WEYBURN – The members of the Weyburn Crocus Quilters Guild are busy preparing for their “OWL be Quilting” Show which will take place April 26 from 4-8 p.m. and April 27 from 10-4 p.m. at the Weyburn Exhibition Hall, formerly known as the Weyburn Curling Rink.
Admission is $5 for adults and free for youth and children accompanied by adults. Over 100 works of quilting, from wall hangings to practical household items, will be on display.
On Friday evening at 8 p.m., there will be a Wine and Appetizer Trunk Show featuring the work of guild member, Charlene Wimmer. Charlene will be telling the unique stories behind many of her quilts. Admission to the Trunk Show is $15 for non-members.
Charlene is an inspiration to all the Crocus Quilters. Always happy to see everyone, she thinks of the guild as a quilting family and is committed to it. Her quilting story began in 1980. With the guidance of her mother-in-law, Elsie Wimmer, and her friend, Carol Geiger, she made a baby quilt for her first child.
At that time her work was very traditional and always hand quilted. Now she makes whatever pattern catches her eye and has other people do the final quilting with a long-arm quilting machine. When sewing quilts, fabric panels Charlene has been drawn to often take center place and then she creates the rest of the quilt around the panel.
Many of her quilts were made to remind her of special holidays and events in her life. While taking classes to learn new quilting techniques, she enjoys learning from the instructors as well as the other people taking the class. Charlene’s enthusiasm is contagious. She takes great joy in seeing her finished projects and the happiness they bring to others.
Gypsy Soul Fabrics from Estevan, Second Story Quilting from Torquay and Mama Bear’s Quilt Shoppe from Manitoba will all have sales booths at the show. Show goers will have the opportunity to fine-tune their creative skills by attending sessions presented by the vendors. Times of these sessions will be posted at the entry.
The quilt to be raffled off this year is a beautiful queen-sized Bargello quilt, done in blues, designed and sewn by guild member Eileen Wright. Eileen was one of the featured quilters at the last show. Hundreds of hours of work went into its design and creation. She generously donated the quilt for the raffle before she passed away last year.
Show goers will also have the opportunities to do a scavenger hunt, enjoy food and refreshments from Cecilia’s at the concession, or purchase tickets for Penny and Themed Basket Raffles. All raffle winners will be drawn Saturday afternoon.
In addition, guild members will have a sales table stocked with items from their stash- such as fabric, magazines, patterns, and quilted items. Some of the quilts on display will also be available for purchase.
Those attending may vote for the People’s Choice Award after they view the quilts. The winner will be presented with a Rosette from the Canadian Quilters Association by show chairs Leanne Anderson and Mary Jane Verbeem.
The Weyburn Crocus Quilters Guild meets in Weyburn at Cecelia’s Banquet Hall the first Tuesday of each month from September to May. They have over 60 members, mostly from the Weyburn area, but several members from the Moose Jaw, Regina, and Estevan areas also attend the meetings by zoom.
They often offer Learn to Quilt classes in the fall and have supported many community organizations, such as senior care facilities and the Weyburn Humane Society, with gifts of quilted items or financial donations. All ages and quilting levels are welcome to join the guild.
