Thursday, February 28, 2013

BMQG February Show & Tell

We had another fabulous show & tell session at the Feburary meeting.  I am always inspired by the incredible creativity of this group!!!
Zuzka
Zuzka's amazing Modern Lone Star made with Flea Market Fancy.
Andrea
This Fandango stars quilt by Andrea is fabulous but the quilting by Margaret Gunn takes it over the top!
Carin
Carin made this lovely little bookshelf quilt with titles she helped publish.  The letters are handstamped with gold ink.
Hema
Hema shared her gorgeous Groovy quilt.  It doesn't show in this picture but her machine quilting is incredible.
Jessica
Jessica shared her beautiful first quilt.
Karen
Karen made this adorable rainbow HST top.
Karen&Jen
It's always fun to see how fabric choice changes a quilt.  Jen and Karen made these "twin" quilts with Kate Spain's Cuzco for Karen & some long hoarded Nest by Tula Pink for Jen.
Laurie1Laurie2
Laurie showed off this cute Crackle quilt made with Lucy's Crab Shack.  We joke that Laurie's motto is "Go big or go home!"  Her delightful Denyse Schmidt is just another example.
Lia
Lia showed us her progress on these sweet little English paper pieced triangles.
Natalie
Natalie brought this awesome stars quilt.  I love how the stars fall off the edges of the quilt.
Patrice
Here is Patrice's breathtaking machine appliqued quilt.
Sara
Sara shared this cute little doll quilt.  You can never go wrong with a striped binding.
Stephanie2Stephanie1



Stephanie did a supurb job quilting these elephants and her story book quilt is beyond precious.
Janis
Janis' marvelous improv pieced wall hanging.
Jen
and last but certainly not least, Jen finally finished this wonderful one block wonder.

Join us at our April meeting and check out this talented group for yourself!!!

Monday, February 25, 2013

More Modern Quilt Love

I LOVE that so many BMQG members are being recognized in the modern quilting world!!!  On the heels of Laurie's big win in the Your Andover contest and Jen's success in the Madrona Road Challenge, the amazing Amy Friend and Alice Webb Greer (yes, that's me) both have quilts that have been included in the Modern Quilting Gallery on the newly redesigned Modern Quilt Guild website.

Indie Vibrations Quilt-detail
Amy's beautiful Indie Vibrations Quilt is her own paper-pieced herringbone design and combines  Pat Bravo's Indie collection with shot cottons, Kona and Essex linen. 

That's So Random!
That's So Random! was my entry in the BMQG challenge at the Lowell Quilt Festival last year.  It is made of Kona cottons in the colors of QuiltCon.

Check out all of the fabulous quilts currently being featured by the MQG!

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

February Meeting Recap

We had another great meeting this month!  A few announcements:
  • Full payment for the BMQG Retreat is due to Rebecca by March 1st.  Please contact her directly at bostonmqg@gmail.com if you have questions about your balance.
  • There will be no March meeting or sew-in.  The next meeting is Saturday, April 20th, from 1pm - 4pm in the Community Room at the Arlington Robbins library.
  • We are thrilled to announce that the amazing Andrea will be our Lowell Quilt Festival Show Chair.  Stay tuned for more details!
  • There's still time to make things for the Precious/WIP Challenge which will be wrapping up at the April meeting.  Every finish gets you an entry in to the drawing.  Prizes will include 4, $25 gift certificates from the awesome Sew Fresh Fabrics.
Here are the fabulous finishes from the Madrona Road Challenge:
1. Rebecca, 2. Alice, 3. Carin,
4. Hema, 5. Jane, 6. Janis,
7. Laurie, 8. Linda, 9. Natalie

Wonky Road - Madrona Road Challenge Quilt
And Jen's beautiful Wonky Road which will be hanging in the Michael Miller booth at Quiltcon with the other winners of the Madrona Road Challenge.    Congratulations, Jen!!!

Friday, February 15, 2013

gather here is turning two!!!

The fabulous gather here is throwing a party and you're invited. On Sunday, February 17th from 12-6 PM they'll be hosting a trunk show celebrating craft in our community featuring:
  • Carta, Inc.: Angela Liguori imports gorgeous, colorful ribbons as well as makes fine stationary.
  • Heather Wang Jewelry: contemporary fine jewelry, she's debuting her new Cherry Blossom designs at the show!
  • Margravine: collars, capelets, scarves and other fancy accessories. And all cruelty-free!
  • Migration Goods and Rhinofluff: Eling will be bringing her awesome felt accessories as well as her one-of-a-kind yarns.
  • Pretty Things Beer: only some of the best beer ever! A truly inspirational company crafting awesome local beer.
  • Redgate Stitchery: a modern take on the traditional cross stitch craft. DIY kits you won't want to miss.
  • Sarah Coyne's water colors are currently on exhibit.
  • And the very talented, Laura of Pansy Maiden has handcrafted ten limited edition notions bags to commemorate this day.
They'll also be making friendship bracelets with folks. You heard us, there's going to be a friendship bracelet making table. Also, they're planned a kick*ss raffle! A Liberty of London fat 1/8th bundle, $50 class credit, a pattern's worth of Swans Island Yarn in one of their Limited Edition Colorways, and so much more.  As if that wasn't enough, you can also take 30% off your fabric or yarn purchase.  Definitely not to be missed!!!

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Congratulations Laurie!!!

Lizzy House Rainbow
After an enthusiastic response to the Your Andover Contest Laurie and Shannon were both awarded the grand prize for their fabulous projects.  Thanks so much to everyone for your likes and repins.  The response was staggering!!!

Monday, February 11, 2013

February Meeting

Just a quick update regarding our plans for next week's meeting:  The meeting will be held this Saturday, February 16th from 1-3 (with optional free sewing time until 5) at the LDS Church, 70 Concord Rd. Billerica.  

Hema has graciously agreed to continue her instruction of free motion quilting for those who are interested. 
  
We will also be doing a reveal of the Madrona Road challenge as well as show and tell.

What to bring:
  • If you plan to do FMQ: please bring a few quilt sandwich squares to practice on, your machine, and a free motion or darning quilt foot.
  • Your Madrona Road challenge project.
  • Items for show and tell.
  • Items to work on during the "free sew".
  • Your checkbook for the second or remainder of your deposit for the March retreat that is due.
Another reminder: please be aware that the only guild programming in March will be the retreat (14th-17th). 

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Way to Represent at QuiltCon!

Dazzling Diamonds Completed

Congratulations to Jen Sorenson of A Quilting Jewel!!!  Not only was her spectacular Dazzling Diamonds quilt accepted in the juried show...

Wonky Road - Madrona Road Challenge Quilt

her fabulous Wonky Road quilt for the Madrona Road challenge was selected by Michael Miller to be in their booth.  Jen will also be at QuiltCon so we can't wait to hear the full report!

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Rock the Vote!

Lizzy House Rainbow Quilt

Did you hear the news?  Laurie's amazingly awesome Lizzy House Rainbow quilt is a finalist in the Your Andover Contest.  Laurie has always loved Lizzy's fabrics and has been hoarding collecting these for a long time.  She finally cut in to her precious stash combining prints from Red Letter Day, Castle Peeps, 1001 Peeps, Hello Pilgrim - there are even a few Outfoxed and Lizzy Dish prints in there!

Lizzy House Rainbow
Head over to the Your Andover Finalists board on Pinterest to like and repin your favorite.  The project with the most likes and repins will win a $500 Andover Fabrics gift certificate and a MEGA-fat quarter bundle of Dimples, with all 135 colors. Voting ends 11 AM Wednesday, February 13th, so repin your *favorite* today!

P.S.  There's a rumor Lizzy might be coming back to Boston this spring... stay tuned for more details:-)

Monday, February 4, 2013

Member Made

Paintbox Front 2-4-12
32 Color Paintbox
Being new to quilting does not mean you can't make beautiful quilts.  Sure there are more advanced skills you can master but with even the most basic skills incredible things can happen.  Proof positive, the amazing quilts by Stephanie of Simple Sewendipity.

My first quilt
Stephanie had been sewing for awhile but never really considered quilting until she stumbled upon some beautiful handmade quilts in a funky boutique.  Suddenly she realized quilts could be anything you wanted them to be.  Armed with Start Quilting by Alex Anderson she made her first quilt, this lovely Friendship Star.

QuiltCon Mini
Stephanie really hit her stride when she discovered the quilting blog-world and joined the BMQG.  Since then she's been challenging herself with different piecing techniques and trying to master FMQ.

Swanson Mini Front 9-4-12
In addition to her obvious love of color Stephanie's quilts always show her sense of humor and love of pop culture.  She made this fabulous Ron Swanson Mini as an anniversary gift for her husband... complete with eggs and bacon on the back.

Baby Pig Pincushion - Angry Birds
Stephanie's Baby Pig certainly earned my vote for most creative pin cushion for the Modern Quilt Guild Swap hosted by KCMQG.

Circle Peeps 1 12-14-12
Circle Peeps
Stephanie is kicking off the year with lots of exciting new projects.  I can't wait to see where her creativity leads her to next!!!

Saturday, February 2, 2013

We Need You...


The BMQG has been invited to participate in the Lowell Quilt Festival again this year.  This was a wonderful opportunity for us to display our work and share in the quilting community.  This year the show will be held August 8, 9, 10.  We'd love to do it again but we can't do it without you...

First and foremost, we are looking for a Show Chair.  This will be an easier job than last year because we have already established many of these relationships and can build on what we learned last year.  Responsibilities include:
  • Coordinating with the LQF planning committee.  The committee holds monthly meetings.  We are not required to attend but do need to keep up with what is happening via email and respond to action items in a timely manner.
  • Working directly with the Appleton Mills venue to host our show.
  • Contract with our pole vendor to order the hanging system.
  • Oversee scheduling of setup, take down and show staffing.
We also need to know if we will have enough volunteers to make this a worthwhile endeavor.  As they say, many hands make light work.  We will be looking for volunteers to staff the show, organize a guild challenge, prepare printed materials etc...  You don't need to make a firm commitment but please let us know if you are interested in participating.  Please respond via email to bostonmqg@gmail.com as soon as possible so we can make a decision and let the LQF know if we will be participating again this year.