Jody Edwards, Desert Threads Quilt Chapter of AQG
Last month, we met many Sun Lakes residents during the Community Day Open Houses. Desert Threads had a table set up, and it was covered with beautiful quilts made by our members. There were a couple of reoccurring comments we heard at every event:
• “Oh, I could never do that.” As quilters, we all start at different levels. Some of our members have been quilting or sewing most of their lives. Some of our members have just started quilting in the last couple of years or are just beginning. At Desert Threads, our goal is to provide a community for quilters no matter where they are in their journey. At our monthly meetings, we offer presentations that discuss everything from how to choose the right fabrics to new techniques and tools. We have workshops to teach new techniques and group sew days to allow our members to get together and socialize as they sew. We offer classes for beginners and classes for experienced sewists. We hold charity sew days where members can come work on easy charity projects together that will be donated to our community. Your first quilts may be simple and uncomplicated, but you’ll be learning more with each quilt you make and having fun doing it.
• “I love quilts, but I’m not sure I would like to quilt myself.” This comment is my favorite to respond to. My response is always, “Do you like to bake?” I do get some raised eyebrows at that, but let me explain. I am a baker and have been for years. When I started quilting a few years ago, I realized how similar quilting is to baking. I’m sure there are other similar analogies, but I’m a baker, so here you go.
You start with a good recipe. In quilting, this is your pattern. Just like choosing a good recipe, choose a pattern that gets good reviews, and the finished product looks good to you. Next, you use good ingredients. In quilting, the ingredients are your fabrics, and there are some really yummy choices out there! Fabric companies have even named some of their precut fabric choices with baking terms, like Layer Cakes and Jelly Rolls. The next step is following the directions exactly. Just like in baking, your measurements have to be correct, and you can’t skip any steps. If you follow a good recipe (pattern) exactly, you will end up with something delicious at the end, whether it’s a Victoria sponge cake or a beautiful quilt!
Join us for our November meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 12. Desert Threads member Debbie Kattleman will be showing us the many uses of a Stripology ruler. These rulers were designed to allow cutting both strips and squares without moving the ruler, to save time and fabric. Debbie will also be teaching a hands-on class for the ruler on Monday, Nov. 17.
Desert Threads meets on the second Wednesday of each month from 9 to 11:30 a.m. in the Cottonwood Computer Learning Center. The social chat starts at 9 a.m., and the meeting officially starts at 9:30 a.m. For more information about our group, please visit our website at desertthreads.org or send us an email at info@desertthreads.org. We can’t wait to meet you!