More about the Quilters Guild of Indianapolis

Not only does QGI have that monthly evening meeting I blogged about last week, but there are also two daytime meetings. I love going to both meetings. Each group has its own Block of the Month (BOM) and its own programs.

Quilters Guild of Indianapolis North (QGIN) meets in the afternoon the first Friday of every month at the PrimeLife Enrichment Center in Carmel, Indiana, north of Indianapolis. We’ve been making the blocks in Janet Wickell’s Anniversary Sampler Quilt at About.com. Will I actually put all these blocks together into a quilt before 2013 is over?

The Out To Lunch Bunch (OTLB) meets for lunch on the fourth Thursday of the month (except November and December) at Jonathan Byrd’s Cafeteria in Greenwood, Indiana, south of Indianapolis. Did I mention it is a lunch meeting in a cafeteria? Once a month, great food and great company! It was a wonderful opportunity to sit front-and-center for a presentation of Eleanor Burns’ latest book by Pat Knoechel, Eleanor’s sister. Of course I bought a copy of the book Tales of First Ladies and Their Quilt Blocks and the Braid in a Day pattern. Will I make up the pattern or any blocks from the book soon?

Can’t wait to see what is in store with these two groups in 2013.

The Quilters Guild of Indianapolis

The Quilters Guild of Indianapolis is HUGE! About 400 members.

I have now been a member of QGI for a year. What a year! The group usually meets the second Thursday evening of each month at Second Presbyterian Church on North Meridian in Indianapolis. The church is a magnificent facility. I am in awe every time I drive up to the building. You can see the imposing edifice at Art and Architecture, Click on Chapter #1 Church.

What a year! During 2012 I’ve been helping the Hospitality Chair by greeting members as they arrive and handing out door prizes. As a newbie, greeting members as they sign in has helped me put names with faces.

I attended one workshop by nationally known paper-piecer Quilt Maven Deb Karasik. Learned some great tips about piecing curves and began her Inner Light pattern.

At those Thursday night meetings, I saw trunk shows and watched demos from QGI guild member Carol Schuetz, The Singing Quilter (yes, she even quilts), Wendy Butler Berns, Gayle Bong, and QGI guild member Cathy Franks. So much talent!

And in July I became the newsletter editor for the end of 2012 and the calendar year 2013. What else will be in store for me as a guild member in 2013?

I live in a quilting laboratory!

I was living in a rather small apartment, 880 square feet, in Nevada. As I became more and more absorbed in quilting, I was accumulating quite a bit of quilting fabric and paraphernalia. I’d had a great 1220 square feet apartment in Indianapolis. Rattled around in all that space. And there I was in Nevada, beginning to realize how that space could be utilized for my quilting and other sewing activities. On a lark, on Memorial Day Weekend 2011, I contacted a rental agent in my old Indianapolis apartment complex. At that point, the agent knew there would be two of those 2-bedroom + den apartments available August 1. There are only seven apartments with that configuration in the entire apartment complex. Couldn’t pass that up!! Lots of faxes, emails, and a deposit check later, and suddenly I was ready to move back to Indianapolis. The idea that germinated on May 30 became reality on August 19. That was fast!

The designated living room is my computer and quilting area. The designated dining room (with ceiling fan) is a sitting room with bookshelves, stereo, and futon. The den? It’s an 8x15 stash room. The closet has floor-to-ceiling sliding doors – what a great design wall! The smaller bedroom has the ironing board, serger, and sewing embroidery machine. What a great floorplan for a quilting lab!

Back home in Indiana

I live in Indianapolis now, since August 2011. Why Indianapolis? I loved living here 1998-2001, but I left for a public school teaching job in Reno/Sparks, Nevada.

Retired January 2011 and started wondering what I wanted to be when I grow up. . . . a quilter.

Quilting activities around Reno are few and far between. Far!! Driving at least 5 hours or flying someplace. I wasn’t a quilter when I lived in Indianapolis back then, but I know its highways are pretty much in the center of everything “Midwest.” (Indiana isn’t called The Crossroads of America for nothing!) So here I am!

Now there are so many quilting activities that I sometimes feel overwhelmed!