I had the pleasure of attending Salem's Mid-Valley Quilt Guild's July meeting and hearing some delightful speakers, as well as viewing some wonderful quilts, bags, potholders, casserole dishes, salads, and desserts.
Having sewn since I was 12, and quilted since the '80s, I realized I'm still in a bit of time warp. Still making the simple little quilts that I've loved for decades and giving almost everything I make away! So, time for a change and some new inspiration, friendships, and ideas! With over 300 women quilters and one brave and extremely talented man, the MVQG offers it all.
So, I changed my non-joining ways and I finally joined the Guild ;)
The Mid-Valley Quilt Guild serves quilters from all around the Willamette Valley, with the city of Salem as our hub. Like most guilds, the group meets monthly...11 months out of the year and holds a wonderful quilt show every other year balanced with an educational series of classes called 'Quilt College' as the bi-annual alternate event. Meeting at Morningside Methodist Church on the last Tuesday of the month, this month (July) was our potluck dinner and awards meeting.
As my first 'official' meeting (I've come as a guest before) it was a great meeting to attend. Plenty of wonderful dishes to choose from, an enthusiastic speaker (Rachel Greco, from Grandma's Attic Sewing Emporium in Dallas, OR) and lots of great women and charming projects to share. Rachel spoke about "Silly Things That Quilters Do That Mess Up Their Lives." From things like buying cheap fabrics to being ruled by the Quilt Police to coveting thy neighbor's stash, I'd pretty much done them all. I figured that more than qualified me as a 'real woman who quilts' and definitely helped me to feel welcomed and one of the group.
Now, I've only got one month to wait until the next meeting....and a year until the casseroles, salads and desserts!
Shown above:
Leslie Zeigen, (creator of the amazing "you have to see it to believe it Bibliophile library quilt" ( A Shared Passion for Textile Arts: Leslie Coleman Zeigen) shows her Karla Alexander patterned quilt from Karla's New Cuts for New Quilts (More Ways to Stack the Deck)
Karla, by the way, lives here in Salem and is a member of the guild :)
4 comments:
Fun to hear about your quilt guild! I felt like the lone quilter for a long time until I joined my local guild and now I have lots of local quilting friends. I really enjoy being part of a group of quilters.
I hope you find continued inspiration and companionship with your new affiliation... (sounds like the guild could easily put together a great cookbook, too!)
Hi Michele, sounds like they have a new convert on their hands. Hurray for you for jumping in *VBS*
Don't give up all of your wonderful self tho...promise?
It should be a barrel of fun and new things to learn. Viva guilds! Hugs, Finn
I hope your guild experience is a great one, but if it turns out to be a bummer---just find yourself some Wacky Friend like I did. We have a ball with no problems!!
Thanks for visiting my blog. I enjoyed reading this post and will be back for more
Molly
www.sewhappy10000.blogspot.com
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