Well, we have left 2021 behind us – yet another challenging year. Surely 2022 willbe a turning point. Our hopes are high for some kind of ‘normal’ this year with the prospect of regular in-person meetings and get-togethers as we move through the spring, topped off with a stellar quilt show in the fall. For now, thank goodness for Zoom and the opportunity to keep meeting with each other as once again, we all spend more time at home. Be sure to check our Calendar for the list of regular Zoom events you can participate in throughout the month.
Our first meeting of 2022 was virtual and about a third of our members were able to attend the afternoon session. The Minutes will be heading your way with the latest information on Guild activities. The highlight of the day was a presentation by Amy Friend, modern quilter, author and pattern designer, from her home in Massachusetts.
What a treat! Amy guided us through her quilting journey from museum curator to award-winning modern quilter and expert paper piecer. The topic for the afternoon was Alternate Gridwork and Negative Space. Amy used her virtual trunk show to explain how she manipulates the placement of blocks and the use of negative space as an integral part of the quilt design to achieve maximum impact. The end result is a series of striking graphic quilts where it is not always easy to determine where one block ends and another begins. Be sure to check out her web site at https://duringquiettime.com
to take a look at her work. One of my favourites is her set of ‘papercut snowflakes’ made with a paper piecing technique – they actually look like they have just been cut from a piece of paper! There is a lot of eye candy on her site, with a link to her Etsy shop if you are inspired to give one of her quilts a try.
Crimped, designed by Amy Friend
Just a reminder – as of Monday, there were still a couple of spots left in next week’s machine quilting workshop – Deep in the Forest. Check here for details and act fast if you’d like to join us as we spend the afternoon in Spain with Cristina Arcenegui Bono, learning new techniques and creating a free motion whimsical forest.
Our next meeting is February 7 at 1:00 pm. Hope to see you there – on Zoom or (tightly crossed fingers) in person!