MQA Gathering--China Trip, Ghost Quilting, and Back Basting Applique

     Mississippi Quilt Association has a Workshop Gathering in the Jackson area every June. This year's meeting was held at Christ United Methodist Church on Old Canton Road. During the Friday night meeting I presented a PowerPoint presentation on my recent trip to China for the Dalian opening of the exhibit The Sum of Many Parts: 25 Quiltmakers in 21st-Century America. I showed about 100 pictures of the exhibit, the lectures, Chinese buildings and architecture, and the happy faces of the Chinese people who welcomed me so warmly. Hosted by the Embassy of the United States in Beijing, the meetings were a successful interaction of our cultures.

 

     I enjoyed teaching a class on the Ghost Quilting technique and introducing the students to Neocolor II crayons as they learned free-motion quilting to extend the center design out into the border. Everyone took to the method quickly and got most of their square colored and stitched, ready to finish at home.

     Ollie Jean Lane taught "back-basting applique," a technique introduced by Jeana Kimball, which most quilters in Hattiesburg have adopted as their favorite method for applique. She showed a recently completed quilt top by Ella Lucas as an example of the outstanding results achieved with  this method.

Ella Lucas and her quilt top

Ollie Jean Lane with Ella's quilt top

The students were interested in the neat look of the back. It is possible to get the pieces exactly where they need to be with no slipping or shifting.

From the back

The next Gathering will be in Corinth, MS, October 4-5, 2013. Jean Tincher from Bay St. Louis was in charge of the meeting as she began her year as MQA president. She had assistance from all the Jackson area guilds, and door prizes were furnished by members from all over the state. The presence of four vendors was a treat for many quilters who do not have a local quilt shop.