Challenges

Roosting Round Robin Challenge

What is a Roosting Round Robin? Well, a roosting robin is just what the title suggests, it is a Round Robin but the quilt NEVER leaves your home, it “ROOSTS” with you. Instead of your quilt traveling from person to person; your quilt “roosts” at your house and you have all of the fun. Each participant follows the same sets of rules (given monthly) but has the freedom of creativity and none of the worries usually associated with a round robin.

For those who have never heard of Round Robin or Roosting Robin, this is a challenge to use a centre medallion to set a theme and then build your quilt one round at a time around this special centerpiece (or off centre if you like). 

Each month new instructions will be given to you and new ideas will be presented by newsletter and at the General Meetings. Each time you complete a step, you will show your work on Instagram with the hashtag #omqgroostingroundrobin or email a picture to vicepresidentomqg@gmail.com and we will note the completion of that month’s challenge. Every time you complete a step by the due date, your name will be entered for the final drawing at our May meeting. 

Monthly Roosting Robin instructions and ideas will be presented and posted here for the steps to be done the next month. You are encouraged to complete each round before the next meeting. There will be 5 rounds added to your centre block.

Centre / Inspiration Block (for October 23)

Have fun choosing a centre block. It could be a discarded trial block that you loved but it never became a quilt or what about that cherished piece of fabric that has been waiting for a special project! Perhaps you would like to incorporate our 10 year anniversary by adding an element of ten, Xs, or the anniversary colours of blue or gray in each round. 

Round 1 (for November 27)

For October, your inspiration for the first round is COLOUR! Modern quilts often use bold or high contrast colours. Play with your centerpiece colours. Try something new! 

Check out Erika Mulvenna on the Modern Quilt Guild website for more inspiration. 

Round 2 (for January 22)

The inspiration for November is to add a segment of Foundation Paper Piecing or an Appliqué accent to your next round. Play with the inspiration of your focus medallion. Try something new!

Round 3 (for February 26)

The inspiration for this month is to add some STARS.  Yes you can use fabric with stars if you wish. But if that does not work with your design, play with ScALE! If you need inspiration for scale, check out Riane Menardi Morrison on the MQG website. Try something new! 

Round 4 (for March 25)

The inspiration for this month is Label it! 

Take some time this month to catch up on the challenge (or start it)! While you are at it, think about what to include on your quilt label. I know the label is usually prepared after the quilt is finished, but I think we have enough information to know what you would like to include. Laura Hartrich will talk about how labels factor into quiltmaking at our meeting on Monday evening. She will show lots of examples for inspiration. And Janice Frisch has an interesting article on the MQG website. Try something new!

Last Round Call!

...We are going into the Shadows. 

The inspiration for this month comes from the Lunar Eclipse on Monday, March 25. It is a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse which means the moon passes through the light, outer part of Earth’s shadow. So the moon will still be visible but it will be darker or shadowed. 

For the last round, use different shades of the same colour. Check out Picking Shades of the Same Color on the MQG website for tips on pulling fabrics that work from light to dark. Submit a picture of the quilt top with the last round added to our Quilt Show under the OMQG Challenge category.  

The quilt will need to be finished for the show.

Final Prompt; Quilt it!

It is time to pull those quilts out of the shadows and finish them up for our next meeting in May!

Christa Watson has a couple of videos on the MQG website about Free Motion Therapy quilting and How Do I Quilt It? on your domestic machine. Don't forget to add that label you made. 

 

This month is for catching up and quilting. And of course, you can always Spring forward and get started. Here is a recap of the prompts; September, choose a centre block, this could set your theme. October, use bold curves or colour theory. November, try foundation paper piecing or applique to accent the next round. January incorporates stars or the use of scale. In February, we designed a label to document the journey. March we passed through the shadow of the moon and sun, so the use of shades or tints. 

Have fun! Looking forward to seeing the progress at our May meeting reveal.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What size does my inspiration block need to be?
A: Whatever size you like! Just remember you are adding 5 rounds of borders.  

Q: Does this have to finish a certain size?
A: Not really. This will depend on the maximum size of your borders. 

Q: Does this need to be a medallion quilt?
A: Not at all. Add a border to one side or all four. The only "rule" is that you should add the equivalent of a 4"-6" four-sided border. This means that if you decide to only add to two sides, your borders will be ~ 8" wide.

Q: What if I don't like my border when I start my next round?
A: Then take it out and re-use it another way or toss out that idea all together. Just remember that the clue you're removing still needs to be incorporated into your quilt so at the reveal all of the participants have the same "elements" in their projects.

Q: What if I miss a monthly deadline?
A: Life happens! Just try and catch up next month! If you meet the monthly deadlines and submit a picture to vicepresidentomqg@gmail.com or post on Instagram #omqgroostingroundrobin, you will get a ticket in the draw. Miss the deadline, sorry but no ticket. We want to encourage participation throughout the year. 

Q: I still have questions.

A: That's ok, just send Karen an email at vicepresidentomqg@gmail.com. Perhaps someone else is wondering the same thing.

CQA Challenge for 2024

As confirmed by a Canadian Quilt Association (CQA) representative, there will not be an individual member or member guild quilt challenge for 2024.

Past Challenges

• Vice President's Big Magic Challenge 2022-23
• Vice President's Challenge 2021-22
• MQG Community Outreach Challenge 2022
• Broken Telephone Mini Quilt Challenge