To see a larger view of each quilt mentioned, click on the underlined text or the small view of the quilt.
We invite reader letters and slides for this column. Part of the fun of any quilting bee is seeing the faces of the people who share their thoughts and quilts, so we encourage you to put yourself in the picture with your quilt. Please send submissions to:
Quilting Bee Quilter's Newsletter Magazine
741 Corporate Circle
Suite A
Golden, CO 80401
Dear Editors,
I love to color and embroider. I was able to do both when I made Baby Blocks, using a pattern by Cheryl Wittmayer and the crayon-on-fabric technique. The tricks of layering, highlighting, and accenting with colors brings this quilt to life. Sue Tennill did the machine quilting.
Sharon Wilhelm
Plano, Texas
Dear Editors,
In this picture, my husband Tom is holding the Double -T Quilt I made for him from 1930s blocks. Their colors were very fugitive, but after soaking them in white vinegar and salt water, the colors stabilized. When I began quilting about 10 years ago, Tom saw how difficult it was to make quilts while crawling on the floor, and alternating fabric and meals on the dining room table. He created a sewing room for me, complete with a design wall. A few years later, he decided that I needed even more space, and fixed up the entire house next door as a quilt studio. Wouldn't you agree that Tom deserves a T quilt? Here's to all the supporters of quiltmakers, past and present.
Betsy Caprio Hedberg
Los Angeles, California
Dear Editors,
When my twelve-year-old grandson requested a skateboard quilt, I agreed to make him one if he would help design and cut fabric. The result is Logo Legends, a fun project we did together.
Dona Bassnett
Aurora, Colorado
Dear Editors,
The Ohio Valley Quilter's Guild made The Sycamore Senior Center Appreciation Quilt for the large, multistoried atrium of the Sycamore Senior Center, in appreciation for the center hosting the guild's monthly meetings. Guild members were asked to make blocks in their choice of design in various sizes--12, 8, and 4 inches square. The center paid for the quilting fabric, which was made into 80 packets. Guild members paid $5.00 for each packet and got their money back if they returned the completed block within 60 days.
A committee, led by quilt artist Lynn Ticotsky, designed the original setting and assembled the top. The quilt was basted and placed in a frame at the senior center. Guild members dropped in and spent a total of 395 hours quilting. In all, 155 guild members took part in the project. It was a delightful way to cement our friendship with the center.
Joyce Foley
Florence, Kentucky
Dear Editors,
Looking for something creative to do after my retirement, I took a beginning quilting class in April 2001. I completed the class project and made a small table runner. I didn't make anything else until after September 11. In response to that terrible disaster, I started making Sawtooth Star blocks in red, white, blue, and gold. When my husband, John, kept remarking about how much he liked my blocks, I offered to make this project large enough for a sofa throw for him. Forty-eight blocks seemed about the right size for the throw, but we have 50 states. I put two smaller stars in the diagonal corners of the border and stripes in the other corners. Stars and Stripes Forever now hangs on a quilt rack built by John. What teamwork! Cathy Odell
Washburn, Wisconsin
Dear Editors,
When I read Shelly Burge's article on string piecing in QNM 336, I just had to send you a photo of my first quilt, completed in 1997. I didn't know then that the technique was called string piecing. I just wanted to use up a big box of scraps that I had saved from years of garment sewing. I used muslin squares as foundations for piecing the strings, and then tied the quilt with yarn. I was happy with my String Quilt, but a few quilting years later, I wish I had machine quilted it instead. My cat Callie likes it just the way it is. String piecing continues to be one of my favorite ways of using scraps, and now I have more ideas. Thank you for the great article.
Carol Grant
Dove Creek, Colorado
Dear Editors,
When I saw Vivian Leidy's pattern Mother's Nine-Patch Medallion in Traditional Quiltworks magazine, I thought it would be a quick quilt. Due to some major changes in my life, it did not get done quickly. But I did meet my goal of making the quilt with only the fabric I had on hand. I purchased the large piece of hand-dyed fabric because it had a natural, outdoorsy feel. I have been collecting leaf print fabrics forever; I find them hard to resist. The quilt's title, A Walk in the Forest, was inspired by the colors, shades, and shapes of the leaves. Quilting and connecting with nature both give me a sense of peace.
Vicki L. Gerber
Loveland, Colorado
