NEXT MEETING: JULY 7, 2008

DOOR PRIZES: If your last name begins with J or L please bring a door prize to the June meeting and give it to Elisabeth McMahon. This is a voluntary effort, but most of us like to receive a door prize and we hope everyone will participate. Please bring only quilting related items such as: Quilting Notions, fat quarters, triangle paper, magnetic pin holders, scissors, Pigma pens, etc.

PRESIDENT’S CORNER Happy 15th  Birthday to Us!   I love birthday parties and we get to celebrate ours with our great U.S. of A.  Of course, they are 217 years older than the Grand Prairie Quilt Guild.   It would be nice to see some of our charter members at our birthday bash so if you know of anyone that would like to attend please extend an invitation.  I look forward to seeing each of you at our July meeting and have a safe 4th.

GET WITH THE PROGRAM! The Guild will be 15 years old in July!  To celebrate, we will have our annual birthday dinner on July 7 catered by Eddlemon’s.  The food will be paid for by the Guild.  So that we have enough food, we must know by June 27th if you plan to attend the dinner.  Most of you have let us know, but there are still a few of you that should e-mail michelle@paco.org to confirm whether you will be there or not. We are asking the Guild members to bring drinks or dessert, canned goods for the Grand Prairie Food & Clothing Co-op and­ two or three fat quarters to be used as prizes for Quilto.  Hope to see everyone at the meeting!

Susan Hamilton

TREASURER’S REPORT
Beginning balance: 1413.57
Advertising incme: 25.00
Ending balance: 1435.57

PROFILE This year to help everyone get a little bit better acquainted with the members of the guild, we’ll spotlight a different member each month.

Lisa Boyce

I just joined the guild in April, 2008.  I’ve been doing handwork/sewing/quilting of some type since I was four years old.  My grandmother on my father’s side was a fourth-generation quilter in her family and she used to tell me she wasn’t going to Heaven without leaving someone behind who could quilt, so I am a fifth-generation quilter.  It will probably end with me as my daughter is not very needle inclined (yet, I still have hope).  I like to do applique and redwork and I love to hand quilt.  My piecing skills are not the best so I’m hoping that being in the guild will help me to improve.  I have done several quilts in the past and for piecing, Trudie Hughes’ books were and still are my favorites.  I love to be around other quilters, I find creativity very inspiring.

My favorite quilt shop is on the main drag in Burleson and is called “Country Stitches.”  A huge selection of fabric and some very unusual quilting notions and tools.  Professionally I work part-time as a self-employed insurance underwriter.  My family consists of my husband of 21 years, Chris, and our two children, Sam, 19, and Kelly, 17.  I also have one long-haired piebald dachshund named Andi and three cats, Sophie, Pi, and Baby, all four of whom are terrifically spoiled.  The only other thing to know about me is I’m an awful chatterbox.

WILD GOOSE CHASE:

Aboce, there is a chart. We are going to make your geese using the 4 inches by 2 inches Finished measurements. Read the handout carefully. Pick your fabric for the “goose” — it will be the larger square. Next pick your fabric for the background. It will be the smaller squares. One large square of fabric combined with four smaller squares will yield four Flying Geese. So considering that, you will need to cut three large squares combined with 12 smaller squares. When you have these sewn, and cut, square them up to 4 1/2″ x 2 1/2″. Next sew three Flying Geese together, taking care not to cross the point by noting on the wrong side of the fabric where the point is.
Cut eight rectangles out of a contrasting fabric. Cut these rectangles 1 1/2″ x 6 1/2″ on the lengthwise grain. One rectangle will be sewn to each side of the 4 sets of Flying Geese. The squares should now measure
6 1/2″ square. They will be sewn together to form a 12 1/2″ square.

MINUTES

• The  June 2, 2008 meting of the Quilter’s Guild of Grand Prairie was called to order by President Debi Cypert at 7 p.m.  The minutes were approved as printed in the newsletter and the treasurer’s report was approved and filed for audit.  There were 14 members present.  Rembrances:  Pat Johnson had surgery recently and is recovering at home.
• Shirley gave an update on the workshops.  The next workshop is a UFO workshop on July 26th at First Presbyterian Church from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.  She then asked those that participated in the Jelly Braids workshop to do show and tell.  Mystery Quilt workshop will be in September.
• Upcoming program is the July birthday dinner.  Eddlemon’s will cater and we need headcount by June 27.  The Guild will pay.  Members should bring drinks or desserts.  Everyone should bring canned goods for the Grand Prairie Food & Clothing Co-Op.  We’ll play Quilto and everyone should bring a prize for Quilto — fat quarter or such.
• Carol reported on publicity — write up in the Dallas Morning News calendar on the Grand Prairie page and also in Grand Prairie Today.
• Old business — Turbans — Wanda made a couple of hats and brought a pattern.
• Row of the month/Block of the month — Santa Row should be brought to the July 7th meeting.
• Door prizes were won by Sharon, Wanda and Shirley.
• Show and Tell — Michelle, Wanda and Carol.
• Program:  Demos by officers.
• Meeting adjourned at about 8:30 p.m.

Michelle Rodriguez

WORKSHOP NEWS: July 26 is the date set for the UFO workshop.  It will be at First Presbyterian Church from 9:00-3:00.  Bring your own projects to finish or bring a new one to start.

If you don’t want to work on something of your own, this would be a good day to make cancer hats if you have an interest in that. If you can’t come for the whole time set aside, come for a couple of hours or so.
Bring whatever supplies you need plus your own drinks and snacks.  Lunch this time will be “on your own”.  Bring a lunch or plan to get fast food when you’re hungry.

Hope to see you there.

Shirley Lewis

FROM JANE COFFEY: If you took a Dresden Plate package from Jane to help complete Cheryl Rogers’ quilt, please get with Jane at the June meeting. She needs to make sure that the packages have not been forgotten since there are several still out. Thanks!

Some Guild members showed off their quilts (some still in progress). Click the image below to see pictures of the Show-and-Tell from the June 2 meeting.

NEXT MEETING: JUNE 2, 2008

DOOR PRIZES: If your last name begins with F, G or H please bring a door prize to the June meeting and give it to Elisabeth McMahon. This is a voluntary effort, but most of us like to receive a door prize and we hope everyone will participate. Please bring only quilting related items such as: Quilting Notions, fat quarters, triangle paper, magnetic pin holders, scissors, Pigma pens, etc.

PRESIDENT’S CORNER We will be using one of my favorite venues for the June meeting — several members will be demonstrating different tips and techniques.  Being able to share our quilting knowledge and skills is what our Guild is all about.  It does not matter whether you are a novice quilter or an expert quilter, we can all learn from each other.  I have never made a crazy quilt, but I have wanted to try by using old silk ties, beads, lace and silk ribbon, so I will be working this month on getting started and then sharing what I learn at the June meeting.  See everyone there!

SPOTLIGHT ON…: Since we have several new faces in the group, we’ve been doing a spotlight on feature in the newsletter to help everyone get better acquainted. We started with the officers, and soon will run out of “spotlights”. Please take a few minutes and send me a little bio about yourself. Just a couple of paragraphs — how long you’ve been in the Quilter’s Guild of Grand Prairie, how long you’ve been sewing/quilting and which quilt shop is your favorite. Any other information you want to send in about yourself or your fabric stash is welcome. If you don’t want to write anything about yourself, Paco has volunteered to interview you for up to 10 minutes. He would then write your bio. You may email your information to michelle@paco.org or you may give it to me at the May 5 meeting. If you want Paco to interview you, please let me know.

GET WITH THE PROGRAM! For June’s program, we are going to do a schoolhouse program. The officers will set up a station, the remaining guild members will divide up and rotate between stations. The time spent at each station will not be long, so we are not going to be doing a very difficult lesson at each station.

• Shirley Lewis: Prairie Points
• Michelle Rodriguez: Bias Binding
• Debi Cypert: How to make a crazy quilt block
• Cathy Mullin: How to make an Hourglass block using a half-square triangle
• Susan Hamilton: How to make four fan blocks using a single doily
• Sharon Milewski: easy Attic Windows

Susan Hamilton

UPCOMING PROGRAMS At our July 7 meeting we will mark our Guild’s 15th birthday.  We had our first Guild meeting on July 5, 1993.  To celebrate, we voted at the May meeting to have our annual birthday dinner catered by Eddlemon’s.  This will include dinner and paper goods.  We are asking the members to bring dessert and drinks.  So that we do not overestimate (or underestimate) the food that we need, please be sure we know that you plan to attend.  We will need to place the order with Eddlemon’s no later than Friday, June 27.

TREASURER’S REPORT
Beginning balance: 1416.43
Check to Sandy Shown for supplies: [27.91]
Deposit (dues): 25.00
Ending balance: 1413.52

PROFILE This year to help everyone get a little bit better acquainted with the members of the guild, we’ll spotlight a different member each month.

Spotlight on Sandy Shown
Membership

Sandy Shown is in charge of taking attendance and record keeping. Sandy is a third and fourth generation Native Texan. She joined the Guild in June of 2007, when she was brought in by Susan Hamilton.
She finds curves the most difficult to piece.

“I have learned the value of paying someone with a longarm quilter to do the work instead of rolling it through my machine, or trying to make time to quit it by hand when a meander is all I need,” she says.

Her favorite colors are blues, yellows and reds . Her least favorite colors are Chocolate brown and, depending on the combination, some greens.

“I really liked the Round Robin quilt project we did last year,” she says.  “It was fun and it  made me try new things with color and piecing.”

She has bags with fabric selections stashed in groups for future projects, as well as boxes of FQ’s and yardage to play with.

“So much fabric so little time.”

SAWTOOTH STAR:

For a 12 1/2″ finished star, cut the following:

Star Fabric:

1. Center square – 6 1/2″ square
2. Flying Geese small squares - size needed to make 6″ x 3″ finished geese.

➢ We will be making 4 Flying Geese blocks, so one large background fabric combined with 4 smaller star fabric squares should fit the star perfectly.
Background Fabric:

1. Flying Geese large square – size needed to make 6″ x 3″ finished geese.
2. Four corner squares - 3 1/2″ square each.

We will be setting this pattern as shown in the illustration.

MINUTES

• The  May 5, 2008 meeting of the Grand Prairie Quilt Guild was called to order by President Debi Cypert at 7:05 p.m.  The minutes were approved as printed in the newsletter.  The treasurer gave the current bank balance as $1,416.43.  There were 18 members and one guest present.  The guest was Susan’s friend, Sherry Sherry.
• Block of the month/Row Quilt:  all who had completed the houses and trees row brought their completed rows to show.  The 3rd row will be shown on July 7.  It is the Santa Row.
• Birthdays were Sandy, Sue and Joyce.
• Workshops:  Jelly Braids will be May 17.
• Newsletter:  Failed to put in about the Arlington Quilt Show which is May 9 and 10.  General announcement about Dallas Threads — see Dallasthreads.com — they will sell wholesale — minimum four cones of 6000 yds for $7.20 per cone.
• Remembrances:  Susan Cantrell married David Hamilton on April 28 and will now be known as Susan Hamilton.
• Susan introduced her friend, Sherry Sherry, who works with the Look Good, Feel Better organization through the American Cancer Society.  This is a national public service program to help women cope with appearance-related side effects of cancer treatment.  More info is at lookgoodfeelbetter.org.  She asked us to consider making turbans and hats as a service project for the program.
• Audit committee:  Michelle, Cathy and Grace audited the 2007 treasurer’s books and found everything to be in order.  The current balance tonight is $1,416.43.
• Upcoming programs:  June 2 will be schoolhouse demos.  July 7 will be our 15th birthday celebration.  Discussion was had about having Eddlemon’s cater.  The price will be approximately $9.25, including tax, per person.  It was moved, seconded and approved to have Eddlemon’s cater the July 7 dinner with the Guild paying for it.  Members will bring drinks and dessert.  We will need a head count by June 27.
• Door prizes were won by Susan, Marty, Grace, Sue, and our guest, Sherry.
• The program was the Ugly Fabric exchange.  Everyone was to bring ugly fabric cut into strips or charm squares for “shopping.”  This is in anticipation of our style show in November.
• There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.

­Michelle Rodriguez

JELLY BRAIDS WORKSHOP: We had a great time at the Jelly Braids workshop May 17.  Thanks, Michelle, for leading the workshop.  We were a little confused when we first started the “braids”, but we got the hang of it and everyone seemed pleased with their fabric choices.  We did not get the top finished, but we will all work on the project at home and bring it to the next meeting so you will all know what you missed!  As always, the food was deeelicious and the conversation was fun.

UPCOMING WORKSHOPS July 26 will be UFO day and September 27 will be a mystery quilt workshop.  Stay tuned.

Shirley Lewis

ROW QUILT:How wonderful it was to see the House and Tree Rows for those participating in the Christmas Row Quilt.  If you didn’t bring your row to the May meeting, there’s time for you to catch up.  Bring it along with your third row — the Santa Row— to the July 7th meeting. It was inspiring to see the different things people are doing with this pattern — adding rows of angels and snowmen.  If you have any questions, be sure to let Grace know.

UPDATES We should be getting an updated membership list soon, but in the meantime, here’s a list of additions/changes. New members or returning members since the directory was issued: Elisabeth McMahon, Lillie Martinez, Juanita Green, Lisa Boyce

Name changes: Susan Cantrell got married on April 28 and is now Susan Hamilton

LOOK GOOD, FEEL BETTER At the May 5 meeting, Sherry Sherry talked to us about the Look Good, Feel Better program associated with the American Cancer Society.  She talked about the great need for hats for chemo patients and showed some samples she brought with her.  There are many free patterns available online. You can find some of them on the internet at these links:

• www.cedarhillquiltersguild.org/SpecialProjects/CancerPatientHats.htm
• www.sewing.org/enthusiast/html/ec_turban.html
• www.brimmingwithlove.org

The last one is the home page — click on the patterns at the top and it will take you to a number of free patterns.

FROM JANE COFFEY: If you took a Dresden Plate package from Jane to help complete Cheryl Rogers’ quilt, please get with Jane at the June meeting.  She needs to make sure that the packages have not been forgotten since there are several still out.  Thanks!

Click on the image to see a photos slideshow of the Jelly Braids Workshop that took place May 17, 2008, at the First Presbyterian Church. The workshop was led by Michelle Rodriguez. Click the image below to start the slideshow:

Click on the image to see a photos slideshow of some (OK, most) of the Quilts displayed at the Arlington Quilt Show at the Bob Duncan Center in Arlington on May 10, 2008. Below the image, click to see a video:

Also, a video of a quick walk through the Quilt Show (look away if you get dizzy!):

NEXT MEETING: MAY 5, 2008

DOOR PRIZES: If your last name begins with B or C please bring a door prize to the May meeting and give it to Elisabeth McMahon. This is a voluntary effort, but most of us like to receive a door prize and we hope everyone will participate. Please bring only quilting related items such as: Quilting Notions, fat quarters, triangle paper, magnetic pin holders, scissors, Pigma pens, etc.

PRESIDENT’S CORNER
Where has the time gone! I start the year off with grand plans to complete all of my old projects and blocks of the month that have accumulated over several years, but find that I really haven’t made a dent. Then comes the show-and-tell during the April meeting with all of the wonderful examples from the “Stack-N-Whack” workshop that was held and I find myself thinking of what fabric I want to use to make that quilt. Every one of the examples were so different and I could not tell you which was my favorite. All the participants did a great job! Thank you, Shirley, for a great workshop!

SPOTLIGHT ON…: Since we have several new faces in the group, we’ve been doing a spotlight on feature in the newsletter to help everyone get better acquainted. We started with the officers, and soon will run out of “spotlights”. Please take a few minutes and send me a little bio about yourself. Just a couple of paragraphs — how long you’ve been in the Quilter’s Guild of Grand Prairie, how long you’ve been sewing/quilting and which quilt shop is your favorite. Any other information you want to send in about yourself or your fabric stash is welcome. If you don’t want to write anything about yourself, Paco has volunteered to interview you for up to 10 minutes. He would then write your bio. You may email your information to michelle@paco.org or you may give it to me at the May 5 meeting. If you want Paco to interview you, please let me know.

GET WITH THE PROGRAM! The May program is going to be sew simple. The ultimate goal for this nonsense is to have an ugly fabric challenge. The results of the ugly fabric challenge will be in a big reveal in the November meeting. At the April meeting, we discussed a style show, and a sweatshirt jacket or a Christmas stocking was mentioned. By no means, are these the only two options – your imagination is your only limitation! You could make a purse, a tote, a vest, pillows, drapery tiebacks, wine gift bags, jewelry holder pouches, potholders, baby bibs, valances, table runners, placemats, tea cozy, scarf, Xmas ornaments, a robe collar, or a mantle scarf, or anything else your mind dreams up. No limits!

Sew far, we have mentioned using strip piecing and crazy quilt blocks to add to your foundation, which could be a used dryer sheet, commercial stabilizer, or freezer paper. I just thought this would hold the patches together as you work with the placement of your patterns - on whatever option you choose to make. I plan to cover a sweatshirt with multiple methods, not just one.

You’ll need 1.25 yards of fabric. It is your choice how you wish to cut it up for the fabric swap. You can cut all of it up into 6-inch charm squares, or you can cut all of it into 2.5″ strips. Or you can do a little of both, or something completely different. This is completely optional. It is not a “You have to do it this way” type of adventure. It is a “Use your imagination” option. We had such a wide assortment of Round Robin quilts turn out from the same type of border predetermined at each stage, it will be exciting to see what comes out of everyone’s brain for the November program. So, get creative!

During the course of the year, the programs will build upon each other to foster skills that some of us may or may not have. In June, we will have a “schoolhouse” put on by the officers, where we will rotate from station to station and learn a different technique at each station.

In August, we will bring a dryer sheet size crazy quilt patch, which we will try our hand at embellishing. It is my goal to make this year a teaching year, and I’ve never seen anyone bring in a crazy quilt, so I thought we could all learn this technique together.

If any of you have any questions, or concerns, please let me know. I’m open to re-adjusting our programs to suit you ladies. This is supposed to be a fun adventure, so get ready, get set, SEW!

Susan Cantrell

Upcoming programs: June: Schoolhouse demos

TREASURER’S REPORT
Starting balance : Unknown
Ending balance :Unknown
(Subject to final 2007 audit of the books.)

PROFILE This year to help everyone get a little bit better acquainted with the members of the guild, we’ll spotlight a different member each month. We’ll start with the new officers.

Spotlight on Michelle Rodriguez
Secretary/Newsletter

I joined the Quilt Guild about 10 years ago. I had grown up around quilts and quilting, but I was never really interested in it until then. When I joined, my mother and grandmother were both members of the Guild, so it gave us all a common interest. I enjoy piecing the tops, but send them out to be quilted. My 99-year-old grandmother used to hand quilt for me, but she stopped hand quilting a few years ago — she still crochets, though!

My favorite quilt shops are The Quilt Asylum in McKinney, Quilt Country in Lewisville, and the online quilt shop, FatQuarterShop.com. When we travel, my husband knows I’m going to find a quilt shop somewhere, and I think he’s got a pretty good idea that I’ll be adding to my ever-growing stash of fabric.

BEAR’S PAW:

Background Fabric:
• Cut a strip of fabric 21/8″ wide x 9″ long on the lengthwise grain. Cut four squares from this — so cut four cuts 21/8″. These will go into the corners.
• Cut 2 strips 23/4″ wide x 40″ long on either lengthwise or crosswise grain (from selvedge to selvedge). From this cut four 53/8″ cuts. These will separate the paws.
• Cut 1 strip 21/2″ x 40. Layer with contrasting fabric and iron. Make your secondary cut into 21/2″ squares. These will make the claws when combined with contrasting fabric.

• Layer the strip of background fabric with the strip of contrasting fabric, and draw a line every 21/2″. Draw a diagonal line from corner to corner on back of the background fabric between the lines that you previously drew, then sew 1/4″ from the drawn diagonal lines on each side of the drawn line. *
• Cut on the drawn line from corner to corner.
• Lay on ironing board, dark side up. Set seams, then press to the dark.
• After sewing & pressing, half-square triangles should square up to 21/8″.

*Layer and draw grid of background gabric and contrasting fabric

Contrasting Fabric:
• Cut a 23/4″ square for the center square.
• Cut a strip 33/4″ x 16″. From this cut four squares – so cut four cuts of 33/4″.
• Cut 1 strip 2 1/2″ x 40. Layer with background fabric and iron. Follow the directions mentioned in the first “dot” bullet above. These will make the claws when combined with background fabric.

• Lay on ironing board, dark side up. Set seams, then press to the dark.
• After sewing, half-square triangles should square up to 21/8″

MINUTES

• The April 7, 2008 meeting was called to order at 7 p.m. by president Debi Cypert.  There were no corrections to the minutes and the treasurer’s report was unavailable.
• There were 20 members present, including two new members.  Juanita Green is a returning former member and Lisa Boyce is a new member who found us via our new website.  There were two visitors, Maria Holmes and her mother, Pam Lowe.
• Publicity:  Carol had the newspaper announcements of the guild meeting with her tonight.
• Block of the month:  Grace reminded everyone participating in the Christmas Row Quilt that everyone should bring the House and Tree Row to the May meeting.  She also reminded everyone to be very careful in their seam allowances and piecing as there seem to be some problems with the sizes of row 1 and row 2.
• Workshops:  Shirley has a sign up sheet for the May 17 Jelly Braids workshop.  She also gave a report on the March 15 Stack-N-Whack workshop.  Maria Holmes led the workshop and there were nine attendees.  Those who participated showed their finished products. Paco was also at the meeting to take pictures of the show and tell to put on the website.  Be sure to look at the website for the latest information.
• Door prizes were won by Sue Heard, Pat Johnson, and Susan Cantrell.
• The May 5 program will be part one of the Ugly Fabric Challenge.  Everyone should bring 1.25 yards of their ugliest fabric either cut into 21/2 inch strips or 6 inch charm squares or a combination of both.  We will “shop” each other’s fabric at the meeting and discuss more about what we’ll do with the fabric.  Tonight’s program was led by Susan.  She talked about Seminole patchwork.  After the program, she had her beginner’s class on the Bear’s Paw.

­Michelle Rodriguez

JELLY BRAIDS WORKSHOP: Michelle Rodriguez will lead this workshop on Saturday, May 17, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church, Michelle showed her quilt at the last two meetings and will bring it again to the May meeting.  She had a supply list at the last meeting.  If you didn’t get a list, you will need:  jelly roll (or other fabrics cut 2 1/2 inches by 45 inches OR if you use fat quarters, you will need two strips of each to equal that amount), fabrics for borders, pins, sewing machine, thread, seam ripper (just in case), scissors, rotary cutter and cutting mat, extension cord, irons or mini irons and pressing mats or ironing board.

Michelle says this quilt will be great for all skill levels and we can finish a good part of the quilt if we precut.  She will go into that more at the May meeting.   Michelle is leading the workshop for free, so I am asking each of you to bring two or three fat quarters to show your appreciation for her time and effort.  I will bring a container for all the fat quarters.  Eight people signed up for the workshop, but you can still sign up at the May meeting.

Please bring a salad to share for lunch and whatever snacks and drinks you may want for the day.
Hope to see you there!  Workshops are always a lot of fun and great fellowship.

Shirley Lewis

ROW QUILT: If you are participating in the Christmas Row Quilt, don’t forget to be working on your house and tree row. There are lots of small pieces and some templates to cut out, so be sure to pace yourself to have the row ready to bring to the May 5 meeting. Most of the people participating in this row quilt brought their stars row to the March meeting. How inspiring to see everyone’s different color combinations. Be sure to be careful and accurate when piecing your rows, it was reported that the second row may end up being a little longer than the first row–even with being careful and being accurate.

Some Guild members showed off their quilts (some still in progress) of the Stack-N-Wack quilts they began sewing after the March 15 workshop. The quilts are made with the kaleidoscope designs created at the workshop. Click the image below to see pictures of the Show-and-Tell from the April 7 meeting.

Check this out:

Sue Heard showed her Christmas throw that she recently completed. She told about how re-worked the layout of the pattern after she (and her husband and granddaughter) saw the way it went together (click the image to see the video):

NEXT MEETING: APRIL 7, 2008

DOOR PRIZES: If your last name begins with O, R or S please bring a door prize to the April meeting and give it to Elisabeth McMahon. This is a voluntary effort, but most of us like to receive a door prize and we hope everyone will participate. Please bring only quilting related items such as: Quilting Notions, fat quarters, triangle paper, magnetic pin holders, scissors, Pigma pens, etc.

PRESIDENT’S CORNER

Happy Spring! March brings us the beginnings of spring blooms and the aroma of freshly mown grass… and daylight savings time.

I did get to attend the Dallas Quilt Celebration this past weekend and as usual I bought fabric. I resolve every year not to buy another book, pattern, fabric, gadget or join another block of the month until I get caught up with my projects/UFO’s. Doesn’t work though. Don’t know why I even try. I do get inspired to get busy as I walk the aisles and aisles of beautiful entries and see all the goodies the vendors have brought. Maybe, just maybe I can get a few things finished before this new inspiration starts to fade. Happy Easter everyone!

SPOTLIGHT ON…: Since we have several new faces in the group, we’ve been doing a spotlight on feature in the newsletter to help everyone get better acquainted. We started with the officers, and soon will run out of “spotlights”. Please take a few minutes and send me a little bio about yourself. Just a couple of paragraphs — how long you’ve been in the Quilter’s Guild of Grand Prairie, how long you’ve been sewing/quilting and which quilt shop is your favorite. Any other information you want to send in about yourself or your fabric stash is welcome. If you don’t want to write anything about yourself, Paco has volunteered to interview you for up to 10 minutes. He would then write your bio. You may email your information to michelle@paco.org or you may give it to me at the April 7th meeting. If you want Paco to interview you, please let me know.

GET WITH THE PROGRAM! SEMINOLE PIECING: A method of cutting joined strips of fabric into sections and re-piecing them with either plain contrasting fabric strips in between, or in staggered rows similar to checkerboarding. Adapted from the bright patchwork of the Seminole Indians in Florida, this technique is often used in borders and quilted clothing.

Upcoming programs: May: Ugly Fabric, June: Schoolhouse demos

TREASURER’S REPORT
Starting balance : Unknown
Ending balance :Unknown
(Subject to final 2007 audit of the books.)

PROFILE This year to help everyone get a little bit better acquainted with the members of the guild, we’ll spotlight a different member each month. We’ll start with the new officers.

Spotlight on Shirley Lewis
Workshops

I am a charter member of the Quilter’s Guild of Grand Prairie. My mom, Marie Weeks, and I joined together and enjoyed the opportunity to attend meetings and workshops that we were both interested in. A few years ago my daughter, Michelle Rodriguez, became interested in quilting and now we have the opportunity to share a common interest.

I have always loved quilts. As a child we had quilts on every bed, but they were utilitarian quilts instead of the pretty ones we make today. When I got married I turned to blankets and comforters for several years before deciding to try my hand at making pretty quilts. My mother-in-law probably should get the credit for encouraging me. However, her quilts are all completely hand stitched and mine are made on the sewing machine. I often gave her a picture and she made the patterns herself.

My favorite quilt shop is Quilt Country in Lewisville. However, I am always interested in locating quilt shops wherever we travel. My husband has resigned himself to stopping at all the shops I see. Of course I always buy too much, but fabric collecting is my favorite hobby!

PINWHEEL:

Pinwheel blocks are comprised of triangles. There is more than one way to make this block. The most accurate way is with triangle paper. This is available in 1 1/2″, 2″, 2 1/2″, 3″, etc. However, if you are not in possession of triangle paper, and have need of half-square triangles, here are directions for making 3″ half-square triangles.

• When making a triangle, always add 7/8″ to the finished size of the square that you will cut first. If your ruler does not have that measurement, simply add 1″.

OPTION 1

Cut 1 strip of light fabric 3 7/8″ – cut the same of a dark fabric. Place these two fabrics right sides together, and iron. The ironing adheres the fabrics together a little more so that they will not shift during the cutting process.

Cut eight 3 7/8″ squares. Cut these squares in half diagonally. Now you will have 16 halves. Feed them through the sewing machine on the diagonal line one after the other without cutting thread. This saves on motion and thread. Make sure that the same color is on the top. I recommend that you always use your walking foot when sewing together bias edges. You will have 16 half-square triangles. Cut threads and press toward the darker fabric. Use your 6 1/2″ square up ruler to make sure that they are 3 1/2″ square. If excess fabric sticks out, trim it off. Lay each half-square triangle out so that the dark and light are always touching. We want it to make the pinwheel, so we don’t want any two darks touching or any 2 lights touching. After we sew them together, we will have a 6 1/2″ square; we will sew 4 of those together to form a 12 1/2″ square. Square up at each phase.

OPTION 2

Instead of cutting through the square diagonally, make a pencil line on the wrong side of the lighter fabric on the diagonal. Draw a 1/4″ line on each side of this center line, then stitch on the 2 outer lines. Cut on the center line after both sides are stitched.

You will have your half-square triangles without having to deal with bias edges. If you have a 1/4″ foot, then you will not need to draw the extra two lines, only the center line. Square up.

MINUTES

• The meeting was called to order at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 3, 2008 by president Debi Cypert. There was a correction to the February minutes — there were only 19 members present at the February meeting instead of the reported 21. Two guests signed in as members. No treasurer’s report — audit still pending.
• Newsletter: Paco was at the meeting to take pictures of show and tell for the website. We received three months worth of advertising from English Street Quilters and if reminded, she will probably do three more months. Members were reminded that each member receives one free ad for one month per year.
• Membership: There were 19 members present and three guests. The three guests were Suzie Harris and Alisa Orr from Just Stitchin’ in Cedar Hill and Jean Villaneuva who came with Lillie Martinez. Welcome back to Lillie Martinez and Sue Heard — former members who re-joined this year.
• Publicity: Carol brought the Dallas Morning News with the information about the meeting.
• Block of the Month/Row Quilt: Grace had everyone who is participating in this show their finished Star row. Everyone’s row looks different. Grace also reprted that she has completed her next row and that it is longer than the first row and that she had to make an adjusment. Her advice to everyone is to be extremely careful as you sew.
• Workshops: Shirley reminded everyone of the Stack-N-Whack workshop on March 15 with Maria Holmes from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church. She went over the supply list and asked everyone participating to bring a salad to share. The second workshop for the year will be on May 17 at First Presbyterian Church also from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Michelle will lead it on the Jelly Braids jelly roll pattern. She has the quilt top here and more details will follow. Sign-up sheet is available.
• Programs: April will be Seminole Piecing Techniques. May will be the Ugly Fabric Challenge. There was a list of items in the last newsletter that everyone should be collecting for either a sweatshirt or Christmas stocking. The patterns in the newsletter are the patterns that she is using at the end of the program for the beginner’s class. This month the end of program beginner’s class will be on half square triangles.
• Door prizes were won by Wanda, Pat, Sue and Judy.
• Show & Tell: Joyce, Shirley, Sandy, Wanda. Dallas Quilt Show is March 14-16.
• The program was presented by Suzie Harris and Alisa Orr from Just Stitchin’ in Cedar Hill. They talked about jelly rolls, jelly roll patterns and rulers you can use for the jelly roll.

­Michelle Rodriguez

STACK-N-WHACK WORKSHOP: The Stack N Whack workshop led by Maria Holmes was great! Eleven people signed up for the workshop and nine attended. Maria had assured me that this quilt was easy and she was right. We all had a great time and were very pleased with the resulting blocks. Everyone was amazed at the many different blocks that could be created from a single piece of fabric. I would like for all of you to bring your finished quilt top or your blocks if you have not had time to finish the quilt top so everyone can see what you did. We had a lot of fun and wonderful food too.

MAY 17 WORKSHOP: Saturday, May 17 is the date set for the Jelly Braids quilt workshop from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church. Michelle Rodriguez will lead the workshop. Michelle showed her quilt at the last meeting and will bring it again for the April meeting. Some of you bought jelly rolls at the last meeting. If you prefer, you can use yardage or fat quarters instead of buying the jelly rolls. Michelle will have more information at the April meeting and a sign-up sheet. It is a beautiful pattern and will be fun to make, so plan to join us.

Shirley Lewis

ROW QUILT: If you are participating in the Christmas Row Quilt, don’t forget to be working on your house and tree row. There are lots of small pieces and some templates to cut out, so be sure to pace yourself to have the row ready to bring to the May 5th meeting. Most of the people participating in this row quilt brought their stars row to the March meeting. How inspiring to see everyone’s different color combinations. Be sure to be careful and accurate when piecing your rows, it was reported that the second row may end up being a little longer than the first row–even with being careful and being accurate.

Quilts-For-Sale

On Sunday, March 16, CBS News Sunday Morning put quilting in the national spotlight by airing a seven minute segment that profiled Ricky Tims and the International Quilt Festival in Houston. This segment was presented in a very positive light and brought awareness to many who had no idea about the magnitude of today’s quilting industry (video from CBS News begins after commercial):

A few pictures from Quilt Celebration 2008 sponsored by the Quilter’s Guild of Dallas. Click on the images below to see a slideshow of images taken March 16, 2008 (link opens in a new window):