NSQG Workshops

• January(Zoom) – Free Motion Quilting, Teri Lucas
• March – A Day with NSQG’s Own, Daisy Dodge
• April – Pictorial Whole Cloth Quilts, Christina Arcenegui Bono
• May – Dancing with the Wall, Irene Roderick

Questions? Contact Jo Thomas, programs@northernstarquilters.com

Want to go on an overnight quilt show trip?  This trip is being planned for Sept. 13–14, 2024.  You will join a group of NSQG members on a bus trip that includes entry to the AQS show, visiting fabric shops along the way, overnight accommodations and some meals.  Details are still being determined depending on response and number of attendees.  For information, please contact:  Christine Bunke, trip coordinator, chrisme214@aol.com

Challenge pieces will be due at our next in-person meeting in March.  Voting will take place at the April meeting.
All you need to know about this exciting challenge is on the NSQG website NSQG website Challenge page.
Questions? Contact Constanze Toplansky at constanze.toplansky@gmail.com.

Cleaning up after the holidays?  Is your New Year’s resolution to clean out your fabric stash?  The solution is to donate your fabrics to our Ugly Fabric Auction – quilting cottons of at least 1/4 yard.  You can bring your fabric to the March and April guild meetings or to Comfort Quilts.  If you are in the Mahopac area, call Jean Degl (845-628-9130, jdegl@yahoo.com) to make an appointment to drop off fabric, if closer to Mt. Kisco, contact Rona Spar (914-941-4931, ronaquilter@gmail.com).

Questions? Contact our auctioneer, Linda Finegan at linfin612@gmail.com

2024 Raffle Quilt ‘Parfait’ to benefit North Salem Volunteer Ambulance Corps.

Check your mailbox for your packet of  raffle tickets. Ticket stubs and a check can be mailed back to me, Dee Plouffe  280A Heritage Hills, Somers NY, 10589.  If you need more tickets just email me and I will mail them to you….meemee530@gmail.com or click HERE.

Dee Plouffe’,  charitable@northernstarquilters.com

‘Tis the season to celebrate quilty friends and lots of treats! At our upcoming December guild meeting, you are invited to join us in a cookie swap!

Please bring one dozen cookies to share at the meeting and a container to take home some extras.

Email your recipe (if you’d like to share it) to hospitality@northernstarquilters.com.  We will include it in an eBook cookie recipe collection to be shared with members in our next newsletter.  Along with the recipe, please include a story, picture or anything else that makes the cookies special to you.

STILL NEEDED: Committee heads for the Admissions and Quilt Handler committees.

Both of these are roles important to the success of our show; they are not longterm or complicated, and minimal prep is needed.  There will be a full team of volunteers for each position to assist you.  Committee responsibilities could be shared by a couple people, so grab a friend and volunteer!

•  ADMISSIONS – responsible for the functioning of the admissions tables.
  This position involves overseeing ticket processing, cash & charge payments, wristbands, pre-paid attendee tracking and cash box return to treasurer and register closeout at end of day.
•  QUILT HANDLER – responsible for the handling, storing, and transporting show quilts.
  This position requires the person to pack and transport the quilts by category Drop-off day (Saturday mid-day, April 27, 2024), then transport to and from Judging day (Tuesday am&pm, April 30, 2024);  and finally to transport to Show Setup day – Friday am, May 3, 2024.

When we think about a friend, an acquaintance, a family member whose day could be brightened with a call or a visit.  We act on that thought.

One of the traditional gestures of our guild is to bring heartwarming messages to our members through cards.  If you know of a member who has been ill or suffered a loss, please send an email to our secretary, Amanda Curley, secretary@northernstarquilters.com, and she’ll post a card from the guild.  Likewise, if the guild receives a donation, please email our secretary.  She’ll send a note of appreciation.

Stock up on books for the winter months, remember January and February are Zoom meetings.

Continue to design and work on your black and white challenge which is due at the March guild meeting.
All you need to know about this exciting challenge is on the NSQG website NSQG website Challenge page.
Questions? Contact Constanze Toplansky at constanze.toplansky@gmail.com

Cleaning up for the holidays?? Donate your unwanted fabric- quilting cottons of at least 1/4 yard –  to our Ugly Fabric Auction. ‘One quilter’s trash is another quilter’s treasure!’   You can bring your fabric to the guild meeting or to Comfort Quilts.  If you are in the Mahopac area, call Jean Degl to make an appointment to drop off fabric, closer to Mt. Kisco, contact Rona Spar.   The auction, this year to be at our May meeting, raises funds for the Guild while we all have a good time bidding on the donated fabrics.

Questions? Contact our auctioneer, Linda Finegan at linfin612@gmail.com

NSQG Workshops

• January(Zoom) – Free Motion Quilting, Teri Lucas
• March – A Day with NSQG’s Own, Daisy Dodge
• April – Pictorial Whole Cloth Quilts, Christina Arcenegui Bono
• May – Dancing with the Wall, Irene Roderick

Questions? Contact Jo Thomas, programs@northernstarquilters.com

Raffle Quilt 2024 – “Parfait “ is a bed size quilt coordinated by Carol Auer and Karen Carlson, pieced and hand quilted with a ‘big stitch’ by members of our Guild.  Please support this year’s member chosen charity – North Salem Volunteer Ambulance Corps.

Raffle ticket packets were distributed at the November meeting.  Please return your check and paid ticket stubs to me, I will be at the sign -in table.  And you can always request additional tickets HERE.

Raffle Quilt 2025 – Our Raffle Quilt for 2025 is being coordinated by Barbara Allen.   Special thanks to Patricia Loquet  for the use of her Accuquilt fabric cutting machine.

Dee Plouffe’,  charitable@northernstarquilters.com

Season’s Greetings to everyone!

Northern Star is rounding out the year with a total of 211 members.  Please join Joanne and I in welcoming our five newest members!  They are Elizabeth Aaron of Maplewood, NJ, Margaret Meola, of Summit, NJ, Sam Panzier of Rye Brook, Carol Powers of Cortland Manor and Bonnie Terrano of Yonkers.  It’s great to see a new surge of interest in quilting in our area!

We wish you a wonderful new year that includes the completion of one of your unfinished projects!

Joanne Visovsky and Carol Sterk, membership@northernstarquilters.com

NSQG Workshops

• November – FULL-WAITLIST ONLY – Fabulous Freehand Curves, Cindy Grisdela
• January – Free Motion Quilting, Teri Lucas
• March – Bauhaus Sampler, Daisy Dodge
• April – Pictorial Whole Cloth Quilts, Christina Arcenegui Bono
• May – Dancing with the Wall, Irene Roderick

Questions? Contact programs@northernstarquilters.com

Thank you to everyone who has already volunteered to be a committee head for the 2024 Quilt Show!

We still need committee heads for the Admissions and Quilt Handler committees.  Both of these are roles are critical to the success of our show!

•  ADMISSIONS – responsible for the functioning of the admissions tables.
  This position involves overseeing ticket processing, cash & charge payments, wristbands, pre-paid attendee tracking and cash box return to treasurer and register closeout at end of day.
•  QUILT HANDLER – responsible for the handling, storing, and transporting show quilts from Drop-off day thru Judging to Show set-up.
  This position requires the person to sort and pack the quilts by category and transport to their home, Drop-off – Saturday, April 27, 2024;  to transport to  and from Judging – Tuesday am/pm, April 30, 2024;  and finally to deliver the quilts for Show Setup – Friday am, May 3, 2024.

• BLACK AND WHITE CHALLENGE – Challenge yourself to make a quilt using only black and white fabrics.  Black and white prints are okay, but no grey, and no other colors!  The perimeter can be no larger than 80” but can be any shape you choose.  Full rules can be found on the NSQG website challenge page.  Questions? Contact Constanze Toplansky at constanze.toplansky@gmail.com
• ORPHAN BLOCKS – Pick up an orphan block kit from Patricia Loquet at Comfort Quilts or at the next Guild meeting.  In the bag you will find a selection of donated orphan blocks that you can sew into a beautiful quilt using your creativity by adding your own fabric and clever ideas.  This takes a bit of ingenuity and curiosity, but you will end up with a beautiful quilt.
• UGLY FABRIC AUCTION – Please continue to bring your ‘ugly’ fabrics to Guild meetings and Comfort Quilts meetings.  The auction is always a happy meeting that raises funds for the Guild while we all have a good time bidding on the donated fabrics.  Jean Degl is storing the fabrics at her home, so if you are in the Mahopac area, call her to make an appointment to drop them off.  Rona Spar will also collect fabrics at her home in Mt. Kisco, just call to let her know when you are coming.  Questions? Contact Linda Finegan at linfin612@gmail.com

  – 2024 Raffle ticket booklets for the beautiful bed sized quilt, Parfait, will be distributed at the November 15^th  Guild Meeting, can be picked up at Comfort Quilts, or can be mailed.  Please help by picking up packets for members who are unable to attend meetings.  Proceeds will benefit the North Salem Volunteer Ambulance Corps of North Salem NY.  Thank you Carol Auer and Karen Carlson for coordinating this project and all our members who helped sewing and hand quilting this beautiful quilt.

Dee Plouffe’,  charitable@northernstarquilters.com

Same Jelly Roll – Different Quilt.  See how many different quilts have been made using these 33 strips!  Interested Comfort Quilters got matching jelly rolls  The quilts will be on display and one (or more depending on how many tickets sold) will be raffled off to help cover Comfort Quilt expenses.  Pick your favorite – winner’s choice of quilts.  Tickets $5 each, so come prepared!

• October – Landscape Quilts, Rachel Derstine
• November – Fabulous Freehand Curves, Cindy Grisdela
• January – Free Motion Quilting, Teri Lucas
• March – Bauhaus Sampler, Daisy Dodge
• April – Pictorial Whole Cloth Quilts, Christina Arcenegui Bono
• May – Dancing with the Wall, Irene Roderick

Special activities, for and by members, are taking place throughout the year.  Be sure to check for details and event information on our website.  If you have an idea for a guild activity and would like to chair that activity, please contact me.
Rona Spar, Activities Liaison, activities@northernstarquilters.com

• Orphan Blocks Project
  Donations of orphan blocks will be accepted through the October Guild meeting and can also be dropped off at Comfort Quilts.  Distribution of Orphan block kits will continue through December 2023.
  Questions? Contact Patricia Loquet at jamloquet@optonline.net
  
  

  Jody Sullivan’s OB quilt

• Super Saturday, February 17,2024 at First Presbyterian Church in Yorktown
  Teachers Wanted….Do you have a skill that you would like to share with your fellow quilters on Super Saturday?  Please contact Lefa Alksne at lefermilch@gmail.com
• Black and White Challenge Dropoff, March 20, 2024
  Keep working on your Black and White Challenge.
  Questions? Contact Constanze Toplansky at constanze.toplansky@gmail.com
• Quilting Retreat #2 at Mariandale in Ossining, March 22-24, 2024
  2 nights, 6 meals, lots of quilting space, and the camaraderie of talented quilters.  Cost-$250 for Friday dinner through Sunday lunch, $75/day for day only participants (includes 2 meals)
  Contact Jody Sullivan at jodysull@optonline.net
• Ugly Fabric Auction, May 15, 2024
  If you have quilting fabric that you wish to donate to the Ugly Fabric Auction, please bring it to a guild meeting or to a Comfort Quilts meeting.  You can also bring to Rona’s house in Mt. Kisco,  please call first at 914-941-4931.
  Questions?  Contact Linda Finegan at linfin612@gmail.com

  ---

Time is Running Out – Click to Renew Now!

Hi everyone,

The new guild year is off to a great start. Our membership stands at 181. There were 98 people present at the September meeting including four new members and two guests. Thirty-three people have joined the guild since the quilt show in May including our seven newest members who have been added to our rolls over the past two and a half weeks! Please join us in welcoming Patricia Gair of Hartsdale, Patricia Bradford of Nyack, Susan Farstrup of Sleepy Hollow, Riva Fisher of Tomkins Cove, NY, Damaris Scafidi of Riverside, CT, Liz Titus of Katonah and Valerie Zeller of Mohegan Lake. We would also like to welcome back returning member Carolyn Finn of Ossining.

If you would like your name/photo included in the hard copy of the 2023-2024 Membership Directory and in our email list, the renewal deadline is October 6^th.  If you would like to add/change your photo or update your contact information, please email us at membership@northernstarquilters.com.  The directory will be ready in time for the October meeting. Don’t forget to stop by the membership table to pick up your copy!

Membership Directory Photo Gallery – We strongly encourage you to join the many members (50%) who have already submitted photos for the Membership Directory. It’s a great way for other members to connect your name with your face and for you to recognize them!  Any photo will be gladly welcomed whether it’s a selfie sent from your phone or a favorite picture from a special family event. Each photo is cropped to feature only your face.

Wishing you many hours to quilt this month!
Joanne Visovsky and Carol Sterk, membership@northernstarquilters.com

RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP NOW!

Hello, everyone!

Welcome back to Northern Star! Summer is nearly over, and it’s time to gear up for a new guild year. The Quilt Show committee is forming, the board is getting ready to welcome you to our new home at Fox Lane High School and programs for the year are in place. We hope to see you at the first meeting of the year on Sept. 20^th at 6:00 PM (doors open about 5:30 for snacks and socializing).!

Please join Joanne and I in welcoming seven new members to our group: Ashley Fikes of Pleasantville, Visala Ekanadham of  Mohegan Lake, Laurel Izard of Michigan City, IN, Angela Reyes of Hastings-on-Hudson, Stacey Murren of Pawling, Michelle Parker of White Plains , Heather Feldman of Bedford, Beatrice Isaacs of Mt.Kisco, and Kristen Scheyder of Rye.. There will be membership badges waiting for new members who don’t have theirs, yet.

REMEMBER TO RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO!

As of August 29^th, 50% of the membership has renewed.  The hard copy of the Membership Directory will be going to press earlier than usual this year.  The deadline for being included in the hard copy of the directory is October 6^th.

• Option 1 – Renew your membership online at:  nsqg.formstack.com/forms/nsqg_member_registration_cc
• Option 2 – Joanne will be accepting registration forms accompanied by cash or check at the September meeting of Comfort Quilts, or you can bring your check to the meeting on September 20th. (Registration forms will be available if you forget to bring yours.)
• Option 3 – Mail your registration form and check (payable to Northern Star Quilters Guild) to:   Northern Star Quilters’ Guild, P.O. Box 232, Somers, NY  
  

We strongly encourage you to join the many members (50%) who have already submitted photos for the Membership Directory. It’s a great way for other members to connect your name with your face and for you to recognize them! Any photo will be gladly welcomed whether it’s a selfie sent from your phone or a favorite picture from a special family event. Each photo is cropped to feature only your face.

See you in September!
Joanne Visovsky and Carol Sterk, membership@northernstarquilters.com

Please welcome the return of NSQG’s Library, this time at Fox Lane School! We’ve certainly been busy over the summer.

The following special activities, for and by members, are taking place throughout the year.  Information is also on our website.
Rona Spar, Activities Liaison, activities@northernstarquilters.com

Pre-Meeting Offering

Orphan Blocks

Orphan Block Quilt by Patricia

2023-2024 Challenge

This year’s challenge is to design a small quilt using only black and white.  The challenge is inspired by the Karl Lagerfeld exhibit recently at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  All information about rules and parameters for the quilt can be found on the NSQG website challenge page.  Questions, please contact the challenge coordinator, Constanze Toplansky, constanze.toplansky@gmail.com.
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Quilt Retreat

The first quilt retreat of this year will be held on Monday-Wednesday, 10/30/23-11/1/23, at the Mariandale Center in Ossining, NY.  If you wish to board there, the fee is $250 for 2 nights and 6 meals.  If you wish to participate as a commuter, the day fee is $65/day which covers your workspace and 2 meals a day.  To sign up, contact Jody at jodysull@optonline.net.  Make your check out to Northern Star Quilters’ Guild and bring it to the September meeting or mail it to Jody Sullivan, 74 West Lane, Pound Ridge, NY 10576.
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Ugly Fabric Auction

Please start bringing your UGLY FABRICS (quilting fabric, quarter yard or more) to the meetings starting in September.  You can give the fabrics to Rona Spar or Linda Finegan who will pass them along to Jean Degl, who has kindly volunteered to store the fabric.  The Ugly Fabric Auction coordinator is Linda Finegan, linfin612@gmail.com.

Super Saturday

Super Saturday will be held in February, date and location not yet confirmed.  Several members have already volunteered to teach classes on that wonderful Saturday.  If you wish to teach a class at Super Saturday, please contact Lefa Alksne at lefermilch@gmail.com.  Lefa needs someone to be her assistant so please consider contacting her to help with this very special activity.
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Special Interest Groups (SIGs)

• Improv1 led by Jane Eyes (currently at full capacity)
• Improv2 led by Rita Romeau
• For Art Lovers led by Tamar Drucker
• Scrappy Quilts led by Jennifer Larrabee
• Long Arm Quilting led by Kathy Vanacoro and Lorraine Freed

September – Walking Foot Quilting, Marge Tucker – waitlist only

October – Landscape Quilts, Rachel Derstine

November – Fabulous Freehand Curves, Cindy Grisdela

If you haven’t already, renew your membership for 2023, then sign up for our upcoming activities.

Renew Now!

RACHEL DERSTINE
Landscape Quilts:  Nature & Architecture
Thursday, 19 October 2023
9:30 am to 4:00 pm EDT
Members $50 / Non-Members $70
In-person workshop at the Millwood Firehouse, 100 Millwood Road in Millwood, NY 10546.

Rachel will teach how to create a landscape quilt that focuses on nature or architecture or some combination of both.  You will be able to work from one of Rachel’s images or from one of your own choosing.

In this multi-level, full day workshop, Rachel will teach how to create a landscape quilt that focuses on nature or architecture or some combination of both.  Rachel will briefly cover her favorite techniques, tips & tricks so that you may stick to a simple landscape or apply them to a more complex design.  The possibilities are limitless:

• Think waterscape–an oak tree shading a meandering river, maybe a bridge. . .
• Think farmscape–fields of corn and soybeans, an endless sky, maybe a barn. . .
• Think cityscape–buildings, streets, windows, doors, maybe a magnolia tree. . .
• Think gardenscape–a winding path, hosta, irises, a weeping willow, maybe a bench. . .
• Think mountainscape, seascape, skyscape, and many more. . .

Rachel’s workshop is for every quilter! You want simple? You want complex? Rachel will cover her basic techniques for construction and design so that you can apply them to the “scape” of your choosing.

HIGHLIGHTS – Fusible applique collage; simplifying elements from a photo or sketch; creating the illusion of depth through overlapping and layering, size, color, value, and linear perspective; quilting and how to add facing.

Visit Rachel’s website to learn more about her artwork: Rachel Derstine Designs

CINDY GRISDELA
Fabulous Free-Hand Curves
Thursday, 16 November 2023
9:00 am to 3:30 pm
Members $65 / Non-Members $85
In-person at the Millwood Firehouse, 100 Millwood Road,  Millwood, NY 10546

Cindy is an artist, teacher, and author of two books about creating original quilts without patterns: Artful Improv and Adventures in Improv Quilts. She specializes in improv design and using color fearlessly in your quilts. Her work has won awards in both quilt and art venues, most recently her artwork was juried into Quilt National. Cindy has a BFA in Art History from the College and William and Mary and an MBA in Finance from George Washington University.

Join us in Cindy’s newest improv workshop. Learn to cut large scale curves freehand without templates or patterns. Add dots, skinny lines, wonky triangles and more to give each curve its own personality, then combine them into a fun original design. Cindy will talk about color and design to create the composition as well as the techniques needed. Basic sewing skills and a sewing machine in good working order are necessary

Visit Cindy’s website to learn more about her artwork:  Cindy Grisdela Art Quilts

I’ve arranged for our guild’s quilt retreat at Mariandale Retreat Center, Ossining, NY from October 30-November 1 (Monday afternoon through Wednesday afternoon ).  The cost is $250 per person which includes two overnights, six meals and lots of sewing time!  There is also the possibility of being a “day commuter” for $65 a day which gives breakfast and lunch.  I have already heard from a few of you who expressed an interest in coming.  We will need a minimum of ten people for the two nights and there will be a maximum.  If you are interested and want to attend, please email me (jodysull@optonline.net) and I’ll add you to the list.  As we get closer to the date, I’ll ask for payment (checks made out to the guild) but send nothing now.

Later in the year I’m hoping to offer a “weekend” retreat (Friday to Sunday).  So far available dates are March 1-3 or March 22-24.  If that appeals to you, please let me know which date works best for you.  Their calendar fills up quickly.

Hope you’re all enjoying your summer and getting some sewing done as well!

Thank you, Jody Sullivan, jodysull@optonline.net

Every year around the end of February, guild members get together for a fun and productive Saturday. Our own very talented members members share their talents teaching classes on various techniques and projects. Sign up for a class or “Sit and Sew” on your own project. Lunch is provided by our Hospitality team. This is a a wonderful opportunity to mingle with fellow members in a smaller social setting.

Thank you to Lefa Alksne, lefermilch@gmail.com, who has volunteered to be our Super Saturday coordinator.  Help is needed! Please contact Lefa if you are able to assist or to teach a class.

Thank you,  Rona Spar, activities@northernstarquilters.com