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is completed. A draw among contributors determines who gets p iecemaker s from your idea," says Mackinson, "and there's a connection you e appreciate. uggestions." ore joining the Guild in 2000, but this summer she spent time ng them to quilt. "They just loved it, and couldn't wait to get back to it each day," said Lovegrove. "I was surprised at how long they could concentrate on it and stick with it." Quilting skills continue to be passed from generation to generation, and even though lifestyles change, the desire to create aesthetic comfort for everyday living remains. Historically, 19th Century girls had to have 12 quilts gathered in their hope chest before getting married. Most of them could be given to her, but she had to make the last one herself, to demonstrate her ability to run a household when most things had to be handmade. For Carol Dalbec, the HHQG provided inclusion in a new community where she didn't know anyone after moving to Georgetown in 2005. Although she hadn't quilted before, she soon learned from the workshops and classes offered by the Guild. She says that the combined experience of what she is learning about quilting along with gaining lasting, meaningful friendships has enriched her life. "They're a wonderful group of women, and the talent in that group is unbelievable," says Dalbec, who was membership chair for three years. That role helped her get to know everyone. "When I started I didn't know anyone, and now I feel as though I know everyone in the group." Quilters no longer spend hours together to hand sew a quilt, as in the quilting bee days of the 19th Century, but they still enjoy a special camaraderie, nonetheless. " Although our group doesn't come together the same way we did 100 years ago, I believe you get the same effect," says Dalbec. "At the classes held and UFOs (unfinished objects,) you get to see everyone's work, catch up on things, and learn from one another," she adds. Continuing the tradition of the past two decades, the HHQG meets on the fourth Monday of each month, where they are educated and inspired by visiting instructors, and have a chance to sign up for any upcoming projects. Traditional quilting is the mainstay of the art, but out of new technology and a growing collective knowledge, the genre of fibre art has evolved. Mackinson created an art quilt for her mother's 89th birthday. She scanned photographs, printed them onto fabric, then cut them to make a collage portrait of her mother at the centre of a quilt, with several family pictures scattered around her mother's image. A very special gift made from a pattern of family memories. Computerized sewing machines, rotary cutters and cutting boards have replaced hand templates, scissors and peddlepowered Singers. A long-arm machine (12-foot-length,) can sew a quilt together in a few hours, whereas it would have taken that long to hand sew a one-foot-square piece years ago. There's also a much larger choice of fabrics and literature. "When I started quilting there was only one book on quilting available at the library-- now there are thousands of books (and magazines) out there," says Mackinson. Hand-sewn heirloom quilts are still being made, but the everyday quilts are machine-washable. It used to be a necessity to make quilts, often from old clothes or curtains. "Now we can go to the Hobby Horse, plan our quilts, and choose our own patterns and colours," says Mackinson. These advances have opened many possibilities for quilters as they band together and continue to give to their community, which makes a hopeful future for the HHQG. This fall, the Guild will meet on the fourth Monday of the month, at 7:15 p.m., at the Lion's Club hall, behind the GeorgeSusan Schavo of Halton Hills Quilting town Memorial Arena. All are welcome to its 20th annual Quilt Show and Sale on Guild works on her printed panel quilt October 14. To check their website, go to www.hhqg.ca in a round quilt frame. S AUTUMN · 2011 9 S I D E R O A D S O F H A LT O N H I L L S Enjoy GEORGETOWN (905) 908-2161 210 Guelph Street 15% OFF any size smoothie! Limit one coupon per visit. Expires November 30, 2011. Not valid with any other offer/discount. Valid at Georgetown location only.