Category Archives: community

HST Checkers & Succulent II {finishes}

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Over the last year, I have been feeling more of a need to give back to the community. I originally started by donating quilts to NC folks that were recovering from one of our hurricanes. I really enjoyed making these community quilts.

This year at QuiltCon I had picked up an amazing 100 x 5″ square charm pack with Alison Glass fabric. When COVID-19 stay at home orders were issued, I decided I needed some mindless sewing to do. For me that was making Half Square Triangles (HST) with the charm pack and a some Kona Snow (I has on bolt). IMG_0691

I had enough squares to make 2 quilts, with a couple of additions from stash. I chose two designs, a simple grid based combination of snow and a 2×2 block and a previous one I used for my succulent quilt (just larger blocks this time). IMG_0713

Both the quilts were:

  • Backed with Speckled print from Ruby Star Society, one with yellow and one with teal.
  • They were also both long-arm quilted by Cary Quilting Company with and edge to edge design.
  • Bound with an older Alison Glass print.

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This is the final quilt for the Succulent remake which finishes at 76 x76″. The placement of the colors are to highlight the radiant movement of the triangles. Starts with Blacks, Greys, Low Volumes, Oranges, Blues & Teals, Yellow, Pinks & Purples and finishes with the greens. There are no repeat print in the same color way. I love how this quilt turned out. IMG_0892

The other quilt, the gridded layout, matched up the colors again but this time in sets of 4. My goal of the block placement was to make sure there were minimal repeats of colors in  a row or a single column. This one finishes at 64″ x 72″. IMG_0959

These two quilts, I plan to try something different with. Sometime late July – early August I plan to Auction these quilts off and give the proceeds of the auction to @together.rising (also check out their web page for general information and also how to donate and support their COVID-19 Assistance Program). This charity I have been supporting almost a year and does amazing work in the community. There is one more quilt which I’ll post about over the weekend, Pineapple, which will also be in the auction.

Stay tuned, I will post Auction information on my instagram account @ml_wilkie.

Squircle {a finish}

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Can you believe it is mid-April?? How are you all doing with your isolation / social-distancing/ physical distancing??

Working from home has been interesting, as my work hours seem to have increased and now can be any from 8am-11pm.  Add making sure school schedules are being met, getting 3 meals a day on the table, and baking once a week…all seems overwhelming at times but we are making it through each day.

I have decided to start attaching up on my blog posts of some of my finishes and projects I am working on. I have been awful here on my blog, however those that follow me on instagram (@ml_wilkie) will have seen these. So let’s get started, first up is Squircle.

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Within the first year of quilting I joined the New Bloggers Blog hop. It was so good to meet people with a common interest and starting out on their quilting journeys, and many of them are still friends today. After the Blog hop 12 of us did a block party/swap (Scrap-bee-licious), where each of us gave instructions on our particular month and people made the block and sent them back to the person of the month. I sent every one a couple of Angela Pingel’s book “A Quilters Mixology: Shaking up curved piecing“. I asked for 2 six inch drunkard path blocks in particular color ways (blue or teal or aqua print for the pie and the crust in a neutral back ground (cream, white or grey). It was the first time for many of us sewed curves.

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At the end of the round these were the blocks I received. I was then stuck what to do with them. Do I make a baby quilt, as I don’t have enough blocks for a lap sized quilt? Could I add more drunkard path block? I decided to put them away for a while.

That landed up being almost 5 years later. Finally, I was inspired after seeing an Art Deco poster, that I could use these blocks for a lap sized quilt and transition from a circle to a square.

I am really happy how the quilt top turned out, and decided that I would get it quilted by Cary Quilting Company with an all over design.

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To get a picture of the finished quilt, I called up a couple of friends and we took the quilt out for a photo shoot at the NC Museum of Arts. It was a perfect outing with coffee and lunch, then the perfect light for a picture in front of this amazing mural.

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The quilt now lives with my friend in Houston, TX and her beautiful girl. I might make a couple more of these as they make great gifts/charity quilts and it was a quick make.

Details

Name : Squircle
Design: Original Design (with use of Angela Pingel’s templates)
Fabric: Variety of Prints and Neutral solids
Dimensions: 56 x 70 in.
Quilted: Cary Quilting Company using a circular design

 

 

Community {Part III – Giving Back}

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Giving back to one’s community, to me, is the most important things you can do for your community. There are lots of was to give back to your community and it does not always involve money.

Last year, North Carolina went through a couple of terrible hurricanes that left areas devastated. Some folks are still without homes and belongings. As this is in my backyard I felt compelled to contribute in some way. I have donated several clothes, kitchenware and bedding already. My favorite contributions though, that I recently finished, are  two quilts that were donated to Carolina Hurricane Quilt Project.

The first project is using Denyse Schmidt’s Ocean Wave quilt pattern. I started with a 100 charm pack of various Kaffe Fassett fabrics, and 3 solid charm packs that I had received in conference goodies. The HST laid out beside each other were a little saturated for me so the extra negative space in the ocean waves pattern was perfect. I am not a huge fan of the prints but I loved how it turned out. I know it will be treasured by its new owner too.

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The other quilt was an UFO that I had lying around for a couple of years. It was originally designed for a back but I decided it was better as a quilt top. I made it slightly larger by adding blue border. I think it would be such a fun kids quilt.

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Both quilts were quilted by Cary Quilting Company which is also the place to drop off and donate quilts for #Carolinahurricanequiltproject.

There are many groups that you can join that are all about giving quilts to charity.

Making quilts or quilt blocks for quilts to donate are one way to give back to your community, however there are many other ways to give back as well. Here are other some ideas for thought:

Volunteer

One of the things I hear from several guilds and groups is how hard it is to get volunteers. Time is one of the easiest things you can give to your community, even if its just an hour here or there. Opportunities with you group or guild could include:

  • An event – manning a booth or for setup / take down
  • Bringing refreshments
  • Organizing an activity – like a swap
  • Join a committee or a board

One of my favorite things to do is to volunteer for events that nurture other people’s interest in the activity that  I love (in this case, quilting). For example, this weekend, the Triangle Modern Quilt Guild hosted a booth at the NC Museum of History to support the Quilt Speak Exhibit. The booth highlighted Modern Quilting and had a couple of machines and fabric there, so folks (the public) can make an improvisation block. A way of learning some modern quilting techniques and promoting participation, a great conduit for community interaction. We even had people trying sewing for the first time.

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Education Opportunities

Education is so important in today’s societies. Art and hand skills are missing in many schools today, and I think people are missing the ability to express themselves, become creative thinkers, or see | understand other views. Some options here include volunteering at your local schools (or your kids school), or at local community centers, Local guilds or art centers.

For any of these think about:

  • A talk you could do (also gives you a chance for public speaking)
  • A Program (like a tutorial of a technique)
  • Join a group that supports outreach programs to schools or teens
  • Or run an after school program at your local school.

I am hoping over the next year to either help out with an existing outreach program or start one for kids and teens. I would like to teach sewing basics, quilting basics and design elements. I will let you know how this goes.

Donations

Don’t forget many art programs are working on grants. If you have left over supplies that you don’t know what to do with, think about donating it to an art program. I donate everything from instructional or art books, glue, paper, pens, fabric, sewing notions etc.  Also, don’t be afraid to ask what the organization needs as they may have specific program in mind. For example, one group needed a couple of Gees Bend books as they were studying them that year.

Those were my ideas and things I have tried. I would love to hear how you give back. I am always looking for new opportunities and ways to give back or participate in my community.

Other Community Posts in this series:
Community {Introduction – Part I}
Community {Group Activity – Part II}