Note:  This text-only document is not the official graphical newsletter (which may have additional information in graphical form as well as guild photos).  You can easily make yourself capable of downloading the official version of the newsletter by going to the following web site and following the easy directions for downloading a free copy of Adobe Reader:  www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html   

 

VFHQ News – June 2007

 

Lines from Lou

Lots of guild “doings” keeping us busy…  A couple that have consumed much of my time include the conversion to our new web site (see separate article) and the up-grade of our guild bylaws (see separate article).  Both of these ventures are now available for your review on the web.  Speaking of “doings,” the “Comfort Quilt” workshop was a delight.  And wait till you try Shirley’s recipe for “Comfort Quilt Carrot Cake!”  That—alone—was worth the participation at the workshop. 

I’m starting to feel a little melancholy that my tenure serving you as guild president will come to an end in a few months, but that sentiment is dwarfed by my excitement that we’ll all soon benefit from the talents and energy of Chris Candello.  Each new president brings a different set of capabilities to the position and I’m so pleased that our guild will soon get the benefit of Chris’s many great strengths.  Voting to confirm all our new officers will take place at this month’s guild meeting, and they’ll assume office in September.
     - Lou

 

June Meeting – June 19, 2007

Our Traditional Guild Picnic - Don't forget that our picnic begins at 6:00 p.m. Along with the picnic, we will have our elections, have fun-&-games, prizes, enjoy each other’s company, and more.

Refreshments

Remember to bring food to share as follows:

 - If your last name begins with A—F, bring a main dish

 - If your last name begins with G—L, bring a dessert 

- If your last name begins with M—Z, bring a salad or hors d’oeuvre

To make this a successful picnic, we do rely on all our members to bring one of the above.  Thanks to all of you, it is always a wonderful meeting.

 

Bees Bees Bees Bees Bees

Afternoon Bee—2nd Tuesday

The Afternoon Bee will take place on June 12, 2007, 12:30 – 3:30, at the home of Patti McLain Fulton, 87 Hill Church Road, Spring City, PA 19475, 610-948-5739.  Everyone is welcome.  Bring whatever project(s) you’re working on.  We’ll sew, eat, and chat. 

Evening Bee— 4th Tuesday

Chris Candello, 322 Vista Drive, Phoenixville, PA, 610-948-1061, will host the May Evening Bee, on June 26, 2007 from 6:30 – 9:00 PM.  Work on your own projects, get help and advice and refreshments, and enjoy the company.  Hope to see you there!

 

 

 

 

Block of the Month

Dimensional Whimsy #7 for July is available on the website and will be presented at the June meeting.  Paper copies of Dimensional Whimsy #7 will be at the BOM table. Bring your June block, to the guild meeting and you could win a prize.  Photos of the blocks can be seen in the graphical version of the newsletter and on the web site.

 

Birthdays

June

June 4     Sally Rapp

June 5     Mare Beth Conard

June 8     Nancy Hannum

June 23   Joyce Stemple

June 28   Donna Raymond

July

July 5      Gloria Clark
               Paula Pettyjohn

July 8      Laura Chaplar

July13     Winnie Spoonts

July 16    Chris Peterson

July 17    Shellie Blake

July 19    Susan Nann

July 21    Gail Dovalovsky
             
Florence Ham
              Judy Snook

July 28    Carole Armstrong

 

Bylaws

Our bylaws were crafted with the most excellent of intentions and have served us well.  As time has gone by, however, the guild has evolved and has had to operate somewhat differently than is currently specified in some of the dictates of our by-laws.  The core issue is that our current bylaws were sewn with much more specificity than is typically called for in such a document.  Generally speaking, bylaws—like a constitution—should not require much change over time.  

Hence, as we approach our 20th anniversary, the time has come to upgrade our by-laws to yield a document that will stand the test of time and remain useful without the need for continual editing (or benign neglect).  The goal is to yield a document that will serve as a guiding light rather than a document that’s fraught with shelf-life clauses and specifics that either hamstring the organization or that render the document irrelevant. 

To achieve this, the board identified some issues and then passed it to an ad-hoc committee to consider the issues that were raised and to flesh out further recommendations.  The committee then submitted their recommendations to the board, and the resulting changes are now available for review by all members.  You have the an opportunity to review it during June (accessing it via the web) and submit any concerns or suggestions by e-mail or by snail mail (to Lou Chandler) by the end of June.  A Final document will then be posted on the web early in July and will be presented for a sustaining vote by the guild membership at the July meeting.  This is, of course, being done in accordance with the procedures that were dictated in our existing bylaws.

Because of the number of alterations, it will not be possible to read through the entire document at our meeting.  We must, therefore, rely on you to take the time to download the document and review it on your own.  This review of the document and any related communication will need to take place behind the scenes by the end of June.  Our vote will, of necessity, need to be a simple yes or no vote. 

As the board and bylaw committee embarked on this important endeavor, we were highly cognizant of the trust you’ve placed in us, and so it is our hope that we took enough care with it that you won’t find any glaring issues that might delay the initiation of our new bylaws as part of our 20th anniversary efforts.  Nevertheless, we welcome and value whatever input you feel should be communicated.  
     - Lou

Comfort Quilts

For an upcoming fun project, we’re making match-game quilts for children in the hospital.  So we’re asking guild members to bring 6" squares of novelty prints and bright colors.  However, there must be two of each.  Bring whatever you have to the June and July Guild meetings.   This is a fun way to contribute to our Comfort-Quilt endeavors.  We calculate that we’ll need  1,120 squares to make 20 of these quilts (for 10 boys and 10 girls), so your contributions will be most welcome.

On Saturday, May 19, about a dozen people came to the workshop and completed seventeen quilts.  Thanks to everyone for a job well done.  Special thanks to Linda Hamel for making 85 quilt labels.
- Shirley Horning, Chairman

 

“Comfort Quilt Carrot Cake”

Several Comfort-Quilt participants asked Shirley for her carrot cake recipe – It’s delicious, & Shirley says it’s easy…

2 C sugar

1C canola or vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 t vanilla

2 C flour

2 t baking powder

2 t ground cinnamon

1½ t baking soda

2 C lightly packed shredded carrots

1 can (8 oz.) crushed pineapple (well drained)

½ C chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and dust w/ flour a 9 by 13-inch baking pan

In a medium-size bowl, stir together sugar and oil.  Beat in eggs, one at a time, then stir in vanilla.  Stir in flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and baking soda.  Add carrots, pineapple, and nuts; stir just to blend.  Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean and cake starts to pull away from sides of pan.  Place pan on a wire rack and let cake cool completely before frosting or glazing.  Makes 12 to 15 servings.

Cream cheese frosting

2 sticks butter (room temp)

8 oz cream cheese (room temp)

2C Powdered sugar

1t vanilla

Fat Quarter Raffle

As announced earlier, the fabric theme for the upcoming July Fat Quarter Raffle drawing is 1930’s Reproduction fabrics.  To participate, simply bring a fat quarter, place it in the designated basket, along with and your name, and you’ll be eligible for the drawing to win them all!   You will receive one chance to win for each fat quarter you contribute.  The guidelines are simple:

1.  The fabric must be a fat quarter measuring 18" X 22".

2.  It should be washed and ironed

3.  It must keep to the announced theme

4.  It should be “quilt-shop-quality” fabric

Any questions, contact Linda Hamel.

 

Post Paducah news....

We have all returned safely from our trip...I must say we had a great group; despite the early departure...hot van...but thanks to my co-pilot Laura we fixed it...and our late return.

 I must say what an experience. The whole town of Paducah is converted into a quilters dream. You have the wonderful show, museum, and then the venders and more venders to boot!! The history behind this little town is really cool; the buildings inside and out are definitely neat. I would kill for some of the old high ceilings.  One of my favorite shops besides the ice cream place, bakery and chocolate store was this really neat quilt shop called "The Guild" (there is a really heart warming story behind her shop). I can’t forget to say that Hancock’s of Paducah...actually words can't say!! Unbelievable shopping, if you can't find it there, then I don't think you can find it!!!

As for Eleanor Burns...what a character...I think we all are on a first name basis with her!! And maybe her preferred shopping list!! Just ask Sandy!! Beth, Flo, Cathy, Judy(s), Joyce, Jean, Patti, Barb, Norma...

 There was so much more: Jim Shore, Ami Sims, Ricky Tims, Bryer Patch...and all of the classes that many of us attended just forced us all to come back wanting to sew or move to Paducah.  

I think our next adventure is in the planning stages.... Texas...Sisters.... who knows!!

Thank you to all of my quilting friends for spending the five days with me in Paducah, KY, Nashville, TN & Metropolis, IL...You go all of my super-friends!
- Chris Candello

 

New Committee

Our new “Excursions” committee will get underway in September.  Susan Glaser will identify quilt-related venues that members might want to visit as a group (like some of the quilt shows listed in our newsletter on a monthly basis) and will organize carpools to enable us to get there more easily and have more fun as a group.  This certainly doesn’t mean that you can’t organize your own excursions if you so desire, but this offers a fabulous way to help us to do more things together (and it might help some of us who continually miss things we really wanted to go to…). 

 

Come One and All

Time to start thinking about the next retreat…

The Fall Quilter's Retreat will be November 1-4, 2007 at Mensch Mill Retreat Center - Kline Lodge in Berks County.  The cost is $180 for the Thursday to Sunday package or $130 for the Friday to Sunday package.  This includes meals and linens.  Bring your own quilting project(s) to work on.  A deposit of $20 (non-refundable) holds your space. Interest is high and space is limited so sign up today with Sally Rapp or see her for further details.

 

Welcome

Welcome to Judi Bell of Lansdale, PA who heard about our guild from Shellie Blake.  Judi learned to sew from a friend, who taught sewing at the local night school, by visiting her once a week.  She made a baby quilt a couple of years ago and has always enjoyed sewing.  Judi likes simple quilt projects, which is all she is able to do now but who knows what the future will bring maybe the completion of a bed-size quilt.  Besides quilting, she enjoys reading, hiking, being with her husband, traveling to historical places, and family.  Judi is a real estate agent and has been married for two and a half years.  She has no children, no pets and sadly, no living plants.  Judi is originally from Utah but loves Pennsylvania.

 

 

Guild Workshops – Mark Your Calendars! 

UFO Tea Party– Another of our 20th Anniversary Celebrations
(UnFinished Objects)—Chris Candello & Beth Quigley

There’ll be lots of prizes and surprises.  GREAT FUN FOR ALL!  Wear an original bonnet/hat and gloves. 

DATE:           June 23, 2007

TIME:            9:30 AM4:00 PM

PLACE:        Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, King of Prussia, PA

PRICE:          $10.00

BRING:         Any UFOs you want to complete, your sewing machine, normal sewing supplies, your lunch, your hat, your gloves, your enthusiasm for a fun day.   

Christmas in July – Beth Quigley

PROJECT:    Christmas Tree Wall hanging

DATE:           July 7, 2007

TIME:            9:30AM4:00 PM

PLACE:        Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, King of Prussia, PA

PRICE:          $10.00

BRING:         Supply list will be provided upon payment to Jean Hayden

 

Meeting Minutes – May 15, 2007

Lou Chandler welcomed all including  2 guests

BOM winner— Laura Chaplar.  Sally showed the block for next month.

Money for door prizes was not collected inside the sanctuary of the church.  Members were given packets of goodies from Nancy Johnson-Srebro, our speaker for the evening.

Evening bee, Tuesday, May 22, 2007 at Patti Fulton’s 6:30 – 9:00.

Afternoon bee, Tuesday, June 12th 12:30-3:30   at the home of Patti Fulton.

AQS order form for 30% discount on books was passed around.

Guild financial report and budget will be on the back table or ask Linda Hamel for a copy.

Fat quarter raffle will be held in July, Theme: Reproduction 1930s fabric.

Gloria introduced Nancy Johnson-Srebro who spoke about her stars by magic technique and demonstrated the process.  She also showed quilts made using her technique.  She will present a half-day workshop tomorrow at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Trooper.

Jean still has openings for workshops.

UFO tea June 23—Bring whatever you want to work on.  Wear bonnets and gloves.  Need volunteers to bring quiche and pastries.  Fabric bowls will be demonstrated.  $10 fee.  {UPDATE: contrary to what was announced relative to the fabric bowls, you need not bring materials for this as it will only be demonstrated at this time.  If interest is high, we’ll have a workshop on it at a later time}

Christmas in July – Beth Quigley- Good Shepherd Church - $10.  July 7th 9:30-4.  Supply list next month.

Comfort quilts- Sat., May 19- Good Shepherd- 9:30-3:00.  Shirley asked the members to give whatever time they could spare because the hospital really needs the quilts.

Oct. 20th will be our big celebration of our 20th anniversary.

Next month is the picnic at 6:00.

Incoming slate of officers:  Chris Candello—president, Jean Hayden—Vice president, Marge Quinn—Secretary, Linda Hamel—Membership secretary and Gail Dovalovsky gave brief statements.

Show & Tell in 2 parts to accommodate a child presentation.

Adjourned: 9:45

Respectfully submitted
Nancy Hannum, Recording Secretary

 

Our New Web Site

Our new web site us now up and running!

When you go to the site, if it appears to be the old site, just click the “refresh” button on your web browser.

You may find that it comes up slowly at first, and that navigation through the site is a bit sluggish initially.  If so, you’ll find that this will only be an issue the first time you use the site.  It should speed up with subsequent use.

By its very nature, the web (and differing web browsers) exhibit web sites differently on each computer.  The colors may appear differently on your computer than on other computers, the spacing may look different, etc.  Those are benign differences… hopefully, there won’t be any problematic differences such as things overlapping other things inappropriately or pictures or information missing.  But if you see something that’s awry on your view of the site, please feel free to slip me a note at the next guild meeting.  I’m new enough with this technology that it may take time for me to research some thigns, but hopefully I’ll be able to resolve most things (especially information-related issues) with some degree of speed. 
   - Lou Chandler

 

Quilt Shows  

"A Quilt Sampler" at the Chester County Historical Society located at 225 N. High St. in West Chester - March 29 through Sept 16, 2007.  For more information visit their website: www.chestercohistorical.org. 

Quilts in a Material World:  Selections from the Winterthur Collection.  March 10 – September 16, 2007 at the Winterthur Museum and Country Estate, Route 52, Kennet Pike, Winterthur, Delaware, 19753.  Discover Winterthur’s outstanding collection of quilts – some considered to be icons in the field.  Ranging in dates from the 17th to the 19th century, more than 40 quilts will be on view – many for the first time.

Internationally renowned quilt maker Jane Blair (formerly of Conshohocken, currently of Wyomissing, PA) will have a one-woman show of her quilts at The GoggleWorks in Reading, PA from May 13 through June 29.  Jane has won numerous awards in national and international shows, placing first or second in the master division more than a dozen times. She also won best of show at American Quilters Society.  A quilt by Jane was chosen by international jury and judges as one of the best one hundred quilts of the 20th century.  The GoggleWorks Center for the Arts is at 201 Washington St., Reading, PA  19601, and is open Mon. – Sat. 9am9pm and Sunday 11 am7 pm. You can view her quilts on her website www.janeblairquilts.com.  

Vermont Quilt Festival – June 28 - July 1 in Essex Junction, Vermont.  This is New England’s largest quilt event and features hundreds of dazzling quilts on display, classes, lectures, appraisals, a merchant’s mall, and much more.  For information: www.vqf.org or (603) 444-7500. 

Quilting Traditions: Old and New sponsored by the Chambersburg Quilt Guild.  Friday, July 20, 2007 from 12:00 to 8:00 PM and Saturday, July 21, 2007 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM at the Family Life Center, Falling Spring Presbyterian Chruch, 221 North Main Street, Chambersburg, PA.  For information contact Judie Svoboda at (717) 262-2174 or email judieandward@aol.com.  Show held in conjunction with ChambersFest.

July 26-29 - Quilt Odyssey 2007, Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania. (QO 2007, 15004 Burnt Mill Rd., Shippensburg, PA 17257; phone/fax 717-423-5148; quiltodyssey@supernet.com; quiltodyssey.com)

October 12 & 13, 2007 - How Sweet It Is quilt show, presented by Keystone Quilters, Inc., at Quakertown Christian School (new location !), 50 E. Paletown Road, Quakertown, PA.  Friday 10-6, Saturday 10-5.  Contact topothehillfarm@hotmail.com or www.keystonequilters.org

 

 

New Quilt Shop – Road Trip?

Hi my name is Santina and I am the owner of a new quilt and yarn shop in Philadelphia.  The name of the shop is The Sewing Shanty Inc. We are located at 1511 South Street.  As a quilting shop we would like to extend any help we can lend to your guild.  We would be glad to donate door prizes for meetings and even fabrics for your guild fund drives. Anyway I am glad to know there are groups of quilters in the area.  Please let me know if I could be of any help.  Our current summer hours are Mon.-Fri. 11-6 and Sat.11-5.   We also will open later or earlier for anyone who works or for groups to come in just call. Our store number is 267.639.2779.  - Santina Andretta

 

News from Steve's

We have a special treat for you to help celebrate your 20th anniversary!  As a special gift at your June meeting, Jenni will be bringing some great tote bags from Bernina.  But that is not all!  Bring that bag to our store on Saturday, June 23rd, fill it up, and get 25% off (MSRP) anything that fits in the bag!!  It is our way of thanking you for all your support!

Our new newsletter is ready, and we have some wonderful classes in store for you this summer!  We hope to see you soon!
- Pamela

 

Chester County Quilting Sale and Information

Chester County Quilting’s Fat Quarter Bundles of 10 will be on sale for $5 off.  The price will be $17.50 instead of $22.50 each.  Also, the website - www.ChesterCountyQuilting.com - is growing every week.  Their quarterly class list and newsletter is always online, complete with photos of each class sample.  There's also a new page that shows the panels I have in stock now - they make great gifts when you're in a hurry.  Last but not least, the next class list/newsletter will be sent out the last week in June.

 

July Meeting Preview – July 17, 2007

Please join us for our annual Ice Cream Social and Jeannie Campbell’s presentation on Bargello Quilts. 

Jeannie Campbell has been sewing for 40 years.  She attended Pratt Institute studying fashion design.  It wasn't until 1989 that quilting became her passion.  Her quilts have appeared in many local shows as well as Quilt Odyssey in Hershey and Lancaster Quilters' Heritage Celebration.  She particularly enjoys Bargello, landscapes, and appliqué.  She recently began creating Polymer Clay "Quilty Jewelry."

We will be hearing her lecture on Bargello.  She will include some practices needed for any quilt preparation, not only Bargello.  The "Two Ruler Method" for straightening the edge of your fabric will be demonstrated.  Then tips for choosing fabric for Bargello will be given.  Fabric flow in a colorwash style is Jeannie's favorite.

Members may want to have a checkbook handy after her lecture.
- Gloria Clark

 

Thank You

Dear Linda and Valley Forge Homestead Quilters,

       The Norristown Ministries Hospitality Center thanks you for your donation of $550.00.  Your generosity enables us to follow Jesus’ command to help the poor and homeless.  Jesus tells us that by ministering to the downtrodden, we are actually ministering to Him.  Your gifts will help us to continue to give hope and help to all who come through our doors.

       The board, staff, volunteers and guests of the Hospitality Center extend their appreciation for your gifts.  May God bless you!

Sincerely,

Barbara Abernethy

Norristown Ministries Hospitality Center

P.S. Thanks so much for your generous contribution.  Feel free to call about a tour or speaker.

 

Guild Officers

President – Lou Chandler

Vice President – Cathy Fennell

Treasurer – Linda Hamel

Recording Secretary – Nancy Hannum

Corresponding Sec – Chris Candello

Immediate Past President – Gloria Clark

                Committee Chairs

Program Chair – Gloria Clark

Workshops – Jean Hayden

Newsletter – Cathy Fennell
                   & Lou Chandler

Web Master – Lou Chandler

Refreshments – Paula Pettyjohn

Set-up – (open)

Hostess/ Door Prizes – Susan Glaser
                              & Vickie Lopresti

Hospitality – Donna LeBlanc

Block of the Month – Shellie Blake

Quilt Show – Jean Hayden

Quilt Bees – Jean Hayden (day)  
                    Beth Quigley (night) 

Retreats – Sally Rapp

Excursions – Susan Glaser

Comfort Quilts – Shirley Horning

Publicity – Nancy Hannum

Historian – Patti Fulton

Library – Art & Ethel Hutchison

AQS book sales – Kathy Graff

Sunshine – Norma Brechbiel

Newsletter Submissions

Inclusions for the next newsletter must be received by July. 1, 2007.  (If e-mailing your article, an MS Word file is preferred, articles embedded in e-mails are acceptable, of course, but require more work on our end.)

Cathy Fennell
fennell@rosemont.edu (preferred)
32 Clearfield Avenue
Eagleville, PA 19430

610-630-8645 (home)
610-526-2973 (work)

 

 

Guild Meetings

   DATE: Third Tuesday of each month

   TIME:   7 p.m.

   PLACE:  Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, King of Prussia, PA