Living in a material world
Quilt Guild of Central Mass. is sew nice
By Lindsay Sauvageau JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT

Eleven years old and over 100 members, the Quilt Guild of Central Mass. is a force to be reckoned with. Their talent combined with their group size though impressive is nothing compared with the sizes of their hearts.

While gearing up to host their third annual quilt show this May, there are no idle hands with this group of women as their efforts have also gone into several charity projects for area organizations.

"These girls are phenomenal," began Quilt Guild President Jessica Leger. "Our members come from all over - Lunenburg, Paxton, Holden, Leominster, Fitchburg, Lancaster, Sterling, Gardner and Templeton - are members are all ages from 80 to 18."

Formerly a Westminster selectman, Leger leads the group of women known as The Material Girls. An organization of givers, creators and friends, the Material Girls make having fun a piece of work.

The group meets regularly the third Thursday of every month in the church hall of the Holy Family of Nazareth Church, 750 Union St. in Leominster. Members enjoy goodies and socializing at 6:30 p.m. and actual meetings begin at 7 p.m. Leger says most meetings usually involve a show-and-tell portion and a guest speaker. Often the guild presents different quilting workshops for members the following Saturday, also at the Holy Family Church.

"We're a fun group. We always have a good time," said Leger. "We work together and our group brings together so many different talents and abilities that each meeting is a learning experience for everyone."

There are all kinds of different kinds of quilts and ways to quilt which create subgroups in the Guild, according to its president.

"It's two pieces of fabric sewn together with batting," Leger said.

There is everything from small lap to large quilts, and there even jackets that are quilts. She added that some quilts are meant to be used while others are for display.

"A lot of people make the tops and send them to someone else to quilt," she said.

Leger says the Guild members create things like Friendship Quilts by swapping materials during each meeting and bringing them together in one whole quilt made from friend's patterns and Mystery Quilts where members are simply given a previously unknown square each meeting until they create a surprise quilt at the end of the year.

Every member sews at their own pace. Leger says there are women who have been working on the same quilt for 30 years, others who finish a quilt in a few days. She said there are other groups, like one for beginners and a one for advanced quilters.

Material Girls, says Leger, are always willing to give advice and help others. Anyone interested in joining the Guild can get access to a private Web site where experienced members and those with questions swap information and tips.

"If there's one thing I can say about the girls is that they are all dedicated and we all get excited when our talents can be used to help someone else," said Leger.

She said even those who have been quilting for years learn new techniques or styles.

In their most recent charity work, the Guild was asked to help make curtains for HealthAlliance Hospital's Leominster building to be used in their pediatric wing and just finished making and donating 75 quilts to Emerson Hospital's oncology wing. Patients there going through chemo are allowed to choose a blanket they like, use it and take it home to ease the pain and stress of the chemotherapy.

Soon, in conjunction with their Third Annual Quilt Show at the National Plastics Museum, the girls will be helping another organization, Ginny's Thrift Shop on Mechanic Street in Leominster.

The Guild will be holding a silent auction of small-format quilts, miniature quilts perfect for anywhere in the home, hand-made and detailed by one or more material girls. All proceeds will go to Ginny's Thrift Shop. The Material Girls already take special care to donate toys and items to Ginny's throughout the season, but Leger says this is a chance for the group members to take on a project they feel good about.

"We're all pretty upbeat, the people are nice and anyone can come in and look at the quilts. There is a minimum bid of $10 for each miniature quilt but whether they are buying a quilt of making them, everyone feels good about participating in the project," she said.

"With small quilts there is a quilt for anybody, they are small and versatile and can work in any household and I think it matters to people that they are handmade by somebody to help somebody else out."

"…From Simple Cloth," the theme for this year's quilt show captures the feel of the group, according to Leger, helping others by giving and promoting the community.

"Many people don't even realize how many vendors there are locally and in today's quilting world you can make a quilt out of anything. It's not just about cloth anymore," said Leger.

The event will be held at the National Plastics museum, 210 Lancaster St., Leominster on Friday, May 11, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, May 12, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Admission is $5, children under 12 are free with paid adult.

"It's a 2-for-1 day, getting to see the quilt show and also the Plastics Museum which is amazing on its own," said Leger.

The event will feature a vendor mall, a raffle quilt, door prizes, a Quilter's Yard Sale and refreshments.

Leger says there will be different kinds of craft vendors selling everything from glass buttons to threads, fabrics and sewing machines at the event. Members will be giving demonstrations of different ways to quilt, plus displaying the work the guild has been doing over the past two and a half years.

For more information visit www.materialgirlsquiltguild. org.