Blanca Sanchez
Happy New Year Desert Threads! What a wonderful first formal meeting it was! Our new President, Barbara Johnston opened things up with a delightful story about baking cookies—a sweet reminder that, like a good batch of cookies, great quilts and friendships, take patience, the right ingredients, and a little bit of love. She followed it up with a lively stand-up, sit-down question game that had the whole room engaged and learning facts about each other. What a fantastic way to start our year!
Guest Speaker
We were thrilled to welcome a guest speaker, Alexia Veatch, from the 35th Ave Sew and Vac Quilt store in Chandler. She shared her expertise on the best notions for our craft. She walked us through the benefits of Quilters Select cutting mats, rulers, and rotary cutters, with a big emphasis on safety. Her number one takeaway for all of us: your rotary cutter and cutting mat should be the same brand. Pairing them ensures the best grip, accuracy, and blade longevity—so if you’re in the market for new tools, keep that in mind and maybe pay her a visit at the Chandler store.
Looking Ahead: A Jam-Packed Fall Calendar
Oct. 14 we will welcome April Brown, from Mad B’s Quilt store and she’ll be talking about Cartonnage, a French inspired craft of decorating tissue boxes! She will return on Nov. 16, to teach this hands-on class.
Oct. 19, our talented member Jackie McGrath will be teaching her technique for the Curvy Log Cabin block. Jackie always brings creativity and patience to her lessons, so this is one you won’t want to miss.
Also in October, our very own President, Barbara Johnston, will be teaching a class at Mulqueen’s store in Mesa called, “Yes You Can Quilt.” This will be a three-part series on how we can quilt on our domestic machines. Whether you’ve been hesitant to try machine quilting on your home machine or just want to sharpen your skills, Barbara will show you it’s absolutely possible—and fun!
Looking Ahead to November
Make sure to visit the Desert Threads website for full details on dates, times, locations, and registration for all of our upcoming classes. Check back often so you don’t miss a thing!
We’d love for you to join our group! Desert Threads is a welcoming, inclusive group. We can’t wait to see you at our next formal meeting, Oct. 14, at 9 a.m. (social time), with our meeting starting at 9:30 a.m. We meet in the Cottonwood Computer Learning Lab of Sun Lakes Country Club. 25630 S. Brentwood Dr., in Sun Lakes.
Visit our website to learn all about us at desertthreads.org.