Local quilter Pat Miller is inviting everyone to attend the first meeting of the Sun Peaks Quilters’ Guild on Oct. 21 at Nancy Greene’s Cahilty Lodge. The meeting will start at 7 p.m.
“Anybody interested in getting together to talk about quilts, help make quilts or just wants to come out to visit in the evening to learn about quilting (is welcome),” said Miller.
The goal is to create a place where quilters can learn from each other and have fun while working on their craft because you never know when you’ll pick up a new hobby.
Surprisingly, while her mother and sister are quilters, Miller wasn’t always interested in quilting.
“I got dragged to this quilt class and I fell in love with it,” she said, laughing at the memory. Now, she’s a proud quilter for 22 years and counting.
Local quilter Pat Hatchett’s venture into quilting was a more natural progression.
“I’ve always been a sewer,” Hatchett said. “It’s kind of an extension of what I’ve always done. I like making presents to give to people.”
It doesn’t require much to start. “If you can sew a straight line or you can pick up a needle and thread, you can learn how to quilt,” Miller said. “It’s actually really easy. Everything is in a straight line until you get into the more complicated stuff, which would be appliqué. But initially, it’s very easy to do.”
And while quilting is an art that flourished mainly among women, male quilters do exist. Men are more than welcome to join the quilters’ guild.
Quilting is more than a hobby for Miller. For years, she’s helped organize Quilting in the Mountains, an annual quilting event at Sun Peaks showcasing workshops and presentations from renowned quilters.
Through this event, local quilters were able to support several charities including The Quilt Project’s Support for People Living with Cancer. More recently, in partnership with the Delta Sun Peaks Resort, Quilting in the Mountains has also raised funds for Habitat for Humanity in Kamloops. Some of the funds were also earmarked for the Sun Peaks Education Society to help with the new school.
“If you want to learn how to quilt, it would be a good activity to do here other than the usual activities available,” said Hatchett.
For more information on the Quilters’ Guild, phone Pat at 250-319-0638 or e-mail her at pmiller@littleflag.ca.
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