Westside Modern Quilt Club January 2017

Happy New Year! After too many snow days in December and early January, we enjoyed seeing so many smiling faces at our January meeting.

To start the new year off on a convivial note, Geri had everyone wear name tags and then she called on each person to introduce themselves and tell us a bit about their quilting story.

Geri brought us up to speed on our "Transitions" challenge to be exhibited at the Northwest Quilt Expo in the fall. The challenge is to take a traditional quilt or block that means something to you and create a modern interpretation of it. We want to have a poster sized image of your inspiration to hang next to your finished piece, so keep that in mind as you take photos or collect inspiration.

Speaking of inspiration, our fabulous volunteers have organized a field trip to The Latimer Quilt and Textile Center in Tillamook:

Date: Saturday, February 11, 2017 Time: 1:00 pm (in Tillamook) Place: 2105 Wilson River Loop Road Tillamook, Oregon 97141 Admission Fee: $4.00 (payable at door)

We still have a few spots left in a carpooling van (fee is $15 which covers fuel and admission). Please call to see if there is room (503-635-1353). Those going in van will meet at The Pine Needle at 9:30 am - van leaves at 10:00 am! Otherwise, bring a friend and meet us in Tillamook for this special tour! Leave early and grab lunch at Tillamook Cheese Factory! PLEASE RSVP by phone (503-635-1353) so that we can let Latimer know how many people to expect! At the meeting, Geri also announced another challenge, Aboriginality! Our Pine Needle customers have been buying lots of the aboriginal design fabrics, and we want to see what you are making with it! Bring in your creations (anything made with 70% or more of the aboriginal fabrics, and up to 42" wide) by April 14th and we'll display them from April 15th until June 15th. We'll have prizes based on viewer's choice so bring in friends and family to vote on their favorite pieces. After filling us in on the challenges, we were treated to round robin style demonstrations of several clever log cabin and curved rulers, plus some fun coloring products. Of course, no Westside meeting would be complete without Show and Tell. Linda R started us off with one of her quilts made using the curved ruler she demonstrated. Check out that pop of green too -- it's pretty close to Pantone's color of the year, Greenery, which Geri introduced us to earlier in the meeting. Marlene brought the gorgeous quilt she made at last summer's retreat.  Alicia shared her cheery black and pink creation. Deslie designed this lap quilt herself which shows off the rich fall colors in her inspiration fabric. As always, she's incorporated her leftovers into a handsome tote bag! Michelle found these low volume squares at a great price so she sewed them together into this sweet little quilt and excellent showcase for her machine quilting. Marilyn showed off her Robert Burns inspired appliqué and embroidered Thistle quilt which she also designed herself.  Susan B wowed us with this baby quilt she made for her niece. She liked it so much, she decided not to give it away (don't worry, she made another quilt for her niece). Susan B also made this ebullient hexie medallion. Sisters Carol and Barbara brought a family heirloom made by their great grandmother. This lovingly preserved crazy quilt has been in their family for generations. Linda D brought a fun baby quilt too. Her's highlights colorful elephant artwork by her cousin. More green and black and white! Linda D designed this bold quilt, and... this one is the same design, just made up in completely different fabrics. It's amazing how much fabric choices change the look of a quilt and make each one unique to it's maker. Kathy W shared her happy quilt, made using our Illumination pattern, which she'll donate to CARES. She pieced the backing using a formula she found in Bernina's downloadable newsletter, Through the Needle. Thanks to everyone who came out for the meeting. We look forward to seeing you all on February 22nd, the last wednesday of the month, if we don't see you on the 11th for the Latimer field trip.