Does anyone have a good idea for a quilt challenge for my guild? This year we each brought a half yard of "ugly" fabric in a paper bag. We turned in our bag and chose another. Then we made whatever we wanted....small quilt, bag, wall hanging, etc. We had to use all of the ugly fabric.
I need an idea for next year. Have you tried something fun with your guild that you would be willing to share with me? I want it to be fun, and also easy enough for our beginners to participate.
Thanks for any ideas you can give me.

Use colors of your birth month flower and birthstone. Feature the flower somehow.

One I'm working on right now is: Each person takes their initals or the letters of their first name and goes to the paint store. They have to find colors that start with those letters. Then they find fabric in those colors and they make something using only those colors. They have to attach the color chips to the finished product to show what they used.

One of the guilds I belong to does a challenge each year. The guild furnishes a FQ of fabric and you pay $5 if you want to participate. Then you have to make something with the FQ. If you bring it back to show, you get your $5 back.

Another guild did a Christmas stocking challenge. They were furnished the pattern for the stocking so that everyone's stocking would be the same size, but it was up to the individual how the stocking was made and embellished. Then all the stockings were displayed and guild members "voted" for their favorites by putting quarters in the stocking. The maker of the stocking with the most quarters won a prize, and all the quarters were collected and were used to buy nonperishable foods which were donated to a food bank.

We have had numerous challenges at our guild over many years. This year it is 5 in a Bag. Each participant makes 5 six inch 9 patch blocks, the coordinator exchanges them with another quilter, and you make a quilt using the ones you got back. We have done it with just any 5 6 inch blocks, We have also had themes. Music Titles, Self Portrait (I won 3rd place in that one) Picture This(made to depict your favorite picture. Fairy Tales, One where you used a traditional block but had to use it in 3 different sizes in the quilt.

you might be able to fgo to our website and find pictures clarkcountyquilters.org

One year we each chose a theme & other members of the group had to make a block for us that related to that theme. We told group what size block we wanted, what colors we didn't want, if any, included some fabrics we did want and established any other criteria unique to us.

Each meeting we randomly chose a name & that was the 'block of the month' for us to create. These were kept hidden in a bag labeled with name of 'owner'. At our June mtg. blocks were passes out & we decided that over the summer we would put our indiv. blocks together & share wall hangings at 2nd mtg. in the Fall.

Some themes were: flowers, stars, Maine, 9 patch, lighthouses, baskets....

It was fun & not too stressful since we only had to make 1 block a month. Beg. could get help from others.

Love all these ideas! I saw one challenge where you brought in your scraps and someone had to make you something from your own scraps. They made pincushions, pillows, potholders, wallets, etc.

Thia aounds more like an exchange or a block of the month variation rather than a challenge, but sounds fun

We went on an INDIANA SHOP HOP. One shop had an UGLY FABRIC CHALLENGE. They handed out a bizarre colored fabric, participants then reached into a bag of CRAYOLAS, selecting 1 KEEPING it SECRET. They then had to make a project using the ugly fabric & some fabric in the color of their crayon. could add whatever else they wished! We spent a long time looking at the enteries,& deciding which one we wanted to vote for. Some had some really unusual crayon colors--BUT the creativity we saw,--WOW. We had fun , they said they had fun!!

One idea is for everyone to take an 8" block of their fabric choice to the guild meeting and exchange with someone (or several blocks and exchange with everyone). The idea is that the person on the receiving end takes the 8" block and uses fabric for their own stash to create a 12" block for the person(s). At a set time, everyone gets their blocks back. Some people got amazing thread painted artsy blocks, others got appliqued blocks, some were pieced, others paper pieced.

Oops! I was thinking guild activity. You said "challenge". Our guild does a theme challenge every year. Everyone who wants to participate pays a small fee for 3 fabrics (everyone gets the same fabrics) And it is a challenge to incorporate the 3 fabrics into the same quilt! The quilt must be at least 20 x 20. One year the challenge was that the quilt must have a house in it. Another year the theme was "Under the Sea". The entries were truly amazing! No one is to know which quilt belongs to whom; they are returned in a brown bag, then displayed and judged by the guild members. The winner gets a ribbon and $25, then there is a first and second places. Fun!

Our guild just finished up a holiday challenge - our chair had a selection of 3" squares - you got one at random for $1 - I think there were four different fabrics. Our challenge was to use this in whatever we wanted to create, but depicting a holiday carol.

There were lots of "O Christmas Tree's", "Jingle Bells", "Away in a Manger", and one "grandma got run over by a reindeer". We got to guess which songs were depicted.

Some were then donated to our mini-quilts going to our soldiers stationed overseas.

We had a whole series last year, to generate entries for our guild quilt show - I loved the 'Idiom' challenge - I was working on "Fork in the Road" but didn't get it done :(

Our guild is doing the same paint chip challenge except we can add three additional colors.

That is what our guild did for this year, for our Christmas Party.

This year we were all given the same pattern for a fifty-four inch square quilt. Each of us could choose two colors, all six fabrics must have both of those colors, and only those two--no bits of green leaves in a blue and white design, for instance. Made shopping very interesting. Plus, there were specifics about the various fabrics--one of the darks had to have a large design, for example.
We were given the pattern in September, and must present a finished item for our local fair next August.
Try that one on, for size!! piecefully, the old one

One guild I was in did the initial challenge. We could use only 3 colors in quilt, although we could use lots of shades. Colors had to relate to your initials. And at least 3 techniques had to be used in quilt, pieced applique, embellished etc.

My initials are cll so my quilt was cobalt, lime and lilac. Some got creative with colors,you can find so many color names on internet. I used paper piecing, applique, beading, and curved borders. That was a fun challenge.

One year it was a theme challenge, to represent earth , wind and fire.

Just some ideas for you. We had a group that would read books then make quilt themed for book.

The challenge I most enjoyed over the years was when the president of one of my guilds announced the challenge would be "Quilt a Tune." That, and that it be three layers (a quilt) and completed, was the only requirement. At the end of the year, it really was fascinating to see the many different takes on that one phrase.

We did a challenge where we each received 4 pieces of fabric (about 1/8 to 1/4 yd each). We were told we could add only one more color of our choice. We could make anything we wanted. We all had the same kind of 4 pieces. It was amazing how much difference there was in all the pieces. Most of us made a lap quilt or table topper. Anything could be made or you could stipulate that it has to be made in a large square and have all the squares joined with sashing in between.

Quote=Sandi19]Does anyone have a good idea for a quilt challenge for my guild? This year we each brought a half yard of "ugly" fabric in a paper bag. We turned in our bag and chose another. Then we made whatever we wanted....small quilt, bag, wall hanging, etc. We had to use all of the ugly fabric.
I need an idea for next year. Have you tried something fun with your guild that you would be willing to share with me? I want it to be fun, and also easy enough for our beginners to participate.
Thanks for any ideas you can give me.[/quote]

I have been in a couple challenges that were song titles. You made a small piece that represented a song. Guild members voted to pick the best quilt. There was also a game played to see who could guess the most correct song titles that the quilts represented. I did 99 Bottles of Beer on the wall for one of them.