Meet 'Quilters Out of Bounds'

If you were to ask quilters why they chose to join a quilt guild, their reasons would be a many as the number of quilters you asked. For many, it would be to find others who share an interest in their craft; for others, it would be an opportunity to meet new faces; and, for some, it would be a means to promote quilting to the community at large.

Guilds, however, do have constraints imposed upon them by their very structure. At every meeting, Guilds must deal with the 'business' of being a Society and present news on membership, finances, shows, etc. They must also present workshops and programs that will appeal to a wide variety of interests. It is for this reason, that many quilters form  smaller, satellite groups which are more intimate and which may explore one aspect of their craft in greater detail. One such quilting group here on the Sunshine Coast is 'Quilters Out of Bounds'.





'Quilters Out of Bounds' grew from a six-week workshop led by Sunshine Coast Quilters' Guild member Judy Ross. At the conclusion of the workshop, Ross asked if there was anyone interested in meeting on a regular basis to critique each others works as they took their quilting in new directions; that was over four years ago. Today, 13 women (most SCQG members) meet once a month to test the boundaries of quilting as an art form.

Members bring and display their works for others to see. Techniques are discussed, suggestions are made, solutions are offered, and criticisms - to be given and taken 'constructively' - are encouraged. The goal is to aid and encourage each other to grow as artists.

With this in mind, 'Quilters Out of Bounds' will sometimes explore a 'theme' or set a 'challenge' for themselves. One such challenge was to explore 'Opposites' in their piece and the resulting works are now part of group show currently displayed at Sechelt business 'one-O-one'.

 This wonderful and exciting group showing of works by 'Quilters Out of Bounds' artists Judy Ross, Jill Sullivan, Sharon Roye, Anne Dickie, Laura Mann, Penny Connell, Charis Webb, Leslie Bing, Sybil Seel, Janet Tufnall, Trisha Joel, Hilary Henderson, and Marie Barry runs at 'one-O-one', 5672 Cowrie Street until April 30th.