Joy of quilting

If this past weekend’s weather didn’t make you feel like snuggling under a great big comfy quilt, I don’t know what would. I’d bet the only type of precipitation missing in “the local mix” might have been snow, although a lot of folks reported seeing hail. Close enough. The crazy and the brave faced the marching music, on Saturday, and with umbrellas, rain suits and crazy hats, joined in the soggy fun of Pumpkinfest. I’m sure many of the participants were thinking “warm and snuggly.” So, I mentioned quilts. What about them? I actually hadn’t heard much about quilts or, for that matter, quilting until I moved to the County in 1972. In Toronto, my family—the Durnings and the C u r c i o s — e m i – grated to Canada with the bare necessities and the clothing on their backs. Something like a quilt would have taken up too much room in the trunks. If either family had them in “the old country” they weren’t part of the luggage on the long Atlantic crossing to Canada in the dirty thirties. However, as a youngster, at home in Toronto, quilted blankets were created by my Mom and used on cold nights, but they were more utilitarian than anything else. Mom pieced our family quilts together using old woollen blankets as the batting. The backing and the “cover” consisted of bits and pieces of leftover material from her home sewing projects—a bit of red corduroy from a skirt, scraps from homemade Sunday dresses and Dad’s shirts, occasionally an old top sheet or a bit of curtain made it into the mix. Mom did all of her piecing on an ancient, treadle Singer sewing machine— a mechanical work of art, itself. She had no time for hand-stitching with a great big extended family to take care of. Like many quilts, each one of Mom’s was a peek into the past. My brother and I called them story-blankets and were particularly fond of one covered with green, pink and cream coloured satin. The satin pieces were cool and smooth and had once been bridesmaid dresses. And, that’s what it’s all about. Quilts are utilitarian. Quilts are domestic. Quilts are art. Quilts are pieces of the past.

Lucky us. Oh, yes we are. A smallish community like Prince Edward County has a Quilters’ Guild. Established in 1986 by six women, Joan O’Neill, Margaret Kerr, Beth Hicks, Nina Hicks, Mary Lou Norton and Ruth Gerry, it is the little Guild that grew. Today, the Guild has an active and creative membership of approximately 75 quilters. The biannual Prince Edward County Quilters’ Guild Show and Sale is one of the most attended events in the area, attracting hundreds of quilters and lovers of quilts. Most of us recognize “quilt show day” as the day when the downtown of Picton is clogged with carloads of aficionados. Restaurant and cafe owners actually “brace themselves” for the day. Much of the money raised by the Quilt Show and Sale is donated to several outreach programs including: Garratt’s Island Farm re- Treat, The Salvation Army’s Children’s Christmas Party, The Children’s Aid Society of Prince Edward Hastings, “The Quilt” A Breast Cancer Support Project and the Comfort Quilt Programme. Not just makers of pretty piece work, these quilters are generous, hardworking and caring in their support of children’s charities.

So, this year marks the 25th year of the Prince Edward County Quilter’s Guild and, once again, the Guild will be giving something beautiful to the community. To celebrate, an anniversary quilt show, featuring the creme de la creme representing the Guild’s 25 years, will take place at the Community Centre in Picton on October 22nd from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. And, like any great anniversary party, it is open to the public and the admission is free. According to anniversary show Chairperson Greta Kristiansen, “The first hurdle to overcome was to find quilts representing the first six years of the Guild’s existence. Many of those quilts and hangings were sold or given as gifts and as a result, only five quilts will represent the time period.” However, 30 quilts and 20 quilted wall hangings that have been produced by Guild members, stitchby- stitch and piece-by-piece with love and creativity, will be displayed and everyone’s invited for a day of history and a bit of warm and snuggly. See you there!

theresa@wellingtontimes.ca