The impressive display of quilts at the recent Vero Beach Quilt Guild (formerly Sunbonnet Sue) Quilt Show at the Indian River Fairgrounds confirmed that quilters are engaged in a complex art form, one that spans multiple continents and thousands of generations.
The two-day exhibition, co-chaired by Cindy Baron and Diane Miller, was itself put together like a patchwork quilt, showcasing fiber art in a wide assortment of sizes, techniques and materials.
In addition to more than 160 quilts, many of museum quality, there were vendors selling everything from materials to longarm sewing machines. And, while many in attendance were quilters, others came just to view the exhibits.
“It’s an art. You don’t have to be a quilter to come and admire the quilts,” said Baron.
Guild members had also crafted items to sell at their Boutique Booth, with all monies raised donated to the Vero Beach Lifeguard Association, the nonprofit chosen for this show. Members have provided items to numerous charities over the years, such as sewing placemats for Meals on Wheels and Our Father’s Table, fidget quilts for dementia and Alzheimer patients, and quilts and teddy bears for the Indian River County Sheriff’s Victim’s Advocate Unit.
Baron described the 120 members of the guild as “quilters supporting quilters. If someone needs help piecing or learning wool quilting or other techniques, people will help them out.”
Miller said that while she is a hand quilter, Baron prefers working on longarm machines to create larger works.
Explaining the process, Baron said, “You have your quilt top, and you have your backing. The warmth of the quilt is what you put in-between. It’s like making a sandwich. But you have to tie those quilts together somehow. So, in the old days, the women used to sit around and hand-sew or you would do it on a quilt rack by yourself. Now you can longarm it on a big machine, or you can pay somebody to do it.”
Women who wished to had their fiber art judged by two professionals in small, medium and large sized pieced, appliqued and mixed techniques, as well as miniature, wool quilted with batting, wool only, abstract/art and block of the month categories.
Additionally, Martha Mook exhibited 13 works she created as entries in the Hoffman Challenge, using cotton made by Hoffman California Fabrics. Hoffman chooses a specific fabric that must be used in the quilts, whose maximum perimeter must be 160 inches or less.
“I don’t remember how many I’ve made; maybe 25 or 26. I designed them all and made them all myself,” said Mook.
“Everybody in the U.S. and Europe gets the same material, each person, and you’d be surprised how different they are,” said Baron.
Given that the show was benefiting the lifeguards, there was also a Turtle Challenge, with members creating 20-inch by 20-inch wall hangings that needed to contain at least one turtle.
Those whimsical, colorful quilts were judged by two lifeguard captains.
A quilt appraiser was on site, something Miller said is essential for insurance purposes. For example, she explained that without an appraisal, an insurance company may only reimburse $20 for damage to what they consider a blanket, whereas a show quilt might actually be valued at thousands of dollars.
The guild, founded in 1979, garnered a lot of attention in 2019 with the raffle of its “A Day at the Beach” Centennial Celebration Quilt.
“After that, we changed our name from Sunbonnet Sue to the Vero Beach Quilt Guild because we’re more recognizable that way,” said Baron.
Although COVID forced the rearrangement of their odd-numbered year biennial show, they hope to be back on track with their next show, tentatively scheduled for Feb. 10-11, 2023.
Quilters of all skill levels meet Thursdays from about 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., currently at St. Augustine Episcopal Church.
For more information, call 303-506-0456.
Photos by Kaila Jones
