & do a little fabric shopping (to burn off some calories).

Shopping loot

New fabric!

The fabric stores in the area have great prices and everyone did their part to support the economy. Then they headed back to the B & B for more sewing. Anna had 4 quilt tops with her that needed borders, backs and batting.

There were large areas to make quilt sandwiches and Anna took advantage of that. She was able to get all her quilts pinned for quilting.

Anna's quilt

Stephanie had the pieces for her quilt cut so she worked on piecing and ironing, laid it all out on the floor & worked on assembling the quilt top. Cathy got her monochromatic quilt quilted and the binding on then started her new project.

Cathy's Monochromatic Quilt

The innkeepers were so friendly and accommodating to our needs – you couldn’t have asked for more. There were discussions about future retreats and how to encourage more participation.

Ironing and cutting area

It was so rewarding to have the time to work on a project without any distractions, you just need to try it!

All of our hard work!!

Events that may be of interest to members:

2011-10-05T20:11:00.001-04:00

October 7: See Jessica Levitt for her book signing at The Little Shop in Haddonfield on Friday evening from 4:30-8pm

Jessica Levitt

October 14, 15: Keystone Quilter Guild show. www.keystonequilters.org.

November 4-7: Fall Fabric Frenzy Shop Hop. www.fallfabricfrenzy.com

Not familiar with a shop hop? Start with purchase of a Passport from any of the 9 participating shops. Passport includes savings from all participating shops, good thru June 2012. As you visit each shop, your passport will be stamped; you will receive chance on a give away at each shop, each day, and you will receive a piece of the shop hop quilt pattern. If you complete the passport over the course of 1 or 4 days, you are entered into the drawing for the grand prizes. It is a great opportunity to visit a variety of shops, and see 9 interpretations of a quilt design. **note from website: Quilters Hive in DE has closed.**

If you have any more local events- Let us know!

Jay McCarroll Habitat Challenge Winners

2011-08-15T09:25:00.001-04:00

The winners of the Jay McCarroll Habitat Challenge were recently announced on Generation Q Magazine's site. Jay chose 5 lucky ladies from the guild as the winners. Congratulations to Monica, Karen, Susan, Candi, and Anna!

The challenge involved using Jay McCarroll's Habitat fabrics to create a 12-inch (finished) block of original design. The winning blocks are shown below, but if you want to know more, including what Jay had to say about each winning block, head on over to the Generation Q Magazine post about the challenge winners. The blocks from everyone in the guild are going to be made into quilts that will be donated to victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit the Tohoku region of Japan in March 2011.

Thanks go out to everyone who participated, FreeSpirit for providing the fabrics, Jay McCarroll for being our inspiration and for judging the contest, and Generation Q Magazine for posting the story about the winning blocks. We hope you all enjoyed this great challenge!

Monica Cuartero Sicklerville, NJ fussycutquilts.blogspot.com
Karen Dever Moorestown, NJ www.karendever.com
Susan McKey Elkins Park, PA stitchywitchysisters.blogspot.com www.etsy.com/shop/smckey
Candi Weinrick Logan Township, NJ raccooncreekquilts.blogspot.com
Anna Ziegner Glenside, PA

Retreat!

2011-07-21T07:00:00.002-04:00

The Philly Modern Quilt Guild has set up its first retreat!
The retreat will be held at The White Oak B&B in Strausberg from Friday, September 30th to Sunday, October 2nd, 2011. The B&B's official address is 958 Eisenberger Road, Strasburg, PA and they seem very experienced at hosting quilting retreats!

The cost is $196 per person which includes all meals except Saturday's dinner. The only things you need to pack are your sewing machine and any other small supplies you can't live without - cutting boards, irons, and ironing boards will all be provided!

The deposit is $25 per person - please make the check payable to the Philly Modern Quilt Guild to reserve your spot. There are only 13 spots available but there is a minimum of 9 and so far only 8 have paid.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to comment here or email Candi Weinrick at candidam@comcast.net.

Also, don't forget, only paid guild members can participate!
Please mail your checks (labeled with "Retreat" in the memo section) to:

Philly Modern Quilt Guild
C/O Jaybird Quilts
PO BOX 100
Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006

Spotlight on... Jessica!

2011-07-07T07:00:00.006-04:00

There are so many talented people in the Philly Modern Quilt Guild! We have every level of quilter from the just starting out to the 40+ years of experience. One of the best parts of this is the inspiration we can gain from other members - which you'll find no lack of in the following interview!

· Tell me a bit about yourself:

My name is Jessica Levitt. I'm 35 years old (for a few more weeks) and live in Central NJ with my two kids (ages almost 4 and almost 7) and my husband.

· What do you do?

I'm a fabric designer and now an author (That's fun to say!). I work from home so I get to spend lots of time with the kids. For fun I do more sewing of all kinds, I ballroom dance with my husband, and I love to travel both with and without the kids.

Please check out my blog, Juicy Bits ( www.juicy-bits.typepad.com ) to see what I'm up to lately.

· How did you get started quilting?

My aunt got me interested in fabrics when I was in about 7th grade. She mostly likes to just shop but I sewed my first quilt pretty quickly. It was an (absolutely hideous) Trip Around the World.

· Who taught you to quilt?

No one, but my mom taught me the basics of sewing. And I did a touch of sewing in home ec.

· Did you ever take quilting lessons from someone?

I've taken very few quilting classes. Maybe two ever. I mostly learned by trial and error. It took a while before I learned about batting, binding, quilting, and all that. My first few were done with the flip-right-side-out method and boy is that not fun to try to get the batting to lay flat.

· What do you like best about quilting?

I love fabric and playing with all the combinations. It's always fun to see how you can completely change the look of a pattern by swapping the fabrics.

· What is the hardest thing about quilting?

I hate basting. It's so time consuming (And I spray baste to make it easier) and hard to be down on your hands and knees.

· How do you decide what pattern to make?

I very rarely follow patterns. I'm often inspired by something but have to change it to make it my own. Although, lately I have realized the joy of simply following directions and not having to do any math etc myself. You can jump right in and finish in no time.

· Where do you do your work? Do you have a quilting room?

Yes, I have sewing studio. I'd send a picture but it's nearly always a disaster!

· Do you use a sewing machine, long arm quilter or do you quilt by hand?

I sew everything I can by machine. That includes binding. I'm all about instant gratification! I did recently send some quilts to a long arm quilter which was fun. No more basting or shoving it under the machine! But I will probably still do some myself.

· How much time do you quilt during an average week?

It really varies. I sew probably 8-10 hours on a slow week, much more if I'm actually working on something important. But not all of my sewing is quilting.

· Do you name your quilts or label them?

Yes, although I kinda hate coming up with names. I frequently don't get the label part done in time and have to go back and do it later.

· Have you ever taught someone to quilt?

Yes, I've taught classes at our local adult education program and taught plenty of friends. I love teaching beginners because they're so excited to see what they can make.

· How do you choose your colors? What are your favorites?

It's all about my mood lately or a particular fabric that speaks to me. My all time favorite color is chartreuse green and lots of other versions of green. You'll find that in a lot of my projects.

· Where do you buy your fabrics and materials? Is there any particular supply you’re partial to?

I shop in a lot of different places. I'm not particularly close to any big quilt shops, but Pennington Quilt Works (http://penningtonquilts.com/) is less than an hour away and I love their store. I grew up on Cape Cod and I still go shopping at Tumbleweed Quilts (http://www.tumbleweedquilts.com) every time I go back. Amazing store. I also shop online, but I'm not particularly loyal...it's all about who has the most of what I'm looking for.

· What quilt(s) are you working on now?

I'm excited to get started on my first quilting bee quilt from my Busy Bee group ( http://www.flickr.com/groups/busy-bees/ ). It's purples, greys, and greens! I'm also thinking of a baby boy quilt for a friend but I haven't made a firm design yet. And I'm working on writing up the pattern for my Prairie Glass Squared free pattern for my fabric collection Kingdom.

· Do you make up your designs?

Yes, very often. And I have finished my first sewing book. It has 7 quilts, plus bags, pillows, apron, tablecloth, and more! All the projects combine solid fabrics with designer prints. It's called Modern Mix ( http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Mix-Projects-Combine-Designer/dp/1607052490/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1309976056&sr=8-1) and will be available in September.

· What other crafts do you indulge in or hope to learn?

Way too many to count. You name, I've tried it. I always want to learn new things. I do a fair bit of crochet. I also do costume design/sewing. I love party design and planning (I was a wedding designer for a few years). And home decor as well.
But the big one is fabric design. My second collection of Windham Fabrics is called Kingdom (http://www.windhamfabrics.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=521) and will be available in august. Designing fabric was a dream of mine, especially since I've loved fabrics before designers were even a thing (AKA before Amy Butler). After my kids were born and I was home a lot feeling somewhat isolated, I discovered the sewing/crafting blogworld and I was inspired to just go for it and see what I could come up with. I love Art Nouveau and Mission style and I knew I was going to incorporate that into my design. I do most of my work in Adobe Illustrator. Sometimes I sketch a design first and then scan it and edit it and add colors and all that. I get my inspiration everywhere and constantly make little scribbled sketches.

· What other organizations are you involved in to enrich your love of the fiber arts?

I don't belong to any other guilds, but I'd love to join a new online bee. It's been a lot of fun this year. Since I work professionally in the industry I get to go to Quilt Market every so often and be inspired.

· What are your quilting related goals?

Mostly I want to support my fabric addiction so I hope to do enough work professionally to keep up with my spending. :)

· What do you consider your greatest quilting related achievement?

Probably my first fabric collection, Timber (http://www.windhamfabrics.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=410) . It was so thrilling to see the designs come to life and watch others sew with them. But once I hold my book in my hand, I'll probably consider that my greatest achievement.

· What is your most treasured possession?

Well, I don't know if family counts as a possession, but they're the most important thing in my life. As far as actual material goods, I'll say this: I LOVE my bed.

· What is your motto?

"The Lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne." - Chaucer

Congrats, Jessica, on your new book!! I can't wait to see it. And thanks a ton for taking the time to be interviewed!

Inspiration

2011-06-23T07:00:00.002-04:00

As we don’t have an interview to post this week (but look for a few more coming!), I thought I’d post some inspiring photos to start your day off right! All the photo credits have clickable links in case you like to learn more about the techniques shown. Enjoy!

Photo credit: Instructables

Photo Credit: The Purl Bee

Photo Credit: Katie's Quilting Corner

Photo Credit: The Purl Bee

Photo Credit: Jaybird Quilts

Photo Credit: Fat Quarterly

Photo Credit: Moda Bake Shop

Hope the photos help inspire a new project for summer. Happy sewing!

Spotlight on... Liz!

2011-06-09T07:00:00.001-04:00

Hope everyone is able to beat the upcoming heat this week expected in the Philly area! Take a break by enjoying this great interview and fun photos from Liz Hawkins.

· What do you do (employment or for fun)?

I think this goes under the category of employment AND fun....I run a quilt design biz with my sister-in-law Beth. We started out designing patterns and went to designing fabric, authoring a couple of books for Kansas City Star along the way.

· How did you get started quilting?

Oooh the usual. Kids were babies, needed a creative outlet. Was tired of hot gluing dried flowers and pot pourri.

· How old were you when you made your first quilt?

In my late 20’s. My mom was always trying to teach me how to sew, but after what I call my 8th grade “bumble-bee t-shirt disaster”, I wasn’t a real fan of the sewing machine! When I actually bought my first machine, my mom just about had a heart attack. I told her if she’d introduced me to quilting instead of clothes-making, I’d have been sewing LONG ago.

· Who taught you to quilt?

An American in Paris. Ok, not really Paris. But we were living in France and there was an American neighbor who lived on my street and taught a quilting class in her home to English speakers. We had a fun diverse class...American’s, Brits, a Welsh woman, one from New Zealand. And when the teacher told us we were going to sew our entire sampler by HAND to learn the way our “grandmother’s learned”; I was the one who raised my hand and promptly said, “My grandmother didn’t quilt, she crocheted. So can I use my sewing machine???” I’m sure you can guess the answer. After the class was finished I invited all the ladies to come to my house every Tuesday afternoon until we got our samplers done. But it turned into a Tuesday craft day! We finished our quilts and started new ones and were joined by knitters and scrapbookers as well. It was always the best day of the week. (In fact, after I moved to the States, we had a reunion in NYC!)

· What do you like best about quilting?

Color, color, color! And the feel of fabric and they way they all come together. It’s such a fabulous creative outlet.

· What is the hardest thing about quilting?

Time. Never. Enough. Time.

· Where do you do your work? Do you have a quilting room?

I have a studio in my home. It’s my sanctuary. The place I go for inspiration. Although, I’ll admit. It has to be clean. I don’t mean spotless, just organized enough that I can THINK. It has one wall with built in’s to hold our patterns and fabric. Opposite that is a wall of windows that look out over the Delaware River. Now who wouldn’t be inspired by a view like that?

· Do you use a sewing machine, long arm quilter or do you quilt by hand?

Believe it or not, I actually did learn to love to quilt by hand. (Thanks to my teacher???) I love small projects that I can do handwork on. And I love applique for the same reason. But these days, we’re usually quilting on the machine or sending our quilts out. That’s what happens when you get your sample yardage two weeks before quilt market!

· How much time do you quilt during an average week?

Not enough actually. And I miss it. That would be the downside of the biz. We quilt in a frenzy getting ready for market two times a year and then experience some extreme burnout! Then there’s the unglamorous side of also being the shipping department. Not that we don’t love orders....WE DO! But the biz side does cut into the creative side. So when I do quilt, it’s usually during a Phillies game or late at night. (even though my son whose room is below my studio, says my machine sounds like a train running over his head!)

· Do you name your quilts or label them?

Yep. Gotta name the quilts. AND label them. They get sent out to shops for trunk shows, which is extra nerve wracking. We learned early on to label after losing a quilt with FedEx. That was one sad day!

· Have you ever taught someone to quilt?

Many! I lecture and do workshops all over the country, mostly trying to dispel the bad rap applique gets! But the person I loved teaching the most was my daughter when she was eight, and then a bunch of her friends the summer she was 10. Although, she’s gone to the dark side and now designs and makes clothing. Guess that skipped a generation!

· How do you choose your colors? What are your favorites?

I think choosing colors depends on my mood, and also the “look” I’m going for. I LOVE color. And I love mixing colors people wouldn’t think of mixing. One semester of art school I spent traveling through Europe watercoloring. My professors nicknamed me “the colorist” because I saw color in everything. Same goes for quilting...and I love adding neutrals just to make those colors pop.

· How do you start a design and turn it into a quilt?

Usually something inspires me and I get an idea for a quilt. This could be anything. A word, a line of fabric, something that I love. It starts out as sketches on graph paper (or the paper table cloths with crayons at Macaroni Grill...), with lots of notes. Then it gets transferred to InDesign when Beth writes the pattern. I get to do all the artwork, Beth (poor thing) does the math for piecing and does the actual writing.

· How did you get started in the quilting business?

My sister-in-law and I shared a love for quilting and one other thing....the same name. We always thought it would be fun to go into biz together, and quilting was one common interest. Once we got the idea in our heads we just went with it. Researched a name, got it trademarked, started a website, printed business cards and whipped out 4 designs while our hubbies had taken the kids on a camping trip to the Grand Canyon!

· What can you tell us about fabric design?

How did we get started with fabric design? Quilt market. We were approached by a few different fabric companies and decided to give Henry Glass Co. a try. You know all the doodles you sketch when you’re not even thinking about it? You know the ones, on every margin of every notebook you’ve ever owned? Yep. That’s fabric design. Ok not really, but the ideas do start out as a doodle. Again, I normally start my ideas on paper, then finish them up on the computer using Photoshop, Illustrator and my handy-dandy Wacom tablet. Our line that ships this month was actually sketched out during the World Series when the Phillies were in it against the Yankees. It’s called Hip Happy and looks NOTHING like baseball! But it does show the nervous energy I had while watching. And hoping! Fabric design always starts with a “focus fabric” followed by 7 coordinates. Usually I turn in 3 groups of 8 designs and then we choose which ones we want to go with for the next season. I have to say fabric design is my favorite part of what we do!

· What other crafts do you indulge in or hope to learn?

I paint. I’ve been doing some mixed-media with paint, fabric and thread with the idea of having a booth at the New Hope Arts and Crafts Festival this fall. I would LOVE to learn how to hook gorgeous rugs (but then I’d need a room full of wool!) and I would love to long-arm (but would have to remove my dining room and probably never get anything else done!)

· What quilt(s) are you working on now?

Believe it or not, Amy Butler’s “Blooming” quilt! We saw it last fall in person at Market and just had to make it. It’s not often I get to make something that isn’t for Lizzie B. It’s nice to do something else and remember why you loved the hobby in the first place!

· What are your quilting related goals?

Well those are kinda boring since my goals are usually just to get new stuff DONE before the next market! And I’m a HUGE procrastinator as well, so goals are not my friend.

· What do you consider your greatest quilting related achievement?

My hideously ugly first sampler. Serious. It think it’s too ugly even for a pic, but the fact that I FINISHED it...by HAND! That was an achievement.

· What is your most treasured possession?

My family.

· What is your motto?

I have two. Our Lizzie B motto has always been, “Fake it ‘til you make it” since we had NO idea what we were doing when we first started out! And our family motto is, “Always look on the bright side of life”. (and yes, we sing and whistle it together).

Hahaaha! Thanks so much, Liz, for taking the time to answer all my questions! Hopefully everyone enjoyed learning more about a fellow guild member. Happy sewing!

Jay McCarroll is Coming to Speak on June 21, 2011!!

2011-06-08T08:49:00.000-04:00

Jay McCarroll of Project Runway fame is coming to speak to the Philadelphia Modern Quilt Guild!!

Photo from Dalboz17's Flickr photostream (photo provided via a Creative Commons license).

Date/Time - Tuesday, June 21st - Lecture/Presentation at 7:00PM prompt

Jay will be showing fabrics from his recent line for FreeSpirit, called Habitat. Jay will also talk about his design process and he will launch a nationwide Modern Quilt Guild Challenge that will be sponsored by FreeSpirit and that will focus on Habitat fabrics.

This event is free for all paid members of the Philadelphia Modern Quilt Guild. Guests are welcome to attend for $5.

Location - Huntingdon Valley, PA

If you have any questions or would like to attend please e-mail phillymodernquiltguild@gmail.com. Because we have a limited number of seats, we will be providing the exact location information only to non-guild members who e-mail us for more information rather than posting it here. Thank You.

Below are some photos of Jay's fabric line, along with some projects showing them off.

Photo from *Vintage Fairytale*'s Flickr photostream (photo provided via a Creative Commons license).

Free Quilt pattern provided by FreeSpirit.

A chair made of Habitat fabrics, featured on Jay's Blog.

Here is a video of Jay talking about his new line:

Spotlight on... Amanda!

2011-05-26T07:00:00.001-04:00

Take a break from all your projects to drool over all the lovely photos and learn more about Amanda!

• Tell me a bit about yourself:

My name is Amanda Colyer, and I live in Phoenixville, PA with my husband and our lovable mangy mutt. I'm 26, and I've been sewing since I was in grade school.

• What do you do?

By day, I'm a traveling sales representative for a division of a global company. By night, I'm a quilter, knitter, and sewer. When I'm not doing something crafty, I'm playing video games (poorly) with my husband.

• How did you get started quilting?

My mother was the person who got me started quilting -- I had always wanted to do it but was intimidated by all of the precise cutting. For my birthday several years ago, she gave me a sample quilt kit she had put together, completely cut out. I had no more excuses to put off quilting. Embarrassingly, I hit a road block after piecing the top. I couldn't figure out how to actually quilt it! I got back into quilting a few years later once I figured out how to free motion quilt, and completing this one has been on my 'to-do' list ever since.

• Who taught you to quilt?

I learned to sew from my mother, and now we go back and forth teaching each other new techniques. I recently taught her how to free motion quilt.

• Did you ever take quilting lessons from someone?

No formal classes, no. I did teach a class at Spool in Philadelphia last year.

• What do you like best about quilting?

My favorite thing about quilting is that it appeals to both my crafty side and my analytical side. Measurements and angles meeting color and form is the best of both worlds to me.

• What is the hardest thing about quilting?

The hardest thing about quilting (and my least favorite) is still all the preliminary cutting that needs to be done... though clear rulers, rotary cutters and self-healing mats make it a much more painless process.

• How do you decide what pattern to make?

Usually I start with a color scheme in mind, pick fabric, and then decide on a pattern from there. I hardly ever start with a pattern.

• Where do you do your work? Do you have a quilting room?

I am lucky enough to have a whole room dedicated to my various crafty endeavors.

• Do you use a sewing machine, long arm quilter or do you quilt by hand?

The first quilt I ever finished was quilted by hand. It was a queen sized monster, and I swore I'd never do it again. Now I do all of my quilts on my home sewing machine, from baby quilts to queen bedspreads. Just a basic run of the mill Kenmore. My preferred method of quilting is free motion. I just find that it looks good with every pattern.

• How much time do you quilt during an average week?

In a good week, I try to quilt a little every day after work. I find it very effective in melting away the stresses of the day. If I'm really lucky, I have the time on the weekend to sit down and quilt for a few solid hours.

• Do you name your quilts or label them?

I don't usually name quilts -- I'm not terribly creative in that way. Usually they get assigned a name only when I upload them to flickr! I do however always try to label my quilts, and I like incorporating hand embroidery in each label.

• How do you choose your colors? What are your favorites?

I'm a fan of bright, saturated colors, and I almost always use plain white sashing. I love the crisp, clean look that white sashing gives quilts. My favorite color combination is green, blue, and brown.

• Where do you buy your fabrics and materials? Is there any particular supply you’re partial to?

Most of my fabric is purchased online. I watch for sales (particularly at Fabric.com and Etsy) like a hawk! I have a fairly large stash, but there's always room for more.

• What quilt(s) are you working on now?

Right now, I'm making a lap quilt version of the cover quilt from 'Modern Log Cabin Quilting', using scraps of my favorite fabric line (Denyse Schmidt's 'Hope Valley') from a king quilt that I completed recently.

• Do you make up your designs?

I use a pattern about half the time, and make up my own designs about half the time. Once I've found a block that I like, I like to play with size and scale to make the perfect layout.

• What other crafts do you indulge in or hope to learn?

I am very passionate about knitting. This is another skill passed on to me by my mother. Plus it's a lot easier to drag around a sleeve than a whole quilt to work on while I'm traveling! I also design & sew purses and pillows, and crochet occasionally as well.

• What are your quilting related goals?

My goal is simple: find more time to spend quilting.

• What do you consider your greatest quilting related achievement?

My greatest quilting related achievement was completing my first spiderweb quilt. It was much more time consuming (and fabric consuming) than I had originally anticipated. After all the work that went into it, this quilt is my most prized possession. If our house was burning down, I'd grab three things: my husband, our dog, and this quilt!

Haaha! Thanks so much for answering all the questions, Amanda! Hope everyone enjoyed learning more about a fellow member.
Until next time!

May 2011 PMQG Meeting and Kona Charm Challenge

2011-05-24T08:49:00.000-04:00

Hi, everyone. I've got another post full of photos of fantastic quilts for you! This month's Philly Modern Quilt Guild meeting was held last Tuesday night. At the meeting, participants showed off their MQG Robert Kaufman Kona Solids Challenge pieces. The challenge for our guild involved using one Kona Solids charm pack (we picked the "Bright" pack) and adding as much additional fabric as we wanted, as long as it had a print (i.e., no additional solids). There was no size requirement/limit, so it was really exciting to see what everyone did. Without further ado, below are the photos of everyone's entries.

Anna

Denise

Becky

Sue

Sue again - we just HAD to get a closeup of this one!

Michelle

For more photos from the meeting, including show-and-tell, please head over to my Flickr gallery.

Spotlight on... Debbie Hansen and The Little Shop!

2011-05-12T07:55:00.000-04:00

Here's a lovely interview with a fellow guild member who's also a shop owner! Read on to learn more about The Little Shop and Debbie Hansen.

Tell me a bit about your shop:
My shop, The Little Shop, is located in Haddonfield, NJ . We carry about 3500 bolts of all the major fabric lines, Patterns, Books, batting, notions and threads…All the good stuff! We also develop our own patterns and templates.

The Little Shop was featured in Quilt Sampler Magazine, An American Patchwork and Quilting publication, Fall 2007.

When did your shop first open its doors?

The shop was a traditional fabric and sewing supply store in the 1960’s and Ann Tomlinson updated it to a quilt shop in the early 80’s. I took a class at the shop to make my first quilt and I never stopped! I began teaching sewing and quilting in the shop in the 90’s and bought the shop in 1997. I have a background in teaching and retail and I love sewing, so, once I started to quilt it seemed like the perfect thing for me!

Does your shop offer classes?

Yes! We teach a beginners class, then all sorts of techniques… We use our own patterns, templates and then projects from our favorite book s and patterns…… We also offer classes for children, a “Sew What” every Friday evening that is very popular, and quilting retreats twice a year. Our big classes this spring are The Seriously Big Wedding Ring and the new “twister”. And every couple of months we offer a Stash Stew…a great opportunity to use your stash!

Do you have sewing machines in the shop?

We don’t. We really don’t have room.

Long arm quilters?

We have a number of long arm quilters who will meet clients at the shop. They all do our work, so we know how great they are!

Is there any particular supply you’re partial to?

I love a good iron, it’s so important… and the Oliso (some of my friends named him “GUS” because he jumps up like a puppy) is my favorite.. And my BIG Olfa cutter….how did we live without it? And….silk thread for hand appliqué…and…….( having trouble stopping… sorry!)

What’s unique about your shop compared to others out there?

We have terrific blend of quilters that work in the shop, so our style, our fabrics, and class offerings are broad spectrum. We have been a quilt shop for a very long time and ... it helps to know the history and use it to develop our creativity

What’s your vision for the shop in the next 2+ years?

I just want the shop to be a comfortable place for people to come and relax, be creative, enjoy others and make great quilts!

Now for questions a bit more personal:

My name is Debbie Hansen. I have twin sons age 31, a daughter- in - law who quilts, and a husband who helps with the shop…Life is good!

Do you sew or quilt?

I come from a sewing family and I love to quilt. I love the old traditional patterns, taken a step up and used with the new fabrics. I love appliqué and am currently working on a project that could be described as sort of contemporary folk art.

How did you get started sewing/quilting?

My grandmother and my mother sewed clothes and home dec things…I have never lived in a house without a sewing room, even if it was only a closet! When I decided I wanted a quilt for my bed, I took a class at The Little Shop, and made one!

What do you like best about quilting?

That’s the hardest question... I love it all... I love the fabrics... I love cutting and sewing … and I love the “Voila!” that happens when you finish a special quilt… and I love sharing it with others. I love star quilts…radiating, sawtooth, feathered…I love them all!

What is the hardest thing about quilting?

I have a hard time sticking with a quilt project that is very repetitive. If I need to make a lot of the same block, I have a hard time finishing. I used to think that basting big quilts on the floor was the hardest thing, but I just don’t do that any more. Thank heaven for long arm quilters!

How much time do you sew or quilt during an average week?

I probably quilt 6 or 8 hours per week. At the shop I reward myself for doing work I don’t care for (bookwork or cleaning) with sewing time.

Do you name your projects or label them?

I label quilts if they are going to be in a show, or if they are gifts. Quilts I make for my own family may not get labels, but everyone else…definitely!

What other crafts do you indulge in or hope to learn?

I like to garden, and every once in a while, I cook! I cooked seriously before I learned to quilt.....now…not so much!

What is your motto?

Why use 5 fabrics when I could use 50!

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer all my questions, Debbie! Hope you all will stop by her shop to say hello!

April 2011 PMQG Meeting and Pillow Swap

2011-04-26T09:18:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone. I'm back with another post full of photos of the lovely members of the Philly Modern Quilt Guild. Last week's meeting saw several new faces, and some old friends who returned after a bit of a hiatus, so it was a lot of fun. The main event was a swap of pillows. We also were lucky enough to have Jessica Levitt join us at our meeting. She brought some yardage of her new line, Kingdom, for us to fondle. We also passed around samples of various types of batting and I think everyone found a new favorite or two! Personally, I'm seriously thinking of running out and buying a whole bolt of something because I like the idea of having a ton of batting on hand all the time! Here are some photos from the pillow swap and a couple from show and tell.

Candi

Denise

Becky

Allison

Anna (love that Aviary 2 fabric!)

Tamsin

Susan

Becky's Central Park Postage Stamp quilt

Cathy's entry for the Monochromatic Challenge

Denise's purple and black Take 5 quilt.

Julie's Raspberry Dessert