Issue 6: The Joyful and Merry Quilting Newsletter

Your go-to source for quilting camaraderie, tips, and insights, as well as upcoming Joyful and Merry Quilting events and courses!

 

1. Patchwork Puzzlers!

How much quilting trivia do you know? Today's questions cover the Amish Community quilting traditions and history. Of course there is lots more to learn, but here's a quick start! Answers are listed at the end of the newsletter!

1. Which quilt pattern is commonly associated with Lancaster County PA Amish quilting traditions?
a. Double Wedding Ring
b. Baltimore Album
c. Log Cabin
d. Diamond in the Square

2. What is significant about the Amish Log Cabin Barn Raising Quilt pattern?
a. It originated in the 1600s and features circular motifs to represent unity.
b. It uses the log cabin block pattern, with blocks arranged to resemble concentric light and dark diamonds, reflecting the Amish tradition of community collaboration as seen in barn raisings.
c. It is known for incorporating floral embroidery and bright colors.
d. It was introduced by European settlers in the early 1800s and is characterized by the use of interlocking circles.

3. What is the significance of the 'Sunshine and Shadow' quilt pattern in Amish culture?
a. It symbolizes the balance between good and bad times in life.
b. It is used exclusively for wedding quilts.
c. It represents the changing seasons.
d. It is a pattern reserved for religious ceremonies.

4. What role do 'quilting bees' play in Amish communities?
a. They are competitive events with prizes for the best quilt.
b. They are social gatherings where women collaborate on quilt-making.
c. They are markets where quilts are sold to the public.
d. They are workshops for teaching quilting techniques to children.

5. Which of the following patterns is NOT traditionally associated with Amish quilts?
a. Feathered Star
b. Nine Patch
c. Double Irish Chain
d. Mariner’s Compass

2: Merry Moment

How could a hailstorm with baseball-sized hail on Easter Sunday possibly give me a Merry Moment to share with you two months later, and how could it possibly relate to today's trivia questions?

Well…here’s how.

I was about an hour away from home after spending the Easter holiday weekend with my children and grandchildren as a hailstorm was passing through our town. This storm wasn’t your typicalpea-sized hail, but rather a huge, misshapen, baseball-sized hailstorm. I knew rain was expected with the possibility of an occasional thunderstorm, but I had no idea the storm would wreak such havoc on our community. And yes…I missed the brunt of the storm, for which I was grateful. When I arrived home, everything looked intact, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

In the Midwest, we’re accustomed to severe weather in the spring (which I do not like), but we’re always grateful when a storm passes with minimal damage. Although that is a Merry Moment in itself, it’s not the Merry Moment I experienced! The next week, we noticed sign after sign going up in the front yards of homes in our neighborhood. Roofing signs. The damage from the hail was much worse than it initially appeared to be. We discovered that our relatively new roof (2 years old) on our home, along with the skylights and gutters, had been destroyed by the storm and needed to be replaced. Yikes!

One of my favorite quilt patterns is the Log Cabin Quilt, and the arrangement of the blocks in a “Barn Raising” pattern is one that I have made several times. Over the past few weeks, our neighborhood has experienced barn raising after barn raising! Roofs, windows, gutters, and more have been removed by hundreds of workers, and then replaced…usually in one to two days! Legend has it, in the Amish community, a barn can be raised in a day. Although the structure may be put up in a very short period of time, the finishing work can take a week or two, but still…isn’t that amazing? Well, as I recently looked at my Barn Raising Log Cabin Quilt as I listened to the removing of shingles, the pounding of nails, and the voices of the workers figuring it all out, the Merry Moment in my heart exploded with gratitude. I was grateful that I was not driving through the hailstorm as it passed through our area. I was grateful that the damage to our home was covered by insurance. I was grateful for those who repaired the roof did so without incident or injury. I was grateful for the beautiful “Barn Raising Log Cabin Quilt Pattern” that reminds me of the kindness, camaraderie, and strength we receive from those around us when we are experiencing a difficult time.

Quilting always brings me joy, and being a quilter makes me merry every single minute of every single day!

…I’m always trying to be joyful, but I will always be Mary!

3: Quilting Secrets, Fixes and Tips

(If you have a quilting tip you would like me to share in our newsletter, please email it to [email protected].)

Thank you to Mea C. for the following tip: “Because I have rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis my hands (and other body parts) don't like to work right. I have a hard time picking up my quilt rulers but I discovered a 'hack' that made it so much easier to pick them up. I attach these handles in the middle of the rulers I use the most. They're transparent so I can see the measurements underneath them. I can pick them up and spin them in my hands to use all sides of the ruler, and they're inexpensive. They also remove easily and don't leave marks. It's a win-win for me!”

4: Product Picks

I have LOTS and LOTS of rulers, and I love each one for a different reason…but I also struggle when I’m trying to find a place to display them and there just isn’t room! I have a great tip in this week’s Product Picks – Joyful and Merry Quilting YouTube Quilt Tip Video on how to organize your rulers efficiently. I have found that my rulers are now easier to find and much more accessible. And…be sure to watch all the way to the end for a Discount Coupon Code before you make a purchase.

Here's the link:
How To Organize Your Rulers Tip Video

5: Merry Musings Mailbag

This section of our newsletter is a comment to a YouTube video made by one of our subscribers.

Today’s Musings are from TWO of our YouTube Subscribers @ksojerio and @megharmon2298. In our Night Owl Quilting Hangout on Monday, June 10th, I was working on glue basting a quilt in preparation for binding. Two of our viewers made the comment that they always press the binding FIRST (after it’s been attached to the quilt), and then proceed to glue baste. I thought that was a great tip and I wanted to share it with you…and I plan to give it a try!

6: Ask the Quilter

This section of our newsletter is dedicated to the questions asked and comments made by our subscribers. If you have any additional positive suggestions to add to the conversation, please comment! We’d love to have your insight.

Comment by Janelle: Many, many thanks Mary! I’m new to this type of quilting and your tutorials have jump started me in the right direction. I was struggling to get the kind of precision you’ve demonstrated…but no more. The one question I have is when sewing the 1/4” seam how close do you get to the crossed pins before pulling them out? I’m using the glass head pins you mentioned and assume I don’t sew over them?? -A “joyful” learner

My response: Hi Janelle! Welcome! I slow my machine speed WAY DOWN as I approach the pins. I never sew over them, but I sew right up to them, remove them, and then continue on! So happy you're a Joyful Learner! 

7: Joyful and Merry Quilting News, Night Owl and Daytime Quilting Hangouts Schedule

Quilting Course News: Registration is now open for our new quilting course “Aim for the Stars!" Class begins June 24th, so be sure to reserve your spot. This course is for Confident Beginners, and as with all of our courses, it includes step-by-step video instructions and so much MORE! Go to joyfulandmerryquilting.com/stars to watch a video to see what it’s all about and then I’d love to have you register for the course. 

Newsletter News: All of our archived Joyful and Merry Quilting Newsletters can now be found in the Blog Section of our website! Many have requested a place to access all previous newsletter releases. Head over to joyfulandmerryquilting.com/blog and you'll find them all as they're released! The weekly newsletter is released on Thursdays. 

Night Owl Quilting Schedule: 
Monday, June 24 at 10pmCDT
Monday, July 8 at 10pmCDT

Daytime Quilting Schedule: 
(No Daytime Quilting on June 19 – I’ll be at the Project Linus Retreat. But stay tuned – I may have an impromptu session!)
Wednesday, July 3 at 11am CDT 

8: Shop Hops, Quilt Shows, and More

If you have a local shop hop, quilt show, or another quilting-related event that you would like to share, please email [email protected] one month prior to the event and we will include it in this section of our newsletter.

CALIFORNIA BAY AREA SHOP HOP: Shop by the Bay; June 19-22, 2024; 10am-5pm Here’s the link with all the details: shophopbythebay.com

9: Joyful and Merry Community Quilt Guild Corner

The Joyful and Merry Community Quilt Guild will open registration again soon - stay tuned! Here's what we're working on...

CALENDAR:
Just a reminder – all of the Joyful and Merry Quilting Community Guild Meeting Zoom Links are available on the Guild Resource Page of the joyfulandmerryquilting.com website. You also should have received an email with the links as well. Be sure to register and we’ll see you at our next guild meeting on June 20th. I’ll be in Hamilton MO on the 20th so I hope to be able to broadcast our meeting from QuiltTown USA! See you then!

FREE PATTERN:
Remember that our FREE Outdoor Oasis Picnic and Beach quilt pattern will be taken down from the website soon – so make sure you have downloaded it to your computer. The free backpack pattern will be available on June 20th so be sure to watch for it. I’ll show it at our guild meeting as well. 
Again, FREE PATTERNS are a few of the many perks for being a Joyful and Merry Community Quilt Guild member! Enjoy!

JULY HOLIDAY SCHEDULE:
Please note that our July 4th Guild meeting will be moved to Wednesday July 3rd at 7pmCT to accommodate for the US Independence Day Holiday. The registration link is available on the Guild Resource Page. Register now and you won’t have to think about it later! Of course, it will be recorded in case you are unable to attend.

JOYFUL AND MERRY QUILTING COMMUNITY CARE CORNER: 
This will be a spot in our newsletter for members to share their needs and concerns, whether they're related to health, personal challenges, celebrations, etc. It will be a place where we can support and care for one another, share joys and struggles, and provide encouragement to each other regardless of our beliefs or backgrounds. We want it to remain a place of inclusivity while still fostering a sense of community and support within the guild. In this spirit, let’s turn our attention to those in our community in need of some extra support right now:

By coming together and offering our support, we can ensure that everyone feels valued and cared for within our guild. If you would like to offer Donna some personal support, please comment in the community “Feed” of our Joyful and Merry Quilting Guild Chat Forum. If you would like to post in our Community Care Corner, simply send your “Community Care Corner Request” (one sentence) to [email protected] and I will post it in the next newsletter. You can post anonymously or add your name - totally up to you.

RECORDED MEETINGS:
Please keep in mind that our recorded meetings will only be available for 3 months or until we run out of room on our Zoom Account, whichever comes first. So, if you missed a meeting, be sure to watch the recorded version ASAP, so you don’t miss out.

WEBSITE MONTHLY TABS:
Once we move into a new month, we will have a tab that will take you to the archived files from previous months…just in case there’s something you want to review. Depending on how often our members access this feature will decide the length of time the previous months will be available. We hope you enjoy this feature!

GUILD MEETING TIMES AND MISSED MEETINGS:
We want to make sure you take note of this information. We are still having members access the meetings at the wrong time, and accidentally missing out on the guild and quilting fun.

TIME ZONES: Please keep in mind that our Guild Meeting Times are listed in CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME. If you live in another time zone, make sure you double check (and triple check) the guild time and then adjust it to accommodate for your time zone. We continue to have members join our guild meetings an hour or two early or an hour or two late and in the process, miss the actual meeting. The meetings are recorded, but if you want to join the meeting LIVE, please make sure you have the guild time adjusted to YOUR particular time zone. 

CHAT SESSIONS: If you have time, please join us half an hour before our guild meetings for our Guild's Community Chat sessions: 6:30pm CDT for evenings and 10:30am CDT for daytime meetings. This is such a fun time getting to know each other and I hope you’ll join us when you can. Please note that entering before the designated time strains our recording time allotment, so we have instituted a waiting room where members will be admitted to the meeting once the host is there and the chat session opens.

EXTRA GUILD MEETINGS: Our next "EXTRA" guild meeting will be held at 7pmCT on Thursday, June 27th. Chat opens at 6:30pmCT. We will be working on our Outdoor Oasis Picnic and Beach Quilt. Your assignment is to have completed all the steps through Page 6, Point #4. We will begin to add our rectangles to our two-patch pieces.

SAMPLER BLOCKS OF THE MONTH CHALLENGE:
The Sampler Blocks “Churn Dash” and “9-Patch Variation” training videos are now available on the Guild Resource Page! Blocks are revealed at each guild meeting, but the training videos are revealed on the 2nd Thursday of the month with the videos for the previous two blocks. All videos and pdf patterns will be available on the Guild Resource Page, and will eventually be available in our “Block Library” once it's created. You are welcome to make the block using the pdf, but if you would like step-by-step instruction, you will need to wait until the 2nd Thursday of the month when the training videos are available.

JOYFUL AND MERRY COMMUNITY GUILD FOUNDING MEMBER CHAT FORUM: 

We have been enjoying our Community Chat Forum! It's a great alternative to Facebook, where all guild members are included in the chat. Here's how to get to the Chat Forum (or you can click here):

1.  Go to the joyfulandmerryquilting.comwebsite
2.  Click on your “LIBRARY”
3.  Click on the “JOYFUL AND MERRY COMMUNITY QUILT GUILD FOUNDING MEMBER”
4.  Click on “FEED” and you will be taken to the Chat.  You can post pictures, questions, comments, etc.  It’s a great place to get to know our Founding Members and share our love of quilting!
   
   

EMAIL PREFERENCES: 
Important: Guild Membership is Non-Refundable
Please do not mark any guild emails as SPAM or unsubscribe from them. Since this is a virtual group, email, Zoom, and our website are the primary ways to stay involved. Unsubscribing or marking emails as SPAM removes you from the email list, and by law, we cannot reverse this action. Some members who have marked our emails as SPAM or unsubscribed have requested a refund, which we cannot provide. All information sent via email is also available on our website's resource page. If you prefer not to receive emails, you can still access all guild information, links, patterns, etc., by visiting joyfulandmerryquilting.com and clicking on “Library,” then the Guild icon. Some members still experience issues with not receiving emails. The most common problems are unsubscribing, your email provider sending our emails to your spam folder, recipients marking emails as SPAM, or using different email addresses for the guild and newsletter subscriptions. Please email [email protected] if you continue to have issues with email and we will do our best to help you remedy the situation. Please be very careful with emails from joyfulandmerryquilting.com through our Kajabi email service. If you no longer wish to receive them, simply delete them. Do not unsubscribe unless you intend to. By law, we cannot re-add you to our email list, and you will no longer receive any correspondence from us. If you label our emails as SPAM, your email address will be permanently removed from our list. Additionally, if you forward our emails and the new recipient clicks Unsubscribe or marks them as Spam, your email address (not theirs) will be removed from our list. We understand mistakes happen, but some cannot be corrected. Please be careful. Thank you!

NEWSFLASH: NEW COURSE Pre-Registration is OPEN!

Aim for the Stars
Skill Level:  Confident Beginner 
Start Date: June 24
Watch the Video and Pre-Register Here!

Course Description: 
In this course we will explore the benefits of mastering the Half Square Triangle, the Split Quarter Square Triangle, color value, accuracy when cutting, pressing, and sewing seams, as well as sashing for beginners. You will walk through the process of constructing the Aim for the Stars quilt with written and video instruction as well as LIVE Zoom Chats. You will finish the course with a beautiful throw-sized quilt. If you would like to learn more and pre-register to start on June 24th, CLICK HERE. 

The Ultimate Quilting Foundation [From Novice to Confident Beginner] 
Group 3 is closed, but if you are interested in signing up for Group 4:
Click to Join the Waiting List Here

Course Description: 
This comprehensive online quilting course is designed for beginners who want to dive into the world of quilting with confidence. After you’ve gathered your essential quilting tools, you will learn how to select the perfect fabrics, followed by a step-by-step course of instruction that will teach you the skills you will need to embark on your joyful and merry quilting journey, with 4 live Zoom chats with me along the way. By the end of the course, you will have the ability and the self-confidence to create beautiful quilts with a basic and solid understanding of quilting techniques, tools, fabrics, materials, and terminology.

 That's it for this week - I'll talk to you soon! Happy Quilting!

ANSWERS to this week’s PATCHWORK PUZZLERS:

1. Answer: d. Diamond in the Square
2. Answer: b. It uses the log cabin block pattern, with blocks arranged to resemble concentric light and dark diamonds, reflecting the Amish tradition of community collaboration as seen in barn raisings.
3. Answer: a. It symbolizes the balance between good and bad times in life.
4. Answer: b. They are social gatherings where women collaborate on quilt-making
5. Answer: d. Mariner's Compass