JULY 2026 MEETING MINUTES

Kerry Bevers, President, called the meeting to order at 6:31 PM with 28 members and 4 guests in attendance.

Program:  Tonight’s topic  “Taking Good Quilt Photos” was presented by Karyn Iserman. 

●      Use a natural light source to best represent your quilt. 

●      Suggestions provided were: 

o      no need for a fancy camera

o      can use a phone in good light

o      may need a portable quilt stand to hang it straight with clamps

o      can attach to a wall with masking tape

o      before using your phone camera, clean the lens

o      turn the flash off and turn on grid lines to line it up squarely

o      lock in focus, do not use digital zoom, and hold it steady

●      QuiltCon requires 3 photos; overall, front detail, and edge detail. 

●      Crop the photo without cropping the edges. If submitting to a contest with a facing and no binding, may need to state this in the submission. 

●      Prep your quilt by pressing, using steam, and use a lint roller; trim loose threads, check the corners, and add a sleeve, if required.

●      If indoors, be near windows with light, but do not allow streaks created by sunlight or hot spots. Turn off all artificial lighting.

●      If outdoors, it is best early or late in the day. Cloud cover is helpful. Under a porch provides bright indirect light. Show special details, such as texture. Indirect light enhances texture. A flash will make the texture flat. 

●      Square and straighten the photo by aiming at the center, also using gridlines.

 

Business / Announcements: 

●      Kim McPeake circulated the membership directory for members to make adjustments, if needed.

●      The next monthly meeting is August 25 and the program is Thread Weights by Y.L.I. Threads. 

●      The next Sew Day is August 15.

●      Charity quilts: Jean Craig and Kate Weston shared quilts they made and stated that 50” X 69” is a good size for charity quilts.

 

Committee Updates:

●      Swaps/Challenges:  Elaine Woodward and Terry Wischerath presented the bird color challenge, Birds All Around. Each participant selected an envelope with an enclosed bird photo. Make a quilted item of any size, using the bird as inspiration and bring it to the November meeting. The quilt may be a charity quilt and it was suggested to be twin size for teens.

●      This month’s theme for the Midnight Garden 2026 quilt challenge was to make your favorite flower. Several were displayed, as well as one of Jimothy. 💖🦝  Next month’s challenge is items on the garden floor, such as grass, snails, and worms.

●      The fabric postcard swap in celebration of America’s 250th birthday was completed and 17 of them were displayed by those who brought them.

●      Charity quilts: we will be making charity quilts at the September Sew Day.

 

Members shared their quilts at Show and Tell.

The meeting adjourned at 7:50 PM.

Events & Dates to remember - Check the “2026 Calendar” in the right hand column. 

Next meeting - August 25

Sew Day at Five Eighth Seams - August 15

QuiltCon 2027 Atlanta registration - August 19

Camp Quilt Along - August 27-30, 2026

JUNE 2026 MEETING MINUTES

Kerry Bevers, President, called the meeting to order at 6:31 PM with 25 members in attendance.

Program:  Tonight’s topic was Color Theory presented by our guest speaker, Ester Araujo. Ester attended SCAD, studying fibers and surface design. She works out of Redux, teaching primarily landscape painting using gouache.

One of Ester’s favorite quotes is by Joseph Albers: “In visual perception a color is almost never seen as it really is—as it physically is.” Ester says that what we see as color is light bouncing off a surface. Color is always changing; it’s very personal and evokes many emotions.

She talked about how color can change depending on what you put around it, and she brought color swatches for us to play with so we could see for ourselves the dramatic difference achieved by placing one color against two different backgrounds.

Business / Announcements: 

• The next monthly meeting is July 28 and the program is “Taking Good Quilt Photos.” 

• The next Sew Day is July 18.

Committee Updates:

• Swaps/Challenges: this month’s theme for the Midnight Garden 2026 quilt challenge is to add your favorite flower to your garden.

• The fabric postcard swap in celebration of America’s 250th birthday is due by the end of June for delivery by July.

• Charity quilts: we will be making charity quilts together at the September Sew Day.

• The next challenge will be a color challenge coming from nature.

 

Members shared their quilts at Show and Tell.

The meeting adjourned at 7:30 PM.

Events & Dates to remember - Check the “2026 Calendar” in the right hand column. 

Next meeting - July 28

Sew Day at Five Eighth Seams - July 18

QuiltCon 2027 Atlanta registration - August 19

Camp Quilt Along - August 27-30, 2026

MAY 2026 MEETING MINUTES

Kerry Bevers, President, called the meeting to order at 06:31 PM with 28 members and 1 guest in attendance.

Program:  Kelly Spell, abstract quilt artist, presented on Showing Your Work. She covered why you should show your work, a few constraints, where to exhibit, how to find shows, and best practices for submitting. In 2025, Kelly achieved a 44% acceptance rate from invitations to participate based on her submissions. She spent funds on submission and shipping fees, and received income from sales and prizes. 

 

Show your work to connect with viewers and other artists, to build confidence, and to demonstrate quilts as an artform to a wide audience. 

 

Constraints include time; show dates; the size and age of your body of work; submission and shipping costs; the show’s narrow scope or definition of quilts; photography; and wear and tear on quilts. Consider your priorities in shows, such as those that publish catalogs, have award money, have sales, a show that is a specific type of venue, a show you admire, or those that minimize wear and tear on your quilt. Shipping insurance would cost extra and may require an appraisal as proof.

 

Work can be shown at local venues, such as art centers, community centers, medical centers, libraries, and coffee shops. Regional venues may include guild shows, state fairs, and airports. Local and regional venues may be free or more reasonably priced to show. There are national and international venues, such as AQS QuiltWeek and other AQS shows, which also may have appraisers there. Kelly finds value in appraisals and recommends them. Other shows include Mancuso QuiltFest, International Quilt Festival in Houston, SAQA Global Exhibitions, Quilts=Art=Quilts (New York), Art Quilt Elements (Wayne, PA), Quilt National (Ohio), and QuiltCon. Find calls for quilts in email newsletters from local and regional arts organizations, callforentry.org(CaFÉ), saqa.com (Studio Art Quilt Associates), and announcements by quilters you admire. 

 

Best practices for photos include a neutral background with no distractions, light from different angles, ensuring the camera is level and square to the quilt. The artist statement hangs with the quilt and should set the mood for the viewer, avoiding jargon, and carefully edited before submitting. Submission guidelines must be read carefully. Avoid double booking. When shipping, roll or fold quilt with the right side facing out to prevent creases, wrapping with paper and then plastic to protect from liquid.

 

 

Business / Announcements: 

●      The next monthly meeting is June 23 and the program is “Color Theory with Ester.” 

●      The next Sew Day is June 20 with continuation of postcards or other projects.

●      Rick encouraged quilt submissions to QuiltCon; please contact him for more info.

 

Committee Updates:

●      Swaps/Challenges: this month’s theme for the Midnight Garden 2026 quilt challenge is furry and feathered friends with Phoebe displaying 2 blocks of adorable animals. For June, focus on “what is lighting up your sky” including the moon and stars.

●      The fabric postcard swap in celebration of America’s 250th birthday is due by the end of June for delivery by July.

●      Charity quilts, Molly has fabric, backing, and batting, and kits that include all of the necessary components. Molly shared that the Goose Creek recreation desk has an art exhibit for quilt submissions, if interested. The airport authority is expanding Terminal C and Molly will get more info to see if they might display our quilts.

●      Directory: Kim requested new members be available for photos.

 

Members shared their quilts at Show and Tell.

The meeting adjourned at 7:47 PM.

Events & Dates to remember - Check the “2026 Calendar” in the right hand column. 

Next meeting - June 23

Sew Day at Five Eighth Seams - June 20

QuiltCon 2027 Atlanta registration - August 19

Camp Quilt Along - August 27-30, 2026