Museum Quilt Guild

Press release:

The Richmond Library Gallery Room is hosting the Museum Quilt Guild's annual challenge show. It is on display now through February 28, 2023. 

Their "I Thought I Would Never..." 2023 contest challenged members to try using uncommon fabrics such as denim and silk and new techniques such as printing from a fish, to revisiting old ideas like embroidery or finally finishing a project started years ago, to unexpected experiences such as visiting the Pacific Ocean, discovering Hallmark holiday movies or having a vintage Singer featherweight sewing machine.  Two pieces even explore trying to get in touch with one's creativity during the early days of the covid pandemic.  

Also displayed are some of the 2021 Red and White challenge quilts current members had made, which weren't able to be displayed at the library during MQG's usual February time slot in 2021 due to covid restrictions at that time.  Red and white quilts are a traditional quilting theme that goes as far back as the colonial period in America.  Red and white quilts are also reminiscent of Valentine's Day and the cheeriness that their color brings to our usual dark and gloomy February weather.  

Museum Quilt Guild began at the Holland Land Office in 1979 and is where guild meetings were for many years, until there were so many new members and interest that the Batavia VA is their new meeting place.  Themed guild challenges go back to 1990, and the earlier challenge shows were held at HLOM until Richmond Library graciously welcomed the shows as one of their many artist shows held throughout the year.  The themes have ranged from traditional techniques to concepts such as Carnival, Architecture and Modern Solids, and the chosen challenge theme for 2024 will be Music.

The public is invited to vote for their favorites with a Viewer's Choice ballot for both the 2023 and 2021 challenge groupings, and guild members also vote for the favorites for various techniques.  The  two challenges will be on opposite walls, and there will be a different colored ballot and different ID system for each to make voting easier.  Member ballots will be pink for the Red and White challenge and green for the "I Thought I Would Never..." challenge; one will use numbers and the other letters to avoid confusion!  There will also be 2 different colors of Viewer's Choice ballots for the public to choose their favorites.  Voting continues throughout the month, with winners announced at the March Museum Quilt guild meeting.

The quilters gather at the VA every 3rd Saturday of each month, weather permitting, at 9:30 a.m. with various speakers, workshops, community service activities and "show and tell" of new quilts members are making.  Guests may come to visit and check out the guild, and new members are always welcomed, with current annual dues at $20.00.  For more information, contact Martha Lorshbaugh, MQG President at lorshbaugh@gmail.com.  You can also check out the guild's activities online at www.themuseumquiltguild.com, museumquiltguild.blogspot.com, or on Facebook at Museum Quilt Guild.

Submitted photos.

If you think of a quilt show as just another craft show, you're missing out on the art of it.

"Quilting and sewing have made a huge comeback," said Elaine Lemley (top photo), chair of the Stitches in Time quilt show at the Alexander Fire Hall on Friday and Saturday. "A lot of people think of the Amish quilts, which are beautiful in themselves. But quilting has evolved through the years to expand to art quilts and rearranging the traditional patterns of the quilts. If you walk through here, you'll see it's very, very different now than some of the traditional quilting that grandma may have made."

The Museum Quilt Guild hosts the show every two years.  It's a chance for the 75 members of the guild to display their best work, but it's also a fundraiser for the guild.

"We do a lot of community service," Lamley said. "We have a community service section in the back corner of our show going on right now. We donate quilts to the Batavia VA Hospital, the New York State Vets Home, Arc, All Babies Cherished, both cancer centers here in Batavia. And there's an association in Buffalo called Sleep in Heavenly Peace. They take twin-sized bed quilts for kids who are sleeping on the floor. There's another organization as part of that, that actually makes up the beds for these kids so that they're getting a good night's sleep. We've been donating quilts to them recently."

Why quilting?

"It's so relaxing, so much fun, and it's addicting once we get going with it," Lamley said.

To learn more about the Museum Quilt Guild, visit the group's website.

Photos by Howard Owens.

Press release:

The Museum Quilt Guild welcomed Assemblyman Steve Hawley to its quilt show on Friday.

The show is being held Friday the 14th and Saturday the 15th from 10-5 at the Alexander Fireman’s Recreation Hall. Some of the profit from the show goes directly to our local veterans. Guild members donate quilts to the Batavia VA hospital, The NYS Vets home, the cancer centers, All Babies Cherished, ARC and Sleep in Heavenly Peace, among others. 

New members are welcome. You may join us at the show or one of our monthly meetings held on the third Saturday of the month at the Batavia VA. For more information: themuseumquiltguild.com

Article by Lori Ivison

Visitors to the Museum Quilt Guild’s upcoming quilt show may not notice it, but there will be one very special quilt on display in the Youth category. Made by member Christine Kuehl and her three granddaughters, this quilt was a summer vacation project. But it was much more than that!

Chris has two granddaughters who live in Batavia, Cassidy and Lilly Mileham, ages 12 and 13. Her youngest granddaughter, Addie Lacey, 9 years old, lives in Ohio. After a short family visit, Chris said, “We decided to have the grandkids stay with us and we would take them back to Ohio the following weekend. It’s not easy for the cousins to all be together, except for holidays, and they love being together.”

All of her grandchildren have shown an interest in her quilting hobby. Lilly even has her own sewing machine. Chris had spoken to the girls about making a quilt for the show that was to have been held in 2020. So, when this opportunity arose, she again asked the girls if they’d like to make a quilt for the show.  They eagerly said yes! Chris suggested they make one in patriotic colors and donate it for use by one of the veterans at the VA Medical Center, where the Guild holds its monthly meetings.

A simple “Disappearing Nine-Patch” design was chosen. Chris did the cutting and the girls did all the piecing of the blocks.  There were 2 sewing machines and 2 workstations. The girls took turns piecing and helping each other. According to Chris, “The pattern we chose is quite forgiving and made it easy not having to match seams perfectly”.  But she also said the girls learned to use a seam ripper when things weren’t quit right. They accomplished a lot while they were all together. When it was time for Addie to go home to Ohio, Chris brought her sewing machine and the rest of the blocks along. Over the weekend, Addie got more sewing done. She has asked for a sewing machine for Christmas so she can sew with her grandmother using Facetime!

After all the blocks were assembled, Chris put the 3 layers of the quilt together and finished the edge using the “quick turn” method. Cassidy and Lilly did the quilting using lines Chris had drawn on the quilt for them to follow.

It was a great experience for the girls and Grandma, allowing them to have some quality time together.

The quilt show, Stitches in Time 2022, is being held October 14 and 15 at the Alexander Fireman’s Recreation Hall. Hours are 10 am – 5 pm both days. The show will feature over 150 quilts, a member boutique, a silent auction of handmade items to benefit the residents at the VA in Batavia and vendors with quilt related goods to sell.

The guild meets the third Saturday of each month (second Saturday in December) at 9:30 am in the auditorium of Building 4 of the VA Medical Center. Meetings feature a variety of speakers, instructors and trunk shows as well as group sewing days. Guests are welcome to attend 2 meetings for free. For more information, visit their website: www.themuseumquiltguild.com

Submitted photos. Top photo, Christine Kuehl with Lilly (13), and Cassidy (12). Inset photo: Lacey.

Press release:

The Museum Quilt Guild of Batavia will present their biennial show, “Stitches in Time”, on Friday, Oct. 14 and Saturday, Oct. 15 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

There will be more than 150 quilts displayed at the Alexander Fireman’s Recreation Hall, 10708 Alexander Road (Rt 98), Alexander.

In addition, there will be vendors, demonstrations, a silent auction, a boutique and a basket raffle.

Admission is $5; children under 10 are free.

For more information, contact Elaine (585) 880-0456 or visit our website at www.themuseumquiltguild.com

Photo: Submitted photo. Best of show quilt from 2018

Press Release:

Museum Quilt Guild is hosting a members quilt exhibit at Richmond Library in the gallery room for the month of February 2022. Twenty-one small quilts with various interpretations of this year's annual challenge theme feature a variety of techniques and subjects for "Rock, Paper, Scissors". 
 
Rock signifies traditional quilt block or quilting technique. Paper indicates paper piecing, foundation or English paper-pieced. Scissors represents traditional needle turn, or modern fusible or raw edged applique. Members were asked to choose a category for their quilt when submitted. So far, Scissors is winning with 9 entries, but members will be able to vote for their favorites in several categories on blue ballots. The public can vote for their favorite "Viewer's Choice" on white ballots. The categories of the quilts which get the most overall votes, will help determine the answer to the ultimate game of Rock, Paper, Scissors!
 
Some of the quilters who have entries in our challenge show will be available at the library after our monthly meeting on Saturday February 19, 2022 from noon until 2pm for an informal "meet and greet". Stop by and see the quilts, ask questions of the quilters and vote for your favorites!
 
Museum Quilt Guild has survived the challenges of covid with Zoom meetings and meetings at a local park this summer, and is happy to be once again at the VA every third Saturday of the month at 9:30am. Masking and social distancing are required for the meetings. Guests are welcomed to visit for a short business meeting, information on local quilt-related activities and community service. Presentations about quilting and fiber arts and "show and tell" are favorites with our members. Dues are $20.00 a year for guild members. Additional information is available as a hand out at our show.
 
Escape the winter doldrums and see our show at the Richmond Library in Batavia, and vote for your favorites! Will Rock, Paper, or Scissors be the ultimate winner? You help us decide!

Press Release:

In this second pandemic year, members of the Museum Quilt Guild, Batavia, NY, have again donated holiday themed bags filled with gifts to the local Salvation Army. Using a list provided by the Salvation Army, bags are filled with items for children ranging from infants to 15 years. In 2020, the total was 65 filled bags and over 100 empty bags for their use. This year, there were 64 Bags filled, 32 empty gift bags for their use, and 18 stuffed bears. Captain Rachel Moore, who accepted the donations said the teddy bears would be perfect gifts for the infants.

Giving to the community has always been a big part of the Guild’s activities. Since March of 2020, it has been a great way for members to stay connected. The guild was unable to meet in person for 15 months due to the coronavirus pandemic. “At first, as so many of us did, we all figured once the ‘Pause’ in New York ended, we’d get right back to our regular meeting schedule,“ said guild president, Martha Lorshbaugh. But as a couple of weeks turned into months, they realized they would need to find a different way to maintain their connections. One of the members who is an elementary school teacher had become somewhat of an expert at running Zoom meetings, so she took on the role of host for the members to meet virtually. In addition to the monthly meeting, sessions were added for members just to chat, called “friendship meetings.” Many did handwork as they chatted, so work sessions to share the “Community Service” projects they were working on were added. The community service committee arranged for members to pick up kits and supplies for these projects, and then drop off completed items. Many organizations were not collecting donations in 2020, but having all these items ready allowed the guild to provide many items when restrictions were lifted. This year the guild has donated quilts to provide comfort to individuals being served by the following organizations: the VA Medical Center in Batavia (19), NYS Home for Veterans (5), WNY Foster Closet (10), Lipson Cancer Center (10) and All Babies Cherished (2).

In addition to quilts to be used by individuals, the guild offers quilts to be used for fundraising by local organizations. In 2021 this has included one donation each to the Caledonia Library; Gateway Hospice, Attica; Presbyterian Church, Batavia and The Genesee Orleans Arc. Members are happy to fill needs other than quilts. Twenty-nine patients undergoing treatment for breast cancer at Roswell were also gifted with heart pillows to aid in their comfort and recovery.

The guild resumed in-person meetings last summer, meeting outdoors for the summer months. At that first meeting, many quilts were presented to be donated. In October, the guild was finally allowed back to their regular meeting space at the VA Medical Center. At each meeting, at least one item is presented at “Show and Tell” that will be given to the community service committee. “Quilters like to keep busy and knowing our work will give comfort to someone in need is a very good feeling!” said Ms. Lorshbaugh. The guild holds regular Community Service work sessions each year at their monthly meetings for the purpose of working on projects for donation. The next one will be in March of 2022. Organizations may make requests to the guild via our website: www.themuseumquiltguild.com, or Museum Quilt Guild, PO Box 268, Batavia, NY 14020.

The Guild is also excited to be able to invite the public to view our exhibit of “challenge” quilts at the Richmond Memorial Library in February. This had been annual exhibit until last year, so members are looking forward to another step towards a more predictable event calendar. New members are always welcome in the guild! Meetings are held the third Saturday of every month (second Saturday in December) at the VA Medical Center, 222 Richmond Avenue, Batavia, NY (Bldg 4, 2nd floor- use the patio entrance). Meetings begin at 9:30 a.m. You are welcome to attend two (2) meetings as a guest. If you decide to join, dues are $20.00 per year.

From Lori Ivison of the Museum Quilt Guild:

It is with sadness that the Museum Quilt Guild of Batavia announces the cancellation of our biannual Quilt Show originally scheduled at Alexander Fire Hall the weekend of Oct. 16-18.

The health and safety of our members and our guests is our primary concern (COVID-19 pandemic). Currently, there are no plans to reschedule the quilt show.

Please watch for future meeting information for our members.