Yesterday I had the pleasure of visiting with the talented women of Nelson’s own Lost Needle Quilters. The group is so named since they believed they spent more time on the floor looking for lost needles than they did quilting. These women have all been sewing, cross-stitching and embroidering for quite some time, but for many of them, hand quilting was a new experience.
Allow me to introduce you to the talent behind The Lost Needle Quilters.
Gwen Johnson learned to sew from her mother and grandmother. Gwen grew up in Oak, and her grandmother would visit for several months at a time. She has been a member of the club for quite a while now, and at one time helped to keep journals of the quilts the group has completed.
Janis Culbertson was playing cards at the Senior Center one day, in 2013, when Muriel Folmer asked her if she could quilt, to which she replied, no. Muriel then asked her if she could sew and her response was, yes. Since that day, Janis has been a member of the Lost Needle Quilters Club.
Donna Gillian first began sewing as a girl in 4-H. She picked up the trade again when she became a mother. She has been a member of the club for several years.
Deb Troudt had wanted to learn to quilt. Her grandmother was a quilter and would often have a quilt set up in the living room. Her grandmother’s friends would come over and work on the quilt and visit with one another. Deb joined the quilting club in 2016. The quilting club allows her to be productive while visiting with friends.
Elaine Miller became a member of the club when she needed help putting her own quilt together. She had some doilies that her mother-in-law’s mother had made that she had pieced into a quilt top, and needed help and guidance to finish.
Pat Drexel’s learned to sew from her grandmother as a child. Her mother then taught her how to hand quilt in 2002. She joined the Lost Needle Quilters in 2018.
Pat Skinner has been piecing quilts together for 20 years. She owns a business “Tiny Bridge Quilting” where she does machine quilting and so much more. She joined the group in February of this year and also helped to tie quilts with the Church of the Plains Comforters in Edgar.
Carol Eckles joined in 2019. Carol learned to sew and embroider as a child. She currently has a quilt on display at the state fair.
Barb McCartney joined the quilting club in 2015. Barb and her husband had a home-based business at one time creating home decor. She worked for a Superior business, Doll Fashions, restoring old dolls. Her fellow quilters say she has a good eye for color and design. After her husband died, she used his shirts and jeans to create keep-sake quilts for her children.
Ruth Epley read an article in the Gazette in 2018 that said anyone could join whether or not they could quilt. Ruth joined the quilters for the social aspect.
Sandy Larkey of Guide Rock has been a member of the group for five years. She has made many quilts and wall hangings and has been sewing and quilting for most of her life. Quilts of Valor are especially dear to her.
The group recently raffled off a quilt for the benefit of the 4-H program and are now working on a new quilt to help raise funds for our EMT’s. Unfortunately, this article doesn’t even cover half of what these women have to offer. They are all hard-working and talented individuals whom I admire. They meet every Monday from 1 to 5 p.m. in the quilting room at the community center. I am sure they would welcome anyone who might want to learn the art of hand quilting.
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