Monthly Archives: February 2022

1 Feb, 2022

President’s Message – 02/22

2022-02-13T15:14:39-05:00President's Message|

Hoping you’re all keeping healthy and warm! These cold days are a perfect time to snuggle up with a quilt on your sofa and perhaps with the book THE SECRET LIVES OF COLOR. The author of that book, Kassia St.Clair, is next month’s guest lecturer. Her book is a top-ten best seller and has been translated into 20 languages. Maybe you have read her first book THE GOLDEN THREAD: How Fabric Changed History?

February newsletters in past years have usually announced events like Super Saturday and the Ugly Fabric Auction but COVID continues to interfere with our normal lives. This year, Comfort Quilts is offering a special Saturday meeting, pre-registration is required. Hopefully we will be meeting in person in March where April and Narci will be collecting the challenge quilts themed “Put a Heart on It”. We should have lots of submissions since we’ve had years to create them. It will be great having a large display at the quilt show.

We know that many of you have been busy finishing up your quilts, sewing on sleeves and labels as well as registering quilts for our show on our website. The show will be here before you know it. A special thank you goes out to Lisa and her committee that have been doing a yeoman’s job making all the arrangements so that we can celebrate the event. More volunteers are still needed. Again, see our website for all details relating to the show.

Feedback from the Improv SIG’s first pop up on January 15th has been positive and Part Two will be on February 5th (and recorded).  Tamar Drucker’s pop-up on February 19th will demonstrate using uneven quilt edges.  If anyone else, or another group, is interested in doing a pop up to highlight their work, please contact Kathy Tuttle.  It’s fun to share and learn from each other.

Jody and Margaret, president@northernstarquilters.com

-- GUILD EVENTS --

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1 Feb, 2022

Latest News – 02/22

2022-02-04T13:45:26-05:00Latest News|

‘Make a Comfort Quilt’ Saturday

'Make a Comfort Quilt' Saturday

Especially for those who can’t come during the week as well as our ‘regulars’

Saturday, February 26th, 10:00am-3:00pm
North Salem Volunteer Ambulance Corps
14 Daniel Road, North Salem, NY

Bring your sewing machine and personal sewing tools (neutral thread, scissors, pins, seam ripper, etc), everything else is provided.
Enjoy a day of sewing with friends.

We’ve made special kits just for the occasion!
There will be simple quilt kits available to select and sew, some could even be completed during the session.
Assistance available as needed on selecting, sewing, and quilting your chosen kit.
If you want to keep your quilt rather than donating it to Comfort Quilts, there is a $10 materials charge.

Chicken and veggie wraps will be available for lunch plus cookies to munch and hot water to brew your favorite hot drink.  If not to your taste, bring a lunch of your choice.

Free to all members, all recommended vaccinations required.

Pre-registration is required and members only since space is limited.
Email comfortquilts@northernstarquilters.com to save a spot.

Questions? Contact Karen Carlson or Carol Auer, comfortquilts@northernstarquilters.com

Charitable Activities - Dee Plouffe

‘Bright Star’ 2022 Raffle Quilt

Raffle Quilt 2022

Dee Plouffe’,  charitable@northernstarquilters.com

Don’t forget to return your raffle stubs and check payable to Northern Star Quilters’ Guild, Ltd.
If you would like to pay by credit card  the link is  https://nsqg.formstack.com/forms/nsqg_charity_raffle.   I will gladly fill out your stubs.

This year’s quilt,  ‘Bright Star’, was coordinated Judy Gignesi and made by members of the guild.  It was quilted by Angela Vetucci.    A Bernina sewing machine, model #475 Quilters Edition , was donated by Pins and Needles of Mt. Kisco, NY for the First Prize.  Proceeds benefit this year’s charity, Friends of Karen.  Thanks for your support.

Remember you can pay anytime for raffle tickets or request more tickets online by going to our website or clicking HERE.

Comfort Quilts

All members are welcome.  Last minute cancellations do happen so if in doubt or coming for the first time please check.  Contact comfortquilts@northernstarquilters.com to join in making Comfort Quilts quilts or to make charity quilt requests or to donate fabric.

Anticipated Upcoming CQ Dates: (*non-standard dates, Wednesday time 10-2))

* February 26 (Saturday, pre-registration needed)
* March 9 & 23 (2nd and 4th Wednesday)
April 6 & 20, May 4 & 18, June 1 & 15
(All recommended vaccinations required.)

Some of the Comfort Quilts collected

Programs - Kathy Tuttle -

WANTED – POP UP TEACHERS

The one to two hour Zoom Pop Ups offered last year were a big hit with our members.  Offer some new technique you just learned or a basic skill such as fabric painting, borders, binding, machine and hand applique,  hand embroidery ….

Contact Kathy Tuttle, kathytuttle9@gmail.com.

IMPROV POP UP -Tami Drucker

Gentle Extensions – Tamar Drucker will demonstrate how to use uneven edges on a piece for a dramatic effect.
Saturday, Feb.19th from 11:00-12:30 pm.

Online via Zoom – Saturday Workshop

Debby Brown – Saturday, March 26, 9am-4pm (click to register)

Line ‘Em Up! (9-12)

Debby will show you step-by-step and stitch-by-stitch what you need to know to start machine quilting and teach several different patterns that can easily be stitched on your unfinished quilt tops.  Yes, you CAN machine quilt!

Take a Walk Around Your Quilt (1-4)

Stitching an edge-to-edge design on your quilt sounds easy, but where do you start?  And how do you keep from getting lost?  Debby will answer these questions while teaching you strategies for stitching various patterns over a quilt on a home sewing machine.  Bonus:  we’ll talk about FEATHERS!

For an example of my teaching style, check out this video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9o2Q80z9dc&t=1s .    Visit DebbyBrownQuilts.Com for more information

Framed Quilt in a Day – Heidi Parkes (click to register)

Learn to hand piece a small patchwork, quilt it, and then stretch it on a frame like a painting.  This succinct workshop introduces the concepts of visible hand piecing and improv hand quilting in a clear and easy to complete way that will inspire students, and allow them to feel successful right away!  The two day class can feature a larger frame, and additional hand piecing techniques.

April 5 & 6, 2022 – This is a two day workshop, $125, limited to 16.

Quilt Show - Lisa Alfonzetti -

Time to register your quilts and signup for your volunteer job!

Reminder – Members have priority registration until February 15th, after that registration is open to all.

Lisa Alfonzetti,  info@pinsandneedlesny.com.

Quilt Show Volunteer Signups - Helen May, Shery Fleishaker -

Since our in-person meetings for signups are limited, we have added an online volunteer signup request ‘sheet’ to speed up and simplify the process of recruiting volunteers for the Quilt Show.  Brief job descriptions of the available jobs are included on the signup sheet and a summary is listed below.  The signup request link is also available on our website.

Please Volunteer NOW!
Click HERE

Reminder – All members are expected to contribute at least two (2) volunteer hours to support our annual Quilt Show. 
And don’t forget – Volunteer members receive:
 – 1 DAY FREE ADMISSION FOR 2 VOLUNTEER HOURS
 – 2 DAYS FREE ADMISSION FOR 4+ VOLUNTEER HOURS
Not counting the longer term planning, coordination, and specialty jobs already being done by the Quilt Show Committee and others (about 45 member volunteers), we still have another 145+ time slots to be filled.  Our guild membership currently totals 175 so we really need all hands on deck and then some!
  • Saturday – Quilt Drop-off – 14 slots (>2hr)
  • Friday – Setup –  21 slots (>2hr)
  • Saturday – Showtime – 47 slots (2hr)
  • Sunday – Showtime – 33  slots (2hr)
  • Sunday – Takedown – 30 slots (>2hr)
  • TOTAL – 145 slots

*SATURDAY – Before the SHOW  – APRIL 23rd
Quilt Drop-Off – 12-4pm, North Salem Volunteer Ambulance Corps: 
Volunteers will examine quilts to make sure they are properly prepared for the show (clean, no odor, sleeve and number attached, etc.).  Other volunteers will check in the quilts and hand out Quilt Claim Cards.

*FRIDAY – Before the SHOW – APRIL 29th  *Husbands, sons, daughters, and friends are welcome!*

  • Quilt Handling and Hanging: A 3-4 hour job which involves carrying and holding sometimes heavy quilts.
  • Vendor Assistant: As the vendors arrive, “direct” them to their area and keep the flow organized and activity safe.
  • Library Table: Set up tables, unload and sortbooks, magazines, and patterns.
*SATURDAY and SUNDAY – At the Show – APRIL 30TH-MAY 1ST
  • Admission Table:  Greet show guests, sell and verify entry tickets, put on colored wrist bands, and hand out Quilt Show Booklets.   Common questions are: Where are the bathrooms?  Where are the lectures and demonstrations? Sit down job
  • Information and MembershipTable(s):  Provide information on show activities and the guild and answer questions from guests.  Guests may drop-off packages at this table.  Sit down job
  • Raffle Tickets and Show Pins and Silent Auction Table(s): We sell about 1000 raffle tickets for charity.  Volunteers collect money for the tickets and answer questions about the charity. Volunteers will also help sell our current and vintage show pins and some special donated items.  Sit down job
  • Library Table(s): Guests buy books, magazines, and patterns.  Volunteers collect money and keep books organized. Standing/sorting/ sitting job.
  • Comfort Quilters Table(s): Guests buy quilt kits.  Volunteers collect money and keep kits organized. Sit down job
  • Lecture Assistant:  Holding up speaker quilts and helping with any speaker sales. Standing/sitting job
*SUNDAY – After the SHOW – MAY 1ST
~ Take-down: Starting at 4pm  *Husbands, sons, daughters, and friends are welcome!*
  • Quilts are removed in an orderly manner, folded and sorted on tables.
  • Hanging drapes and pipes are collected, folded, and stored.
  • Any other NSQG displays and sales areas are dismantled, collected, and stored.

 ~ Pick-up: Starting at 5pm
Volunteers return quilts to their owners, verifying quilt claim card and the number on the quilt and handing out judges’ comments.

*Judging volunteers  (Jane Eyes, Diane Linker) and Money Management volunteers (Amanda Curley) are being managed individually due to Covid concerns and special requirements.  Please check with Jane, Diane or Amanda for further information.

Once your chosen slot can be assigned, we will notify you with a confirmation email.  Your help is necessary and appreciated and we thank you!

Any questions, contact Helen May or Sheryl Fleishaker at ShowVolunteers@NorthernStarQuilters.com.

Quilt Show Book Sale Donations - Deborah Tashjian -

For all of you who have asked about donating books:  we’ll be collecting for the Quilt Show Book Sale at the March and April meetings.  We ask that your books are clean, in good condition and not musty smelling.  No magazines please.  If possible, please bring your donations in cardboard boxes – for example, from the liquor store – rather than  plastic bags. (They tear too easily.)
Contact library@northernstarquilters.com with any questions.

Membership - Carol Sterk -

Hello to all!

I hope you are staying safe and warm!

Membership for the year is up to 175 even though most of our meetings have been on Zoom thus far. At our February meeting, please welcome our newest member, Jill Ross of Boynton Beach, Florida, with a wave.  There will also be several guests to introduce.

                             2021-2022 Membership Directories

If you would like a hard copy of the 2021-2022 Membership Directory, they will continue to be available at Comfort Quilts meetings, or you can make arrangements to pick up your directory at one of these locations:

Northwest Westchester                                  Rosemary DePaola               waltrosemary@gmail.com
(includes Ossining, Cortlandt and Yorktown)

Lower Westchester /SW CT                            Carol Sterk                              crsterk@gmail.com
(includes Scarsdale, White Plains, Eastchester, Mamaroneck, Greenwich, Stamford)

Central Westchester                                        Karen Carlson                         quiltingkarenD@aol.com
(includes Briarcliff, Croton on Hudson)

Northeast Westchester, NW CT                     Joanne Visovsky                       jvisovsky@gmail.com
(includes Danbury, Katonah, Bedford, N. Salem, Somers)

*Please let us know if you would like a directory and live at too great a distance to travel to any of these locations. We will try to make alternative arrangements with you.

*The directories will also be available at the March meeting at Kennedy.

                                                        Directory Photos

We hope you will join your fellow quilters in adding your photograph to the membership directory. This is a great way for people to get to know you! There’s no time like the present. Please consider sending your picture to us at membership@northernstarquilters.com for inclusion in this year’s online directory, if you have not yet done so.

Volunteers Needed

Joanne and I are looking for a few volunteers to help us with welcoming new members to the guild as we resume live meetings.  If you and a friend would be interested in being table hosts – welcoming a new member to your table and introducing him/her to your friends – please let us know. We are also looking for a volunteer to help us with walking new members around the cafeteria and introducing them to the various activities that are taking place.

See you on Zoom!

Carol Sterk and Joanne Visovsky – contact membership@northernstarquilters.com

J o I n   H e r e

Member Notices:

(Members may request a short personal post about quilting related items or info, contact news@northernstarquilters.com for further details.)

Whether you’re a new or renewing member, check out our Buddy Program if you would like a ‘buddy’ to show you the ropes around the guild.  Be sure to pick up your name pin button or make your own NSQG fabric name badge, pattern HERE.

If you know any member of the guild who is in need of a little ‘sunshine’ for illness, sympathy, or any other reason, please contact secretary@northernstarquilters.com so the guild can send a card.

Requests on how to make a donation to the guild to honor a member or support an activity are occasionally received. Such requests may now be accomplished via our website, where we have set up a Donate box on our home page, click on Make a Donation.

Guild bylaws and policies are available to members on our website or by request to the secretary@northernstarquilters.com.
Guild financial reports are available to members by annual email or by request to the treasurer@northernstarquilters.com.

Send Guild newsletter updates and photos as well as info on local quilt activities and shows to news@northernstarquilters.com and photos for Instagram and Facebook are always welcome at social@northernstarquilters.com.

Follow and Share NSQG activities on Facebook  and Instagram   –   @northernstarquilters

Area Quilt Shows

Area Guilds offering Programs

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