Pacific Piecemakers Quilt Guild
Bits & Pieces
November 2006 -- Volume 11, Issue 11
Jackie Gardener
www.pacificpiecemakers.org

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NOVEMBER

No-Math Drafting &

Tessaltions for Quilters

with Iris Lorenz-Fife

Wednesday & Thursday, November 15 & 16  10am-4pm

            Come learn that there is more than one way to draft an odd-sized block, and at the end of the two days you will be comfortable, competent and confident with this  new skill.

            We will start with easy four-patch and nine-patch blocks with and without triangles. We may do a snail’s trail or blocks with curves, depending on your interest. We will draft these blocks in odd sizes, using only whole numbers or without measuring at all.

            On the second day we will expand into tessellations, circling flying geese, and free-form designing.

Marcia Stein Quilts the World!

            Marcia Stein will bring her latest travel-inspired quilts and her enthusiasm to our November guild meeting.  This prize-winning San Francisco based textile artist combines various needle techniques and a large dose of whimsy to make quilts that she says, “smile back at me”-- and it seems, at everyone who sees them. 

            Long involved in textile design, Marcia’s interest in travel and photography have brought her current focus to rest on storytelling through appliqué.  Constantly evolving as an artist, Ms. Stein gathers inspiration from her favorite places---Santa Fe, England, Southern France, and Italy, capturing images with her camera and weaving them into her quilts.

            Come—bring a friend to Marcia’s trunk show and lecture, and I predict we’ll all leave brimming with new ideas!

            That’s November 17, 12:30 pm Social Time and 1:00pm Meeting, at Gualala Art Center.

Holiday Gathering

Friday, December 8th

            Be sure to mark your calendars now for our fabulous annual holiday gathering and pot luck extraordinaire! There will likely be emails and announcements as the date draws near, but we all know it will be full of fun and games, good conversation, and delicious food! Don’t miss it!

Guild Glimmers

by Paula Osborne

            Mary Mashuta’s quilting career spans three and a half decades. Meanwhile the mechanics of designing and piecing have changed dramatically, but Mary’s preference for simplicity of design has not. Simple shapes and consistent patterns, such as squares,  rectangles, stripes and dots dominate her quilts . Mashuta’s slide show presentation featured design elements we encounter every day but often overlook, as well as her many quilts, which reflect those elements.  From giant polka-dots on a Berkeley neighbor’s garage, to the golden light of an October landscape, to an eclectic collection of lavishly decorated autos in a Berkeley parade---they all show up in her finely honed, colorful quilt designs.

            “Too Much Color is Not Enough” is her personal mantra, and the rules that guide her quilting are simple: 

1.  Look around you to SEE the colors, then…

2. USE those colors in your quilts.

Add to those golden rules: 

3.  Use colors you don’t like to affect the colors you DO like.

4.  Use negative space creatively. 

5.  Use contrast, or lack of contrast, deliberately.

6.  Borders bring order to chaos.

            Finally, be content with your personal limitations, whatever they might be, and find ways to work around them.

            Having authored a book on using stripes in quilts, Mary’s fascination with stripes persists.  She prefers one-color stripes, as they pack more punch, and for movement, wavy or crooked stripes.  Collecting fabric wherever you go is a must for growing your stash, and like color, too much is not enough!

            New quilters found much to learn from this veteran.  I only wish she had brought more than two quilts from her collection for closer inspection—a quilt in hand is worth many on the screen. 

            Those who spent the morning in her workshop to learn how to quilt more easily with the walking foot, expressed enthusiasm for her effective methods, and eagerness to put them to work.  As advertised, Mary delivered plenty of expertise and encouragement to her students.

Sewing Table For Sale

            Trudy Armer has a 48” x 22” sewing table in need of a new home. She doesn’t know the maker, but it is a lovely wooden table/cabinet that a machine can fold into, with drawers on either side. The wood is pecan color and it’s a nice design. You can call Trudy at 785-3164 for more information, or email her at tarmer1@aol.com.

Harmony For Everyone!

            Harmony Susalla would love to announce that Harmony Art has 2 new prints available: Pink Moon, a 110” organic sateen and Uncomplicated, a 90” organic twill. Contact her for more information.

            And did you know that Harmony’s organic printed textile company, Harmony Art, was nominated for Co-op America’s People’s Choice Award for Green Business of the Year?  The winner will be announced on November 10th at the Green Festival in San Francisco. Stay tuned, and read about it here first!

Call for Quilts

            Another Art Center Theater Production is “waiting in the wings”. It is “The Secret Garden”.   Perhaps you remember the story from when you were a little girl?  Well, it has been made into a delightful and beautiful musical and we’ll go into production at Gualala Arts just in time for the Holiday Season.

            So, I am coming to you, asking for the loan of your quilts to help decorate the auditorium and, also, do double duty as sound insulators.  If you can spare a quilt for a few weeks, please leave it in the office on 12/4 and you

can retrieve it on 12/18.  If you have any questions, please call Lynne Atkins at 884-3838.  Thank you - your quilts have become an important “patron of the arts” at Art Center Theater!

Mystery Quilters

Nearing the Home Stretch

            It’s time to get your borders on and get that Mystery quilt finished. You still have all of November and some of December to get it sandwiched.

            Please call me at 785-3625 if you have any questions. I hope you have had fun creating your own unique quilt. I all look forward to seeing all of our great creations at the December holiday party.

                                                Donna Blum

Membership News

Please welcome these new members:

Katherine Gyorfi, 1730 Manzanita Drive, Oakland, CA 94611, phone 510-339-8197, email kmgyorfi@sbcglobal.net, and birthday is December 8th.

            You may all remember Theresa was a member for a long time before moving away. She tells us she misses us, so let’s welcome her back to the fold!

Theresa Kohlmeister, 19356 Wildflower Drive,

Penn Valley, CA 95946, phone 530-432-7779, email rpttk@comcast.net and birthday is December 21st.

            It’s time think about renewing your annual dues.  Beat the holiday rush! Checks in the amount of $40 can be made out to PPQG and mailed to:

                Gail Spencer

                PO Box 1489

                Gualala, CA 95445

                                                            Thank you, Gail

Retreat News

            For all of you who signed up for the January retreat at Vichy Springs, you will be getting an email from organizer Anita Kaplan by mid-November on the final amount that is due. Keep  your eyes open, and please send your checks in. Thank you.

Library Corner

Ann Graf

Guild Librarian

  I am sorry to report that there are no new books appearing on our shelves this month.   I have several interesting things on backorder that I had hoped would be here, and I have ordered the new Kaffe Fassett book.   So watch this spot!