Seamlines from The President
Happy New Year
Hello and Happy New Year!
We are a couple of weeks into the new year, so I can ask, how is everyone doing with New Year's resolutions? Mine has been ongoing for a couple of years: to clean and organize the sewing room. A large task to be sure. To break it into manageable bits, I told myself that if I touch a piece of fabric or UFO, I need to place the fabric in its bin or complete the UFO. It has helped to clean up a bit but I still have a long way to go!
Many of my UFOs are quilt and embroidery projects from Mother. Her sewing supplies and machines came to me when she moved to memory care. I have been working on those legacy projects as needed for gifts for new babies, brides and grooms, and graduates. It is fun to look back on fabrics from years ago and compare the style of design and colors and how they have evolved through the years. I should be able to put a dent into those UFOs this year as Great Grandma is expecting 5 babies and 1 graduate in 2025!
The Chapter Advisory Board is in the throes of transferring duties, setting calendar dates and working up a budget. Look for changes and updates to our website as we do a refresh to purge outdated information and add the new. Neighborhood Group leaders can help us maintain the website by updating your monthly meeting information. You don’t need to be a master at using computers. Our new Social Media chair, JoAnn LaForge is working on those updates as I write this and will enjoy working with you.
The sunsetting of Groupworks and the ease of communication it provided has been a dilemma during my last term. I am still trying to figure out the best way to reach each of you. This year in addition to the website, asg-mpls-stpaul.org and Facebook, I will be sending email communication. To start they will be 1 per month. To make this work, I need you to review your contact information. If you have changed an email address, you will need to reach out to the National offices and get updates made. Secondly, make sure you are checking your Spam or Junk emails. Oftentimes when we do a large mailing, your email filters will move things around and you will not see communications in your primary inbox.
At the annual meeting in November, I noted that 2025 is the 45th anniversary of our ASG Chapter! Look for a special 45th (Sapphire) anniversary logo in our social media and at our public meet and greets. Whew! Much has changed in the home sewing world in the last 45 years. Sergers came into the home making our ability to work with knits and finish seams easier. We also opened a world of decorative stitching with less labor than working by hand. The quilt revival of the 80s and 90s showed us that quilts are more than utilitarian bed coverings, but true works of art. Due to rationing and poverty, our great grandmothers mended clothes and repurposed feed and flour sacks for clothing out of necessity during the war and depression years. Today we are saving and repurposing as part of the new movement of sustainability. We are paying more attention to the fibers that go into our fabrics and on the backend, reducing the amount of waste going to a landfill. Many of us have added embroidery machines and home quilting machines to our inventory. No longer do we sew at the kitchen table but we have rooms dedicated to our sewing craft.
Happy 45th Birthday, Everyone! Let’s continue Advancing Sewing as an Art and Life Skill for another 45 years!
Regards,
Eileen Scott, President
