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Dori Troutman, originally from New Mexico, lives in Kelso, Tennessee, and learned to sew by watching her mother. She is passionate about teaching her grand-girls, their friends, and homeschool students to sew and quilt. As a blogger for Mary Jane\u2019s Farm, she shares life snippets, including quilting projects, and blogs for Clover, sharing tutorials featuring their products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI branched out into making quilts before I ever had a clue. And I can even remember thinking, I don’t know what I’m doing. Now I’ve taught lots of kids, but anybody can do it. Kids will teach you that it\u2019s okay. They don’t obsess over fabrics. They like what they like and don’t let you change their minds. They’re very passionate, and it’s amazing,\u201d said Troutman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wanda Boyd is self-taught and loves teaching others in her Park City shop. She began teaching in quilt shops in Chattanooga before moving back home to Lincoln County. Classes in her shop began with six students four years ago and have continued to grow, with something happening at Wanda\u2019s year round. In addition to the classes, she\u2019s sharing her love of quilting with her family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Boyd said, \u201cRecently, my niece has acquired the taste of sewing. She’s been in the sewing room twice and picked out a pattern. That will be our first quilt class next year, and I’m excited about it. She’s 25, and she just loves it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fayetteville resident Anita Johnson began with a Quilt in a Day class at Motlow, where she sewed, and her mother pressed the log cabin blocks that became her first quilt. A student more often than a teacher, she\u2019s passing it on too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have a little neighbor (we always call them little), she’s probably 40, and she wanted to learn. I bought her a sewing machine and supplies, and she’s made her first quilt. My grandson\u2019s fiance wants to learn too, so maybe soon we can do that,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Janice Harwell has had a needle in her hand since childhood and was hooked after her first quilt, laughingly recalling her husband saying it kept her off the streets. She taught at The Flower House for years and now lends her expertise and endearing sense of humor to fellow quilters at retreats and the local quilt guild.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Harwell said, \u201cMiss Annie Beth Pickett was an old-timey quilter, and she\u2019d come every Saturday morning to my house.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “We\u2019d have a quilt in the frame, and she\u2019d sit on one side, and I\u2019d sit on the other like a quilting bee. We talked the whole time, and I learned so much from her. It means a lot to you when you share things with your friends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Evelyn Smith, whose mother sewed socially, first learned through a class and is drawn to designing and creating. She was, in her words, the instigator of the local guild, the Lincoln County Piecemakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI’ve always been a helper, I guess. And people have expected me to be able to help, and I’m glad I can. I’ve made lots of good friends. And quilters are so sharing, too. They will share their information and help you in any way. I’ve been very fortunate. I’ve made lots of good friends and gotten to do many things through quilting,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Johnson, Smith, and Harwell join other ladies on most second Thursdays at Prospect Baptist Church for Sew Day. Everyone\u2019s invited to bring whatever sewing projects they have underway, not just quilting. Who doesn\u2019t love gathering in the fellowship hall for time with kindred spirits?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The future of quilting is secure thanks to these local quilters and others, many of whom can be found on Instagram and Facebook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Troutman said, \u201cWe’re in this new generation of quilters. The young generation of quilters is passionate about it. It\u2019s amazing to see. One of my favorite things about quilting these days, is this new generation of quilters. They think outside the box and are amazing with fabric, colors, and designs. Many of them are very passionate about the old quilts, and they’ll restore them. They’re into special old fabrics and things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Passionate about the old and optimistic about the future is quilting at its finest. GN<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" IT COULD have been a quilt they were gathered around. Beneath could have been small children playing and watching as needles passed through the layers of calico fabric. With snacks nearby and warm conversation dotted with laughter filling the room, they might have been friends stitching a special coverlet for a friend or family member. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":7413,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[33],"class_list":["post-7402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature","tag-october"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/DSC07097-1024x683.jpg\")
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