October 2016 Meeting Recap

This month's Inspiration Challenge winner -  Congratulations Amanda!

The QuiltCon Charity quilt top is almost done!  Zsofia handed it off to Lauren at the meeting.  Thank you to everyone who created blocks and/or participated in the sew day.  We're going to be right on target for the QuiltCon submission deadline!

Don't forget the FMQ workshop at the Quilt Company with Nikki is October 22nd.  Click here for the details.

We are proceeding with the planning for the March 2017 retreat.  You should have recently received an email survey asking about your interest.  Please respond so we can get a clear picture of numbers.  The retreat will be March 24-26, 2017.

September's #pghmqgic

The December sew day will not be at the Pittsburgh Project this year.  We are finalizing the location and date.  Stay tuned for updates!

The January 2017 meeting will be our annual General Meeting as well as elections for new officers.  If you are interested in being an officer, speak to any of the current members in those positions to get an idea of the duties.  Also, if you aren't able to attend regularly, try to make the January meeting.  The 2017 focus will be discussed and we value all input.

The Inspiration Challenge blocks keep getting better and better!  This month included a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Liberty Bridge woes, solving a kimono conundrum and recent trips.  Sound intriguing?  Well, come out to the November meeting and take a look for yourself!  You can find all of the info on the Inspiration Challenge by clicking here.

Show and Tell

The MQG (Modern Quilt Guild) held a town hall webinar and is also inaugurating a MQG mini swap.    There is so much going on over there!  Click here to get more information on the upcoming television show, QuiltCon 2017, a new book and how to submit your own ideas!

Trapunto applique

The topic in October was applique.  Discussions included machine versus hand applique, raw edge versus turned under, and the new style of reverse-applique of Alabama Chanin and Alison Glass.  There were samples of different decorative stitches that could be used on your basic machine.  In addition to the handout and points covered, members were asked to air their own problems, and victories to help everyone in the group.  Solutions for sticky needles, using water-soluble thread for trapunto applique and a few throwbacks to previous meetings were shared.  A great number of JoAnn fabrics' handouts on interfacing weights were shared to the delight of some.  Templates for using in a holiday table runner were forgotten at the copier store, but WILL make it into the November announcement . :)  Some of the tips shared by the group were added to the handout and appear in a separate color.  Thank you to everyone for sharing!

Click here for the Applique handout.

The notes on the measurements for the QAYG blocks were also removed from the handout and will be in the November meeting announcement.

October 2016 Meeting: Applique

The October meeting is less than a week away!  The topic will be applique, but before we get to that, let's get a few reminders out of the way.

~The FMQ workshop is October 22nd.  See you there!

~The QuiltCon Charity Quilt sew day was a success!  As of today, Zsofia is ready to hand off the top for the next step of the construction.

Ok, writing about myself in the third person feels weird, so I am just going to write normally.

I wanted to do something different with applique.  I am also going to be going over quilt-as-you-go methods in November, and I wanted to get back to doing a project during the meetings.  I came up with this plan.  In October, I have created a pattern that I will share with you and the several ways I think you can use it for holiday, or geometric-inspired blocks.  (You can use these blocks or your own orphan blocks in the QAYG meeting in November.)  I am going to cover applique methods, what has worked for me and what has not.  I am also going to go over the tools specific to applique, like interfacing, threads and templates.  Because applique is not limited to quilting, we will also go over combining different weight fabrics.  You can use this information in the many handbag and wallet patterns that are out there, or to enhance your inspiration challenge blocks!  Because I have really been enjoying the way we all share our own experiences in the icebreakers, PLEASE feel free to bring questions and stories about what has and has not worked for you.  Finally, I will show you some examples from social media of creative examples of applique methods.  I have a few photos that we will discuss and how to approach turning them into applique designs.  To be clear, you will work on the applique between the October and November meetings.   

At the end of the class, you will receive guidelines to prep and quilt your applique blocks (or an orphan block) to be ready to use in the quilt-as-you-go meeting in November.  We WILL be sewing in November.  If you are going to be at the FMQ workshop, this would be a perfect chance to get those stray blocks, or your applique design block, all quilted up for November.  If you aren't going to the workshop, that's cool, too!  You'll be able to easily get it done between the meetings.  You do not have to do any blocks before hand to do the QAYG.  We will cover 4 methods, and you will still be able to participate.  Stay tuned!                  -Cheralee