Kalona a Friendly Quilting Community

  Recently I spent a week in Iowa at the AQS Quilt show in Des Moines and visiting my relatives in Wellman and Kalona.  I really enjoyed everything about this trip especially walking the streets of Kalona and seeing how this little town has really refreshed itself.  I hadn’t been here in more than 15 years and there was a lot that was still the same, but yet fresh and new.  You could see how the community had gotten together to work on making their town unique and draw attention to a craft that so many there are truly gifted at ‘quilting’.  All up and down the main streets hang flags with quilt blocks on them and under your feet there are quilt blocks embedded in the sidewalk with plaques stating the name of the block and who sponsored it.  As I read the pamphlet that I picked up with a map to where each block is and some other information about each one I realized that many had been designed by people in the community and 2 were done by my Aunt (the block at the right is one of them) who owned a quilt store there which is now being run by my cousins wife, Grace, called the Stitch N Sew Cottage.  It would be so easy for me to just move back here and feel at home, then they all started talking about the impending winter and cutting wood and I knew I would be going home to California very glad to have taken the trip. 

As a child I spent most of  my summers here with my Grandparents, Aunt,Uncle and cousins and Great Aunt and learned a lot about life especially at the little church where I went to Sunday School and Bible School.  This church has not changed much at all, even a lot of the same people still attend.  The Wellman Mennonite Church has been for me, the ideal church, the one I compared every church I ever went to to and none of them ever measured up.  It made me see that you don’t need a big fancy building to reach out and teach the word of God, but kind people gathered in a simple building to open their hearts and souls to each other and God, singing lots of hymns and sharing food while being there for each other in good times and difficult times.  It is a wonderful place with a lot of good childhood memories for me.  The same church pews are still there and the simple altar is still standing and still simple as it should be.  I got to be there for communion and a feet washing ceremony which I had never participated in before and I really enjoyed being a part of it.

I arrived in Kalona on a Saturday evening after visiting with relatives.  Sunday morning I was awoke by the sound of horses clopping down the street as the Amish were all heading off to church and I knew I was in Kalona and felt like I had come home in a way.  The next day I saw the Amish children, not more than 19 years old driving the horse and buggies home from school with their siblings and some were walking on the dirt road barefoot.  It was so nice to see kids with a little different attitude living a lifestyle I thought was forgotten.

My Uncle volunteers at the Kalona Historical Museum and gave me my own personal tour through the 2 quilt museums.  One is all about Amish quilts and the other had an exhibit by Thuy Nguyen both exhibits were really nicely displayed and kept in humidity and light controlled rooms.  I could take pictures as long as I didn’t use the flash and luckily they came out really nice.  Thuy’s applique is amazing, she does such precise work.  I enjoyed seeing this up close.  There were several thread cabinets in the displays that I was wishing I could have taken just one home with me though it would have been hard to choose which one.

 

I think Kalona is doing a wonderful job of showing off the talents of so many of its residences.  There is a big community of Amish and Mennonites and they all make some amazing quilts to share with so many in need.  It was a wonderful thing to see and would make a great destination if you are interested in quilting and the history of quilting all with a small town feel.

There were so many quilt blocks set in to the sidewalks I am thinking that it would be fun to make a Kalona quilt using all the blocks in a sampler quilt…future project.  Some of them are actually pretty complicated and I keep wondering how they ever got the bricks cut so precise and colored nicely too.  Here are just a few more…click on them to see up close just what I mean.

Each of these is about a 3 foot square and set into the sidewalk.  Quite a work of art!

Quilts, family and friends…all beautiful pieces of my life!

Ferne

A Bag to Pack

I made this little bag to pack full of stuff I might need for a class and just to carry all the treasures I might find at the quilt show in Des Moines.  I leave in 9 days and I am excited to say the least.  Plans are all made for a little trip to Kalona and Wellman to see old friends and family.  I have not been here for more than 10 years so there is a lot of catching up to do.  My Aunt and Cousin own a quilt shop in Kalona so I will be surrounded by the loving arms of quilters.  We joke here about every meal there seems to have some sort of Jello salad so I will have to see just how many different forms of Jello salad I eat…maybe I could collect recipes and write a book…Hmmm!   It has probably been done!

I’ll be busy packing this bag between working extra hours for extra money for this trip!

Ferne

Des Moines Here I come…

Is anyone else going to the AQS Quilt show in Des Moines or want to go, but can’t find a room?  I have a room at the Quality Inn, my plane ticket and am signed up for a few classes.  Unfortunately, the only rooms available were a master suite with a king sized bed and a living room…so sad.  I am taking my machine because why be around all that inspiration and not sew right?  Plus I have to practice what I learn in class.  I have taken a few sewing classes and I tend to be the slow sewer who never finishes the projects in class.  I do much better sewing at home with no distractions or the feeling of others watching and judging me…probably not happening, but it feels that way to me.  Anyway, if there are any quilters out there that would like to share a room drop me a line and we can discuss it.

I got an opportunity last week to teach a young lady how to sew and it was exciting.  We are making a baby blanket for her sister.  Once I got her going she was making HST faster than I could iron them and square them up.  We are making the quilt with the Broken Dishes pattern from the Broken Dishes Quilt Along at Ariane Quilts.  I think we are a little ahead at this point, but I only had her for a week so we had to get going on this.  Ariane just posted a wonderful tutorial for a Triangle in a Square block that she is going to use in the border, can’t wait to see what she does with it. We had a fun time picking out the fabrics.  The Mother-to-be’s favorite colors are black and white or zebra prints, not so babyish so we picked a gray for our background and two shades of each of 4 colors.  I am really liking the way it is turning out, though I think we are going to add a row to the side and the bottom.  We are going to make a narrow border out of black and a wider outer border out of a darker gray.  Hopefully the Mother-to-be will like our choices and now I have fulfilled a dream I have had of introducing a young lady to the world of sewing and quilting.  I must say she did a great job and was pretty proud of herself and we had fun in process!  Here is what we have done so far on the design wall…

Sharing my love for sewing…

sew rewarding!

 

Ferne

Farmers Wife or Elm Creek

I am thinking of starting a sampler quilt.  I have been inspired by the many bloggers doing Farmer’s Wife quilt blocks.  I have had the book for at least a year and didn’t get inspired to do the blocks until I saw others doing them with such bright and cheery fabrics.  Funny thing though is that every time I try to pick out some fabrics for the blocks I go to civil war fabrics or calicos.  I recently bought a Baby Go! cutter and one die that cuts 2-1/2 inch squares, triangles and a larger square.  I thought I would get the most use from this die and I think it was a wise choice.  Well, I didn’t realize that the cutter doesn’t come with a cutting mat so I ended up waiting another week for the mat to arrive then found that I ordered the wrong size for my die.  A trip to JoAnn’s is a 45 minute drive so I waited until I had a day off work and a grocery shopping list and errand list (with a trip to JoAnn’s on it), and finally I am in business.

I noticed that the Contrary Wife block was done with 2-1/2 inch blocks so I got out the Baby Go! and went to work.  Every triangle matched up perfectly!  Now I will have to search for more blocks I can make with this die.

Another sampler quilt that I got a book for and not done anything with until recently is the Elm Creek book for Sylvia’s Bridal Sampler quilt.  There are a few blocks that are also in Farmer’s Wife, but just a few and since each book has over 100 block patterns that is pretty amazing.  I made the Flight Block from the book.  Both books use 6 inch blocks too so I am thinking that I will choose my favorites from both books and combine them into a sampler, but what would I call it?

The best part of doing a sampler is that you learn so many different methods in the process and you don’t get bored doing the same thing over and over.  A box of chocolates are pretty great because they are all different, so different blocks should really make a quilt fun and special.

I think before I really take on either one of these projects though I had better finish up a few other projects first.  Meanwhile, it will be fun playing with a block or two once in a while to keep me entertained.  Right now I am spending more time in the garden than the sewing machine where I found this double daylily quite entertaining.  Today, though, I went fishing for a few hours and I caught 21 fish!  Now that was entertaining!!!

ferne

Generous and Talented Bloggers

Generous and talented and eager to share…there are many of you out there, but one lovely lady shared a wonderful mug rug with me and included 2 generous sized mugs to go with it.  Thelma of Cupcakes and Daisies was posting for a blog tour to promote the Fit to be Quarter ruler for Monique of Open Gate Quilts.  The mug rug I received has the most amazing piece work in the middle with the tiniest little star.  I was admiring the table topper when I visited her blog, but now seeing this mug rug up close and personal, well let’s just say I am amazed.  Talent and generosity are just a small part of what you can find on Thelma’s blog there is a lot of inspiration and even cupcakes!    Now that inspires me as to how to use this mug rug…

Thanks Thelma!

Ferne