Members of the Laurel Mountain Quilt Guild with the king size quilt that will be raffled off next month. COMFORTERS Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild Keeps the High Country Warm By Jeff Eason When a methamphetamine laboratory is busted in western North Carolina, there are usually more people involved than the police and the illegal drug makers. Many of these labs are in private homes where children live. The chemicals used in making the drug are so caustic that when authorities remove children from a meth lab home, the kids are forced to leave behind their clothes, blankets and stuffed animals. With one or both parents in jail, these children have next to nothing with them when they land in the home of a relative or in the custody of social services. The ladies of the Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild in the High Country created ten handmade quilts last year for the children they affectionately call “the meth lab babies.” Although the kids may never meet the women who made the quilts, it is certain that the warmth of the new blankets helped give them comfort at a time of supreme uncertainty. Those ten quilts were just a few of the over 70 quilts given away by the guild last year. “We make them for Watauga County Hospice, the Boone Pregnancy Crisis Center, the Rehab Center at Blowing Rock Hospital, the Nursery at Watauga Medical Center, Hospitality House, and OASIS, a local women’s shelter,” said Marge Zeliff, head of the Friendship Quilt Committee of the guild. “Our current project is to make thirty quilts for Mountain Care Nursing Home—one quilt for each of the residents there.” The quilters get together each month for meetings and quilting bees. Each quilter is responsible for bringing her own sewing machine, materials and inspiration to the meeting. “For the basic material we use 100% cotton,” said Kay Preston. “We accept donations, but it has to be quality fabric, preferably new.” Hand-stitching with needle, thread and thimble, is still a big part of making quilts. This year the guild invested $300 of its general fund in cotton Polar fleece. The lightweight and warm material is used to back many of the smaller quilts, replacing the traditional batting that would normally be sewn between the two thin layers of quilted fabric. Watching the guild at work, one gets the feeling that the members embrace new developments in quilting such as Polar fleece as readily as they cherish the centuries-old quilt patterns that they are helping to preserve. The Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild started in 1991 and now has around 85 members. Some, like Frances Arnold, made quilts on their own for decades before joining the guild. She estimates that she has created 500 quilts over the years, no two the same. Many of the members create ten or twelve quilts a year, and give most if not all of them all to grateful High Country agencies. Most of the quilts given away to non-profit agencies arrive during the holiday season but the guild also keeps many on hand to give away during the rest of the year. The sewing machines used by the members are as varied as the quilting patterns preferred by the individual members. While many quilters opt for the newer models with all of their fancy bells and whistles, a few members proudly work on machines that have been in operation for generations. Guild member Ann Demarais sews on a 1929 Singer Featherweight model that hums as quietly now as it did when it rolled off the assembly line three-quarters of a century ago. During the monthly meetings, the members catch up on the local news, discuss the business aspects of the guild, and work on their projects together for about six hours. The meetings also regularly feature guest quilting artists who speak about new techniques and a “Show & Tell” session. November’s meeting was held at the Watauga County Senior Center and about thirty members were present. During the meeting’s lunch break, the members ate food provided by a number of locally owned restaurants including Our Daily Bread, the Old Jailhouse, Black Cat Burrito, Espresso News, Mellow Mushroom, Stick Boy Bread Company and Wildflower. The guild is currently involved in a number of projects. In addition to creating thirty “lap quilts” that people can use while in wheelchairs for Mountain Care Nursing Home, the guild is putting the final touches on a beautiful “king size” quilt that will be raffled off next month. Tickets for the raffle are $1 apiece (6 for $5) and the guild hopes to raise several thousand dollars for its general operating fund with the quilt. Tickets for the raffle are available at the Mast General Store. The guild will also take part in a new exhibition at the Appalachian Cultural Museum in Boone. Four: All Seasons is a joint arts and crafts exhibition with the High Country Watermedia Society that will open at the museum on Tuesday, November 23 and hang through December 18. An artists reception for the show will be held at the Cultural Museum on December 3rd. For information about the quilt raffle, contact Anita Woodard at (828) 264-4834. For more information about the upcoming exhibit, contact the Appalachian Cultural Museum at (828) 262-3117.