I’m fortunate to belong to a small quilting group which we loosely call the Block of the Month group. After teaching a six week beginning quilting class, my students said that they would like to keep going and meet once a month – not only to learn more quilting techniques and improve their skills, but to enjoy being together and continuing the friendships they had made in the class. This was about 15 years ago, and initially I taught a different quilt block each month. Later, we worked on more complex projects and spent two or three months on them. Over the years, the group fluctuated in numbers with a hard core of four or five, and as many as 12 for a short time.

Now we work on our own projects and support one another in this, offering opinions and encouragement on fabric choices, layout etc. We share anything interesting that we learn and if I design a new pattern or technique, they test it for me to help me iron out any glitches. Barbara made this attractive table runner from my template-free technique for Kaleidoscope Puzzle quilts.

As our schedules have become more hectic with me traveling to teach and the others helping out with grandchildren and going on vacation, it’s difficult to find dates when we can meet. However, we usually manage between October and May, and four of us met today for an enjoyable time. Joanne shared her lovely Eleanor Burns quilt top and worked on making a pieced back for it.

If you have the opportunity to be part of a small group, I encourage you to participate. Many quilt guilds have small satellite groups and quilt shops often have drop in quilting days. It’s a wonderful way to make friends and share this quilting passion we enjoy, as well as supporting each other in whatever life throws at us, (good and bad).