We've moved to Facebook

Seeing as I stink at keeping up with this blog, I made a Facebook page.

You can find all the happenings here or search Freedom Quilters on Facebook.

We have more people that can contribute here and it seemed the logical solution to keep up with everything that is happening with the group.

Please take a moment to check it out - shoot us a note and let us know you were there!

~Freedom is never free!

Renee

A Call to Action

Hello Everyone!!

First, I wanted to give a big thank you to everyone that has been working hard to keep us moving forward. Freedom Quilters has been able to make 2 back-to-back presentations, and have made a tentative date for another presentation day for mid March. Although, should another presentation need to be made, we'll do it whenever needed. 

Secondly, based on the recent national TV coverage on the Quilts of Valor Foundation, the requests have been coming in heavy. 

We are sending out a call to action to try and keep up with the newly increased demand. 

That being said - we are having a block drive. Some of you know that there will be a QoV retreat in January (BTW - it is full) and Susan has sent out a new block for us to get busy on. We will be using these at the retreat, spreading them among 80 quilters, so we need a bunch.

This is the perfect opportunity to get involved should you wish. 

Here's what you can do:

1. Make blocks - get pattern here. 

2. Get the blocks to me - you can either save them and give them to me at the guild meetings or if you should be going to Stitch'n Quilt - leave them there. Or if you really want, mail them to Susan at the address she lists on the directions.

3. Make a donation. That can be in the way of either fabric, batting, thread or you may even consider giving a cash donation. Every little bit helps us.

I know we can all agree, how good it makes us feel to be able help where we can.

Thanks for all your doing

Remember - freedom is never free

~Renee

July happenings...

Have you had enough rain yet? I think it's safe to say my weeds are super happy - I am not a gardener by any stretch and the flowers I planted are looking for some weed relief, add weeding to my to-do list. YUCK!!

Well, we had a GREAT turn out for our July Freedom Quilter's meeting. There are 3 missing from this picture, the machines were humming - it was fun. Won't you put it on your calendar to join us next month?

Since finishing the Bear Paw quilt (final pictures to come), I have been doing some mindless string blocks. I did decide to make them blue with gold centers. Someday I will break out in full on scrappy, but for now I am wading in slowly! 

The beauty of this setting is you get 2 out of 1 string block. Adding a solid on the top and essentially making a 1/2 square triangle out of it. I really like the way it is coming together. Half the fun was laying it out - I did have one pattern down, adding the white sashing, but this is not it. When I picked up the block for assembly I got them out of order! We collectively went back to the drawing board and this was the result. 

Obviously this is not complete, but still stunning (in my humble opinion). I need to grow it, trying to make it around 60 x 80 (the new size QOVF likes to have). I will try my hand at embroidery in the red - white stars would be cool! Stay tuned for the final quilt.

The July QOVF Newsletter was posted today and you can find it here. Take a minute to read it. So much goes on with the Foundation that we don't know about. These group of volunteers do a GREAT job of keeping us organized. Hats off to them.

That about wraps it up for now - stay dry my friends!

Remember - freedom is never free.

~Renee

It's a presentation!!!

I had one of the most rewarding presentations last weekend.

A WWII Army veteran that served in Okinawa was honored with a beautiful QOV.

I read a letter...

And then wrapped him in love...

He had many family members there that were also either in the military or veterans. It was a great group. They had laid out some pictures for us to see - they are on the table - from when Don was in the service. He comes from a big family and most of his brothers and even his twin sister enlisted.

I have a special soft spot for the WWII generation. This is the second time I have been involved with them and I doubt I will ever tire of being around them!

There were 2 other Freedom Quilters with me that afternoon, and they both agreed that is was special.

Well off to make another quilt!

Remember - freedom is never free.

~Renee

May Wrap Up

I am stunned every time I look at the calendar. I just cannot believe it is almost June. I hope all of you had a great Memorial Day. For those of us involved with the QOV, Memorial Day is everyday, but it is great to be able to take time to honor those who have served and who are serving our great country.

I recently read the May newsletter for the Quilts of Valor Foundation. There are a few things worth noting here, but please take a moment to read it when you can.

Recently there was a unanimous decision to increase the recommended size of the quilts to 60 x 80.  Don't panic if you have tops or finished quilts made under the old size guidelines, let's get those finished up or sent off when we can, so moving forward, we can work on the larger size. 

If your a longarmer for QOV - make sure you read about how Pellon is supporting us. This is something worth taking a look at. 

Freedom Quilters is thrilled to announce another presentation. I have a good friend who's son was in the Air Force, Jay - he spent a couple tours in Iraq. He lives in Utah, so I contacted the coordinator there. Her name is Diane Jaeger - what a GREAT gal. I sent out a quilt and she presented it to him. Ironically, they work only 2 buildings from one another. They made a great connection and she is hoping to get him involved in QOV, presenting with her. I so hope he will do it.

Take a look at this picture - loved seeing him wrapped in his quilt! He was very moved by the quilt and thanked us profusely.

Don't forget our monthly meetings at the Stitch'n Quilt - every 3rd Saturday of the month. We start sewing at 10. If you plan on attending, please bring your sewing machine. We have been working on the anniversary blocks and hope to have a ton made by next month's meeting. If you are not a part of the Silver Comet Quilt Guild, you should try and come to the next month's meeting. Our very own Susan Gordon (she is our regional coordinator) will be doing our program. I know this will be a real treat, having been in Susan's company on several occasions - she is a real dynamo! Can't wait to see her again. If you need information about the guild you can find it here.

Come back soon for an update on the Bear Paw quilt I started last October - I have the top pieced and will be quilting it soon. So you want to see the finished quilt, right?

Take care!

Remember - freedom is never free.

~Renee

March madness...

Hello fellow quilters!!

It seems like forever since I have seen most of you. I do hope you have survived the cold weather.

I personally could take spring any day now - although I am dreading the upcoming time change! Aghh, I am so tired getting out of be now as it is, Monday will be near impossible!

I do need to let you know that this month's FQQOV meeting will be canceled due to the shop hop. I personally will not be hopping, but click here for a link to the shop hop website. I encourage you to go out and support your favorite shops if you can.

Can you believe that the Quilt of Valor program is celebrating 10 years! I just looked at the website and see the total quilts awarded is (drum roll please!!) - 82,813!! Sad that they were needed but great that they could be awarded. Way to go volunteers!! You guys rock!!

I was thinking that if each quilt used an average of 8 yards of material that would equal 662,504 total yards used. WOW that is a huge number. Wrap your head around that one. How much thread would that be? OK, OK I think it's time to get back to work and stop rambling! 

One last thing - click here a PDF for the 10th anniversary block. I do hope you would consider making it - heck, make several or even an entire quilt from it, and feel free to share the pattern with your quilting friends! 

Look forward to seeing you all in April!

Remember - Freedom is never free.

~ Renee

Almost there...

WOW - super excited that the top that was started on our last sew day is just about complete.

I am going to add a small border to make it a wee bit bigger and then on to the long arm.

I will be making up some "kits" for those of you that can work from home. Just let me know if your interested. Also, if you want to make fabric donations to the Freedom Quilters - we would be happy to have it. I am especially in the need of white or gold for the kitting - I cut up over 100 yards of various blues and reds this past weekend while cleaning out my sewing room. I will keep some for backings but the rest is destined for tops.

I did spend most of Saturday and part of Sunday cleaning out my space. I don't know about you, but just having things in order makes me want to sew. I had stuff everywhere!! OH and the dust (I would pay someone to dust my house, I hate doing it that much!) - I have shipped off all the dust bunnies to live elsewhere. Here is a pic of Fritz helping me out!

He is such a hard worker - and completely bummed that the batting went to the trash!!

Signing off for now!

Remember - Freedom is never free!

~ Renee

2013's First Meeting

Hey All!!

We had a great sewing day at the Stitch'n Quilt on Saturday. The gals really got moving on a great quilt pattern called Patriotic Star. I am sorry for the memory laps, but I don't remember where the pattern came from. It is super simple - the majority is a rail fence - made in red, white and blue, and then there are 5 gold stars on the top. Bea West was busy sewing the strip sets together and Deb Hall was a champ cutting all the strips down. Ann Smith stopped in a took home some materials to help the process along. I cannot wait to see this one finished! 

If you are unable to work with us on our sewing days, let me know and I can make arrangements for you to have material to work at home - no problem!

Facebooker's - if you have not had the chance to look at the Quilts of Valor page, here is a link.

There are so many great stories and inspirational quilts to look at - I think it is worth a few minutes of browsing. Also, our Region 8 QOV has a page, found here. It is fun to see what others in our area are doing. The Susan Gordon is such a great motivator! 

Stay tuned - I will be posting pictures of the works in progress.

Remember - freedom is never free

~ Renee

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year All!!

It sure went by fast didn't it! I don't know about you, but I am in denial about it being 2013!! I hope I can come to terms with this soon - I hate scribbling the date on my stuff LOL!!

I have decided to move the Freedom Quilters group to another location. Cotton Tail Quilts has been so accommodating in hosting us last year and I cannot thank them enough for all the support they gave us. Our new location will be at at Stitch'n Quilt in Mabelton. Pat and the gang are equally as committed to fostering the QOV cause and I am excited to be engaged with everyone there. Spread the wealth I say!

Here is the address:

Stitch'n Quilt

5590 Mableton Parkway, SW

Suite 114

Mableton, GA 30126

770-944-3356

Meeting time: 3rd Saturday of the month - 

10:00 am to 2:00 pm

First meeting of the new year - 

Saturday - January 19th

Thanks for all you do and have done to help further this great cause!

~Renee

My first presentation!!

I am so happy to report that I had my first quilt presentation today. My husband and I went to Cartersville to present to a Viet Nam vet. It went very well and he loved the quilt. His sister had nominated him, and wanted to be there, but she was unable to attend. I can't wait to send her the pictures.

Thank you John for letting us welcome you home.

This is what it is all about!

~ Renee

Retreat at Toccoa

What's better than getting to quilt all weekend? Quilting with 38 of your closest friends!
I was at a Quilts of Valor retreat the first weekend in October. We stayed at the Baptist Conference Center right on Lake Louise! This view of the lake is from our window where our sewing machines were set up - beautiful!

Once we had everything setup, the sewing machines were humming away. Here is part of the room with a few dedicated quilters, working away on many of the quilts that finished.

We were in the purple room and I made friends with everyone - we are calling ourselves the Purple Peeps!

Here we are - all 9 of us. We laughed so much I think some of the others (not in our room) thought we crazy. HA! They were right!

What retreat isn't complete without the driving force of chocolate? There was plenty of that along with ton's of other stuff. Someone brought apples from their orchard, very cool.

I had decided to take along the Bear Paw I told you I was going to make for the upcoming presentation. Well...here is a sampling of the half square triangles I worked on.

 

and worked on...

and worked on...

So after many hours of cutting, pressing and squaring I needed to see some real progress, so I put one block together.

Ain't it purdy?

On the upside, I was able to get some blocks together - 6 total. On the down side I need 35 to make the top. I decided to group the 1/2 squares together and trim as I make the block, that way I will reward myself, after all the tedious trimming with a block. Smart huh? I brought home a project box full of stacks. I have been putting off the trimming on those 1/2 squares, but then something really cool happened. I went to the Quilt Expo in Duluth this past weekend and one of the vendor there was Bloc Loc. If you have never seen or heard of these ruler, you MUST check them out. They have a groove in the center that fits over your seam, making the trimming super easy. I timed myself tonight, and I could do 1 a minute. Here is the link to their website http://www.blocloc.com.

Check them out. I am super happy I bought them and now don't fear the 1/2 squares anymore!

There is so much more to fill you in on, but I will make that in another post. 

For now, just a reminder that we are meeting this Saturday, October 27th at Cottontail Quilts - 9:30. I will bring some stuff to work on, so I hope you can make it.

Remember - freedom is never free

~Renee

A Letter from the Front Lines

I wanted to share this note - if came to the Region 8 coordinator, Susan Gordon and I thought you would like to see how QOV is making a difference in the soldiers lives.

Dear QOV Quilters: I have been receiving quite a few notes from the front lines recently in response to the quilts we have sent from this region. Today I received a handwritten note that I would like to share with all of you. These are Col. Young’s exact words:

13 July 2012

Dear Susan & Quilters,

This past Monday, 9 July, I was working at Bagram’s Craig Joint Theatre Hospital. I was examining a 44 y.o. National Guardsman who was in the ICU. 

He was in his skivvies and cold. A nurse brought him a beautiful red, white, and blue quilt and your card was attached. I pulled the quilt over him and took the card so I could write a Thank you in his behalf. He left that evening for Landstuhl Regional Med Ctr, but your quilt will be with him until he reaches home. 

I know the many hours it takes for you to make these quilts and I want to thank all of you for your generosity and patriotism. 

Gratefully

Col Richard You

We may never know just which quilt this young (young to me) National Guardsman received, but every day the quilts you are making are covering our wounded warriors and giving them both comfort and warmth at possibly the most difficult time in their lives. Thank you for your devotion to our most worthy cause. Every day when I count my blessings I think of all of you and your talented hands and generous hearts.

Susan Gordon

Thank you for all you do

Remember - freedom is not free!

~ Renee

Getting super excited!!

Starting on Friday and going through Sunday I will be attending a QOV retreat in Tocca, GA!! I am looking forward to spending some time sewing away on the presentation quilt. I am also looking forward to getting some more ideas on things we can do with our own group.

Here is what I decided to make: a red, white and blue bear paw. These 2 gals inspired me with this picture they posted on the QOV Facebook page. Just so happens they are from Michigan and live near where I grew up!

I designed my version of this quilt in EQ7 and have all the 1/2 square triangles sewn together. I just need to square them up. I will post once I get something done that is worth looking at! LOL

Due to scheduling conflicts at Cottontail Quilt our meeting this month has been moved to the 27th starting at 9:30. I sure hope you can make it.

We are going to be making some changes with the schedule starting at the beginning of the year, so stay tuned.

Come and sew with us - it's always a good time for a great cause!

~Remember - freedom is never free
Renee

We have a presentation to do!!

Well ladies - seeing as the Taste of Kennesaw is going on this weekend, Cottontail Quilts has decided to close. The amount of people and traffic on the downtown event days makes it almost impossible for anyone to get quilting done! LOL So, I am afraid to say, no meeting again.

I do have some great news though - I was contacted by the Region 8 coordinator asking me to do a Quilts of Valor presentation!! 

Seems there has been a sister nominate her brother - a Viet Nam veteran. He lives in Cartersville. The sister has asked to be present (she lives out of town) and we will be working out a time and location for the presentation once she is scheduled to come into town!! WHOO HOOO!!! 

So...we need a quilt to present to him. I have some military themed fabric that I bought, and thought to design around that - some of it is panels. 

If anyone would like to get together, before Octobers meeting, let me know. 

In the mean time - keep those machines stitching.

Thanks for all you do!

Until later,

Renee

This just in from national...

I received this urgent request from QOVF National so I thought it best to pass it on. This is copied right from Marcella's email:

Just a heads up that the fighting in Afghanistan is very fierce right now leading to a substantial increase in the number of wounded. As such, the number of quilts requested by the standing weekly destinations has increased from 65 to 105 EVERY WEEK in just the last month. The increase by 40 quilts a week includes the addition of the ICU unit at Landstahl in Germany (15 quilts a week), the addition of the medical unit at FOB Shank-East in Afghanistan (20 quilts a week) and doubling the number of quilts going to the multinational medical unit at Kandahar Air Field in Afghanistan (to 10 a week). These quilts all go to front line wounded service members. There is no concern about whether they have already received a QOV or not.

Sadly, we will fall far short of meeting this need since the 65 quilts a week wasn't even being fulfilled. These destinations request patriotic/RWB only. I'm not asking for a debate here about RWB vs generic/branch specific/feminine. I'm just telling you what the Points of Contact have requested.

If you would like to help meet this need, please request a destination at
http://www.qovf.org/req-destination.html.

Marcella Pirner-Cormier
Destination Coordinator
Quilts of Valor Foundation



I know this can sound overwhelming, but as another QOV quilter said - it is like eating an elephant - one bite at a time. Come to the July meeting if you have time, we can use the help.

Thanks for all you do!
Remember - freedom is not free
~ Renee

My little red wagon

Last month was a bit of a struggle to bring all the "stuff" up to the meeting room for for QOV (Robin was generous to lend me her rolling cart). Just as we were wrapping things up, I saw another quilter come in, and she was pulling a little red wagon - that collapes. GENIUS!! I HAD to have one. Certainly Robin is OK with lending me her cart, but what if I should go some place else with all my "stuff"? So, it was my mission to get one of these - Aldi has them. Now I feel better. I love to be organized and all my QOV "stuff" fits in the wagon. 

The great thing with the "stuff" in this wagon - it is meant to share with all of you. Can you guess what is in the big box? Come and join us on the 16th and see for yourself! I can guarantee you won't be disappointed.

Remember - Freedom is not Free

~ Renee

What Should I Bring?

We have had more quilters inquire about the sew-in's and I am excitedly hoping that the group will be growing.
The main question I am getting is: "what should I bring with me?" Here is a list:

1. Your sewing machine.
2. Rotary cutter and ruler(s).
3. Basic sewing supplies: scissors, thread, machine needles, pins, etc.
4. Fabric and or batting donations: if you feel you can part with some stash, we will gladly put in the "community" stash for upcoming projects. Please refer to the fabric standards for the QOV - 100% cotton, quilt shop quality fabric only. No poly batting.
5. A lunch or snack - we do sew until 1:30, and there is a small restaurant nearby should you want to order from them.
6. Suggestions and ideas for fundraisers and quilt patterns.

Here is what the group is furnishing:

1. Iron/ironing board.
2. Some muslin squares for string blocks.
3. Some stash for the string blocks.
4. Lots of fun!

Should you want your own cutting surface, bring that. Due to the nature of this historical building, the electrical circuits will only handle a couple of irons at a time, so too many will blow the breaker, causing a temporary black out. 

I have gone through another box of "scrap" and will bring this with me, adding to the increasing variety of fabric to pick through. I think this is half the fun! I will also, bring a couple of design walls. If you know of someone that is not a sewer/quilter, bring them along. We would love to get them involved and there are plenty of ways to help.

Come and sew with us on June 16th! It is sure to be a ton-o-fun

Remember - freedom is not free

~ Renee

ACK! The last of the clues...

I have come to realize that I need to be better about following up on the blog posts! Seems I missed the last of the clues for the mystery quilt Persimmon Quilts is doing, so here they are -  6 and 7 - are posted. I should put blogging on my calendar - I have a memory like a sieve!

Hope you have all your blocks done and on the way to a completed top!

Freedom is not free...
~ Renee

Scenes From Our First Meeting...

WOW!!! I am excited to report that our very first Freedom Quilters QOV meeting was a huge success. My hat is off to all that came and pushed through with amazing progress to get us well on the way to making our first top - GREAT JOB EVERYONE!!!
To recap for those that were not able to come, we were able to move ahead with making string blocks - super easy and fun to do. There were tons of scraps to pick from and Pat Snyder made us the best brownies - thanks Pat! I can see that this group is going to do a great service to those that deserve it the most - our service men and women.

Betty is trying to choose just the right piece

Pat is making some serious progress

Eve is busy getting rid of those pesky wrinkles!

This is my mom, Sharlene - so glad that she was able to help out

WOOT WOOT - You go Pat!!

Here is some serious piecing! 

I mentioned Saturday about a thank you letter that was shared via the QOV blog, but wanted to post the link here for everyone to see just what a difference a quilt can be for those touched by war.

Remember - freedom is never free.
~ Renee

Mystery and an update...

So sorry for the lag in posts, seems there are 2 new installments on the mystery quilt, go here and you can retrieve them.

Thanks for understanding about the postponement on the start day. My husband had to have a stent put in and when I put off the meeting, we were not sure how complicated the procedure would be. Thank God it was only a stent and one night in the hospital. Home the next day with no restrictions, other than changes to diet and exercise. So now we are back to a normal routine.

So we are on for the 19th. Cottontail is providing sewing tables, cutting mats and 2 ironing stations. Please bring your sewing machine, rulers, rotary cutter, thread and other supplies you need for sewing and cutting. If you have any material you would like to donate, bring that also. I will bring some foundations for string quilting and plenty of scraps for sewing. I am excited to meet everyone and get started with the great mission.

See you at 9:30 on May 19th - bring your friends too!!

~ Renee