Nimble Fingers Newsletter September/October 2010Co-Presidents’ Message –Linda August and Patty EsteyQuilt Show --The summer has provided many opportunities for NF members to attend nearby quilt shows as well as participate in classes and retreats. In addition to "drinking in" the colors and being delighted at so many clever, original designs, the classes and shows also provide us with new ideas for our upcoming show. Opening day is only a little over a month away. Our show promises to be a reflection of our members’ talent and imagination. We hope you are diligently working on your quilt entries. Remember that your quilt registrations are due at the September meeting. And of course, don't be left out of the fun of planning and supporting the show. Share your ideas with the Quilt Show committee; volunteer your expertise and talent. We need every member to work on the show to ensure its success. Contact Francie Parrack or Beverly Ferrell to volunteer. New Best Friend -- Your new co-presidents started off learning as much as possible about the history and activities of Nimble Fingers. What was learned was the Guild has much to be proud of in its long history of donating quilts to deserving recipients. Beyond its outreach efforts, Nimble Fingers is an assembly of very talented and gregarious women (and one man). The more each member becomes involved in the work of the Guild, the more each member will enjoy the experience. Look for opportunities to help. It is guaranteed that you will meet a new best friend. Creativity -- A word about the creative world of quilting. Is it not amazing that men and women continue to design textiles that charge our creative batteries and give us pleasure? Just when you think you have a snip-it or two of every fabric that you could ever want, a visit to a quilt store or quilt show entices us to think about yet another quilt. What a great creative world we live in!! ____________________________________ Quilt Show 2010 – Beverly FerrellPlease see the article at the end of the newsletter! Programs – Susan Sellers, Carol Clanton, Cheryl Layman,Jill Ruspi, Julie Taylor September 1, 2010: We will begin our year with Karen Fricke, a talented local quilter who will share her technique for “Thread Sketched Photography” in her lecture. Karen’s work has been featured in Quilting Arts Magazine. All quilt registrations are due by the September meeting and the small quilts for the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative must be turned in at this meeting. October 6, 2010: We will have a large show and tell featuring the beautiful quilts that our members have made for our quilt show this month. There will be last minute details to discuss about the quilt show so there will be no formal lecture this month. The program committee will be sharing details about a new activity designed to encourage members to reduce their scraps and create gorgeous quilts for themselves and others. November 3, 2010: We will celebrate the spirit of Thanksgiving through our annual “Quilting for Others’” day. Members are encouraged to prepare quilt tops to give to the guild for a morning of hand tying, serging, and sandwiching quilts which will be donated to local shelters and others in need in our community. Francie Parrack will be providing information about preferred quilt top sizes and other details. December 1, 2010: Our guest speaker will be Jane Garrison from YLI Corporation who will share her insights in a lecture: “What a Difference a Thread Makes.” After lunch, Jane will present a three-hour hand workshop entitled “Hand is Not Always a Four Letter Word.” The cost will be $35 payable to Nimble Fingers, plus a $20 kit fee to the instructor, which will include all materials needed for the workshop plus an assortment of lovely YLI threads. Plan to come for a relaxing afternoon from 1-4 PM of reacquainting yourself with the joys of hand stitching and learning new stitches. January 5, 2011: Our talented Nimble Fingers members will take center stage this month to present a round robin of tips and techniques entitled “Tool Time.” Our full day workshop on Thursday, January 6, 11 AM- 5 PM, will be presented by Kim Jalette, who has found a new Mystery Quilt with which to challenge us. The cost will be $40 for Nimble Fingers members. February 2, 2011: Eleanor Levie will join us to coax us out of our comfort zones with a lecture entitled “Quilting Outside the Box.” Her afternoon workshop, “Stretch a Block”, will feature a design from her book Skinny Quilts and Table Runners. The workshop will be held from 1- 4 PM and will cost $35. Check out her website at www.EleanorLevie.com. Plan to bring your checkbook to the September meeting to sign up for these interesting workshops, or send checks payable to Nimble Fingers Quilters, along with your registration information, to Susan Sellers__________________________Hospitality – Carole Auth, Karen Cyr, Nancy Sharp September’s luncheon will be sandwiches and salads from the deli, $4.00. Sept. Hostesses: Celine Kobah 240-483-4393: Priscilla Lai 301-871-0990; Barbara Barlow 301-871-7578; Anne Hammond 301-681-7479; Laurie Bay 301-916-5160; Floris Flam 301-530-7773; Carole Auth 301-592-0497. Oct. Hostesses: Mary Moore Payne 301-972-4715; Liz Brigham 301-681-5351; Natalie Felsher 301-972-3942; Nancy Rose Opeka 301-253-5714; Beverly Ferrell 301-869-3249. Thank you to all of you who so kindly said yes to be a hostess. At the Sept. meeting I will have a sign up sheet for those who will and can sign up for the coming year. It's a great way to meet new people and to feel a part of the group. We will have 3 special luncheons, that being Christmas, one in March and then in June. If anyone has any suggestions, please free to let me know. Oh! Most important: WE ALL NEED TO STAY AND CLEAN UP. It goes very quickly. Many hands make light work. And that's all I have to say. ______________________________ Membership – Mila Haberman, Mary Jo Haczewski, Liz BrighamAs you all know DUES ($25.00 per year) are due in April of each year. As of today we have 107 paid members; about 30 members have not renewed. Paying your dues on time helps a lot. If you have not paid by now please pay at the September meeting. Our table is right inside the door – you can’t miss us. Bring a friend - we like new members. We will be giving out NEW NAME TAGS to all paid members at our September meeting. You will only get one name tag. You are requested to take them home and wear them to all of our meetings and to our Quilt Show in Oct. This will be a lot easier on everyone when you check in at each meeting. So find a special place in your home to keep your new name tag. Name tags help new members get to know you. It also helps when we have senior moments and can’t remember our own name. Quilting for Others – Francie Parrack, Temp. ChairTo those who have been storing material and other supplies for Quilting for Others: thank you. Please bring the items that you have been storing to the September meeting. Leave things in your car if there are a lot of them or if they are heavy. ____________________________ Quilting Bee – Mary CampbellQuilting Bee – Mary CampbellQuilting Bees are always on the third Thursday so next on Sept. 16 and Oct. 21. _________________________________ Current Events - Ann PlunkettSept 12 – Sully Quilt and Fiber Arts Show and Sale, 10am – 4:30pm, Sully Plantation, Chantilly VA www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/sully/calendar.htm Sept 12 – Oct 5 – Glenview Mansion Art Gallery, Rockville MD, Multi-Artist Show including Nimble Fingers member Floris Flam http://www.rockvillemd.gov Sept 16-19 – Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza XVII, Greater Philadelphia Expo Center, Oaks PA http://quiltfest.com October 15-16 – Nimble Fingers Quilters Present COLORS OF OUR WORLD, The Universities of Shady Grove, Rockville www.nimblefingers.org Oct 16-17 – Flying Geese Quilters Quilt Show, Harford Technical High School, Bel Air MD www.fgqg.com Now – Dec 31 – Lancaster Quilt and Textile Museum, Lancaster PA - Family & Friends: Quilts and Their Connections http://www.quiltandtextilemuseum.com Retreat – Anne DatkoThe 2011 Retreat will be held at the Hallowood Retreat and Conference Center in Comus, MD April 11 – 13. The fee of $305 includes a private room and bath, two breakfasts, three lunches, two dinners, great companionship, and hours and hours of sewing time. Anne Datko will begin accepting reservations October 1, 2010. Please call her at 301-949-9458 or send an email to datkoa@msn.com. Once she confirms your registration, she will tell you where to mail your deposit check. Please note that the $50 deposit, required to reserve a space, will be refundable should one be unable to attend. Member NewsFloris Flam will have an exhibit of her quilts at the Glenview Mansion Art Gallery in Rockville, MD from Sept. 12 through Oct.5, 2010. The opening reception will be on Sunday, Sept. 12 from 1:30-3:30. The Mansion is located in the Rockville Civic Center Park, 603 Edmonston Drive, Rockville, MD 20851. Gallery hours are 9:00 am to 4:30 pm on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and 9:00 am to 9:00 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays in addition to the Sunday hours on the day of the opening. The Mansion office is at 240-314- 8660; www.rockvillemd.gov/arts. Check out our Beautiful Quilts !The photo gallery of the Nimble Fingers web site was recently updated by webmistress Jane Van Horn to show pictures from our June meeting. Visit the site at www.nimblefingers.org and click on Photo Gallery to view the pictures. The three winning entries from our 2010 Paint Chip Challenge are displayed as well as images of quilts from other members. There are several pictures showing the wonderful quilts created by participants in Kim Jalette's January Mystery Quilt class. Library - Patrice ThomasMembers who have taken out Nimble Fingers Library books this year are asked to return them to Patrice at the Library table at either the May or June meetings so that a complete accounting of titles can be done during the summer recess months. ____________________________________________ Welcoming -- Mary HaganThis committee is looking for new members. Mary Hagen has agreed to stay on until new volunteers come forward. Please contact Mary at 301-977-6397 if you’d like to find out what is involved. Making sure that our new members feel welcome and connected to the group is important to all of us. Bits and PiecesRainie Broad has offered to coordinate Nimble Fingers volunteers for the following charity effort on Sept. 11. Please contact Rainie for more details or if you are interested in participating at 301-279-2407 or email rbroad6@verizon.net. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Committee Chairs - contact these people to volunteer or get information:Current Events: Ann Plunkett All telephone numbers, snail mail and e-mail addresses can be found in the Membership Directory. Copies are available from the Membership Chair. Please notify Mila Haberman with any changes in home address/phone number and/or e-mail address. Quilt Show - Beverly FerrellQuilt Show 2010-Colors of Our WorldHello friends and fellow quilters, It’s been a few months since our last guild meeting, and I know I’ve missed seeing and being inspired by all of you. I hope you’ve had a wonderful summer spending time with family and friends, chopping wood, picking up fallen limbs and other debris, but also putting the finishing touches on your quilts for display and goodies for the Boutique and Silent Auction. October will be here before you know it, then it’s SHOW TIME! Working on the show this past year, I have experienced a myriad of feelings ranging from humility at my lack of experience, worry that I’d miss something, pleasure from the friendships I’ve made, and now increasing excitement at what we have accomplished. I feel very fortunate to be surrounded by such talented, committed, and caring people. I want to thank all the committee members for the wonderful job they are doing, as well as the non-committee members who have graciously shared their time and expertise as we worked our way through a number of challenges. This truly is a community project. Pat Lefevre reports that not only have we filled all vendor space, but we have a waiting list as well. Linda Molinari would like to remind everyone that quilt registration is currently in process, and that the deadline for entering quilts is September 1. Please check our website for registration instructions as Julie Taylor is looking forward to filling all of our design walls with gorgeous quilts. Thanks to Priscilla Lai coordinating the effort, Nimble Fingers is now the proud of owner of sixteen new 8’ x 8’ drapes to showcase our quilts. We were delighted to learn this week that the Universities will allow Linda August and Susan Sellers to use the two front, glass-walled rooms for Quilting for Others and Demonstrations. Located right at the middle of admissions and raffle ticket sales, we should have a good showing at these events. Gerda Sherwood has agreed to coordinate the show set-up, and will be looking for many volunteers to help set-up and take down the poles and drapes. Carole Auth, who is handling the signage, has also volunteered to make a 10’ banner to be displayed for two weeks prior to the show on the corner of Darnestown and Shady Grove Roads. Debra Gabel designed an amazing poster for the Publicity Committee to display in libraries and shops, and a smaller “invitation” version for members to send via email to family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and anyone/everyone else they can think of who might like to attend our show. Floris Flam, Sue Walen, and Connie Condrell have done a tremendous job creating bookmarks, rack cards, posters, and distribution plans to publicize the “Colors of Our World” show. The group has published show details in over 50 publications and will have packets ready for distribution to libraries and shopping centers at the September guild meeting. While a number of members have already volunteered, Floris still needs about ten more for neighborhood distribution. Please see her at the meeting, or give her a call to offer your assistance. Floris would also like to recruit college students who might be willing to drop-off publicity material at their school’s art department. Call her if you know someone. Jane Oden reports that Nimble Fingers members have been extremely generous in donating to Artisan’s Attic, and that they already have a tremendous collection being readied for the show. IMPORTANT: The Artisan’s Attic no longer needs donations. We want to thank all the members who contributed to the fine collection of items that will be sold at the 2010 Quilt Show. Anne Trudel and Nancy Rose Opeka are still collecting items for our raffle baskets, so keep them in mind as you as you look through your quilting supplies. Suggested items include notions and small gift items like note pads, candles, etc. Nancy Sharp has done a wonderful job keeping track of a well-traveled opportunity quilt. Our quilt is currently on display at the Montgomery County Fair, and will head for the State Fair next week. Al Feldman is working on the Viewer’s Choice, and two old (i.e. experienced) hands at show planning, Francie Parrack and Jill Ruspi are recruiting volunteers for all events at the show. Jane Van Horn and Kim Jalette have posted important forms, maps, and instructions on our Website. I think we’ve made great progress this summer, and again want to thank everyone for staying focused. There will be many last minute details to attend to, and if you think of something that needs to be done, please let me know. As we get closer to the show, I’ll need reminders and direction, and I’ve never been embarrassed to admit that I don’t know what I don’t know. So please call or email me with your questions/comment/concerns. The one task that has not yet been assigned is that of Program Layout. Jill Ruspi provided a disk that has all the information from the 2008 program on it. Jill’s layout was done in Microsoft Word, so no special software is required. Ads are being sent to Anne Datko as email attachments, quilt descriptions are entered in a spreadsheet when registration forms are submitted, and the artwork has already been completed. Please consider accepting this role. It’s very important to the success of the show, but not one that takes months of commitment. Call me at 301-869-3249, or send an email to beverlyferrellquilts@yahoo for more information. With everyone’s help, “Colors of Our World” is bound to be a great show! See you soon. Beverly Ferrell, Quilt Show Chair Keep reading for information from other Committee Members: From Rainie Broad - Boutique Update. We are now thinking about how to best display the boutique items that we will have for sale. It would help if those of you that will be consigning or donating items to the boutique would get in touch with me and let me know what you are planning to make so we can plan our display. Please contact me and let me know what you will be offering for sale or donating and if you have any questions email me at rbroad6@email.com or call me at 301-279-2407. Thanks, Rainie. From Anne Datko - OPPORTUNITIES GALORE!!!! For as little as $25 you can reach a large audience of caring quilters. Call Anne Datko at 301-949-9458 for information as her email capability has temporarily been short circuited by the recent storm. From Shirley Malia - Quilt raffle ticket stubs and purchase monies are due by our September 1st meeting. During the summer, please mail these items to Shirley Malia. If not mailed, please bring them to the September meeting. If you cannot sell the tickets, please return all unsold tickets along with your $20 guild donation to Shirley by September 1. From Kim Jalette - Turn in for the Priority: Alzheimer’s Quilts Challenge is at our September 1st meeting. Please visit the Nimble Fingers website for Registration Form (separate from the regular quilt show registration), info on determining the FMV of your quilt and suggestions on hanging options for your quilt. Any questions, please contact Kim at orangecouchquilts@verizon.net or 301-926-1378.
From Burt White – We will be collecting Silent Auction items at the September and October meetings and anytime in between. Please go to the Nimble Fingers website and get the form to accompany each item. Items can be turned in to any Silent Auction Committee member. From Francie Parrack and Jill Ruspi – Sign up for working at the quilt show will be on a first come basis. Bring your calendar and sign up early to get your favorite time slot. Everyone is being asked to work a minimum of two hours. From Nancy Sharp – TRAVEL SCHEDULE FOR OUR RAFFLE QUILT – January through Sept. 2010: January 9 -- Norfolk YMCA (Norfolk, VA -- Carole Auth) OUR QUILT SHOW: And: Our Quilt was awarded a 3rd Place Ribbon at the Montgomery County Fair!! It was displayed there from August 13 through August 21. On its way to the Maryland State Fair!! 2010 Quilt Show – Committee Chair***QUILT SHOW: OCTOBER 15 & 16*** NEXT MEETINGS: SNOW AND/OR INCLEMENT WEATHER POLICY : |