Cheney Frayed Edges quilters

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“America The Beautiful: A Commentary In Quilts” was a group show held at the Chase Gallery, Spokane City Hall, Spokane, WA, from April 2 to May 10, 2002. It was sponsored by the Spokane Arts Commission.

The show came out of a proposal I made to the Spokane Arts Commission to display my quilt-inspired works alongside traditional quilts crafted by local area quilt makers. I thought this would be a good way to give recognition to some of the many outstanding quilters who usually don’t have a chance to have their work seen in Spokane. On the other hand, I thought it would draw to the Chase Gallery an audience who does not often visit Spokane or its galleries.

So I called and sent invitations to small quilt groups who are members of the Washington State Quilters. I asked each group to select a member’s quilt to represent their group; or, to create a quilt together especially for the show. Each group also had the opportunity to use their quilt to publicize a fund-raiser to benefit their quilt group of the local charity of their choice.

Following are the quilt groups and their quilts’ stories:

Quilt Name: Star Log
Quilt Group: Cheney Country Quilters, Cheney, WA
Made By: Phyllis Mitzel
Quilted By: Phyllis Mitzel
Quilt Story: Phyllis’ quilt is a Log Cabin variation. It was created for the “patriotic challenge” at the Washington State Quilters show.

Quilt Name: We The People
Quilt Group: Cheney Country Quilters, Cheney, WA
Made By: Jean Martin
Quilted By: Jean Martin
Quilt Story: This was a Washington State Quilters challenge quilt and Jean’s original design. Its images reflect her feelings about patriotism.

Quilt Name: Pacific Pride
Quilt Group: Cheney Frayed Edges, Cheney, WA
Made By: June Kinney, Colleen Kirk, Carolyn Koenig, Ivy Moore, Delores Olsen, Paulette Shannahan, Kathy Willis, Sharon Wilson
Quilted By: Carol MacQuarrie
Quilt Story (by block):
Sharon Wilson – I’m calling my block Purple Mountain Majesties. It’s based on a stained glass pattern by Sandy Boyd called Snowy Mountain Peak. I can’t imagine living where there are no mountains and trees, and if you throw in a field of wild flowers and locate it near water, whether it be lake, creek or spring, life just couldn’t get any better than that.
Carolyn Koenig – I choose to design the Log Cabin In The Woods block to represent my life in a log cabin by a slough in Alaska. Although the mountains were not behind the log cabin, I was always amazed at the beauty of Mt. McKinley (when the weather permitted a full view of the mountain) during drives from Fairbanks to Anchorage. I love the outdoors and the serenity of the woods, and I hope this block conveys that feeling to others.
Ivy P. Moore – Mountains are very important to me, a born flat lander from Texas. Mt. Rainier has come to be the symbol of the Pacific Northwest. Thirty years ago, when my family traveled between Anchorage and Texas, we would spend our layover time in Seattle looking at Mt. Rainier from the observation deck. Now that I have moved from Alaska to the state of Washington, I truly miss the Alaskan mountains. So, when I found a photograph of Mt. Rainier in a book, I knew this was the most meaningful image I could contribute to our quilt of what living the Pacific Northwest means.
Kathy Willis – As a child, I spent many days at Lake Coeur d’Alene at the summer home of my aunt and uncle. My parents moved us away to central California when I was eleven years old. What I missed the most was the trees and the water. My aunt and uncle are now gone, but their memory and the lake home are still there and passes on to my cousin. I have moved back to enjoy the land in my last years, a little different than as a small child.
Colleen Kirk – My quilt block represents my life in the Pacific Northwest in Eastern Washington. I grew up on a farm in wheat country. My grandparents were all dry land wheat farmers, watching the progression of the crops, green blankets in the spring, as they grew and formed the first heads, then as the heat baked the crops from soft green to golden yellow. My memories include the excitement of harvest time, riding in the wheat truck and jumping the back, rolling in the grain. This was part of the life cycle living on the farm. My grandfather, Albert, was also a dairy farmer and through him and his herd, I developed a love for cows, which I carry to this day. I have had the opportunity to live most of my life on the farm and my scene reflects the view from my home. It truly has been a wonderful place to live.
June Kinney – Water is abundant in the Pacific Northwest and it has been a magnet for me. I have been sailing for about twenty years and have so many memories of the mountains and water seen over the bow of a sailboat. So many of my summer memories are in this setting.
Paulette Shannahan – My quilt block represents four milestones in my life since moving to Washington over ten years ago. Born and raised in suburban Chicago, this signifies my becoming a “Country Girl.” The Pinwheel block marks my introduction to the world of quilting. This as the first block done by the Cheney Frayed Edges in May of 1992 and my very first quilt block. I won the blocks and assembled them into my first quilt top. I haven’t finished the quilting yet so it’s still a work in progress. The Apple block represents the next chapter in my life in Washington. I was fascinated with fusible appliqué and started designing note cards with apples to send to my family. One thing led to another and soon I started Paulette’s Creations, a business designing and selling appliqué cards and gifts. The Beehive block represents my family’s adventure into beekeeping and our blue ribbon for honey at the Lincoln County Fair. We didn’t extract a lot of honey, but the garden and fruit trees were prolific. The Sheep block signifies my long-standing dream to spin wool. Several years ago we bought two sheep and started my next phase of country living. I learned to shear and finally bought a spinning wheel and learned to spin the wool from our sheep. I’ve even taken up knitting again and made some wool hats for my family.
Delores Olsen – My block represents the Cascades and Wenatchee Valley area. I lived there in Monroe for many years and always thought Stevens Pass to Leavenworth in the fall was the most beautiful spot anywhere in the Pacific Northwest. Fishing with my dog Elliott was a special part of my time there in that gorgeous setting.

Quilt Sponsor: L&M Arabians, Lawrence & Twyla Sparrow, Queen Creek, AZ.

Quilt Name: Pieceful Traditions
Quilt Group: Colville Piecemakers, Colville, WA
Made By: Designed by Ann Morton and worked on by the nearly 100 members of the Colville Piecemakers
Quilted By: Various members of the Colville Piecemakers
Quilt Story: Pieceful Traditions, an original quilt designed by Ann Morton, is the 2002 raffle quilt of the Colville Piecemakers Quilt Guild. This quilt was made by all the members of our guild to represent the community that we share. The three panels featuring our forest, fields and flowers are complimented by those of the friendships and dreams of our nearly 100 members.

Quilt Name: Crazy About Hearts And Stars
Quilt Group: Krazy Quilters, Davenport, WA
Made By: Designed by Janet Nesbitt and pieced by the Krazy Quilters
Quilted By: Barb Doty
Quilt Story: The Krazy Quilters had wanted to create a quilt using a design by Janet Nesbitt of the Buggy Barn in Reardan, WA. The “America The Beautiful” show provided the opportunity to do so.

Quilt Name: On The Wings Of Eagles
Quilt Group: Quilters Too, Colville, WA
Made By: Barbara Brown
Quilted By: Rosalee Burbank
Quilt Story: The name of the quilt, and its inspiration, comes from Isaiah 40:31. The imagery was further inspired by all of the eagle pictures that appeared on the internet after September 11th.

Quilt Name: Reflections Of The Southwest
Quilt Group: River City Rippers, Newport, WA
Made By: Dianne (Treffry) Strand
Quilted By: Dianne (Treffry) Strand
Quilt Story: I began this quilt in my mind when my husband and I took a trip to the Southwest and fell in love with all the history and American Indian artifacts and culture. Then in 1998, a dear friend, Karen Ehle, purchased a pattern with the Southwest flavor and she received permission from the author to teach a class in Sandpoint, so friends from Montana and our area in Priest River did a block a month. My husband Paul and I changed a few of the designs, especially in the stenciling part. Paul redesigned a couple of the jugs with stenciling and I added stripes to one of the jugs. This quilt isn’t exactly like the pattern. The history of the Southwest is so fantastic; now this quilt helps to remind us of a special appreciation for that part of the U.S., and all the memories we shared on that great trip. This is one reason I love quilting so much – it’s like painting a picture only instead of on canvas, the picture is put on fabric. The reason I loved doing this quilt was the special challenges brought to me: the quilt had piecing, appliqué, stenciling, embroidery, and bead work and there aren’t too many quilts that give you that variety and push your skills and knowledge like this one did. I entered the quilt at a quilt show in Montana and I was very pleased it took a judged blue ribbon. Paul and I hope you will enjoy it half as much as we do.

Quilt Name: Relaxing On The Beach
Quilt Group: Rock Creek Quilters
Made By: Karleen Schafer
Quilted By: Karleen Schafer
Quilt Story: Karleen and her family often vacation on the Oregon coast. Its beauty and peacefulness “refresh the soul.” Relaxing On The Beach is a combination friendship/add-on quilt: Karleen created the background and then her friends added the details. The quilt hangs in Karleen’s front room and frequently serves as a “meditation piece” for her. Karleen says, “My add-on quilt was made by my friends in Rock Creek Quilters – Chris Mewhinney, Chris Birrenkott, Lisa Entman and Lori Hein. I made the background and asked that I have an ocean scene and, specifically, a lighthouse. Notice on the clothesline there is a pair of pajamas along with the beautiful miniature quilt. They are kind of a private joke Chris and I have. The person on the quilt reading a romance novel (but really asleep) is supposed to be me. The girls in the group give me a bad time about working a full-time job, being a mom to two very busy teenagers and involved in everything else…I am tired!

Quilt Name: Trees Of Deer Lake
Quilt Group: School House Quilters
Made By: Ladies of Loon Lake School House Quilters
Quilted By: Roxanne Eneroth
Quilt Story: School House Quilter Jean Milton always wanted a tree quilt and her group took up the challenge to interpret this theme. Notably, the center block by Diane Low shows a view of Jean’s home from the lake. Other blocks were made by Katrina Caragey, Sue Garred, Janet Goad, Debbie Hodin, Tami Moritz, Michelle Rozelle, Barbara Waterman and Sandy Witter. The quilt was assembled by Jean Milton and Kay Nolan.

Quilt Name: On The Beach
Quilt Group: Winter Quilt Guild, Deer Park, WA
Made By: Kathy Yedica
Quilted By: Kathy Yedica
Quilt Story: With a combination winter blues/spring fever, Kathy was inspired to portray the sunny, warm days of summer at the lake. She and quilting friends enjoy picnicking, swimming, boating and attending retreats at our area’s many lakes, especially Lake Coeur d’Alene.

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