Reminder: December Holiday Party Potluck Sign Ups and Yankee Swap

Hello Quilters!

Time is flying, and our December meeting is almost here! Since we skipped November, we’re popping in with some friendly reminders, both here and in your inbox, so no one misses a thing.

Reminders for December 11th meeting:

Yankee Swap:  Get ready for some swapping fun! We’re hosting a Yankee Swap, and anyone who wants to participate can bring a wrapped quilting or sewing-themed gift, just keep it around $25.

Food, Food, and More Food - Potluck:  

Below is our current sign-up list for the feast. If you’d like to add your name, feel free to send a quick email the guild mailbox and let us know what you’ll be bringing. We’ll keep the list updated as time allows.

	Hot Food	Laurie Kofstad
		Lori Breen
		Ray Fratkina
		Simone Rigden
		Robin Rich
		Carol Krasin
	Cold Food	Lorri Wurtzler
		Betty Scofield
		Chloe Levreault	Basil Kielbasa pasta salad
		Susie Boots
		Brenda Doler
		Holly Bachand
		Gail Coad
		Mary Lou Soczek
	Desserts	Gail Chan	Cookies
		Laurie Brickham	Toffee bars
		Ase Grydeland	Gluten free oatmeal cookies
		Michelle Cain
		Chelsea Folini
		Cathy Scmitz
		Beth Bell Lavoie
		Joy Whitaker	Christmas Molassas Ginger Cookies
		Amanda Ketchersid	Blueberry Muffins
	Drinks	Sarah Keefe
		Michelle Marrone
		Nancy Cegalis
		Maura McDonnell
	Other	Debby Michel
		Joan Blanchard
		Pam Prophet
		Tracy Ouimette
		Stephanie Richard

November 2025: 2026 Board Voting Slate & 2026 Dues

 Please review the items outlined below and watch for your ballot to arrive via email.

1. Board Elections for 2026

Voting will be via online ballot this year.  We will email out the ballot this Thursday, November 13th.  Voting will remain open until Sunday, December 7th.  We will announce our new board at the December meeting! Our slate is as follows:

Co-Presidents: Helen Labadie and Stephanie Richardson

Secretary: Mary Lou Soczek

Communications: Amanda Ketchersid

Programming: Raya Fratkina

Co-Treasurers: Sonia Gilmore and Laurie Brickham

Thank you to our previous board members and to our members who expressed active interest in participating! This guild thrives because of you. 

✧Interested in serving on the board but didn't get a chance to fill out the board survey this summer? Want to help but nervous about taking on a role alone? It's not too late!  Amanda (Communications) and Raya (Programming) would love to have help in their roles!  

Please reach out before Thursday if you'd like to learn more about board leadership.✧

2. Dues for 2026

Please remember that dues for 2026 will be due by our December meeting.  Dues for the year will remain at $70 and you can pay by cash or check.  

If you are not able to attend, please mail your check to Sonia at:

Sonia Gilmore

392 Main Street

Nashua, NH 03060

Because we continue to have an active waitlist, we are strictly enforcing our payment due date.  Members who do not pay by December 11th could be at risk of losing their membership for the upcoming year. Please let us know if you have any concerns regarding payment!

November 2025 - Meeting Cancelled

During our October Guild meeting we decided to cancel the November meeting. Many of us will be at our Fall Retreat. Ophelia invited members who have not been to a retreat to come and visit us at the retreat, details TBD. 

Have a great Thanksgiving, we will see you at the December 11th meeting.

October 2025 Meeting Recap

New Hampshire Modern Quilt Guild

October 9, 2025 General Membership Meeting Recap

The meeting was led by Helen. 

There were over 40 members and 2 guests in attendance.

Thank you to Sonia, Carol, Robin, and Lorri W for attending the door and welcome tables.

Thank you to Laurie K, Susan, Marie, and Simone for bringing food and beverages.

Raffle Winners

• Helen won the door prize, a pattern for the Heartland Heritage Quilt Project by Inspiring Stitches.
• Betty won the raffle for the Gathering Wildflowers Superbloom Quilt kit by Robin Pickens.
• Lisa J won the raffle for the Hudson Rolling Cart by Simply Tidy.

Guild Business

A warm welcome to all the new members who attended this meeting! All people on the waiting list were offered membership spots, and most accepted.

Secretary (Mary Lou): Nothing new

Treasurer (Marie/Sonia): Everything is going well

Communications (Amanda and Lorri):

• Everything is going well. 
• They handed out badges and lanyards to new members. 
• They are going to take photos of members we need for the membership directory.

Events and Programming (Laurie K, and Susan H)

• We decided to cancel the November meeting. Many of us will be at our Fall Retreat. Ophelia invited members who have not been to a retreat to come and visit us at the retreat, details TBD. 
• The December meeting will be our Holiday Party. It will be a Potluck. Susan asked members to sign up for what type of food they can bring. The Guild will supply cups, plates, and cutlery.

Community Outreach (Carol)

• Carol reported that she recently delivered 1 quilt to Families in Transition and 2 to the Merrimack Hospice House. 

Guild Merchandise

Raya distributed the t-shirts we had ordered. They are beautiful! We will do another order early next year.

Retreats (Ophelia)

• 30 members have signed up for the November 13-16^th retreat at the St. Methodios center in Contoocook, NH.  There is room for a couple additional people, so contact Ophelia if you are thinking about attending.
• Our Spring retreat will be held over the Memorial Day weekend next year at The Fireside Inn in Portand, Maine. Sarah, who will be our new Retreats Committee chair, will send out an online survey to get a sense of how many people are interested in going.

Retreat costs will be a little different this time. There will be a retreat fee, plus members will make room choices and reservations directory with the Inn.

Bag-Making Workshop

The bag-making workshop with Mary Kane is a go. The workshop will be held October 25^th at the ArtHub in Nashua. The workshop will cost $10 and is limited to 10 participants. A few spots are open. Contact Helen if you would like to attend.

SHOW AND TELL

Tells:

Ophelia told us about the mini retreats she holds at her home in Nashua (day, ~12 people) and at her vacation home In Sugar Hill (overnight, 6 people max). Please contact Ophelia to add your name to her mailing list so you’ll know about her upcoming retreats.

Sonia told us about how nice apparel fabric is available at the Fabric Place Basement store in Natick, MA. It’s a long drive, but worth it. Joann’s never had the quality and quantity. Beth L added that Sawyer Brook Fabrics in Clinton, MA has a good selection of high quality fabrics.

Quilts:

1. Mary Lou showed us her finished Sweet Adventure quilt, pattern by Chelsi Stratton Designs.
   
   
   
2. Carol showed us two quilts. First, one made with fabrics from our yard sale.
   
   
   
3. And another scrappy quilts she will be donating.
   
   
   
4. Robin showed us three quilts. She made slight modifications to all of the patterns. First, Neon Lights by Jen Sorenson.
   
   
   
5. Second, Hocus Pocus from the Pattern Basket.
   
   
   
6. And third, Pod Patrol from the Not Your Typical Jelly Roll Quilts book, by our very own Michelle C.
   
   
   
7. Maura showed us her cute “I’m Pregnant” banner! She’s been working on this project for a few months, with more months to go. Congratulations!
   
   
   
8. Gail showed us her improv medallion quilt.
   
   
   
9. Plus a block she made in Tara Faughnan’s Block Studies Collective project.
   
   
   
10. Simone showed us two pillows she made to go along with a copy of “The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt” book. It’s available from all major book sellers.
11. 
    
12. Julie showed us a memory quilt she made for a friend from her friend’s father’s shirts.
    
    
    
13. Lori B showed us 5 quilts!  First, a Brightly quilt, pattern from Cluck Cluck Sew. Isn’t this quilt on everyone’s list? (It’s certainly on Mary Lou’s!)
    
    
    
14. Second, Five Star Experience, from the Not Your Typical Jelly Roll Quilts book, by our very own Michelle C.
    
    
    
15. Third, Picnic Fireworks, a free Moda pattern.
    
    
    
16. Fourth, A Taffy Twist quilt, a Modern Quilt Relish pattern which is unfortunately no longer for sale.
    
    
    
17. Last, her Play a Card quilt, pattern by Zen Chic.
    
    
    
18. Patty M showed us a quilt she made with blocks from one of our block swaps.
    
    
    
19. Susie showed us two bags she made, one using using the Two Big Totes pattern and another that includes a zip closure.
    
    
    
    
    
20. Michelle C showed us her Halloween Ghosts quilt. It’s an enlarged pattern based on Five Little Ghosts from her book, Not Your Typical Jelly Roll Quilts. She is doing an online quiltalong with this version. Check her website for details.
    
    
    
21. Amanda showed us a quilt she made with the Lo and Behold Summer Scrap Bash sewalong.
    
    
    

Please note that when we were adding links to raffle prizes and quilt patterns and books, we tried to link them directly to the pattern or book designers’ webpages, but sometimes we couldn’t find the original sources and put links to popular online commerce sites that carry these products. We are not endorsing any particular commerce sites – most items can be found from multiple sources.

Please post quilts, questions, and any other quilt-related information on our private member FaceBook group. To join, click here.

Our Guild email address is: nhmodernquilt@gmail.com.

See you next month!

--Amanda, Lorri W, and Mary Lou