Starting the meeting with the guild business, Janet highlighted that the Tulip and Spring Flowers Challenge quilts are now on display at Beaconsfield library where they have been joined by some selected work from two of our recently deceased members.

Another interesting matter discussed at the meeting was the formation of an ad-hoc online meeting for members who want to sew together outside of the usual Tuesday sew-ins. It was decided to have a sign up option on the private Facebook page Beaconsfield Quilter’s Guild (private) for those members who wish to join in. If you are not yet signed up for the Facebook page, please go and request admission and Franca or I will be happy to let you in.

Also mentioned was the Illusions of Colour project we have been working on at the retreats this year. Fay asked that anyone who has completed their final 6th block should send a photo of it as well as a photo of all of their blocks to retreats@beaconsfieldquilters.ca so that they can prepare a presentation.

The April meetings both ran the same program. After dealing with the business of the month and the show and tell, Pat Bradley gave us a useful run down of the history and scope of Oeko-Tex, a fabric certification seen on labels. Their aim is to manufacture fabric in a sustainable way, so very much in keeping with this year’s theme. Pat’s presentation was detailed and thorough and provided a great snapshot the aims and achievments of this organisation. Their website https://www.oeko-tex.com/en/ is a good place to find more information.

Finally the meeting closed with a fabric exchange.

The Tulips and Spring Flowers quilts are now on show at Beaconsfield library until the end of May. Be sure to stop by for a look at them and the selected works by some of our recently departed guild members.

I couldn’t make it to either of the March meetings, so if anyone has anything they would like to share, feel free to add a comment below or send me a note and I”ll add something here.

The program looked great and I’m sure everyone enjoyed the bed turning on Tuesday evening featuring “My firstest quilt ” by some of our members and the Wednesday morning trunk show by Annette H.

I certainly hope to be present for the April Meetings so see you all then.

Continuing with our theme of helping the planet, our evening meeting this month, again a virtual one for everyone, welcomed a speaker from San Francisco, Radha Weaver, whose website Sewing through Fog, and other social media, covers her journey into quilting with upcycled jeans.

Radha studied costume design but took a corporate job at Levis to support herself. She worked for many years in the fast fashion industry and travelled widely creating a product line for Walmart and Target. In 2020, however, she finally had time to sit still and think about her future and she decided to give it up to follow her creative path. She turned her home office into a sewing room and started her Instagram account Sewing through Fog.

Having worked for Levis she understood denim and she had a supply of old jeans so she started to quilt with the jeans. She entered a quilt at Quiltcom 2024 in the scrappy challenge and at the last minute she decided to attend in person, making it her mission to seek out other quilts made with upcycled material. She was successful and also met our own Nicole.

She has made, amongst other things, a denim “weighted” blanket and a denim and leather quilt. 90 per cent of her materials are upcycled with only the thread often being new. Her website contains a blog and copies of her patterns for creating the denim quilts, She also offers classes and tutorials and help on upcycling and finding sources for used fabric.

Finally she said the we should forgive ourselves for buying those things we dont use, the fabric we no longer like so much, the ruler or template we only used once, and find ways to let them go to a new home (Tool time raffle anyone?). She finished by stating that sustainable quilting is not about saving everything, its not about shutting down all the quilt shops, its about looking at alternatives and having fun.

After a quick break the business part of the meeting dealt with tool time winners and the date for the next one (probably in March) and the imminent arrival of the next retreat the weekend of February 15th which will be virtual with details on the website and via Newsletter Blast. The Program team then reported on the recent workshop which went well at the Beacon Hill Chalet and mentioned two upcoming events, a free motion quilting workshop and another Shop Hop in the spring. The meeting finished with show and tell.

The in person Wednesday meeting was a trunk show by Gillian Lee but I was unfortunately unable to attend. If anyone has any information about it, please feel free to add it below.

Happy New Year everyone and welcome to another year of quilting with BQG.

As a nod to the winter weather, we are again holding our first two evening meetings of the year in a virtual format. Who wants to leave the house in the dark and cold anyway and, thanks to technology, we can meet from the comfort of our own homes. It looks like many of us thought so as there were about 40 members present at the meeting. This format also allowed us to enjoy a presentation by Stephanie Hackney from Hobbs Batting, Waco Texas. She entertained us with an interesting and highly informative look at these products which we all use but, for my part, I really didn’t know a lot about. We often talk about the tops of the quilts we make and even the backing but rarely discuss the middle of the sandwich.

Stephanie walked us through the stages of production of their batting products and looked at the various products, their characteristics, strengths, uses and care. She began with the 5 questions a quilter should address when choosing a batting for their quilt. What are you making, How much thread is in the quilt, Who is the quilt for, What is the use case and what is the care envirnoment. Next she described the fibre content of the different battings offered by Hobbs ranging from 100% Polyester and 100% cotton through blends of 80% cotton with 20% polyester to 80% cotton with 20% wool, 100% wool and a silk blend of 90% silk with 10% polyester. The company website gives a table of all their products with the uses, stitch guidelines and composition. All products are made with top quality fibres sourced within the USA if possible and the plant makes every effort to support local businesses and keep waste to a minimum. The presentation finished with questions and an explanation of bearding and how to avoid and repair it.

If you missed this great presentation, or if you would like to take a second look, Franca recorded it and has posted it on the website under Program. I think most of us, even quilters who have been sewing for a long time, learned something useful and interesting here.

After a short break, the business section of the meeting mostly covered information available in the newsletter. The next virtual retreat is on January 18th and 19th. Details will be coming in a blast and are available under retreats on the website. The zoom link will also be coming in an email blast and will be on the calendar.

The Program team thanked the 46 members who responded to their survey. They have lots of suggestions for the rest of the year. Dont forget to contact Christine H if you are interested in joining the pot holder challenge. This has been extended until June 1st and Christine has pieces of Inselbrite for the batting. The meeting finished with virtual Show and Tell. Photos can be viewed on the website.

The day meeting on Wednesday was a panel of members addressing the repair of damaged quilts. I’m sure it was wonderful but I was unable to attend. Please add comments below if you want to give some information about it.