Modern Quilt Guild – Sydney MQG

Kincumber Retreat May 2023.

12 June 20248 October 2025 by Kate Shea Comment Closed

The last weekend in May 2023 saw 18 SydMQG members head north out of Sydney towards the Central Coast.

Rumour has it some retreaters might have stopped off en route at the very well stocked West Gosford Spotlight, and to see the lovely folk at the Sewing Basket in Kincumber (it’s part of the Achieve network of charity shops, and is located just 1 handy km from our retreat location – and near the really good coffee shop. I think they did very well with both donations & purchases that weekend!)

Some of us are pretty familiar with the facilities up at St Joseph’s in Kincumber, and it was great to be back there for a couple of full days dedicated to all things sewing & quilting, a lot of chatting, a modicum of wine slurping, and lots of scones. (And one of the best collections of Lucky Door prizes we’ve ever had.) For those members who struggle to get much dedicated quilt-making time in day-to-day life it is a real treat!

It was also lovely to catch up with some members who don’t often get to travel to Ashfield for Sunday Sewing, but managed to make it for the weekend. We had a handful of retreat newbies too, and it was great to see their delight at the facilities. That big hall where we sew works so well for a group our size – plenty of room to spread out and get creative! (Also, Sister Ellen has high hopes for her new chef, and she got the thumbs up from us too!)

The retreaters had an opportunity to get involved in the laying out of the QuiltNSW 2024 Raffle Quilt; and there was plenty of discussion and tweaking. Then the Dream Assembly Team of Helen Hill and Catherine Butterworth helped Kate Shea (this year’s group project coordinator), and they cracked on with pulling the top together – so by the end of the weekend we had a Colourful Cascade* pulled together from all the gorgeous improv cross-cut blocks (made by so many our generous members earlier this year) all ready for basting. And another multi-coloured block to go home with Anita Brown who volunteered to piece the backing. Hooray!

It was a glorious autumn weekend. Bright sunshine, with a crisp bite in the air – perfect for mooching around the beautiful riverside grounds for those of us who need an intermittent leg stretch and break away from the machines, irons and design boards.

But gossiping (sorry: information sharing), walking, shopping and eating aside; it was a very productive weekend for so many. Just have a look at the photos to see what was achieved.

Roll on August 2024. We’re booked in again for the first weekend. Can’t wait.
(We’ll probably be very glad of those electric blankets then!)

Cheers Kate Shea

* Thank you Helen Tait for the excellent name suggestion.

Kate and Rebecca eyeing the luck door prizes

So who is Kathleen Riggins Modern Quilter?

16 December 201830 June 2019 by admin Comment Closed

During September this year the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild had the pleasure of hosting two quilting workshops by Kathleen Riggins.

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild, Modern Quilt Guild, MQG, Australia, Kathleen Riggins, Workshop, Modern Quilting — SMQG Kathleen Riggins Workshop

Kathleen comes to us directly from a teaching gig at the Australian Machine Quilting Festival held in September 2018 in Adelaide. It is not her first visit here as she and her husband have holidayed here before and both enjoy Australia. They live in Camrose, a relatively small city in central Alberta, Canada, amid some of the richest farmland in the prairies.

She grew up amongst some talented quiltmakers including Mom, Dad and Grandma. “My first quilt was a Kindygarden quilt with plus signs” Kathleen says. “I made it on my own after watching Alex Anderson’s TV show, Simply Quilts at the age of 8. It had some strawberry, blue and peach fabric and I wanted more blue, but Mom wouldn’t let me. I still resent it!” She finally finished the quilt after almost 14 yrs, as part of a Guild Challenge .

At Twenty-nine now she started free motion quilting when only 14 and long arming quilting at 24. “I was sponsored by APQS Canada & Sparrow Studioz in 2014 and was given APQS Lucey to use in my living room! We sell Pfaff Creative Performance and a Janome 1600P in our store so I have these two machines as well.”

Kathleen does all her quilting hand guided. She loves pretty much anything to do with a sewing machine. Free motion quilting is by far her favorite technique. She will do almost anything to avoid hand sewing and prefers to do her quilt binding by machine.

“I choose machine quilting as a career as my parents have a quilt store “Quilting From The Heart” and they wanted to expand. They asked if I would join the Company and I said okay. My husband joined too. He is our machine technician. He really likes machine embroidery and does it for fun even entering competitions!” Kathleen smiles.

Kathleen replied, “I love bright cheerful fabric ranges. Australian born Jan Mullens is my favourite fabric designer. Rachel Dorr is my favorite quilter, I love the way she combines geometric quilting with feathers for magic!”

While Kathleen’s work is incredibly inspiring, she tells us she is inspired by the free motion quilting of Angela Walters and Margaret Solomon Gunn and the design work of Judy Niemeyer, Jaybird and Elizabeth Hartmann. “I love so many modern quilts I simply can’t pick just one. My favourite work so far is was ‘Ice Bubbles’ a collaboration quilt completed by Kat Jones, Rachel Frost and myself. It has just won viewers choice in Adelaide. I would love to win ‘Best Longarm Machine Quilting’ at Quiltcon, but it won’t happen, because they like straight lines and I do better than that!”

Those that attended Kathleen’s workshops were extremely happy with what they learned and their individual results. Kathleen’s website is full of inspiration, online learning and her wonderful books.

Kathleen Riggins Workshop presented by the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild

1 September 201830 June 2019 by admin Comment Closed

We are delighted to announce that legendary Canadian free motion quilter, Kathleen Riggins, is coming to Sydney to teach for the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild!

You might know Kathleen’s work through her Instagram moniker Kathleen Quilts. Kathleen is coming to Australia to teach at AMQF and after finishing in Adelaide, she is heading to Sydney to teach for us.

The dates are Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 September, 2018 and the venue is Dooley’s Waterview at Silverwater Rd & Clyde St, Silverwater NSW 2128.

Saturday 29/9 :: Easy Quilting, Stunning Quilts
Use a straight ruler and easy fills to create stunning modern quilting designs. Use the piecing in the quilt to find hidden shapes and lines, then simply fill them in for fantastic quilting! In this class you will use a cheater panel to practice the techniques we learn.
Full day. 10 am – 4 pm
Cost of cheater panel is an extra cost of approximately A$26 payable on the day.
Trybooking

Sunday 30/9 :: Quilting For The Crazy/Combining Designs In Modern Ways
Sometimes spending that little bit of extra time on a quilt can really make it special. Mark lines & shapes to create stunning negative spaces may be time consuming, but it’s not particularly difficult. Knowing some basic designs is one thing, but knowing how to combine them in interesting ways can open a whole new world of quilting – without having to learn new designs! Join Kathleen as she walks you through some of her favourite ways to combine designs, helping you create stunning quilts.
Full day. 10am – 4pm
Trybooking

You may enrol for both days, if you wish. The material covered will not overlap.

Cost includes workshop only. Lunch, coffees and snacks may be purchased in the club dining room.

Cost per day for members: $175
Cost per day for SMQG non-members: $250

Join the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild today and save big! Send us an email we will send you a membership form.

Places are limited, so book quickly.

Sydney MQG members raffle quilt at Modern Quilt Show Australia

13 November 201630 June 2019 by admin Comment Closed

A quilt made by members of the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild will be raffled during the Modern Quilt Show Australia 2016, at Glebe Town Hall on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 November. Proceeds from the raffle will go to a Sydney charity, which supports migrants newly arrived in Australia: Promoting Healthy Outcomes for Refugees

MQG Riley Blake Challenge!

15 February 201430 June 2019 by admin Comment Closed

One of the wonderful benefits of joining our guild is that we are affiliated with The Modern Quilt Guild, and by joining, you also gain membership to the modern Quilt Guild in the states, which connects us to other guilds and provides discounts on MQG shows (including discounts and special offers from MQG sponsors). Last year, MQG an Riley Blake teamed up to create a wonderful competition open to all MQG members called the Modern Quilt Guild Riley Blake Challenge. Our guild decided to both participate in the competition, and make it interesting within our guild by creating a mini challenge. The rules were:

Produce a a 24” mini quilt, using ALL of the Riley Blake fabrics provided, and any solid of your choosing.

The due date for our challenge quilts is Sunday the 16th of February, which happens to coincide with our Sunday Sit n Sew day! The categories are as follows:

1) Best use of the Riley Blake challenge fabrics
2) Best use of quilting
3) Best piecing and construction techniques
4) Members’ choice award
5) Best use of every scrap of fabric

We have some wonderful prizes that were generously donated by local quilt shops Kim Bradley Creations, Kate Quilts, PolkaDot Tea Fabrics, and Quilt Jane, as well as prizes thrown in by guild members. We are so lucky to have access to such wonderful shops, so please remember to buy local and give your support to the wonderful Aussie quilting community!

$50 gift voucher and an English Paper Piecing Kit featuring Kim’s fabulous “Holey Peepers”, papers, Bohin #9 straw needles, Sewline glue pen, glue refills and a quick unpick. Value $100 from Kim Bradley Creations http://kimbradleycreations.com/
Two mini charm packs, Botanics and Kona Cotton Solids as well as Superior Threads Frosted Donut 2. Value $50 from Guild member Jane Davidson http://quiltjane.blogspot.com.au/
A “Radiant Orchid” FE Bundle from Guild member Sheridan.
A $25 gift voucher at Kate Quilts (also a Guild member) http://www.katequilts.com/
A selection of rulers and fabrics from Guild members Lorena and Sophia
Two metres of any Cotton Couture Solids inc. shipping from Polka Dot Tea Fabrics on Etsy Value $26
A jar of Lorena’s Spicy Mango Chutney (it’s worth it’s weight in gold!).

Sarah Fielke has also thrown in a generous prize that includes a copy of her book Hand Quilted with Love (available at Kim Bradley Creations!), and a bundle of fabric. She would like to pick the quilt she likes the best.

The finished quilts must be uploaded onto the MQG Riley Blake forum, via the MQG community site by the 17th of February this year. I’m aware that not everyone is up to speed with technology, so I have a little tutorial on how to upload your finished quilt!

First of all, you must make an account with the MQG. Link is here. Once you’re logged in, you can click through to the community stuff. The community area is located at the top of the MQG page, or just click on this link, which will take you straight through to the Riley Blake forum. To go in the running to win with the MQG, you must enter a picture of your finished quilt into the forum titled FINISHED Riley Blake challenge photos. Scroll down to the bottom of the page, until you see the comment box. In the comment box at the far right, you’ll see a tiny icon of a mountain. Click on it to upload your photo, then follow the instructions.

Once you’ve submitted the photo into the comment box, you can simply click the Post button, but I think it might be nice to mention that you’re a member of GWSMQG, how big the quilt is, and what solids you used. I hope this mini tutorial was helpful!