November meeting info

Our next guild meeting will be held on Monday, November 18th at the Unitarian Church of Vancouver, 949 W. 49th Ave. Doors open at 6:30pm and the meeting will begin at 7:00pm.

Don’t forget:

• blocks for November block lotto — Scrappy Wonky Star
• snack to share (optional)
• your own coffee, tea or water
• quilts for Show and Share — please email your photos so we can share them on our socials
• door prize donations
• your name tag!

NOVEMBER MEETING
Integrating Curves with Liz Young

I was one of those quilters who balked at sewing curves. They were intimidating. I believed they needed to be perfect. If I couldn’t make them perfect, I wasn’t going to sew them.

My work is strongly geometric and I wanted to have curves and circles in my toolbox. In order to do that, I needed to overcome my fear…and my need for perfection. So I made a plan. A 100 day project that has never stopped, and my quilting journey took a sharp turn.

This trunk show is a testament to my journey.

Oh yeah….and along the way, I decided that curves and circles don’t need to be perfect. Good enough is good enough.

What’s better than a weekend of sewing? A weekend of sewing with VMQG members where you can share and sewcialize, get lots of work done, and maybe even win a special little prize! 😉 Sound good? Read on for the details...

Mini Retreat
We’re planning a mini stay-in-the-city sewing retreat located in the heart of Yaletown. It’s in a private community room in a condominium, surrounded by plenty of restaurants and cafes. BIG thanks to Liz for coordinating and hosting.

Dates
• Saturday, January 18, 9:00am to 9:00pm
• Sunday, January 19, 9:00am to 5:00pm
This is a two-day retreat, no sleepovers or pillow fights.
Option to go out for dinner on Saturday night.

Location
1077 Marinaside Crescent, Yaletown, Vancouver
Handy to transit if that works for you, or park nearby. We'll set up a carpool email once registration is confirmed. The room is safe and secure, sewing gear can be left overnight.

Cost
$35.00 total, includes both days.

Registration is limited to 13 people.
Registration form opens Nov 20th >> set a reminder on your phone. The first thirteen people to register and pay are in. Please make payments by e-transfer to treasurer@vancouvermodernquiltguild.ca. If our mini retreat is a success, we'll look into running it again.

If you have any questions, please email Liz Young at treasurer@vancouvermodernquiltguild.ca

🙂 😄 😉 😄 🙃 😊 😍 😜 🙂 😄 😁 😂 🤩

Would you like to help shape the future of our Guild? Do you have ideas or suggestions about what our Guild could do in the coming year(s)? Do you want to connect with other members? Do you have a skill to share? Our guild needs you! 

There are Executive roles that are available: Education, Communication/Social, Treasurer, and Secretary. You can find more information about Executive role descriptions on our website, under the About tab, or click here.

The new Executive changes over at the AGM meeting in December. If you’d like to step up and volunteer, or if you have any questions, please reach out to any exec member at the upcoming meeting or email us at executive@vancouvermodernquiltguild.ca

Liz Young

We’re delighted to shine the light on Liz Young, one of Vancouver’s most prodigious modern quilters. Not only is she good with fabric, as the VMQG treasurer, she’s also good with financials. You can see more of Liz’s work on Instagram at @foreveryoungquilting.

When did you join the VMQG?
I joined the VMQG in 2021. I had taken a lengthy break from quilting (10+ years) and had started quilting again in January 2020. I had transitioned from traditional to modern quilting and was looking for a community to become involved with.

What do you like about being a member?
There is a lot to like about being a VMQG member. There is the comradery of getting together with a like-minded group of individuals; sharing friendship and knowledge. There is, of course, the accessibility to workshops and speakers. I enjoyed being part of the Showcase Committee in 2022. I currently volunteer as Treasurer on the guild’s Executive, and also volunteer with other guild members in the Art Therapy program at Covenant House Vancouver.

When did you start quilting? What was your inspiration?
I started sewing when I was quite young, but it was when my daughter was born (1987) that I learned to quilt. I wanted to make a quilt for her bed when she moved out of her crib so took a ‘Sampler’ quilting class at The Thread Bear in West Vancouver. After a few years of taking classes, I started teaching classes. I taught for a number of years at The Thread Bear, The Cloth Shop and Bear Paw Quilting.

Tell us about your creative journey, and life outside your sewing room
In 2005 with both my children in school, I enrolled in the Textile Arts Program at Capilano University. I spent four years immersing myself in all things textile…weaving, dyeing, surface design, colour theory, design theory, art history, and so much more. It was wonderful and it was exhausting! Creating on demand drained me. When I graduated in 2009, I gave up anything and everything related to textiles. I didn’t step foot in my studio, eventually giving away all but my favourite tools. In January 2020 I went to my first quilt retreat since 2005. That was it, I was hooked again.

Although some may think I spend the majority of my time quilting, in actual fact, I am very physically active. I work out weekly at Innovative Fitness, I love urban hiking, and I am a cyclist belonging to two different cycling groups. My husband and I have cycled extensively in Italy, France, Germany, Majorca, the USA and most recently in PEI.

What is your favourite type of quilt to make or design?
I am very much a modern quilter. I work exclusively in solid fabrics. Several years ago I challenged myself to overcome my fear of sewing curves, embarking on a 100 day challenge which turned into a full year challenge, resulting in several circle motif quilts. I now design all of my own quilts and most involve curves in their design. I am a huge fan of the Bauhaus School of Design and of Sonia Delauney’s work, and their influence is evident is my designs. I favour crisp, clean, precise lines within a bold geometric design. I am at heart a perfectionist, struggling to reform, to believe that ‘good enough’ is in fact acceptable. Its an on-going battle.

What lessons have you learned about quilting?
On a very basic level, I have learned that cutting precisely, sewing an accurate ¼ inch seam, and pressing your work as you go…in my case, seams always open…has a direct impact on the final product.

On a deeper level, I have learned that there are so many phenomenal quilters in the quilting world, many of whom showcase their work on Instagram. Their designs are amazing, their use of colour is stunning and their skills are enviable. Let their work inspire and motivate you. Do not let it make you feel ‘less than’. We are all on our own journey. Whether you sew someone else’s patterns, your own designs, or a combination of both, take pleasure and find joy in what you are doing. Do what makes you happy! Do you! Comparison is the thief of joy!

What am I working on next?
I have a few things on the go at the moment. I have three designs finished and waiting for me to get to work on. But before I can start on the actual project, I need to experiment with construction techniques. As my designs become more complicated, so does how they go together.

I just designed and submitted a block in response to CQA’s call for submissions for their 2025 QAL. If accepted I will be working on drafting the pattern prior to the QAL starting in the new year.

Thanks for stepping into the spotlight Liz!

Have you created a new pattern? Are you featured in a publication? Have you won an award at a quilt show? Perhaps you’re participating in a quilt or quilt-related show, or you’ve done something recently that you’d like to share with other VMQG members.

Please share a little about yourself if you’re new, or reintroduce yourself if you’ve been a long-time member. If you’d like to be featured in our newsletter, please fill out the short form here.

VMQG Memberships expired on October 31st. At our October meeting, members voted unanimously to increase our annual membership fees to CAD$70.00.

We haven’t increased our membership fees in over five years, and the extra funds will cover guest speaker fees and cost increases such as venue rental.

To register for the 2024-2025 year please fill out this form and send your fees by e-transfer to treasurer@vancouvermodernquiltguild.ca.  We look forward to another great year together.

Who doesn’t love a good modern-fashioned swap?! Here’s your opportunity to get in on one. We’re gearing up for the December meeting and organizing a modern pouch swap, read on for the details…

Design, size, and fabric is up to you, please make it modern. Since it’s holiday time, we thought it’d be nice to include a little bonus—a small sewing notion, valued at no more than $10, such as a package of needles, a spool of thread or a stitch ripper. If you don’t want to buy anything—that’s totally fine—make something out of your scraps, like a mug rug or pin cushion, and pop that into the pouch. Swap will be done randomly. Gift wrapping the pouch is optional.

We’ll have VMQG modern pouch swap labels available for those who are participating in the swap, you can pick one up at our November meeting, or make your own label. Details in the sign-up form. TIP: iron or sew the label onto a pocket and sew that to the inside of your pouch.

Don’t wait,  sign up here  (shortest form ever!)

Here’s some inspiration and free patterns
How to Sew a Zipper Pouch: 50 Free Patterns for Every Skill Level 
photos: SewCanShe.com

December Block Lotto—My Town

This month’s block(s), My Town, by Material Girl Quilts is another pattern to use up some of those scraps that accumulate. Make your house using bright, modern prints with a cream background, and sew a colourful tree as well. Pattern is available for free download at Material Girl Quilts.

Block measures 5.5" x 7" unfinished
Quilt photos by Material Girl Quilts

 Block Instructions 

🧡 Block Lotto Bonus
One ticket will be provided for each house or tree block. If you submit both a house and a tree block you will receive 3 tickets.

Fresh Content in the MQG Resource Library

Membership in the VMQG is your ticket into the MQG. If you haven’t poked around the Modern Quilt Guild website in a while, this is a good time of year to check out some fresh content, and maybe take on a new project.
 

Empty Rings by Augusto García
The Empty Rings design, by Augusto García, an Individual MQG Member, is inspired by “Unfinished Boxes” by Spanish artist Jorge Oteiza. The distinguishing feature of this quilt pattern is the innovative incorporation of negative space. Log into the MQG website to download the pattern. Finished size: 60" x 60" | Skill level: Intermediate.

 Get the pattern 
 

👉 Reminders 

 WIPs DRAW The WIPs draw will be held at our November meeting. We’ll start a new WIP program in the new year. 

Show ’n Share Photos: Send us your quilt pics, we’ll post them on our IG. Email photos@vancouvermodernquiltguild.ca

Round Robin: Make sure to bring your Round Robin bag to trade with the next person.

Sew Good Quilts: If you have any quilt tops, backs or finished quilts to return to Megan, please bring them to the meeting or get in touch by email.
sewgoodquilts@vancouvermodernquiltguild.ca