Meeting Reminder - Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Below are the blurbs about the outreach programs featured in our February program, which is our Guild Outreach Month.

Senior Services: Senior Services’ mission is to help older adults remain at home for as long as possible and to help them live with dignity. With concern for those who care for senior adults, we also help caregivers through services and education that will benefit them.

Individuals who cannot afford to pay for services are of special concern to Senior Services and receive assistance to every extent possible through philanthropic contributions and available public funds. 

One of the philanthropic missions of the Triad Modern Quilt Guild is to sew lap quilts and to raise money and collect items for seniors in need in the Triad. Don't forget that this month is Dental Health Month!  Bring your unused toothbrushes, toothpaste, flow, denture cleaner, Fixodent, etc.

Sewing for Babies: “Sewing for Babies” is a group of crafty volunteers who meet monthly at Village Fabric Shop. They sew needed items for the babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Forsyth Hospital. They started just last year in January of 2018. You can learn more at their Facebook page “Sewing for Babies Winston-Salem".

Ryan's Case for Smiles: A hospital experience can be terrifying and traumatic for both a child and their family. While others strive to find a cure, Ryan’s Case for Smiles helps with the stress and emotional impact of illness in the here and now. Their whimsical pillowcases give children an emotional boost, while information on resources and tools help families better understand and cope with the experience.  Their pillowcases help brighten up an otherwise very clinical environment.  Each pillowcase is packaged with an insert that provides links to copying strategies, tools and resources.  The local Winston-Salem chapter is 100% volunteer and they have to raise all the funds to buy fabric, thread, needles, etc.  Their delivery commitment is 150 - 170 pillowcases to Brenner Children's Hospital each month and 50 to Ronald McDonald House each month.  Donated pillowcases can be dropped off at Sew Original, Sewingly Yours, or Village Fabric Shop.  All pillowcases must be made from 100% cotton.

 http://caseforsmiles.org/

Little Dresses for Africa: Making a difference because girl orphans are among the most devalued and abused in their culture, and face such oppression, it is the mission of Little Dresses for Africa to plant in the hearts of these little girls that they are worthy.  It is reported that girls wearing a new little dress are much less likely to be abducted, abused or molested because the new little dress shows that someone cares about them.

It is a widespread but sometimes unacknowledged problem that girls in Africa miss school and stay at home because of menstruation.  Join the Dignity program and help LDA help them, by sewing “Sani-panties” distributed through Little Dresses for Africa. Include new package panties when you can!

Minutes from January 22, 2019 meeting

Meet the officers:

Muriel Riggs is our outgoing President.  Sheri Collette is our incoming President.  Thank you, Muriel and Sheri, for volunteering to take this leadership position.

Sheri handed out a Guild Survey.  If you did not get a chance to participate, here are the questions that you can still answer:

1.  Is there a speaker you would like to see invited to our guild?

2.  Is there someone you follow on Instagram that you think would make a good speaker?

3.  What kind of workshops would you like to see offered?

4.  Is there anything else you would like to see the Guild do in 2019?

While we may not be able to bring someone in this year, if we make contact, we may be able to schedule someone for a future year.  It can’t hurt to ask!

Ann Holland is our outgoing Treasurer and she gave her final financial report.  We are going into the new year with a respectable financial cushion.  Cynthia Lees is our incoming Treasurer.  If you have any expenses in association with the TMQG, please take your receipt to her.

Belva and Amanda Hinshaw are handing our club swaps.  We will have one external swap with the Central Ohio MQG.  Swap details will be forthcoming.

Bethany Sharpton handles our social media on Facebook and Instagram.  Please like and/or follow us.  Also, if you have anything to share, let Bethany know.

Ann Monroe coordinates our community service projects with Senior Services.  Ann suggested that members bring incontinence products in January.  February’s focus will be dental health.  Start collecting the toothpaste, tooth brushes, and floss that you receive from your dentist.  Ann is also planning three sew-ins; one each in March, June, and September.  Kits for lap quilts are being made up from fabric donated to the guild.  It would be wonderful if each member could donate a quilt.  It would be a great way to use up scraps!

Lee Monroe is managing the raffle quilt project.  The plan is to make two throw-sized quilts by June.  Anyone wanting to work on the quilt is invited to participate, regardless of skill level.  Just let Lee know that you willing to work!

Ticket sales will run from June until the November meeting, when we will hold the drawing.  Members will be asked to sell $40 worth of tickets this year.  Sitting with the quilt at craft and quilt shows counts towards your total.

Liz Bowen is in charge of our prize patrol.  She will present raffle tickets during our meetings.  You receive 1 ticket for attending the meeting, 1 ticket for wearing a name tag, and 1 for donating to Senior Services.  Prizes are presented at the end of the meeting.  If you have something to donate, please give it to Liz.

Annelise Gorensek is scheduling our programs.  February will focus on sewing for organizations.  There are needs out there and our life paths may draw us to one type of work over another.  February speakers will present opportunities for us to make a difference in someone else’s life.

July will be “Christmas in July”.  Bring easy to make items (preferably with instructions) that would be suitable as Christmas (or other celebration) gifts.  It will also be our ice cream social.

Outside speakers have been invited, but dates have not been confirmed.  As the schedule firms up, we will forward the information to you.

Roseanne Morgan is the Secretary.  She is responsible for posting to the blog, making sure that members can access the MQG website, and providing email information to interested parties.  If you know of someone who cannot access the website or is not receiving emails, please let her know.  Her email is rpmorgan1@bellsouth.net

She also accepts constructive feedback and information of interest to our guild.

Other announcements:

QuitCon:  February 21 - 24, 2019 in Nashville, TN.

Show and Tell:  Please bring your handcrafted items to guild meetings so everyone can oooh and aaah.  Items do not have to be modern quilts since we appreciate the craftmanship of a variety of arts and crafts.  In the past we have seen handmade bags and clutches, sewn and knit garments, quilts for specific holidays, traditional quilts with applique, embroidered items, family heirloom quilts, etc.  Please share!

Snow policy:  If there is adverse weather, the South Fork folks follow the instructions provided by Forsyth Tech Community College.  If Forsyth Tech is closed, South Fork is closed.

The January Program:  Understanding the Rainbow, color theory instruction by Lee Monroe.  Lee brought several examples of the color combinations that she had done in her quilts.  She went beyond the usual primary and secondary colors to demonstrate tertiary colors.  She discussed monochromatic, analogous, and complimentary color schemes.  Then she went into tints, shades, and tones; topics that are usually discussed in the paint store.  She discussed sorting scraps based on pure colors, tints (white mixed into the color), shades (black mixed into the color), and tones (black and white mixed into the color). 

Take away lesson - Label Your Quilts!

Next meeting:  February 26, 2019 at 6:30 pm, South Fork Community Center, 4403 Country Club Road, Winston Salem, NC

Happy New Year!

It's a new year for our guild.  We hope you are ready to dig your sewing machine out from under the gift wrap paper for another great year of designing, piecing, and quilting.

The TMQG Board had a meeting to plan this year.  Our goals are 1) to provide educational opportunities to our members, and 2) to provide lap quilts, toiletry items, and other sundries to Forsyth Co. Senior Services and the elderly members of our community.  Our meeting focused on ways to accomplish those goals.

Tentative Calendar for 2019
January - Lee Monroe on color theory 
February - opportunities for charity sewing by various members
April - Claudia Martinez - Snuggly Monkey
July - Ice Cream Social - bring an idea for a gift and information on the pattern

We are also planning on 3 sew-ins for the year in March, June, and September.  We will be scheduling these for the Friday evenings after the Tuesday meetings.  

More information for the calendar to come as we receive confirmation from our invited guests. 

Swaps are being planned, both internal and external.

For the annual raffle, we are planning on making 2 throw sized quilts.  We will be asking each member to sell $40 worth of tickets.  Raffle proceeds are used to invite quilting educators from across the country and to pay their speakers fee and travel costs.

January Program - 
Tuesday, January 22, 2019 at 6:30 pm
South Fork Community Center

Remember Senior Services - While shopping this MLK holiday, consider picking up a package of adult sized diapers to donate.

Please welcome our own Lee Monroe.  She will be presenting "Understanding the Rainbow", a discussion of color theory.

Inclement Weather?  
South Fork Community Center follows the plans of Forsyth Technical Community College.  If FTCC is closed in the evening, then the Community Center will be closed, too.

Meeting Reminder and Notes from the October 2018 meeting

Volunteer Opportunities
Senior Services sent us a Thank You letter for our Christmas in July donations.  Now that we are in the Holiday season, it is time for the Real Christmas in December collection.  Consider Target cards ($5-10), incontinence protection products, travel size soaps and shampoos, and other toiletry items.  The club also has fabric and batting for the production of lap quilts.

Raffle Quilt

Our raffle quilt is finished and it is beautiful!  Tickets are available. We are asking that each member sell at least $20.00 worth of tickets for the quilt.  $1.00 per ticket, $5.00 for 6 tickets.  The winning ticket will be drawn at our November holiday meeting.

For every $20 of tickets you sell, you will be entered in a drawing for a bag of Lee Monroe goodies.  Thanks, Lee for the donation!

Membership and Dues

2019 TMQG membership dues are $40.  Members who joined or rejoined in September, October, and November will be entered in a special drawing for some of Lee's fat quarter stash.

Coming Programs

The November 27th meeting will be our Holiday gathering.  It will be a pot luck (think sweet or savory) and decoration swap.  If you wish to be part of the swap, please bring one or more holiday decorations that you would be pleased to receive.  There will be 3 “time invested” categories in which you may participate:

a) less than one day’s effort

b) about one day’s effort

c) more than one day’s effort

When you enter a swap item in one of these categories you will receive a swap item from that same category

October program

The October meeting was a round robin of member demonstrations.  

Amber demonstrated some new products including Japanese engineered scissors that cut smoothly all the way down to the tip, an expanded rigid foam block which is great for removing loose threads and dog hairs, and a seam ripper that does not cut the fabric. 

 Colleen demonstrated her "in the hoop" embroidery on vinyl she is using to make key chains and lip balm holders. She had a great handout with supplier contact information.  She ended up selling a good portion of her on-hand stock after the meeting.

Muriel demonstrated her techniques for making Sculpey clay into beads,  flowers,  and strawberries.  She molds these around the heads of corsage pins to decorate her pin cushion swap items.  She also gave baking instructions to set the clay.  Although she said these beads are easy to make, she really has a knack for them.

Since our last gathering...

Forsyth Piecers' and Quilters' (FPQ) Quilt Show 

Thanks to all the members who entered quilts in the exhibit and in the juried show.  We had  a wonderful sampling of modern quilts and Lee Monroe had a trunk show which had a great attendance.  Our members earned several awards. Photos of our member's work was posted on our Facebook page.  Check it out!

See you all on Tuesday, November 27, at the South Fork Recreation Center.  We start eating at 6 pm!