Originally Posted by dunster

I haven't found a guild I didn't like. When I lived in Oregon, I belonged to 3 guilds. One was very small - under 30 women. The second was very large - close to 300 - and the third was probably around 100. Each had its advantages. The small guild was like a bunch of friends getting together for show and tell and an occasional outing, but lack of funds meant that there would never be any prominent quilters to lecture or teach. The other guilds had frequent top-notch speakers. It was natural that not everyone knew everyone else in the larger guilds, and people who already know each other are more likely to hang around together. I wouldn't call that a clique.

Now that I've moved to California, I've joined two guilds. One is large, and one is still small, having just started up this year. The new one is a branch of the Modern Quilt Guild. Again, there are people who know each other and people who don't know each other - yet. But I haven't met anyone who isn't friendly when approached.

Edited to say: I just realized I didn't answer the original question, which was what do you look for in a quilt guild. The answer, for me, is that I don't look for anything specific. I get something different out of each guild. I expect to find friendly and creative people, and I always do, because quilters are generous with their time and talent. I also realize that a guild can't function unless all of its members help out in some way, so I volunteer where I can. Every guild is going to have its own unique personality, and for me that's a good reason to join more than one guild.