August 2025
August Program: Susan Marth – Me, Myself, and My Quilts Trunk Show
Tuesday, August 19, 2025: 7:00 p.m. - In person
Let Susan tell you about herself, and how she started quilting and then designing her own quilts, leading her to start her business, Suzn Quilts. She’ll explain how her tools and notions make the quilting experience easy & fun! Susan will be bringing lots of quilts to show and hopefully inspire you to sew some of them yourself!
Check out her designs www.SuznQuilts.com
Dinner with our Speaker: Any member who would like to join us for dinner with Susan, at your own expense, around 4:45 p.m., please contact Marti Austin for details.
August Workshop: Star Spangled Dresden
Wednesday, August 20, 2025: 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Location: Faith Lutheran Church, 680 Deerpath, Lake Forest
We chose this workshop for three reasons:
Susan will introduce you to a new “quilt as you go” method of quilting. If you have not tried this method, you will be very pleased with how efficient and easy it is.
Susan is a whiz at teaching the Dresden plate block. When you have mastered the Dresden plate block, you have arrived!
You can make this table runner or place mat for any season or holiday. Imagine spring prints for the strips and solid pastels for the Dresden plate flowers. Ooooh, so cute! Sign up for the workshop today!
Exciting note: Remember Rebecca Lidstrom’s informative June lecture, One Block, Many Ways? She has shared her program notes with us and they are available on our website’s Resources page.
Theresa Benson, the AI Quilter, presented a fun and extremely informative program at our July meeting. Workshop participants the next day received their own personal AI-generated art quilt patterns based on responses to Theresa’s prompts. Expect to see these patterns come to life over the next several months!
Quilt Show Corner – News
The numbers are in! Thank you to the 62 members who entered 238 quilts to be hung in the show. Among the total number of quilts are 19 Art Quilt Challenge quilts, 7 Quilts of Valor, 5 Birthday Block quilts, 12 mystery quilts, and 25 quilts from various guild workshops.
Ours is not a juried show, but ribbons will be awarded to quilts chosen as viewers’ favorites. There will be ribbons for Favorite Large Quilt, Favorite Medium Quilt, Favorite Small Quilt, and Favorite Art Quilt Challenge entry.
The schedule to sign-up for quilt show volunteer assignments is now on the website. There are many assignments available, so choose something that suits your personality and physical capabilities. Every member of Village Quilters is expected to help with show, even those who did not enter a quilt. See the article below for details.
Postcards and Posters and More - Postcards will be available at every guild meeting. Get them into circulation! Challenge yourself to give out at least 20 postcards as you invite people to the show, and pop some into envelopes to send to friends. If you need more, just ask!
Notecards and Notepads are now available. Margaret has designed both featuring elements of the raffle quilt. They will be available for sale at guild meetings and at the show. A set of 8 notecards is $10 and notepads are $5 each. Buy some for yourself and friends!
If you have questions, please ask! Make friends with the Village Quilters website where you will find a wealth of information.
Kathy Avellone, Quilt Show Chair
The blocks for this Quilt of Valor were made by 27 guild members and the quilt was donated at our show in 2023.
Quilt Show Corner – Submit a Quilt of Valor
Visit Member’s Show Info to submit your Quilt of Valor quilts.
The deadline has passed to submit quilts that will be displayed in the show, but you still have until August 16 to submit Quilt of Valor quilts that will be donated. You must enter a photo to complete your submission.
If possible, please submit your photo when you enter your quilt. However, if you run into issues, you will get a follow up email with instructions for submitting your photo. The deadline for photos for QOV quilts is August 26.
Kearstie Grenier, Enid Mattimiro
Quilt Show Corner: Volunteer Staffing – Teamwork Makes the Dream Work!
The Staffing Committee is charged with organizing workers for the quilt show, and there are many jobs that must be performed to make it successful! White Gloves, Boutique, Silent Auction and Vendor Host are standing jobs. Admissions and Raffle Quilt Sales and Hospitality are primarily seated jobs. In other words, there is an opportunity for everyone to help!
The need for volunteers brings us to online volunteer sign-up. We all need to commit to helping with set-up, running the show itself, and take-down - sitting or standing or building or running. Whatever you are able to do, please do! It is a great time to have fun, make new friends, and interact with guests while showing off our beautiful quilts!
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:
Visit SignUp
Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.
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.
Volunteer Job Descriptions:
Admissions: Greet guests and take the entry fee. Each paying guest is given a ticket (we will track number of attendees and their zip codes). Offer each guest a ballot to vote for his or her favorite quilts. This is a seated job, handling money. One member for each shift will be trained using Squarespace to take credit cards. (It’s easy to learn).
Raffle Quilt: Sell tickets for our raffle quilt. This is a seated job, handling money.
White Gloves: You are the protecting the quilts from sticky fingers while answering questions, engaging guests in conversation about the quilts, and drawing viewers’ attention to details! Wearing white gloves allows you to touch the quilts and turn the corners to show the backs. You will be on your feet and moving around.
Boutique: Sell boutique items. Help customers find treasures that they will want to take home with them! You will be handling money. Calculators will be provided. You will be on your feet and moving around.
Silent Auction: Monitor the silent auction table and quilts. You will be handling money. In each time slot Donna has included detail instructions what you can expect for each shift.
Hospitality: Monitor the hospitality room, including managing the very limited refreshments and keeping the area tidy. This job can be done mostly seated.
Vendor Host: Overall, promote vendor satisfaction. Introduce yourself to each vendor and offer any help or assistance. Act as point person for vendors to call on for any problems that arise. Be available as a 5-to-15-minute booth sitter, especially for vendors that are alone. This means just watching the booth, no transactions.
Andrea Krier, Staffing Chair
Quilt Show Corner: Boutique
Greetings! We have started to receive some items and we are very excited about what we are seeing! Now that you have submitted your quilts for the show, we look forward to you making items for the Boutique.
If you want to sew with others:
Join the Sunshine Stitchers on the 3rd Thursday of the month (August 21, September 18, and October 16) at State Bank of the Lakes in Grayslake from 10:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Contact Marti Austin for details.
Join us on Saturday, August 16, at the Lake Villa Library from 9:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Contact Robyn McGarrigle if interested.
Member Vendor information will be coming soon. For more details and updates, check the Boutique page.
Quilt Show Corner: Check In / Check Out Team
During our show Village Quilters takes responsibility for keeping our treasured works safe and clean. Each quilt is officially checked in at the entrance and checked out after the show by a group made up of "Clerical Team Members" and "Runners".
Check In starts early on Thursday morning, while Check Out begins after all quilts are taken down and the equipment is packed. Clerical team members may remain seated as they officially sign quilts in and out, while runners carry each quilt from the Check In table to the area where the Set Up team will hang them. This process usually runs smoothly and is fun and ideal for those members who prefer a sit-down job.
President’s News
At our April business meeting many of attendees filled out a survey about our guild. There were a number of responses about setting up a buddy system to help new members feel comfortable. This could be anything from talking and sitting with them at meetings to exchanging contact information to stay in touch at other times. Right now, with our upcoming quilt show, a member that has been with our guild for a few years or more can certainly help a new member understand all of the information that is talked about at meetings.
Have you been a Member of Village Quilters for a few years or more?
Do you want to see our guild continue to grow?
Do you enjoy meeting new quilters?
If you answered yes to these questions, please let me know that you would like to help new members enjoy being a member of Village Quilters!
Sharon Pierluissi, President
Friendly Service Project
Thank you members for taking time each month to make blocks for our Service project! I know the last few months have been overwhelmingly focused on getting all those quilts done for submission for our show, so the time you take for Service has been much appreciated. We have a lovely collection of blocks - I Spy, Blue String Pieced and Jewel Stars. Now that the Show deadline is past, please consider picking up a pile and creating a quilt top for the children at Staben House to love and treasure. If you would like the blocks before the August meeting, reach out to me and I can arrange to get some to you.
This month we tackle applique! Don't be daunted! The flower basket block is small and a great chance to learn or at least try something outside your comfort zone. Please do not fuse the block, but feel free to do raw edge with a zig zag finish if that appeals. Detailed directions are available on our website Service page.
Erica Jarrett, Service Chair
Shown are some of the colorful star blocks that members donated in July (we could use more of these!) and a quilt top coming together using the blue string blocks that members donated in June. Staben House will be delighted to receive our quilts when they are completed!
Fall Retreat – November 7-9
Our fall retreat is scheduled for November 7-9 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Mettawa! Plan to wake up early on Monday, September 1 (Labor Day) to register at 8:00 a.m. and pay for your spot at the retreat. The cost is $64.00 and is non-refundable. Visit the Fall 2025 retreat page for more details.
If the retreat is full when you attempt to sign up, immediately email (not text or call) Marti Austin to request a place on the wait list. By emailing, your request is time stamped and your name will be put on the list accordingly.
Linda Spring at home, surrounded by color and creativity!
Members Meeting Members
On a scorching day in June, I went to see Linda Spring. She had graciously accepted my request to visit, and invited me into her lovely oasis which included a garden full of stunning roses, a tranquil pool, quilts and art everywhere, a resident mermaid named Esmerelda. What a treat Linda is, and how lucky our guild is to have such an enthusiastic member.
Back in 2005 she attended a quilt show with Linda Warren, another guild member, and joined our group soon thereafter. At the time she was working full time as an attorney, and was often disappointed not to be able to take workshops. She loved the now-gone quilt shop in Bannockburn (Quilter’s Station I think?) and learned how to make her first quilt with guidance from the staff. She gravitates to batiks but is willing to experiment, and promised herself in her retirement she would sign up and learn all sorts of new things. She is also enjoying quilting with one of her 4 grandchildren, another member of our guild! In fact, she and her granddaughter, Sarah Solotoroff, are running the Art Quilt Challenge for our upcoming show, all prompted by Sarah’s enthusiastic ideas.
Linda’s home also has a remarkable quilting studio, a room that was designed originally as the “maids” room, complete with its own bathroom. She made sure I knew no maid was ever in residence in the 30 years she and her husband have owned the property! A child’s room, it was transformed to include cabinets, desks and a great sewing nook snuggled up to the corner windows looking out to her front yard. Not only can she admire the lovely gardens she loves to work in, she can see the comings and goings in her neighborhood. And outside the room, hanging in the stairwell, Esmerelda spins her enchantment on those lucky enough to visit this busy and remarkable woman who will celebrate 80 years of creativity, engagement and beauty this year!
Erica Jarrett
Members Perfecting Their Technique
Members had a great time learning tips and tricks to perfect their piecing techniques from Rebecca Lidstrom of Studio R Quilts at the June workshop! Check out her lecture notes on our Resources page.
Treasurer’s Report
Bank Balance as of May 31, 2025: $29,532.31
Income: $4,646.25
Expenses: $1,570.24
Bank Balance as of June 30, 2025: $32,608.32
Income from routine Guild activities totaled $1,930; $1,160 from memberships and $770 from workshop fees. Show income totaled $2,716.25 and was comprised of $785 in raffle ticket sales, $1,691.25 in vendor booth payments, and $240 in note card and pad sales.
Expenses were primarily for the June workshop ($1,291.60). Significant show related expenses were for a $190 deposit for the movers.
Respectfully submitted, Melanie Houser, Treasurer
Membership Report
We had 41 in attendance at our July meeting! Welcome new members: Michelle Mutter, Kathleen Widmer and Elizabeth Culver. Please look for them in the coming meetings. As of this writing, we have 92 members!
Remember to wear your name badges to meetings (or 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 August Birthday:
8/1 - Alice Hutchinson
8/1 - Gayle Springer
8/2 - Laurie Golden
8/4 - Sally Evanshank
8/6 – Karen Schultz
8/14 – Elizabeth Culver
8/16 – Leitha Schaal
8/17 – Susan DiVarco
8/18 – Alicia Alexander
8/29 – Sari Hurtig
8/30 – Nancy Giebel
