Well, that was quick! Because of a scheduling problem, at about 6:55 p.m. we were hustled out of the Goeske Center, having been told that they were closing at 7:00 p.m. Our President is tracking down where everything went haywire, but it might be apparent that we cannot easily re-schedule our meetings if there is a conflict. We’ll revisit this issue later, but…THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CAME!

Here we are at the beginning of February already. I actually got a burst of energy and got my Christmas tree down and in the trash – even before Valentine’s Day! Still a lot of decorations to pack up, but it can wait….. I have sewing to do! I’m sure most of you are like me with many UFOs to complete. Ah, but which one to tackle first?? I like things to be somewhat neat and orderly before I tackle a project, so I guess this is the perfect time to weed out my stash and make a pile for our Trash to Treasure event coming up in March.  I hope you’re enjoying this very cool weather and not plagued by power outages. I know some people who got very creative trying to keep warm.  Thankfully, as quilters, we have a few quilts to keep us toasty.  We’ll be back to our “normal” meeting schedule next month – see you then!
In the meantime, keep those bobbins full!

Some scenes from our (very quick) meeting last week, on January 29th, click to advance the photos:

Announcement #1: Bylaws and Standing Rules Committee

In the above tab marked Bylaws is the structure and rules and laws of our Guild, and occasionally (every three years) a committee will convene to adjust what we approved through a vote in October 2023. While we are a bit early on this one, we’d like some help! It involves a meeting or two, a flurry of emails, and some close reading of the Bylaws. For more info, click on the Standing Rules document in the above tab, and navigate to: ARTICLE V: SPECIAL COMMITTEES.

Announcement #2: Election of Officers Committee

Again, under the Bylaws tab, above, you can search or scroll to the section on Elections, found in the Bylaws at ARTICLE VII: NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS. Three of us did it last time, and it involved manic texting for a bit, then a Zoom meeting, then a couple of phone calls. We need some one who has been here a while, who knows everyone, and can help recommend to the General Membership. We generally like to have this in place by May, so the candidates can be put up on the website, for our voting in June.

If you want to know what else went on this night, please reference the excellent minutes produced by our Secretary, Barbara Kaiser. They can be found under the Minutes Tab, above.

Thank you to all who attended our Quilts of Valor sew day this past Saturday. Barbara Mathews wrote: The day was well-attended – I think sixteen were there. We got a lot done – Barbara had it all very organized, and everyone got nice thank you bag and lots of M & Ms to keep us going! A big thank you to Carolyn for stepping in during Barbara Filbin’s absence. We even had door prizes!

For more information about ongoing Community Projects, visit the tab for them, above.

Our Block of the Month is a cute little bee; you need to make seven of them. The patterns for our 2024-2025 Block of the Month live (where else?) on the Block of the Month tab, above.

News from our Retreat Chairs, Linda Adams and Mary Mertz:

We now have 13 women signed onto the Viña de Lestonac retreat registration, set for May 2-4, 2025; Springtime in the vineyards of Temecula, a pretty short drive for most of us, I have to say. (By the way, if you’d love to go but so far don’t have a friend to share a room, there are two other retreaters who have lost their potential roomies. Interested? Check with Linda at the next guild meeting or text her– 951-490-2945 or –Mary Mertz 951-990-6273. Or phone call is fine.)

Mary and I have been working on some ideas for a few make’n’take projects and a couple of games which will be a fun way to get acquainted with fellow quilt retreaters and break up our time at our sewing machines.

Reminder: Cost of this retreat is $388.00; 4 more months to get your balance paid if you’ve already made your deposit. We have rooms reserved for total of 18, so there’s still space available and time to get your payments in.  (Remember, no refunds.) Meals at Vina are included from Friday noon to Sunday breakfast, and they are fabulous!

We have so much fun at both our retreats, and each are in unique settings and with great groups of women to share our common love of quilting and creating and best of all, camaraderie! 

Please see more information on our Activities Page, where we store all this.

The Ugly Fabric Challenge has started! Many people brought their ugly fabrics in paper bags to Guild and took home someone else’s ugly fabric. More information is found here; the finished project is due in May 2025. Many thanks to our Challenge Chairs!

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Quilts from Houston

The people at the Houston Quilt Show have posted the some of their winners with larger photos. It is fun to look through to see what sort of skills, colors, designs and ideas are at the national level shows. Here are a few examples:

Elizabeth, of OPQuilt.com, put up a few quilts from Road to California this week, too. Here’s a couple of them (below). Head here to see more.

It’s always fun to walk down this hallway at the beginning of Road to California — see you next year at Road!

This will be my last post as your Communications Chair, and I wanted to leave you with a Valentine quilt of my own design — Heart’s Garden. Thank you for letting me serve you in getting the website up and running, assisting on writing the original ByLaws and Standing Rules with Charlotte Byrne, and helping to sort out passwords, membership letters, and all sort of other things. Kay Whiteside is taking over as Communications Chair, and is able and willing!
~ Elizabeth Eastmond

Our next Board Meeting is Tuesday, February 11, 2025, at 6:30 p.m.  If you want to come, please let our Secretary Barbara Kaiser know ahead of time.

Our next General Meeting is Tuesday, February 18,  2025, at 6:30 p.m. Doors open at 5:30, so come early for a good seat.  See you then...and don't forget your Sew and Share!