Kate’s Comments...

VSSQ PATCHWORKThe Vernon Silver Star Quilters Guild Newsletter ~ Volume 13, Issue 7 ~ MARCH 2020

MARCH GUILD EVENTS

March 2:Scrappy Subgroup

March 5 Guild Business Meeting; Newcomers’ Meeting follows

March 9:Classics Subgroup

March 10:QuArtz Subgroup

March 12:Diane Jansen Workshop

March 17:St. Patrick’s Day

March 19: No meeting!

March 21:International Quilt Day!

March 23:Stars Subgroup

March 24:Modern Subgroup

March 26:Community Care Sew Day

Guild Meeting Days: doors open at 9:15.

Subgroups and Classes: doors open at 8:35

for setup.

Please remember that our meetings and classes have been designated as

fragrance-free. Thank you for respecting

others’ sensitivities!

In like a lion and out like a lamb or vice versa? I know which one I’d prefer, if I had the choice… just get on with it and get it over with already! I just spent

a few days last week in Palm Springs, California at a Tire Industry conference — don’t laugh, every industry has their gatherings! I’ve been greatly blessed to have been able to accompany my husband on at least one of these outings every year for the last 20 years. It’s the thing I look forward to in February, a nice little break from winter to somewhere south where there’s a pool and palm trees, and sometimes a wonderful beach! Oh how I’ve appreciated those lovely interludes over the years, even more precious now that my husband is retiring this summer. This last one was undoubtedly THE LAST ONE! We got home in the late afternoon on Saturday, time enough to unpack, start the laun-dry and go for groceries. How nice to sleep in your own bed, and then wake up to… the lion of winter! Bah, I don’t want to see anymore snow, so c’mon March, let’s get it over with!

Because I was away, I missed the incredible riches of Catherine Nicholls’ visit to VSSQ. I’m so pleased to learn that her workshops were well received and her Trunk Show earned a standing ovation! I look forward to enjoying the photos that will be posted on our website. Kudos to our Workshops Committee mem-bers for putting it all together for our great benefit, well done! Having said that, our local celebrity instructor Diane Jansen is coming here on March 12, and her teaching is always a highlight. I first met Diane when I lived in William’s Lake, early 90’s, and was part of that little quilting guild. Diane’s Trunk Show blew my mind! Well, I guess I never quite recovered, and perhaps I can blame her for my addled wits? Just kidding, you will only ever be inspired and encouraged at a Diane Jansen workshop, I promise!

March is a one meeting month for us, the third week is dedicated to Vacation Bible School activities here at our lovely venue. However, there’s a Community Care sewing day the week after, so mark your calendars for Thursday, the 26th. What a great way to end the month, whether it goes out roaring or bleating!

Newsletter Editor: Nancy Bradley

Our Website: www.vssq.org

VSSQ Mailing Address: Box 22007 Westend RPO Vernon, BC, V1T 9L7

We appreciate our advertisers!

Deadline for the APRIL issue of Patchwork is March 25, 2020

Any time is stitchin’ time.

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 2

February Door Prize Congratulations to Dorothy Fowler

who won the VSSQ February door prize which was a $25.00 Gift Certificate from Fabricland ~ Happy shopping!

Receipt Redemption Reportby Shirley Hamilton

Grocery receipts from

Save On Foods are no longer being accepted. However, the last eligible receipts were returned to Save On Foods and we have received a $25 gift certificate in exchange. This was submitted to our Treasurer at the February 6th meeting.

Receipts from Butcher Boys are still being collected. We receive $50 for every $5,000 worth of receipts. An amount of $10,594.97 in receipts covering the months from September to November has been converted into $100 in gift certificates – also submitted to our Treasurer the first meeting in February.

Nature’s Fare gives us 3% for every $5,000 worth of receipts submitted to them. We are almost at $5,000 and will receive a $25 gift certificate from Nature’s Fare when we reach that goal.

Community Care Day 2020March 26th, 2020

by Diane Nakatsui

This really is a sewing party! We will be sorting fabric, picking patterns, matching colours,

cutting and sewing. There is something for every-one, including prizes, coffee, goodies and great company. The finished quilts will be donated to various very grateful charities in the area.

Any time after 9 am in the activity room at the church is fine, come all day or for a few hours and bring a bag lunch to supplement the goodies!

See you there!

Newcomers Reportby Bonnie Burnett

In February the newcom-ers committee, Bonnie

Burnett, Betty Klein and Jean Donker welcomed Valerie Goodale and Christine Wejr to the Guild.

At our meeting on March 5th we will have the

newcomers and MLS sharing their “Tips, Tricks and Demos” at the meeting. This is always lots of fun and very informative – why didn’t I think of that? Anyone who wishes may join us.

Quilting For YouProfessional Hand-guided Machine Quilting

•Superior Thread Products Source•Project Completion & Quilts for Sale

Susan Wilson2905 Wood Ave. Armstrong, BC 250-308-6635

Always Hand Guided

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 3

Best Wishes to our VSSQ March Babies!

2 ............Joyce Evanishen 9 ............Danielle Walker10 ..........Dianne Steeper12 ..........Deb Green12 ..........Gisele Beaudoin15 ..........Nonie Davies17 ..........Pat Libby17 ..........Rene Gutyan18 ..........Mary-Lou Wightman20 ..........Marilyn Buhler29 ..........Joyce Heard31 ..........Eva Prokopetz31 ..........Marilyn Wardlow

Country Quilts&

Collectables#3 - 3009 43rd Avenue, Vernon, BC

250-545-9330A Country Friendly Quilt Store

www.countryquiltsandcollectables.com

February Fat Quarter Draw Winners: Deb Green, Brenda Barritt and Georgia JohnstoneCongratulations! ~ If you bring, you may win! ~

(Both Ventures Inc.)Come see us for all your quilting needs.

We carry Olfa and Omnigrid.Fabricland Vernon:

5509 24th St. 250-542-0338Fabricland Penticton:

392 Skaha Lake Rd 250-493-7377

If you know of anyone in our Guild who has lost a member

of their family, or who has been ill, please let Evelyne Reitsma know so she can

send a caring card.

Workshop Newsby Susan Wilson

What a busy next few months we have planned for you. Dianne Janssen’s class Creating Negative/Positive Designs

has space on the wait list; she is a wealth of information and every class is rewarding.

At our March meeting we will begin registration for two workshops: Free Motion Quilting with Kirsten Chapman and Labyrinth with Marven Ecker. You may recall the trunk show Kirsten gave towards the end of last year. In her class on May 14th, you will explore free motion designs and quilt placemats. Marven has offered to teach the Labyrinth Quilt on May 28th. His class will have an orientation meeting on April 16th as fabric selection is key to the success of this illusion quilt and there is a substantial amount of precutting required.

QuArtz Reportby Betty Klein

At Quartz we are continuing our study of Symmetry. Terms such as ‘‘mirror’’, ‘‘rotational’’ and ‘‘translational’’ are becoming more

common at our meetings. We are being led to understanding these terms by Cathy Gates Brothen who is very patient and thorough!!!

We have had some fun ‘‘Joltz’’ activities with Brigitte’s contour drawing task being translated into postcards, and Elisabeth’s paper collage houses being rendered into fabric cards! We’re stretching our brains and imaginations!

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 4

EDITORIAL... Pressing Pros & Cons~ from various internet sources ~

In quilting, seams have traditionally been pressed to the dark side in order to:

• prevent the dark fabric from shadowing through a lighter one;

• prevent batting from coming through the stitches in the seam allowance;

• reduce bulk where seam allowances come together.

In clothing construction, seams are almost always pressed open so as not to add noticeable bulk. (However, curved seams that have the most stress or tension are double stitched, trimmed, and not pressed open).

As quilt batting has gotten better and better (i.e. less bearding) and with the advent of machine piecing, some quilters started pressing their seams open, too. Is it time to re-visit the argument of pressing open vs. to one side?

Here are some of the pros and cons I’ve found on the subject: Pressing seams to one side:

•Easierandfasterthanpressingthemopen(butcarestill needs to be taken for accuracy in the size of the block).

•Allowstheseams to lock together for easy matching of points without pinning.

•Allows stitch-in-the-ditch quilting because there is actually a ‘‘ditch’’.

•Somesay that this seam is stronger – but if seams pressed to one side are stronger, then why did our clothing teachers exhort us to press our seams open Clothing certainly receives much more pull and wear than most quilts do. For most seams in clothing a pressed opened seam is sufficiently strong. Note: however, most clothing seams are 5/8” vs. the 1/4’’ seams in a quilt – so is this argument neither here nor there?

•Shadowing caused by seams pressed one way add depth and dimension that is part of the feel of a traditional quilt (this is a new one on me!)

•Seams can be bulky where many fabrics come together making it difficult for quilting, and the quilt may wear faster at that point (although there are easy methods for flattening these points).

Pressing seams open:

•Seams are flatter and do not create dimension to the overall design – desirable for miniatures and wall hangings.

•Intersections are not as bulky because seams are pressed open and seam allowances are evenly distributed.

•Requires pinning for points to match.

•Seamsthatarepressedopenmake your thread more vulner-able to damage due to threads being exposed.

The Verdict (??):

Some quilt construction methods will dictate an open-pressed seam (e.g. One Block Wonders). If you choose to press your block seams open, you may want to consider not doing stitch in the ditch.

Bottom line: quilting is a personal journey so you need to do what feels right and works for you.

Offering workshops in unique mystery locations.You will be notified of the location the day prior to the

workshop. Contact Susan at 250-308-6635 or quiltinghereandthere@gmail.com

Quilting Here & ThereA Twist on Mystery Quilts

Triangle Techniques March 30

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 5

DEBBIE MACLEOD QUILTINGLongarm Machine Quilting

2804A - 45 Ave.Vernon, BC V1T 3N4www.requiemquilting.comquiltluverdebbie@netscape.net250-503-7465

Affordable Creativity!Studio open by appointment only

We SERVICE & REPAIR Sewing Machines & Vacuum Cleaners

ANDRE’S PLAZA, next to Village Green Mall250-549-2730

www.findlaysvacuumandsew.comOn site repairs to all makes & models. We sharpen scissors.

Quilt Show Legacy Teacher 2020 - Catherine Nicholls by Susan Wilson

Wow! Wasn’t that a trunk show? And for those who had the benefit of spending a day with Catherine, her quilts had even

more neurons firing, making connections to what you learned!

I was quietly told, “Watching these women look at quilts is like watching a fat kid attack a Smartie!”, and I think that summed up very well the meeting space at coffee time. Over 125 folks attended the trunk show and we had four different guilds represented at the work-shops. Many thanked us for the invitation to attend and look forward to cooperating in the future.

Both groups of bird workshop attendees were happy with the results of their day. Interesting that the partridge group all created their own interpretation of the pattern while the chickadees seemed to follow the pattern as presented. The paper & stitch ladies were creating, experimenting and playing with all types of ideas floating around. Enjoy the photos of busy hands working and my apologies to paper & stitch group – I got too involved and forgot to take photos.

I would like to mention that the week would not have been possible without Lyn L’s help in organizing and indeed insisting on being the Angel/Assistant for all three

workshops. She was indeed an angel and great facilitator. Were we not well hosted? In addition, Lyn and Edna shared their home and hospitality with Catherine for the week. Thank you.

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 6

T he Fat Quarter Draw Contacts are Bev Keith and Joanne

Mitchell. Reminder: the next draw will take place on March 5th!

Rules: One entry for each fat quarter, sized approx. 20" x 22" and of good quality cotton. Winners of each draw will be published in the next newsletter.

March’s Theme = Shamrock

Getting to Know You... Our Secretary, Cathi Litzenberger

When did you start quilting and what prompted you to begin?

I started quilting back in 2002 with a plan to make my Dad a story quilt, in

time for our family reunion later that summer. It was an ‘‘Attic Window’’ pattern and my ignorance assured me it would be a piece of cake. I actually believed it! After all, I had been an award winner in 4H for over seven years. I never knew that inac-curacies as little as a 16th of an inch could grow to be some kind of monster when putting the squares together. At that time I didn’t even own a rotary cutter or ruler and I cut all the pieces with scissors. When so many of the squares wouldn’t line up as beautifully as I expected, I improvised and appli-quéed flowers over them. I hand quilted it in time for presentation at the reunion. One day I will bring it to Show & Tell – it’s very humbling.

When did you become involved with VSSQ? I got involved the second meeting in 2007 when Joyce Evenishen brought me to a meeting as a guest. Show & Tell really blew me away and I signed up that day. Back then we had a VIP for every new-bie and mine was Shirley Hopps. I learned so much from her and other seasoned quilters to whom I am forever grateful. (Back in those years we didn’t

have an organized group for newbies, but thanks to Nancy Tindal for bringing the idea to the Guild a few years later.) I started my 2nd quilt that year using scraps, parchment paper, and new tools. The tumbling blocks are still falling unfinished because I do not like the colours. I got involved with the executive in my 2nd year, as Co-chairperson (with Joyce E.) for the Special Events Committee and later took it over alone. I’ve been involved with all the Quilt Shows since joining but have yet to enter any-thing. I joined for the learning, but more so for the camaraderie of everyone there. It’s Fun!

What type of quilts do you make? A better question might be, ‘‘What Kind of quilts do you start?’’ It’s like this – I start many in great antici-pation and excitement. I did well sewing one at a time for the first five or six years. I made quilts for family, the grandchildren, and other special friends. I made quilts for our home, for special occasions and for Christmas. I tried many different techniques, patterns and enjoyed it all. In the following years my business took priority and I didn’t do much quilting, however that didn’t mean a stop to shop-ping for kits, fabrics, or projects I knew I’d love. How could I leave something in the store when I knew one day I would have the time, but would never find it again? I did start a number of them, but I haven’t finished most from that time. Then, as they say, “life happens”, and we were affected by the awful flood of 2017 followed by a year and a half of my medical issues so everything was put on hold. Everything is now going well and I’m happily work-ing on my unfinished projects.

Continued on page 7...

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 7

Library Notesby Alanna Robson

The Vernon Silver Star Quilters Guild library has a selection of specialty rulers and templates

that you might like to check out.

Why go to the expense of buying a ruler you may only use once or twice when you can borrow it from your Guild library? For example, we have two sets of the Square in a Square instructions with the ruler you need for the pattern, along with three additional books by Jodi Barrows.

We also have speciality rulers for Flying Geese, Grandmothers Fan, Winners Bouquet, Hexa-cuts, circles, and much more. There are triangle rulers and bias square rulers and the ruler you need to make Fantastic Fan and Wedge Designs, by Kaye Wood.

The rulers and other templates are stored in large binders in the library. Come and check them out!

Machines, Classes, Longarm Services,Fabric & More!

Authorized Sales & Service

ONLINE SHOPPING NOW AVAILABLE...www.cottagequiltingonline.com

Hours: Mon. to Sat. 10 am - 5 pm110 - 2000 Spall Road, Kelowna

Tel: 250-860-1120

Getting to Know You...Our Secretary, Cathi Litzenberger Continued from page 6

How has your own quilting changed over the years?

From where I started it could only improve and it certainly has, thanks to all the ladies who have offered their advice and experience. I’ve become more precise, I’m not afraid to ask for help any-more. I don’t take my mistakes so seriously, my six seam rippers are my friends now, and I believe it is important to have the tools I need. I know my weaknesses and strengths and I’m assured noth-ing I make is going to be hung in the Taj Mahal!

What do you see in your quilting future?

I see myself finishing all the projects I still love, and releasing the rest, without guilt, to anyone who may want them. I’d like time to make smaller quilts and would love to do some mixed media and art quilts. I hope to be making a few more memory quilts for graduates in my family and perhaps more story and history quilts.

Quilting is my passion –

chocolate comes in a close second.

For information about advertising in our Newsletter, please contact Joanne Gaudet.

For comments, contributions, etc. on our Website or Newsletter, please contact Nancy Bradley.

PATCHWORK March 2020 ~ PAGE 8

Your first choice for Batik fabric supplyEndy Turner

14450 Middlebench Rd. , Oyama, BC

250-870-8680Longarm Quilting Service

Closed Dec. 21, 2019 to Mar. 3, 2020

Batik Corner

“ You Know Your Grandmother is a Quilter When...”

by Rene Gutyen

The other day when I sent a text message to my grandson saying he was next in line for a new quilt and did he have a favorite colour, I got an answer that could only come from the grandson of a quilter!

“Well grandma,’’ he answered, ‘‘I thought royal blue, dark grey and white would be a good combo.

So much for plain old blue or green!

What to Put on a Quilt Labelfrom an internet source*

At the absolute minimum, a quilt label should include: the name of the quilt maker, the city, province, and year in which the quilt was made.

You can also include things like: a quilt name; style or pattern name; name of the recipient; occasion for making the quilt; date of the occasion; name of the quilter if different from the quilt maker; special messages, poems, or quotes.

* This source suggests that women who changed their name after marriage should: be sure to include your maiden name as well as your married name on your quilt labels. This more easily identi-fies you and your family relationships.

“Ironing Stations” good, bad or indifferent

by Bernie Weiss

A pet peeve of mine has always been that an ironing board wastes so much space below it. And every time I pick one up it gains a life of its own and folds up, usually on my toe!

Lola and I took a trip to Home Depot and found an inexpensive rolling tool chest with drawers - hooray

for extra storage – (Husky brand I think).

Another nice thing is that the wooden top comes off as they are made to be replaced when they wear out.