Presenters and Workshops
2023-2024
September 11, 2023 7PM
Sarah Nishiura
"Looking Back and Looking Forward"
This lecture tells the story of my quilts: why I make them, how I make them, and what inspires them. This talk will include a trunk show.
Sarah Nishiura grew up in Detroit and now lives in Chicago, where she uses traditional techniques to craft one-of-a-kind quilts from her own designs. Sarah learned to sew from her mother and learned to love geometry from her father. From her grandparents, who were great builders, painters, stitchers, weavers and gardeners, she learned that making things is one of the greatest imperatives, privileges and pleasures in life.
Sarah's quilts are all pieced from 100% cotton recycled and vintage materials, backed with new yardage, and then hand quilted. It can take up to 4 months to complete a quilt, but the result is strong, durable, and suitable for warmth or display.
To learn more about Sarah's education and experiences, see her website at sarahnishiura.com
Also a great link to more information about Sarah can be found at: https://okanarts.com/blogs/blog/sarah-nishiura)
September 12, 2023 9AM to 4PM
Sarah Nishiura Workshop
"Unique Strip Piecing"
Strip piecing is a wonderful technique for producing perfect checkerboard patterns, zigzags and diamonds, but it can also be used when creating exciting improv designs. In this workshop, we will examine
strip pieced designs developed by the Seminole Indians in the early twentieth
century, and other traditional patterns that utilize strip piecing, and then we will shift focus to experiment with the improv
potential of the technique. Participants will create a range of unique pieced designs
samples that they can choose to incorporate into larger quilt projects or
keep as standalone works of art.
October 9, 2023 7PM
OCQG Small Group "One Block Wonders"
One Square Short Small Group (Diedre Fleener, Dawn McKenzie, Jackie Morrical, Mary Ott, Sally Strah, Theresa Weihe)
Our small group will provide a trunk show and a high level overview of the One Block Wonder process, including the use of panels to create quilts. There will be a reference/tip sheet available and completed quilts for viewing/inspiration. Bring any questions you have for utilizing this technique!
November 13, 2023 7PM
Heather Thormodson
"Cherrywood History"
Hello! My name is Heather and I am an Ambassador for Cherrywood Hand Dyed Fabrics in Minnesota. I LOVE Cherrywood!!! I have been working with Cherrywood for 7+ years; traveling to quilt shows with the company, hosting its traveling Cherrywood Challenge art quilt exhibit, creating samples and am now starting to write my own designs. I am also the owner of the North Star Retreat Center in Ashby, MN where the Cherrywood Retreats are held! My love for Cherrywood is infectious and I can’t wait to share stories, a great collection of my quilts and more with your group. I have traveled all over the country selling Cherrywood at quilt shows, and have given many guild presentations and classes throughout the upper Midwest.
November 14, 2023 9AM to 4PM
Heather Thormodson Workshop
"Infinity"
NO RULERS!
NO MEASURING!
NO PINNING!
NO BATTING!
Free yourself from rulers when you cut these free-form waves and layer them raw-edge on a foundation. This forgiving technique uses the beautiful gradations of Cherrywood to its advantage creating a simple, but effective modern quilt.
December 11, 2023 7PM
Holiday Show and Tell Social
January 8, 2024
7PM ZOOM
Patricia Belyea, Okan Arts
"The Alluring World of Japanese Yukata Quilts"
Patricia's presentation will take us to Japan for a flashback of the Tokyo Quilt Festival and a tour of the 2022 Yokohama Quilt Festival. Patricia finishes with a show of her own quilts, made with vintage Japanese cottons and talks about how these special fabrics inspired her.
February 12, 2024
OCQG Service Day
The annual OCQG Service/Sew Day will be held virtually on Monday, February 12, 2024.
Service Committee members will be at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church from 10:00 am - 1:00 pm. Guild members are invited to drop by the church during that time to pick up a kit, fabric, or batting to use for a donation quilt. They may also drop off donation quilts at that time. Due to outdoor work at the church that day, please use the upper level for parking.
Members are also invited to join us for a Zoom session at noon to share projects being worked on. Members should watch their email closer to Service Day for their Zoom invite.
The annual Service/Sew Day has a long history of generating a large number of quilts to be donated to our community agencies, including UI Hospitals and Clinics, Veterans Administration Hospital, 4Cs Child Care Center, Domestic Violence Intervention Program, Visiting Nurses Association, and Houses into Homes.
More information can be found in the OCQG February newsletter.
March 11, 2024 7PM
Arrive at 6:30 to view all items
OCQG Auction
Wears Auctioneering House--Brent Wears
Fabric, fabric and more fabric, unfinished projects, quilting tools, books, magazines, and patterns, thread, sewing gadgets, Fat Quarters, left over bits and bobs.
Come for the FUN and great FINDS!!
Click here for more information.
April 8, 2024 7PM
Codi Josephson, HomeEc
"Mama Said Sew: My Journey as a Maker"
In a world filled with constant demands and fast-paced living, it is essential to slow down and reconnect with our creative selves. This presentation is not just about my journey as a maker (quilter, knitter, business owner), but also the broader concept of making and the profound impact it can have on our lives. Based on research I did when in graduate school, I will present a bit about historical stitched samplers, contemporary textile art, quilting, slow stitching and creating in community.
Codi is an artist and small business owner living in Iowa City. Her work and business are both informed by her ongoing interest in the history of craft as it relates to women and craft in the context of contemporary art.
For more information visit the Home Ec Workshop website: https://www.homeecworkshop.com
April 9, 2024 9AM to 4PM
Codi Josephson, HomeEc Workshop
"Improv Piecing and Big Stitch Quilting"
This workshop combines the spontaneity of improv quilting techniques with the artistry of big stitch quilting, resulting in a stunning quilted block that can later be transformed into a pillow or bag.
Learn to embrace the freedom of spontaneously piecing together fabrics. Codi will guide you through techniques, encouraging you to trust your instincts and create a truly one-of-a-kind quilted block. Once your block is ready, she will teach you how to use bold, visible stitches to accentuate the design and add texture to your quilted block.
May 13, 2024
7PM ZOOM
Maday Delgado
"The Chaos of Perfection"
Maday is a prolific art educator, published artist, Janome America Artisan and speaker based in the Midwest, committed to bringing innovation and artistry to the forefront of the work she creates. Her mission is to nurture artistic platforms across cultures and generations to foster creative work, while finding ways to minimize our environmental footprint. Learning from cultural textile traditions and exchanging powerful stories, continues to be a source of inspiration that she hopes to share with all. Her goal is to unify students with different skill sets and share her love of art and vibrant textiles in a sustainable manner. She combines paint, weaving, hand-stitching (her favorite) and machine sewing and embroidery to infuse her creations with energy, paying homage to her Cuban upbringing. She loves the art of collaging and storytelling with new and pre-loved textiles. She favors working with up-cycled materials and scraps as a way to honor the environment.
June 10, 2024
OCQG Elections and Guild Potluck
July 8, 2024
OCQG Challenge
"Show Us Some Love"...
do what makes your heart sing!
Everyone has that one thing that we keep coming back to because it makes us HAPPY. We do it repeatedly.
That's what this guild year's Challenge is all about...showing us what you love to do.
For some it will be One Block Wonders, for others, Applique, or 9-patch, or Medallions, or Embroidery, or Strip Piecing, or Hexies, etc.