Kingston Heirloom Quilters

Corporate body

Kingston Heirloom Quilters

n.d.

A group, not a guild, Kingston Heirloom Quilters (KHQ) was established in 1979 by graduate students of quilting classes, taught jointly by Margaret Rhodes and Diane Berry. This two-level program endorsed the principles of traditional quiltmaking, every stitch by hand, every aspect of the craft executed with care and accuracy. It was a learning and sharing experience that the students did not want to end. Directed by their former teachers, they worked together on group quilts, learning to build them one step at a time, and being ever open to that unpredictable effect that would lift them a little above the ordinary. They try the latest trends and techniques, then return to their greatest joy, the making of Masterpiece Quilts.

Currently numbering about 60 members, they gather twice each month in rented space in Calvin Park Library. To begin with, much of the quilting was done in the main part of the Library, where they we were allowed to set up their frame as a working display, and quilted at it during Library hours. This opportunity contributed greatly to the development of the group. Originally, membership was restricted to former students of the Rhodes/Berry quilting course, but after a few years these classes were disbanded as directing the group took up most of their leaders' time. On KHQ's Fifth Anniversary, that membership restriction was lifted so that the group could continue to grow and thrive.

Their quiltmaking skills have developed through working together on more than twenty group quilts during the past two decades. Each one provided them with a valuable learning experience. All are unique, and most simply evolved as they were worked on, one stage at a time. They learned from the shared experiences of members working on their own quilts. Much of this was acquired during lunch hour 'critiques' when all would participate in the solution of one another's quiltmaking dilemmas. But, it was the group quilts that taught them the most. They strove always to do what was best for the quilt without being swayed by personal preference.

Although their status is 'not for profit', and fundraising not a mandate, six of these quilts have been raffled, raising in excess of $30,000 for local charities. A few are housed in the Heritage Quilt Collection, of the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, located on the campus of Queen's University. This Collection, which represents 150 years of Quiltmaking, was established by three of members who despaired of seeing antique quilts from the Kingston area being sold off and taken out of country. The gallery was at first hesitant to accept these quilts, but they have proven to be one of it's most popular attractions. Kingston Heirloom Quilters raised $15,000 towards the production of a catalogue, published in 1990, that documents this collection. The proceeds from the sale of these books are used to support the Collection. They also produce an ongoing supply of baby quilts for local hospital to pass on to the needy.

Several of their group quilts, as well as those of different members have been juried into major shows and featured in magazines, both in Canada and the USA. The Kingston Heirloom Quilters, mount a major quilt show every three or four years.

Draft

• English