Jan 24, 2019 | Meet a Member
Claudia spent 2018 serving as the Boulder MQG president and is the treasurer for 2019. Here is a chance for everyone to get to know her better. We’d love all the members to introduce themselves, post information and form is available in the member section.
Claudia has been quilting off and on for about 20 years and has been a member of the Boulder MQG almost since it’s inception in 2014.
Please tell us about yourself
Although I was attracted to arts and crafts type activates as a child, my careers were more science based. I initially graduated with a degree in bacteriology and worked as an industrial microbiologist for many years. Then I changed careers and earned a masters degree as a physician assistant. As a PA, I worked primarily in general and neurosurgical practices. I guess the sewing skills I acquired from my mother were a plus with this career choice.
I am retired now, and since moving to Colorado have discovered my latent athleticism. I enjoy Nordic skiing, hiking and bicycle riding. My husband and I ride a tandem bicycle. I waste too much time virtual crafting by surfing the Internet, hence I am not very good a finishing projects.
What is your favorite part about being involved in the Boulder MQG?
I also enjoy learning new techniques and discovering new trends in quilting from other members.
In 2018, I was the president of the Boulder Modern Quilt Guild. Though I would never call myself a “leader”, I enjoyed that year in the organization the most. It was the first time I participated in a Block of the Month project, and I delighted sharing my blocks on Instagram. I also had the opportunity to do an evening presentation, and though initially I was flummoxed by the topic of “precuts”, in the end I think I pulled off a fun talk.
How did you become interested in modern quilting?
I am drawn to modern quilting because aesthetically, it appeals to me the most of all the needle arts. One of my favorite museums is the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. I enjoyed going there as a teen to view the abstract, pop and expressionistic art on display. I have always been drawn to bold patterns. These are some of the elements in modern quilting that speak to me. It helps that modern quilters are a diverse in age, and that fosters openness to experimentation in this quilt community.
What is your favorite aspect of modern quilting?
I enjoy many modern quilting features, but which aspects are my favorite continually change for me. Initially, I was drawn to improvisation, and that you can fix things when the get wonky in innovative ways (such as sneaking in a dart). The idea that a quilt design does not have to be block based and the manipulation of negative space has always intrigued me. Since I am becoming more comfortable with Adobe Illustrator I am back to wanting to design blocks, but with a twist. I want to explore interchanging block designs based on different grid dimensions, say putting together a 3 by 3 design with a 7 by 7 design. I think this might be very interesting with which to experiment.
Do you prefer solids or prints?
I must admit I am a bit insecure when it comes to choosing prints for projects and thus gravitate to solid colors. I am excited that the guild’s theme this year is exploring color theory, and I know we will get into experimenting with printed fabric.
Who is your favorite fabric designer?
I don’t have favorite surface designers (though I follow Sanna Annukka breathlessly on Instagram).
Who is a technique or something new you would like to try?
Techniques that I would like to try are piping application within a pieced quilt, and other textural or three dimensional methods. I have always liked origami, so fabric manipulation with pleats and pintucks interest me. I think there are many possiblities where these methods can be exploited in modern quilt design.
What is your favorite non-quilt thing to make?
I don’t know if I have a favorite non-quilt thing that I make. I have tried my hand at drafting a pattern for a yoga mat tote bag. After making four prototypes, I think I have it down. Now I just need to get up the fortitude to write the sewing instructions for a real pattern.
Do you prefer binding by hand or machine?
I don’t like binding. I really want to learn how to use my machine binding attachment.
What is your favorite part of quilting?
My favorite part of quilting is thinking up design concepts. Most of the time they don’t work. But that’s what I do before falling asleep at night.
What is your least favorite part of quilting?
My least favorite part of quilting is charity quilting. Nothing kills my motivation more than sewing something for someone I don’t know, and knowing I will never any get feed back on it. I admire people who gain satisfaction from it, but it is just not for me.
Do you have a lot of WIPs or do you focus on one project at a time?
Since I do so much virtual quilting on the Internet, all I have is WIPs.
What kind of sewing machine do you use?
I am a true Bernina girl through and through. I have a Bernina 830 sewing/embroidery machine. It took me three years to get over my intimidation of the machine, but now I love it.
Tell us about your sewing space.
My sewing room is our guest bedroom. Or should I say, we put guests up in the sewing room. I warn my guests to wear shoes, to avoid stray pins on the floor.
What project are you working on right now?
I am working on three projects at the moment. My 2018 BoulderMQG block of the month quilt which is ready to be sandwiched and quilted. I just drafted a pressing iron caddy to tote my hot iron back home after the guild’s open sew days. Finally, I have flatted and sandwiched my Motorcycle pixel quilt for the Boulder UFO challenge. Lots to do.
What’s your most recent finish?
My most recent finish was a quilt bee quilt with framed stars, and a nautical themed quilting pattern (boats and waves). I don’t have a photo of it, since it had to get into the mail. It was a Christmas present.
Thanks Claudia for sharing about yourself! If you’d like to share a personal profile or other blog post, you can do that here.
May 3, 2018 | Meet a Member
Meet a Member – Sarah Meyer
Sarah Meyer usually attends open sew days, so people who only go to evening meetings might not have had a chance to meet her. Today we have a chance to get to know her better. We’d love all the members to introduce themselves, post information and form is available in the member section.
When Sarah was in high school, her mom took up quilting. She began her own quilt 20 years ago and has been creating amazing things since then! She has been a member of the Boulder MQG since July 2014.
Please tell us about yourself
My family consists of my husband, my three kids, and our two silly dogs! We stay pretty busy!
I have had a nice round of professions over the years – teaching math in college, conducting marketing data analysis, engineering, technical writing, sewing pattern proofreading, digital design, working in a school, and now I’m homeschooling one and chauffeuring all around every day!
What’s your favorite part about being involved in the Boulder MQG?
I really appreciate that the Boulder MQG has a great mix of members! We have experienced quilters with amazing knowledge to share all the way to members just learning to sew; artists and scientists; planners and improvisors! I really enjoy coming to the Open Sews because they let me have dedicated time to sew, in a friendly atmosphere.
How did you become interested in modern quilting?
While I like nice points, and matching seams, I’ve never been overly concerned with them. (They are hard to see once you wash the quilt and it gets all crinkle-y anyway!) I think the idea that no one would inspect my points, combined with a realization that I could combine solids and prints, and the surge of modern prints and colors first attracted me to modern quilting.
Do you like to follow a pattern or improvise?
I think my favorite part of the quilting process is the sketching and planning! I prefer to sketch on graph paper with colored pencils, and do all my calculations before ever starting to cut.
What is your favorite non-quilt thing to make?
I spend most my sewing time these days making theater costumes for the company my daughter performs with, and I really enjoy it! I also enjoy making little zipper bags or pincushions.
Do you have a lot of WIPs or do you focus on one project at a time?
I have more WIPs than I dare count, but I’m usually only working on a couple things at any one time.
What’s your most recent finish?
My most recent quilty finish was several years in the making — it started as hoarded precuts and yardage of favorite Kate Spain fabrics, then I gathered some more coordinating prints to round out the rainbow and a nice solid grey, sent sets of blocks out to BMQG members for a bee a few years ago, and finally pieced them all together last summer with a fun scrappy back (which I always try to do now!) for a generously sized twin quilt.
Feb 7, 2018 | Meet a Member
Meet a Member – Anne Deister
Each month we will be taking time to get to know one of our members, both on a more personal level and to find out more about their quilty preferences and projects. We would love to have you participate! The post information and form is available in the member section.
First up is Anne Deister. Anne has been quilting off and on for 20 years and has been a member of the Boulder MQG since day one. Her bright, graphic style is easily recognizable and her designs have been seen at QuiltCon and printed in magazines and books. She loves large scale prints and her favorite designer is Kaffe Fassett. Today we are going to get to know her a little bit better.
Please tell us about yourself
I grew up in a small town in Indiana and would take rural living over city life any day. I love hiking and exploring the mountains. I love reading historical fiction and murder mysteries. I also love going for walks with my camera, taking pictures and creating compositions of the things I see.
I have a degree in graphic design from Purdue University. After college I lived in Wisconsin, Virginia and finally Colorado working for graphic design firms that mainly did corporate work.
I’ve lived in Colorado for 33 years, am married, and have two grown children. While my kids were small I was a stay-at-home mom doing free lance design work and crafty things. When my kids went off to college I more or less retired and turned my full attention to quilting. I started my blog and began publishing quilting patterns under the name Springleaf Studios. My patterns are for sale on Etsy and Craftsy.
What’s your favorite part about being involved in the Boulder MQG?
I enjoy being part of a like minded community of quilters that share a similar aesthetic and inspire me to make modern quilts. I also appreciate how open and supportive the guild is toward all styles of quilting. We don’t all make modern quilts all the time and that’s ok in this guild.
How did you become interested in modern quilting and what is your favorite part?
When I started my blog in 2012, I became aware of the online quilting community and discovered modern quilting. I was designing modern quilts before I knew what to call them. Now I realize that I straddle both the modern and traditional quilt world. Some of my work reflects my design background with bold graphic compositions. Other times I work with block based designs in bright prints and colors that you might call contemporary rather than modern. My favorite aspect of modern quilting is the freedom to explore new ideas and concepts and rethink the traditional definitions and images of quilting. It’s not your grandmothers quilt. As a graphic designer, I love being able to design really graphic quilts.
Do you like to follow a pattern or improvise?
I love designing my own quilts. My work is primarily more structured than it is improv although the improv part comes into play as I work through color and fabric placement on my design wall.
What is a technique or something new you would like to try?
I want to explore the quilt-as-you-go method more this year. I’ll be doing a presentation it at a guild meeting in the fall. I also want to give EPP a try this year.
What is your favorite part of quilting?
Definitely the design process. Coming up with ideas, pulling fabrics, cutting and playing with placement on my design wall. I could do that everyday.
What is your least favorite part of quilting?
Finishing. I’m the worst at finishing a quilt because I really don’t enjoy the basting and quilting parts at all. I’d rather send a quilt out to be quilted so I can jump into a new project and start designing and playing with fabric again.
Do you have a lot of WIPs or do you focus on one project at a time?
Seriously. Since I’m not a finisher you know I have a lot of WIPs. So many I don’t want to count.
What kind of sewing machine do you use?
Bernina 1090 which is about 20 years old. Fingers crossed it keeps working.
Tell us about your sewing room/space.
We added on to our house about 12 years ago and I was able to carve out a small room upstairs to call my studio. It’s my colorful oasis where I spend a little time everyday being inspired and trying to be productive.
What project are you working on right now?
I have 2 queen sized quilts that need binding. Three different projects in progress on the design wall. Two more tops sewn and waiting for quilting. And too many to mention in various stages of being cut or in boxes waiting to be started. Like I said, I’m a starter not a finisher.
Anne can be found on Instagram at @springleafstudios and blogging at Springleaf Studios. You can find her patterns on Etsy and Craftsy.
