September 2025

September Program: It’s Show Time!

Tuesday, September 15, 2025: 7:00 p.m. - In person 

We are all getting excited about our upcoming show Quilts from the Village XIX. This month’s meeting is set aside to answer your questions about the quilt show, show you what you need to do to check your quilts in, and provide detailed training in set-up and take down procedures.

Feather Schroeder will be handing out your quilt ID cards with instructions on where and how to place them on your quilts.

Sue Minster, Madge Pierce and Barb Jolley will demonstrate how to set up our quilt stands and hang a quilt and answer any other questions about setting up and taking down. For many of you this will be a review, but it is important to review it because it has been 2 years since we have all done it!

Please plan to attend this meeting! It will be the only time you will be able to pick up your quilt ID cards and save us some postage. Kathy Avellone, our Quilt Show Chairperson, will also be giving any last-minute information concerning the quilt show.

Please bring any Silent Auction items to this meeting as there is NO MEETING in October! 

August Dresden Fun 

Our August speaker Susan Marth was so fun and informative! Around 60 members enjoyed her presentation and beautiful trunk show, and the members at the workshop learned to make perfect Dresdens!

Quilt Show News

Only eight weeks remain until the quilt show! The members of the Quilt Show Committee continue to work hard to get ready and achieve their goals, and with your help they are on the way to success!  

We appreciate the support guild members have given. If this were grade school, some of you would be getting gold stars on your report cards. Please keep it up as there is still work to be done! 

Be sure to read the upcoming September issue of Quilt Show News! There is a lot of important information coming your way! 

Kathy Avellone, Quilt Show Chair 

Quilt Show - Quilt of Valor Deadline Extended

At the August quilt show meeting the decision was made to extend the deadline until October 1 for members to submit a Quilt of Valor.   Even though your Quilt of Valor quilt is being donated, you must enter your quilt and include a photo to complete your submission so that all quilts have an ID Card.

If you would like to have your quilt hung, please attach a hanging sleeve. We will hang as many as possible and the remaining quilts will be displayed in the Quilt of Valor space. 

Visit Member’s Show Info to submit your Quilt of Valor quilts. 

Kearstie Grenier, Enid Mattimiro 

Quilt Show Volunteer Staffing – Have You Signed Up Yet? 

There are plenty of spaces for members of all abilities to volunteer! Here are the volunteer expectations: 

Set-up Day – Thursday, October 23 - every guild member is asked to participate if possible! We can’t have a show without set-up. Remember that there are tasks even during set-up that can be accomplished while seated. Please ask your able-bodied spouses, friends, and family to help. Free lunch will be provided for all workers on Thursday.

During the show – Friday and Saturday - every guild member is expected to volunteer for at least 3 time slots. Boutique member vendors are expected to fill one volunteer slot in the Boutique and two additional slots somewhere else.

At the end of the show – Saturday – every guild member is asked to help take the show down. Again, family and friends can help, and it goes surprisingly quickly! No quilts will be released until the show is down, packed, and ready for the moving company. 

Here's how volunteering works in 3 easy steps:

1. Visit SignUp

2. Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.

3. Sign up! It's easy - you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp, and your email address will not be shared with anyone. 

Andrea Krier, Staffing Chair  

President’s News 

We are in the home stretch of preparations for the Quilt Show. It is a lot of work putting the show together and thankfully we have great leaders guiding the guild through to the finish line. Now is the time when members are busy making things for the boutique and silent auction. The end result of everyone’s hard work is a beautiful event! 

I am looking ahead beyond the show because we need members to organize the December holiday meeting. If this is something you would like to work on, please let me know. We have offered different things through the years from catering food, to making dishes for a meal. We have also done a coffee, hot chocolate and dessert bar. There is no rule for what has to be done. We just need someone or a group of members to spearhead the holiday meeting. 

Please consider helping with this meeting. It’s a fun evening and the relaxed celebration is needed after all of the hard work that goes into the quilt show! 

Sharon Pierluissi, President 

Friendly Service Project

Good news - eleven quilts are going to Staben House this month! 

Our August block was not a big hit, sadly! Only 2 flower basket blocks came in, but don't despair! You can still make some and a lovely quilt can be assembled after the quilt show is over! If you want to whip out some easy blocks instead, try the September block pictured - Roman Coins. It’s easy and uses up all sorts of bright scraps! There is a cutting error in the original directions, but all that means is the white edges will be a bit oversized - easy enough to trim the whole block down to size.

Erica Jarrett, Service Chair 

Let’s Sew Together! 

On Thursday, September 18, all are welcome to come to the State Bank of the Lakes, 50 Commerce Drive off of Center Street in Grayslake, from 10:30 to 3:30.  

This is a perfect time to work on your donations for the quilt show, either for the Boutique or the Silent Auction. Bring hand sewing or your machine. Finish that sleeve or put your label on your quilts.

All are welcome and it is pretty much guaranteed that there will be laughter and stimulating conversation!

Questions? Contact Kathy Heusinkveld or Marti Austin. 

Fall Retreat – November 7-9 

If you were lucky to register for our November, congratulations! If you want to stay at the hotel, please email your requests to Marti Austin before October 1. These requests will be submitted to the hotel on that day. Please indicate which days, the kind of room you want and if you will have a roommate. Marti will respond to your request soon after it is received.  

If you missed getting one of the thirty-three coveted chairs, email Marti Austin and request a spot on the wait list. Typically, we are able to accommodate most who are on this list.   

Members Meeting Members 

Julie Milne, a remarkably vibrant and active snowbird, showed me many stunning needlework projects amid a home that was so lovely and calm, I immediately felt I needed to go home and declutter! And she gave me gifts - a stunning large quilt for our upcoming Silent Auction as well as some lovely quilts for Staben House. Julie says needlework is in her genes – her great grandmother from Ireland handmade a beautiful infant baptismal gown worn by three generations of her family. Her maternal grandmother created most of Julie’s mother’s clothing including coats and hats. Julie’s mother was a well-known certified needlework teacher who taught all across the United States. She taught Julie embroidery when she was only 5 years old! 

While her early career was in Nursing and Dietetics, she became a stay-at-home mom in the 1980s. To keep from going a bit batty, she began teaching needle arts, much as her mother had, and earned a Teacher Certification in Smocking from the National Academy of Needlearts. She stayed at home during the week, but on weekends she would travel nationally to teach while her husband Rich cared for their children. In the 1990s she went back to school to earn a Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy as well as a Ph.D. in Health Psychology, focusing on Spirituality and Medicine. This is a woman who keeps busy! 

While she had done many types of needlework in 2017 she was inspired to learn more about quilting by fellow guild member and neighbor Susan Surdyk. Julie joined Village Quilters in 2019, just in time for the Bill Kerr workshop. She got involved right away with the guild by becoming Secretary of the guild and assisting on a Service Project for ALS patients. While Covid caused all of us much stress, Julie needed to remain isolated as she is immunocompromised due to anti-rejection meds she must stay on the rest of her life. So, thank goodness for a new passion and purpose! And for zoom! Being able to meet with fellow quilters, take classes, and continue to connect was a Covid blessing. Julie is grateful that when she is in Florida, she can still connect with Village Quilters for the winter meetings and any workshops that are held on Zoom.  

She loves modern style quilts in bright colors, and has a remarkable ability to simply use up all fabrics for a project, making other quilts until the fabric is gone. Thus, her “stash” is more like a “pile” (or a few drawers). Seriously! While our esthetic and sensibilities could not be more different, it was a joy to meet a fellow quilter who has a big heart and an even bigger joy for creating beautiful handwork. 

Erica Jarrett 

Library Corner  

There are three books from the Village Quilters’ library that caught my eye this month. The first one is “Warm up to Wool: Projects to Hook and Stitch” by Martingale Press. This book begins with notes on preparing and dying wool. It shows basic stitches often used with wool applique, and then has some projects that look like fun – maybe for the boutique now that your quilts are entered. There are “Penny Rugs” (they look like mug rugs to me), small hooked rugs, and applique.   

The second one is “Jacket Jackpot” by Judy Murrah. It has designs for some beautiful quilted jackets and vests at various levels of difficulty.   

The third one is “Machine Quilting: The Basics and Beyond” by Lynn Witzenburg. This wire-bound book lays flat for easy reference while you try the terrific designs and follow the many useful tips. It begins with basic information for the beginning learner and progresses to some intriguingly intricate designs for the accomplished machine quilter. 

Linda Spring, Librarian 

Treasurer’s Report 

• Bank Balance as of June 30, 2025: $32,608.32

• Income: $1,750.25

• Expenses: $1,521.63

• Bank Balance as of July 31, 2025: $32,836.94 

Income from routine Guild activities totaled $765: $430 from memberships and $335 from workshop fees. Show income totaled $985.25 and was comprised of $789.25 in vendor booth payments and $196 in raffle ticket sales.

Guild expenses of $822.87 were primarily for monthly rent and workshop-related activities. Show expenses of $698.76 were primarily for the production of notepads and greeting cards being sold now and at the show. 

Respectfully submitted, Melanie Houser, Treasurer 

Membership Report

We had nearly 60 in attendance at our August meeting!  Welcome new member Joyce Allen. Please look for her in the coming meetings. As of this writing, we have 100 members!  

We are looking for seasoned members to become a mentor or buddy to our new members as they come in. If you are interested, please do not hesitate to reach out to the membership committee for details. We have some members who are interested…are you? 

We also would like to know the year that you joined the guild for archival purposes. If you can’t pinpoint a year but recall a decade, we will accept that. Additionally, could you please identify your cell phone number vs land line in the sign in sheet. This is for future interest with possible communication. 

Please don’t forget to wear your name badges (remember your quarters if you forget!). Lorraine Potts and Robyn McGarrigle are your membership co-chairs. If you have a question, please feel free to reach out to us!

 Happy September Birthday! 

• Eimile McGarrigle 9/1

• Nancy Smith 9/5

• Mary Ann Clemens 9/8

• Joyce Allen 9/11

• Feather Schroeder 9/12

• Lorraine Potts 9/15

• Linda Spring 9/17

• Laurie Waldron 9/24

• Mary Dietz 9/26

• Linda Krismer  9/28