Thursday, April 16, 2009

Guild Meeting

Yesterday I attended our monthly guild meeting and as usual, it was uplifting and inspiring. It never ceases to amaze me how many talented people there are in this world.

Our guild is unlike other clubs or organizations that I have belonged to in that there are no elected officers or rules, regulations or by-laws. Everything is done on a volunteer basis, including those who wish to head up activities, donations, our bi-annual quilt show and sale and even the gal who chairs the meetings. We try to rotate our ‘leader’ on a yearly basis but if no one volunteers, then the current gal just continues until she decides that her turn is up and it’s time for someone else to take over.

The most popular part of the meeting for everyone…aside from the tea, coffee and goodies…is Show and Tell. Today is the first time I brought my camera to a meeting to try to capture some of the awesome work that these gals do. Our meetings are held in the basement of a church and the lighting isn’t that great, so I apologize for the quality of my photos.

DSCN0348This is a photo of our charity quilt in progress. As you can see it is still a work in progress. Volunteers take turns working on it throughout the year.

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This quilt was made by one of the members as a wedding gift for her nephew. It took her a year to complete it. The appliqué and piecing is awesome and the photo unfortunately does not do it justice.

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Look at this gorgeous winter-themed wool table runner. The detail on it is stunning.

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One of the gals donated this appliquéd quilt to a hospital for a fund raiser but it remained folded up in the administrator’s closet for 4 years. Can you believe it? Rosemary is going to re-donate it to an as yet undetermined charity.

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This next quilt top was found wrapped up in an elderly relative’s attic. If you click on the image to enlarge it, you can see the date in the center when the top was pieced…1904! One of the gals in our guild is a master at crazy quilts and I believe she volunteered to complete it.

I feel very fortunate to belong to a group with so many talented women. It is indeed a pleasure to attend our meetings every month. The fellowship, sharing and camaraderie are simply amazing…with enough inspiration thrown in to last a lifetime.

Happy stitching!

Kaaren

16 comments:

Jilly's Space said...

Show-n-tell is my favorite part too! I continue to be inspired every month by all the talented women that attend.
I LOVE that table runner.
Have a good day.
Jill :o)

Kate/Massachusetts said...

Wow! What incredible quilts! I can really understand why "Show and Tell" is your favorite part of the meeting! Ehmm...are they equally as creative with the food? vbg

Dorothy said...

The quilts are wonderful, Kaaren, thank you for sharing. I especially like the raffle quilt. When do the tickets go on sale?

Abby and Stephanie said...

What a wonderful and talented group you belong to. That charity quilt and all of the others are gorgeous. So glad you had your camera. I like the casualness of your group...no rules of order; everyone just does their part. The kind of group I'd like to belong to. :o)

Anonymous said...

Raffle quilt....when are you selling tickets? :-)

I'm confused though...some blocks missing....

You are fortunate to belong to such a great group....I'd love to be in a simple group meeting of friends rather than all the by-laws, board members, CLICKS, etc.

Betsy said...

Wow! They are all beautiful. My favorite is the wool table runner. The detail is amazing.
Have a great day.
Betsy

Dolores said...

Thanks for sharing these wonderful quilts with us. I too would like to know when tickets will be sold for the raffle quilt. I think it's stunning.

Carrie P. said...

Great show and tell but I just love that table runner.

Annette said...

Those are some amazing quilts! Very inspiring to look at. Thanks for sharing.

Loris said...

Awesome show of quilts! Sounds like a lovely group of quilters to know. Hard to imagine that lovely gold and red quilt left to sit. I'm glad the quilter can re-donate to finally give it it's day.

Candace said...

What an incredible group - talent abounds! All the quilts - and the runner - are amazing! I just can't understand how someone can leave such a beautiful quilt in a closet for 4 years! I'm so glad it was "rescued"!
Cheers!

Carla said...

There are some very beautiful works of art there.

Darlene said...

Incredible talent - thank you so much for sharing!

Deb said...

Kaaren.. I clicked to enlarge each of these spectacular photos yes you are very lucky to have such a diverse and talented group. thanks for letting us be a part of your meeting night

Karen said...

The wool table mat is my favorite!

Quilts And Pieces said...

Oh thanks for the show and tell! Your raffle quilt is looking great! I actually am doing a variation of this right now for my daughters wedding quilt!