A fun thing we do is a monthly "block lotto." There's someone in charge of determining which block (and providing a tutorial if needed) and what color palette to use. There's a drawing to see who wins all the blocks. The winner needs to use all the blocks in a project before they can win again. Since this is for the Modern Guild, I've been able to add a bunch of negative space to finish something when I've won. I only mention it because last month I only won 4 blocks!
also, we've had members (free!) demonstrate various techniques like paper piecing or how to organize fabric.