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Maureen Mack

I began my journey into the world of quilting in the early 80s when a dear friend from New York, Barbara Nolan, thought it would be “fun” to learn to quilt. Little did we realize where it would lead us! We learned the basics through reading the few books that were available and without the aid of cutting boards, rotary cutters and gadgets. The only fabrics available to us were calicos and the colors were not too exciting. We learned the names of many quilt blocks by making a Sampler Quilt. I even hand quilted it! Machine quilting wasn’t quite accepted back then. We joined our local quilt guild, First Dutchess Quilters, becoming fast friends with other women who had also been bitten by the quilt bug.

Fast forward to today where quilting has exploded into a world of wonderful new and exciting patterns, beautiful fabrics and time-saving tools. I joined the Palmetto Quilt Guild in the mid 1990s as a part-time Hilton Head resident. I quickly established friendships with women who were interested in improving their skills and knowledge of this wonderful world of quilting. PQG’s mission is to “promote the art of quilting” and to “provide our Membership educational opportunities in the quilting arts”. This is accomplished by bringing in award-winning and highly knowledgeable quilters who lecture and offer workshops. In order to take myself to the next level of quilting I have taken advantage of many of these opportunities.

Most quilters have a favorite technique they like to use. I love needleturn appliqué. Last year three of us from PQG were fortunate to have been accepted to The Elly Sienkiewicz Appliqué Academy in Williamsburg, VA where we learned from the best. We worked from morning until night on projects we most likely would never have thought of trying on our own. I chose a Baltimore Album block class and found that I now have been bitten by another bug! The picture of the block entitled “Baltimore 1” is a Sue Garman design which was taught in this class. It has led me on a new path - the road into Baltimore Quilts.

When I look at the quilts that were made when I began quilting and compare them to today’s quilts and all I can say is “We’ve come a long way, baby.”

	Baltimore I A Sue Garman pattern taught at The Elly Sienkiewica Applique Academy, Williamsburg, VA. This is the first block in a Baltimore Album quilt. Needleturn appliquéd.
Border Choices This is a four person round robin quilt. I appliquéd the center block. The other quilters designed and applied a border following parameters that were set (width, technique, etc.) Appliqué, machine pieced and machine quilted.
	Families, The Fabric of Our Lives This quilt, designed by Charlotte Angotti, was begun at a retreat with Charlotte as our resident quilter. It was donated to Family Services, Inc. in New York, a non-profit organization assisting families, where it raised over $1,000 for the organization. Machine pieced and machine quilted.
Fantasia My first real experience in needleturn appliqué. This is the result of a workshop offered by Patricia Campbell. It has received a number of awards at quilt shows nationally. Needleturn appliqué and hand quilted.
	Garden Windows The rose block was the beginning of this quilt. I use it to teach a beginning appliqué class. The patterns are from a book, Flowers from the Heart, by Helen Kelley who gave me permission to use them. I had no thought to the end result bur noticed something happening in the background with the triangles. It grew from there. Along with winning a number of awards nationally, this quilt was a finalist in the $100,000 Quilting Challenge. Although it didn’t win, the experience was exceptional. Needleturn appliquéd and machine quilted.
Just Imagine Another Patricia Campbell pattern which I adapted using my own fabrics. Needleturn appliqué and machine quilted.
	Liberty Rose A Thimbleberries pattern using fabric purchased from Liberty of London. Needleturn appliquéd, machine pieced, and machine quilted.
Lily’s Quilt I have nine grandchildren. This was made for my seventh grandchild, Lily Ann Mack. Needleturn appliquéd, machine pieced and machine quilted.
	Springtime in a Basket The center is from a workshop offered to the PQG by Irma Gail Hatcher. I designed the surrounding patterns. Appliquéd, rouched, machine pieced and machine quilted.
Stars Afloat From a class taught by Nancy John Srebro at the Jinny Beyer Seminar on Hilton Head Island, Machine pieced and quilted.
	Star Spectacle Designed by Kathy Anderson, owner of Quilt Basket in New York. Paper pieced and machine quilted.
Celestial Motion Pattern by Karen Stone. Fabrics mostly from my stash. Paper pieced and machine quilted.