Newsletter 34 April 2014

President’s Message- Mar/Apr 2014

Wow the year is marching on, I remember as a kid feeling the year dragged by. Not anymore, now I wonder where it goes so quickly.

There have been some members whose quilts have won prizes since our last newsletter. Please send a short note and a picture if you have one to the newsletter editor. We’d love to include these pieces for all to enjoy. You can also share this news on the Facebook page for AMQA Inc. Be encouraged – we want you to brag about your quilting wins!

The nights are turning colder and I now have 2 quilts on my bed but I’m yet to add the doona as well. You know, I think I make the bed more when there’s a quilt on it, I love seeing the quilt and that can only happen when the bed is made. My older sons are also using one of their quilts and I do like to see them throughout the house. I really must get cracking on some for the younger boys. Yes there are 4 boys in this house and I am so proud of them for giving sewing and quilting a go. The older 2 are both prizewinning quilters and No 3 is well on his way.

AMQA Inc. Quilt Show

The AMQA Quilt Show will be held in October this year in conjunction with the AMQ Festival. We’ve noticed some confusion about the names of our Association and Festival and we’ve been working on clarifying this to the business and sponsors we speak with. We hope you will help us to clarify things if you encounter any confusion. We are both separate entities but have forged a partnership to work together and we are supported by Festival to run the AMQA Quilt Show.

The sponsorship requirements are slowly being filled though we are always happy to speak with interested businesses. If you have any suggestions for businesses who might consider sponsoring our show, please let someone on the committee know. You can find an email address on our website for the committee members. We hope to make the show extremely successful with great prizes for all categories. I would like to thank the sponsors who are already supporting our show and providing some wonderful prizes.

Constantine Quilts

Blessington Pty ltd.

Jan Foster - Red Shed Quilting

Bill and Leonie West - Westalee Designs

Hollyburton Park.

SA Quilters Guild.

Australian Quilters Association

Studio Mio & The Quilting Heart

Canberra Quilters

Victorian Quilters

Dayview Textiles

Blue Gum Quilting

BBT Distributors

Busy Needles

Blueberries

Mt Vincent Quilts

Central Coast Modern Quilt Guild Inc.

Leutenegger

Quality Always

and we are proud to have

M&S Textiles as our sponsor for Runner Up- Best Of Show and

Quality Always as co-sponsor of Best Of Show.

2015 Member’s Challenge – Competition Now Open!

Do you have an idea for a pieced design you think would be perfect for the next Member’s Challenge? To enable as many people to enter as possible we are thinking way ahead and wanting to release the pieced design at our Quilt Show in 2014. This will give almost a year for quilts to be thought about and made. If you have a design in mind, I encourage you to spend a bit of your downtime writing it up and submit it to the committee for use as the 2015 Member’s Challenge pieced design. All acknowledgements will be given to the designer as appropriate. The challenge is great to stretch our skills, try new techniques and help us be confident.

We need

- a design that is approximately 40-45 inches square, ideally closer to 40 inches but this will depend on the design.

- instructions to make the pieced design and measurements for cutting etc. Any templates etc. in printable format, ie; PDF is good.

- a picture or photo of the finished design, not necessarily quilted.

The prize for the successful design is a free year of membership to AMQA Inc. Other designs will be held to consider for future Member’s Challenges.

We are hoping to make the challenge a travelling showcase which will be great for our industry and for our businesses. To be able to offer the quilts for travelling we do need to make sure it is worthwhile. 4 quilts don’t really make a showcase. I encourage you all to consider designing and then entering the Member’s Challenge in 2015.

Are you still reading? Great. Another important event this year will be happening before the AMQA Inc. Quilt Show.

Our Annual General Meeting

It’s time to start considering how we can all continue to improve and grow our Association. Without you the Association will cease to be. All positions will be declared vacant at the AGM and there are committee members who need to step down for health reasons and also like myself cannot stand for the same position again. The current committee is a wonderful group of ladies and I have learnt so much from them and being on the committee. I would like to continue to help the Association but I cannot stand as President again according to our constitution. You do not have to be a seasoned quilter to join the committee; I was a very new member and a new quilter when I first joined the committee as a general member.

In particular we need a new Secretary and as per our constitution the position requires the person to be residing in Qld or within 65km of the border. There are many new members and we can split the role if there are a couple of people who would like to work together. If you would like to see something happen within AMQA Inc. and help us improve our member benefits, please join the committee and/or attend the meetings.

Great news......

NEW.....NEW...NEW.....to the AMQA Quilt Show 2014...

Modern Category

Maximum 480” perimeter. This category is for those quilts which encompass the Modern Quilting style. Modern quilts are functional and can display features such as solid &/or bold colours, simplicity, minimalism or improvisational piecing. Features can include asymmetry and the use of reinterpreted traditional blocks, the use of modern prints and grey or white as a neutral.

Raylee

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The Sanctuary

How did you spend the Labour Day long weekend? Washing the windows? Going to the Moomba parade? Painting the bedroom? ………….. Not me. I went to The Sanctuary in Bordertown, South Australia for three days of quilting indulgence, lovely country cooking and was in the company of 7 other Statler machine quilters. The Sanctuary is a sizeable renovated house with multiple bedrooms and a substantial open area with several large tables for sewing. There is also a lounge room for “getting away from it all” (as if you’d want to), and a large covered outdoor area for the hot days. Anyone wanting a short break could take a stroll around the large cottage garden full of little surprises.

Most of us brought our own domestic machines and worked on personal projects while we talked. There were a couple of very high achievers amongst us, one in particular finished off a skirt, a blouse, a disappearing 4 patch quilt top and then started a second one – not bad eh? All of us were professional quilters but there were also two quilter/shop-owners with us, Alison Bacon from Canterbury Quilts and Brenda Wade from Widebacks and a quilter/pattern designer Naomi Hynes.

Indulgent it might have been, but we learned an enormous amount from each other. We watched educational DVD’s on specific topics, demonstrated and shared techniques in SAM and of course visited the local patchwork shops, one of which has been operating since the 1800’s. We discussed issues such as new elements added to the latest upgrade of Creative Studio (CS5), how people are managing with it, placing borders, edge to edge patterns, adjusting patterns to suit individual spaces, and working with PVM and Quilter’s Lightbox. We had extensive show-and-tell and shared photos of quilts we had done. Lots of networking was achieved. All of this was under the guidance of Judy Simcock, owner and operator of The Sanctuary and at the same time having lots of fun and laughs.

(these girls travelled 7 hours to get there...)

It was a wonderful long weekend with fabulous people and for those who are interested, you don’t have to be a machine quilter to have a get-away at Judy’s. Just gather a few quilting friends together and go – I couldn’t recommend it highly enough.

Di Carmody,

Beyond Beautiful Quilting

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Being Business Savvy - Part 1

Do you have a Disclaimer for your Business?

During last year, a question was raised from an AMQA Member about having a Disclaimer for her Machine Quilting business. I recalled an article written by Cindy Roth of Longarm University published in Machine Quilting Unlimited (formerly Unlimited Possibilities, US magazine) who explained the importance of having such a document.

Since I began my machine quilting business, I’ve heard various opinions about our legal responsibilities toward our customers, but we also need to have some responsibility toward our business & ourselves. There can be situations arise when something may happen that may or may not be out of our control, so this is where a Disclaimer is one of the most invaluable pieces of information we can have for our business. Together with some Terms & Conditions (these will be in Part 2), it can also act as an insurance policy, so to speak.

I would also like to tell you about your Customer Work Order forms. If you use one of these forms, everything can be recorded on this so both you & your client know what is to be done on their quilt. You can design your own to suit your business using your computer. There are some examples of this on the AMQA website (Members only tab/How to start a Business), so take a moment to check these out if you need one. Make sure you have enough space for customer details, including phone & email contact, details of the quilt & work to be done. Include an order number (if you use this), your business details at the top of page & an approximate price quote if you normally do this.

At the bottom of the Customer Work Order, you could add a Disclaimer which can be something like this:

I hereby authorize work on my quilt as described above. Should I leave the quilting designs & thread choices up to the Quilter, I understand that I alone have made this choice. I understand that I am financially responsible for prompt & timely payment for this work & all materials used. I also agree that the maximum liability of (name of business) is as stated in the Terms & Conditions on the reverse side of this form. Should I loan/enter this quilt/project for exhibition or public display, I will show the courtesy of crediting (name of business) as the machine quilter.

I do / do not (please delete one) agree to my quilt being photographed for record keeping & promotional purposes on the website/blog/facebook page of (Name of business).

CUSTOMER SIGNATURE:…………………………………………………..................................……...DATE………………………………..

It is very important to have your customer sign & date this form!!

(With Cindy’s permission, I have taken some of the above information from her article/s on this subject.)

You can find more on this subject by Cindy Roth at

http://www.longarmuniversity.com/Bookstore%20pages/longarm_pricing.htm#worksheet

There are several interesting articles on Cindy's blog at

http://mqbusiness.wordpress.com/

In the next newsletter, I will have more information that will go with your Customer Work Orders (including Terms & Conditions). Being a machine quilter myself, I'm always on the watch for anything that will help make my business more efficient & professional.

PLEASE NOTE: This article is purely for your information only. Please have the above Disclaimer statement checked with your own legal advisor (my disclaimer on this article!)

Regards,

Val Towill

AMQA Committee

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AMQ Festival is proud to join with Lloyd Curzon Textiles to present to you a challenge to assist us in raising much needed funds for more research for Alzheimer's Australia. All proceeds will be donated.

Quilt Challenge Theme "A Moment in time...”

 Create a quilt that demonstrates a special moment in time. It could be the moment that changed your life, when you met your soul mate, the moment a tear drop falls, a child is born, a loved one departs, your first day in school, your first day at work, your last day at work! The moment a flower blooms, a seed germinates, a cat yawns, a dog is alerted to visitors, a rainbow appears, the lightning strikes, the rain hits the ground.

 Each entry is to be accompanied by a story of the moment in time, no longer than 250 words. All quilts will be donated & auctioned with full proceeds being given to Alzheimer’s Australia. The top thirty finalists will be selected for display at AMQ Festival 2014 & the top 10 auctioned at the Banquet dinner at Festival. The remaining quilts will be auctioned online 14 days prior and concluded by silent auction at Festival.

A printable copy of the rules & application form can be found here.

This competition is now open for you to purchase the challenge kit to start creating!

Prizes to be won!

1st Prize:

$300 cash plus a bursary to attend AMQF 2014. Includes: Festival Package, Ticket to Banquet dinner & up to 8 hrs of classes +Fabric pack Value $1100-

2nd Prize:

$200 cash plus a bursary to attend AMQF 2014. Includes: Registration bag, Ticket to Banquet dinner & up to 8 hrs of classes +Fabric pack. Value $800-

3rd Prize:

$100 cash plus AMQF 2014 registration bag & up to 4hrs of classes +Fabric pack. Value $500-

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AMQF

All the Tutors and classes are listed on the website......grab a cuppa and take a look.

www.amqfestival.com.au

MORE TUTORS FOR AMQF

Jenny Doan - Missouri Star Quilt Company

The interest in Jenny has been amazing and we are very excited to be hosting her here in Australia. We are working on the finer points of Jenny's classes including the costing and will notify everyone as soon as we have this all in place. In the meantime we can let you know that Jenny's classes will be held on Wednesday, 1st October 2014 at the Adelaide Convention Centre. The first class is scheduled to start at 8.30am, so if you book this one it might be advisable to arrive the day before to settle in and have time to set yourself up. Classroom will be open from 8am to set up. These classes will be "hands on" and you will need to bring your own machine (tagged) to class. If you live interstate it is not a problem to book your machine on as excess baggage when you are booking your ticket - the cost will vary depending on the airline and weight of your particular machine.

There are a few reasons behind the need to bring your own machine, however, the main reason being that everyone is familiar with their own machine and we don't want delays and interruptions during Jenny's class to sort out issues with a machine that you don't know. Our aim is to make your time with Jenny as enjoyable and valuable as we possibly can.

Veteran quilter Jenny Doan has risen to stardom in the quilting world with her YouTube tutorials. A former costume designer, mother of 7 children and 21 grandchildren, Jenny is beloved for her approachable demeanour and contagious enthusiasm for quilting. Jenny and her loving husband live in the small town of Hamilton, Missouri where they run the Missouri Star Quilt Co with several of their children.

www.missouriquiltco.com

Jenny is coming to present 3 mystery classes at Festival 2014 and some trunk shows as well!! Woo hoo for Jenny. She is achieving amazing things for the quilting industry world-wide.

See Jenny Doan on the NBC Nightly News!

Here's the link: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/21134540/vp/54502376#54502376

Judi Madsen

of Green Fairy Quilts

Judi Madsen is a quilt designer and long arm quilter. She has designed over 50 quilt patterns and has grown in her ability to long arm quilt. She is an award winning self-taught quilter who shares her designs and tutorials on her blog – www.greenfairyquiltsblog.com – She also shares her customer quilts where she spends the time to create a masterpiece with each one of the quilts she quilts. Judi is a wife to Clint and a mother to 4 children. Family, business and quilting life create a fun juggle of stress and fulfilment. Judi's first book "Quilting Wide Open Spaces," was published with AQS publishing in August 2013. This accomplishment has opened opportunities for teaching which is so exciting to her!

You can visit her page on the website to view all the classes she is offering this year.

Especially for all the ART quilters out there – we have the wonderfully talented, highly regarded & highly awarded:

Cathy Wiggins

Cathy Wiggins was born and raised in eastern North Carolina were she received degrees in mathematics and software engineering. Even though her education is in technology, her love has always been art and any form of creativity. During her years in telecommunications she continued to foster her love of art through taking numerous workshops on subjects such as sculpting, pottery, and all forms of painting. She eventually settled on using acrylic paints on paper as her medium of choice. Through experimenting and practice, Cathy developed her own style of painting where she would, through the use of value and layers of paint, interpret photographs on paper. She won numerous awards locally and nationally for her work and began teaching her technique to others.

Cathy began quilting in February of 2003 after attending her first national quilt show.

The following year, her quilt was juried into the AQS Quilt Show & Contest in Paducah, Kentucky. Since that time she has won many national and international awards for her quilts and is teaching her design techniques.

Now Cathy has taken her quilting work a step further with her "Just for Fun" series of quilts. She creates quilts that are both whimsical and humorous. When asked why she has made this shift in her work, Cathy says, "I just want to create quilts for the pure fun of it. I want to create quilts that bring smiles to the faces of the viewers and designs that are ageless, things that remind us of our childhood." In addition to writing articles for magazines and traveling nationally to teach, she is now writing books and creating patterns based on her award-winning quilts.

I am especially interested in seeing all the quilting work that Cathy has been doing on leather! You can learn more on all this from her facebook page where she is very generous with her information.

You can visit her page on the website to view all the classes she is offering this year.

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Kathy Adams

Kathy Adams began her business KoolKat Quilting in

2003 after having been a dedicated quilter for 10 years.

Kathy has won numerous awards for her quilts, most of

which are her own designs. Her quilting customers have

also won prizes with quilts Kathy has quilted.

Kathy has taught classes in special quilting techniques

in SE and Western Qld, and she is also a regular

contributor to theAustralian Patchwork and Quilting

Magazine with her column Studio Daze – a quilter’s meanderings. Kathy designs quilts and publishes patterns

and her Gather ye Rosebuds quilt design has been very well received both in Australia and overseas.
Having established a successful quilting business, Kathy is keen to help promote the machine quilting industry

and through her business presentations aims also to help those starting out to gain the confidence and

knowledge required to achieve financial and personal goals.

Class offered by Kathy

Your (micro) quilting business – from little things......
2 hrs
Lecture

This two hour presentation is aimed at those machine quilters who have already started or are thinking about starting a business in this field. Kathy Adams began quilting for others over ten years ago and her business KoolKat Quilting has grown and developed over that time, with the assistance of Geoff Adams in recent years. Kathy and Geoff now work full time in the business and it has grown from a part time hobby to a full time business, which is their sole source of income. With these 10 years of long-arm quilting plus 13 years of previous small business experience, Kathy knows all too well many of the challenges that a newcomer can face in starting out.