Summer 2015 Little Quilt Swap

How would you like to participate in a swap?  What is a swap, you ask?  A swap is an activity in which you create a particular item for a swap partner, and someone else makes an item for you.  You don’t know who is making an item for you, and your swap partner doesn’t know who you are or what you are making him or her.  It’s a blast!

To tempt you a little bit, here is a little quilt Stephanie received in a swap she participate in once.  Her friend, Ivy, made it for her.  It's such a treasure!

The quilt Stephanie received from Ivy in a swap!

 Here are the details:

This swap is open to members of the Great Lakes Modern Quilt Guild only.  If you are interested in participating, please click on the link below to sign up.  You must complete and submit the sign up form by 5:00 pm on Saturday, June 6 to participate!

SIGN UP FOR THE SWAP HERE!

After you sign up, you will receive an email, telling you your Pinterest inspiration board is ready to access.  Click the link below for hints on creating your Pinterest inspiration board.

CLICK HERE FOR PINTEREST INSTRUCTIONS AND TIPS!

Click on the link below to access the guild Pinterest site, where you can locate your inspiration board.  Pin at least 10 items to your inspiration board to give your swap partner an idea of what you like.  You can pin quilts, fabric, other color inspirations, or anything that might give your partner ideas about what you like and to inspire them to make something awesome for you.  Complete your Pinterest board by June 13, 2015 at 5:00.

GO TO GREAT LAKES MODERN QUILTER PINTEREST SITE BY CLICKING HERE!

When you receive the name of your partner, go to our guild Pinterest site (link above) and find your partner’s board. Study the board to get an idea of what your partner would like.  Then, get to work on creating a little quilt for your partner based on ideas you generated from his/her inspiration board.

Specifications for the little quilt:

1. The quilt should be somewhere between 48” and 80” in perimeter.  This means your quilt could be as small as 12”x12” or as large as 20”x20”.  It could also be a rectangle, such as 10”x 30”, as long as it is not larger than the perimeter requirements listed.
2. Please make your little quilt in the modern style. 
3.  The quilt should consist of three layers:  backing, batting, and top.  It should be quilted and “finished” (or bound) in some fashion.
4. You may use any form you’d like…piecing, applique, etc.
5. Please use your best workmanship and quilt shop quality fabrics.
6. Feel free to post little sneak peeks of your project on our guild’s Facebook page.  You could do a little snippet of your fabrics or your progress.  But don’t give away who your partner is.  Just say something like this:  “Hope you like it, partner!”  Folks will be wondering (and hoping) they are your partner!
7.  Work on your little quilt through June and July.  This will be our on-line activity for that time period.

If you need some inspiration, check out the Blogger’s Quilt Festival over at Amy’s Creative Side blog for lots of little quilts.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT AMY'S CREATIVE SIDE

Bring your completed quilt to the July meeting, which is July 25, 2015.  We will have a show and tell at the meeting and reveal who the partners are.  You will deliver by hand your swap item, and you will receive your quilt at the meeting, too!  If you cannot make it to the meeting, please make sure you give your swap item to someone to deliver for you.

Please make sure you can have your quilt done on time.  If you cannot, please let Stephanie or Pam know right away so that an “angel quilter” can be identified to ensure your quilt is finished and no one leaves the meeting disappointed.

Some swaps involve sending little “goodies” along for your swap partner.  We are asking people NOT to do that for this swap.  Just the quilt is enough, as is your friendship!

If you have questions, please email Stephanie or Pam.  We will be glad to answer questions and help you with any steps along the way (including help with Pinterest, if you need it).

Let’s have some fun!!!  Hope you'll join in!

Hugs,

Stephanie and Pam

May Online Block Activity!

Here's our block to make for the May meeting! 

I came across the quilt image below and was thrilled that there is also a tutorial for the block. (The designer, Sarah at Sew Joy Creations, has also since created a pattern for purchase for the quilt you see below.)

Please use white solid for the background and any solid or print cool colors (greens, blues) for the pieced sections. I love Sarah's technique--basically she uses the white solid as the foundation and pieces scraps on top of it to make the scrappy sections. Then you trim down to size when you're done--piece of cake!

And now here are a few tips from when I made the block so you don't make the same mistakes I did!

Read through the tutorial here. For our purposes, start with a 15" white square. After you make the cuts Sarah describes, use a fabric marking pen to number the pieces. I highly recommend numbering them in such a way that also indicates the direction the piece should be facing--even though it seems like it will be obvious when it comes to re-assembly, you might be surprised! I numbered each section and marked that number on both the part that stays white (I tried to mark this in the seam allowance) and then the part that will be pieced. I also put an "X" on the part that would be pieced to make sure I used the right portion.

Here you see my pieced parts laid out with the white parts.

And here you see my sections assembled into three rows. After sewing the sections together into rows, I had to trim the edges of the rows that would be stitched. (I also, despite my numbering, somehow screwed up the placement of my pieces--hence my emphasis on labeling! Also...I didn't label the white center piece to indicate which direction it should go. Make sure you label yours!)

Here is my block, stitched together. At this point it needs to be squared up. My block squared up to 12". They may not all square up to exactly the same size--square yours up as large as you can (and don't worry about cutting off points--this is liberated, after all!), and we'll let the winner decide if she or he wants to trim them all to the same size or add white spacers around the edges (which is what the pattern designer recommended).

And here's mine squared up again:

Now for the details on how to win the blocks:

Submission/Winning:

• Submit a photo of the completed block by May 30.  We want this to be fun and easy, not stressful, so we have several options for submitting your photo.
• If you have a Flickr account, please post the photo to Flickr, add it to the Great Lakes Modern Quilt Guild group pool, and tag it GLMQG052015. *Adding the tag is key, because it allows the photo to get into the slideshow on our blog.*
• If you have a Facebook account, you may post the picture to the Great Lakes Modern Quilt Guild Facebook page. 
• You may email your photo to glmodernquilter@gmail.com 
• If you do not have access to a digital camera, contact me (Lisa) and I will arrange to photograph your block.
• How to win all the blocks:
• We are going to draw for a winner of all the blocks at our next live meeting, which is May 30.  You do not need to be present to win.
• IMPORTANT: If you want to be entered in the drawing but will not be at the meeting with your block, please make sure to let another attendee know. We try our best to make sure everyone who submits a photo of their block gets entered in the drawing, but making sure a friend puts your name in the hat will guarantee you have a chance to win!
• You get your name in the drawing each time you enter a block.  So, if you submit two blocks, your name goes in the drawing twice!
• Please bring your completed block to the May meeting so all the blocks can be delivered to the winner.  If the winner is not at the meeting, we will mail them to him/her.
• We'll post the name of the winner here on the blog.  So, if we don't have your email address, check the blog so you can see if you won and can send us your contact information.  (If you are at the meeting, you'll get your blocks on the spot!)
• If you will not be at the meeting, either
• Give the block to a friend to bring it for you, or
• Mail it in.  E-mail us at glmodernquilter@gmail.com, and we'll send you the mailing address where you can send your blocks.

• That winner must assemble the blocks into a finished quilt before being eligible to win again. Fair enough?

As always, leave a comment if you have a question and I'll try to answer it!
Thanks!
Lisa