Quality quilters

Do you have a quilt that’s been in the family for years, or one you scored at a secondhand shop? If so, perhaps you’re curious about its value?

Quilt appraiser Sandra Starley will be among the vendors at the Delicate Stitchers Quilt Guild’s ninth Quilting in the Red Rocks Quilt Show on Saturday, March 4, and Sunday, March 5, at the Grand Center, 182 N. 500 West.

Starley is a quilt historian and owner of several antique quilts. She’s also one of two accredited quilt appraisers in Utah. For a fee, she’ll tell you how old your quilt is and how much it’s worth.

Or, come simply to feast your eyes on the colorful fabric art made into bed quilts, clothing, table runners, wall hangings and other items that will be on display. Last year’s exhibit featured nearly 200 different kinds of quilts.

Six vendors from Colorado, New Mexico and Utah will be at the event, with a variety of sewing-related tools, patterns and quilted knick-knack items such as baskets that will be for sale. Some vendors will offer demonstrations of particular tools.

“It’s always fun to see what the vendors have, even if you’re not a (quilter),” said Bonnie Crysdale, who arranges the show.

Although most quilts won’t be for sale, it doesn’t hurt to ask the owner if you see something you like, Crysdale said. Most people don’t realize the time and effort, plus expense that goes into sewing a quilt, she said.

Unlike days of yore, when quilting was utilitarian and people used whatever fabric they had left over from sewing clothes, quilters these days buy their fabrics new – often spending a lot of money on materials to make a beautiful piece of art. And that doesn’t include the time involved in sewing and quilting.

Tickets will be sold for the possibility of taking home an “opportunity quilt.” Tickets are $1, or six for $5.

The Delicate Stitchers Quilt Guild has about 55 members. The guild meets the second Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Grand Center. There’s a 6:30 p.m. social time beforehand. During the meeting a lesson is shared, and people bring their completed or ongoing projects to share in a “show and tell.”

Some members meet an additional day for a “sew day” each month when members work on their individual projects or participate in a lesson.

“We’re always looking for new members,” guild member Marian Eason said.

Occasionally, members make “charity quilts,” such as baby quilts for the Pregnancy Center. Others have sewn quilts for kids in crisis, Crysdale said.

The biannual Quilting in the Red Rocks Quilt Show is open to any guild member who would like to display her or his quilts.

“We always encourage people to hang their stuff regardless of what level you’re at,” Crysdale said. “We don’t turn anyone away as long as they’re a member of the guild.”

Crysdale, who is a longtime quilter, will show some of her work: two quilts, two purses and two small wall hangings.

The exhibit always draws people from out of town – including Grand Junction, Colorado, quilters whose guild hosts its own show in alternate years. The Moab show is held every other year.

“We see each other’s shows,” Eason said.

Stitchers show off their handiwork at the Grand Center on March 4-5

“It’s always fun to see what the vendors have, even if you’re not a (quilter).”

When: March 4 and 5, Saturday 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.

Where: The Grand Center, 182 N. 500 West

Cost: Free

Information: 435-259-6447; www.moabquilts.blogspot.com or email: delicatestitchersquiltguild@yahoo.com

For more information, call 435-259-6447, or go to www.moabquilts.blogspot.com. You can also email delicatestitchersquiltguild@yahoo.com.

Author: Sharon Sullivan

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