Newsletter+April+2015

= = = = Apr. 1, 2015  Editor: Donna McDade = = =TONIGHT’S PROGRAM Organizing and Using Tools by Ginny Draa and Members. Each member should bring a favorite quilting/sewing tool and explain how it is used. = = Links of interest: = = = =[] = = = =[] = = = =[] = = = =Next Month: Utilizing the Principles of Design to Create Beautiful Quilts. We all collect scraps, but how can we use them to make attractive quilts? This program will help you understand the elements and principles of design for selecting fabrics for your quilts, and inspire you to use up your collection of scraps. = = = = = =NEXT. New Date: May 13, June 10 (picnic) = = = =Saturday Sews = =April 4 Mystery Quilt Part 2 and 3 = =May 9 Quilts of Valor and Baby Quilts for Community Pregnancy Center = =June – no Saturday available at library. = = = =The wiki space URL is: bbqg.wikispaces.com = = = = = =Mini Treasurer’s report = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">General $ 3,600.29 and Retreat $ 8,838.12 = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Dues are due. 49 members have paid. = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Committees: = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Charity – Ginny Draa = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Sunshine – Linda Bogart = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">WIKI – Linda Lovely and Cindy Dean = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Greeter – Mary Pallman = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Field Trips – Regina Hobbs = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Newsletter – Donna McDade = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Linda Borgert shared info on Higher Ground in Harrison, including cost, and number of ladies per room to see what everyone thinks of this as an alternative to the Golden Eagle Conference Center where retreats have been held. This would have to be brought to the Oxford guild as well. This could be the site of the 2016 Retreat. Motion by Sharon Stone, Seconded by Kathy Henry, to go ahead and put down the deposit for Golden Eagle for next year and find out if the deposit is non-refundable. = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Directions for the Mystery Quilt are on the website. If you have no internet access, Ginny has printed copies. = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">May Saturday Sew. We will be making Quilts of Valor for our adopted veterans We are accepting more donations of suitable fabric. Groups of 3 or 4 people will be working together to complete quilt tops. If you would prefer to come and work on a baby quilt for the Community Pregnancy Center, you may do so. = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Quilt Shows = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Apr. 28-May 3. Sauder Village, Archbold OH. [|www.saudervillage.org/creativity/quilt_show.asp] = = = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">April 24 and 25 Miamisburg, Ohio. 937-344-7610. = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">April 25-26. Nutter Center. One stop shop hop. = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">July 17-18 Mansfield OH, U.A.W. Local 549 Hall = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">4th Street. Lynn Kerr - 419-512-4784 or Judy Gilbert - 419-989-3460 mmquiltguild@yahoo.com = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">July 1-31. Quilt show. Bob Evans Farm, 800-994-3276 gale.leslie@bobevans.com = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Know Your Fabric: How to Do a Burn Test for Fiber Content = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Reported by Mary Seitzman = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">http://www.craftsy.com/blog/2015/02/burn-test-for-fiber-content/ = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Fabrics bought a traditional [|fabric supply] stores will nearly always have a fiber content label on them to tell you what the fabric is made of – cotton, polyester, silk, etc – but what if you gathered your fabric in less traditional ways? I love scouring thrift stores, flea markets and all kinds of off beat spots for great fabrics, but it’s nearly impossible to be 100% sure what the fabric is made of. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">But, there’s a way to find out – a burn test! Here’s how to do it at home. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Many sewers don’t realize that you can actually set your fabric on fire, and by the way the fabric reacts to the flame, determine what the content of the fabric is. Crazy cool, right? Yeah, it’s awesome for the knowledge, and let’s be real, it’s kinda fun to burn the fabric too! = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Safety Tips = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Of course, I would be irresponsible if I didn’t mention that you should be incredibly careful and do these burn tests in well-ventilated areas, and only on fire resistant surfaces, like outside in your driveway or on your patio or balcony. Finding out the fiber content will be a whole lot less fun if you’ve also burned your house down! So seriously, be careful. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">What the burn test reveals = = = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">While a burn test will tell you a lot, it won’t tell you everything. For example, blends can be really fickle and it might be hard to know exactly what blend it is. The main thing that a burn test will determine is whether the fabric is made of natural fibers or synthetic fibers. It will likely tell you more than that, but it also might not = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">So how do you do a burn test exactly? = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">• First, cut off a small amount of the fabric, from a discreet place like a corner. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">• Next, get yourself a lighter or matches and something to hold the fabric that is fireproof, like a long pair of tweezers or pliers. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">• Find something to place the fabric in while burning. I like to use something fire proof and disposable, like a tin container from the grocery store. Try a pie plate, a roasting pan, or something similar so you can contain the test. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">• Once you have everything ready to go, place the fireproof container on a fire resistant surface outdoors. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">• Very carefully hold the fabric with the tweezers or pliers in the pan. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">• Carefully light the match or lighter and hold it up against the edge of the fabric. How the fabric reacts will tell you what it’s made from. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The list below will help you determine with an educated guess what the fabric is made of. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Cotton = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The fabric will burn fast and the fire will singe the fabric. The flame will have a yellow glow and after the lighter is removed, the fabric will continue to burn quickly with an afterglow. The smell will be neutral, like burning paper, and the ashes left behind will be light and gray in color. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Linen = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The fabric will burn quickly and the flame will singe the fabric, just like with cotton. The main difference is that the flame will burn slower than cotton and will have less of an afterglow. The smell and ash will be just like that of cotton. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Rayon = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">As rayon is a natural fiber made of cellulose, it will burn fast and singe quickly like cotton and linen. Due to its lightness, it will burn even faster than cotton and the flame will be a brighter yellow. Even once the fire is pulled away, the fabric will burn very quickly; though unlike cotton and linen, there will be no afterglow. Like linen and cotton, the smell will be natural and the ash will be light and gray. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Silk = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">When silk is held to a flame, the fabric will curl away from the fire and will smolder instead of igniting quickly. The fabric will burn slowly and will have trouble staying lit, and once the flame is pulled away, the fire will go out. The smell will be more like burning hair, because it is part of an animal, and not of a plant. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The ash will not be like ash really, rather it will be more like small black beads of burned fibers. To be fully sure if the fabric is 100% silk, instead of a burn test, place it in a small glass container with bleach. If overnight the fabric completely dissolves and is gone in the morning, it’s silk! Crazy, but it works. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Wool = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Like silk, wool is a natural fiber that comes from an animal, so it too curls away from the flame and lights on fire slowly. It too will have trouble staying burning after the fire is pulled away and the wool will smell like burning hair, as it is in fact, burning animal fibers. The smell will be slightly more intense than silk. The ash left behind will be dark, with some beads of burned fibers. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Polyester = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Because polyester is a synthetic fiber, it’s going to behave very differently than those listed above. The fabric will actually melt when hit with a flame, burn slowly, and do its best to repel the fire. It won’t actually stay burning once the fire is removed from the fabric, and as you can image, the smell will be strong and have a toxic chemical odor. The ash left behind won’t be ash at all, rather it will be hard melted black beads of plastic that won’t break easily. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Nylon = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Similar to polyester, nylon will have nearly all the same reactions, but it will melt more and burn less. The smell will actually be less intense, and like polyester the burning will leave behind hard black melted beads instead of burned ash. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Spandex = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">This synthetic fiber will also shrink away from the fire and will melt and burn slowly, both under and away from the actual flame. The ash left behind is a sticky soft goo, and less like polyester’s hard melted beads. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Acetate = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">The behavior of acetate will be similar to the other synthetics above, but the main difference is that it will melt and drip like a chemical liquid. The smell will be pungent and after it cools, the ash left behind will be like black melted beads of plastic. = =<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> =