Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild

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About Ankeny Area Quilters' Quild

Welcome! The Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild purpose is to stimulate and educate its members about quilts and quilt making. Membership is open to anyone with an interest in quilting; no actual quilting experience is necessary.

The Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild meets the 2nd Tuesday of each month with the exceptions of June (usually held the 3rd Tuesday of the month) and July (in which there will be no regular guild meeting). Our annual Quilt Show is held each July during the weekend of Ankeny's Summerfest. The meetings are held at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 517 SW Des Moines Street, Ankeny, Iowa.

The meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. and include a short business meeting, a program or speaker, show and tell, door prizes, birthdays, and a quilt block lottery. A member committee supplies the monthly refreshments.

Check the calendar for more information on programs.

View the latest Show & Tell pictures.

Have you tried the block lottery yet? The idea is simple. We provide a 12 1/2 inch block pattern each month at the guild meeting, you take home the pattern, choose your fabric and color, complete in time for the next meeting and bring your block to put in the lottery. One lucky winner (or maybe more—depending on participation) will take home that month's stack of blocks. The patterns will only be provided at the monthly guild meetings! There are no restrictions on fabric or colors, just make a block according to the given pattern and directions, and bring it to share. Have Fun!!

Because this is Iowa... we have a winter weather policy. If the Ankeny schools are cancelled (or evening activities at the schools are cancelled) due to weather there will be no quilt guild meeting or guild activities in the evening. Cancellations will be put on the front page of our website.

Membership is open to anyone that is interested in quilting. Dues are $25.00 per year (September 2008 through August 2009). To join the Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild please print and complete the membership form and send it with a check payable to the Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild to the address listed on the form.

If you are interested in attending a meeting but not sure about joining, the Guild collects a guest fee. The guest fee is usually $5.00 however, effective September 2008, the guest fee for nationallly known speakers has been raised to a minimum of $10.00 per event. The fee is applied toward annual dues if the guest decides to join the guild during the same meeting the guest fee was paid.

There are many benefits to membership in the Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild. They include:

• Our monthly newsletter.
• An opportunity to hear local and nationally known speakers.
• An opportunity to become involved in the many quilting activities our guild sponsors like quilt challenges, mystery quilts, fabric and block exchanges and our annual quilt retreat.
• To be involved in our annual quilt show.
• The opportunity to learn new skills and techniques in workshops, classes and from other members.
• The opportunity to participate in a small group.
• To participate in meaningful donation projects. Some of our recent projects include making holiday pillowcases for children in local hospitals and donating quilts to women & children through Children and Family Services of Iowa.
• Show and Tell at our monthly meetings.
• Our monthly fat-quarter fabric lottery.
• Friends, fabric and fun!

Members are encouraged to design and/or quilt a nametag for themselves shortly after joining the Guild. There is no specific pattern and members are encouraged to be creative. Only members wearing a nametag are eligible to win door prizes. Here's an idea for an easy nametag to make.

Easy Nametag

Here is more specific information about the Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild.

• Information and Standing Rules of the AAQG
• Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild By-Laws

Please contact the webmaster to add or update information to our website.
webmaster@aaqg.net

Want to become more involved in your guild? Please contact the following board members with questions, concerns and new ideas. Thank you for your suggestions!

The Ankeny Area Quilters' guild was founded in 1991 by a group of area women interested in quilting.

The first official guild meeting of the Ankeny Area Quilters' Guild took place on Sept. 10, 1991 at the First Church of Christ on Ash Drive in Ankeny. (There had been an organizational meeting held during the summer of 1991 at a shop named "Quilt 'n Stitch" located in Peggy Lundstrum's home on SW Cherry Street in Ankeny.)

There were 16 charter members of our guild. Our first officers were:

In December of 1991, the new guild held a Holiday Open House to spread the word about the organization. Christmas quilts were hung; there was a silent auction, and a Christmas Block challenge, sponsored by Quilt 'n Stitch was held. The Guild's first official quilt show was held during the summer of 1992.

Some interesting facts:

• Rent was paid to the church where meetings were held at the cost of $1 per member attending the meeting each month.
• By November of 1993, the guild membership had grown to 67
• The Guild had a phone tree they published in the newsletter to pass along information.
• Speakers for the first year's meetings were not paid. In addition to Guild members Heidi Kaisand and Mabeth Oxenreider gave programs the 1st year.

We have several founding members still active in our guild. The Guild has continued to grow and this year we have 173 members.

1994 Challenge Quilt	1994 Guild Meeting