Sew NewLatest Shop Updates

Christmas Fabrics havearrived and they aregoing fast !

Disappearing Pinwheels11 Ways Saturday, July 8.All day class

Block of the MonthTues July 11, 9:30-1:00 orSaturday July 15,9:30-1:00

Kids Camp - BeginnersMon-Fri July 17-21 9-1The kids keep theirmachine!!

Froggie Thread CatcherSaturday July 22. All dayclass

Block of the MonthTues Aug 1, 9:30-1

Walk AboutThursday Aug 10.All day class

Pineapple QuiltSaturday Aug 12.All day class

Shellie’s Stash

I love teaching and mentoring. Years ago, I workedin the hospital, doing ultrasounds. And I was aClinical Director for Weber State University, overtwo area hospitals and loved every minute of it. Iwas able to teach, mentor and watch the studentsgrow and learn all aspects of ultrasound. Over theyears I have found that I really enjoy the processof teaching. I have taught countless classes andkids camps and so I look forward to the summerwhen I can spend a whole week at a time with thekids. I have just finished two weeks of kids’ camps.One for beginning kids -- just learning to sew forthe first time and one for advanced kids -- that havealready taken a beginning camp. We’ve had SEWMUCH FUN! I have been truly amazed andoverjoyed at how well these kids have done. In thebeginning class, I think we only had to employ“Jack” (the ripper) maybe 3 times during the entireweek. Unheard of! In all the years that I have beenteaching kids, this is a record. These kids were sofocused and careful, they were sewing with correctseam allowances, following directions andfinishing their projects beautifully. And yes, theywere having fun! They really wanted to learn andthey are excited to come back to the advancedclasses.

During the week of the advanced quilt class, Idecided to challenge the kids. Many times I havefound easy, beginner type quilts to do for their firstquilt, like a split rail fence, but for some reason Ithought I would challenge these kids and see howthey did. Challenge accepted! They ROCKED it!

They rose to that challenge like it was nothing. They notonly pieced the front of their quilts, they pieced the backstoo, and had time to spare. So, they were able to makean additional project. By the end of the week they hadmade, tied and bound a completely finished quilt andmade a sweetpea pod for their wonder clips. Yes, a coupleof them even made 2 sweetpea pods. (overachievers,hehe). It was such a joy and pleasure to work with all ofthese kids and watch how much they progressed in theirsewing.

We have one more week of kids’ camp coming up andthere are still a few spots available. I know this will beanother wonderful week of amazing kids, and tons of fun.I am sew excited, I can hardly wait.

July 2017

Social Circle

SnipletsDid you know that we dospecial orders?

So if you see something in amagazine or hear about anitem you’d like, give us a calland we can special order it foryou. We have helped lots ofpeople to find the things theywant at a great price and withno shipping. Typically wecan get your items within aweek and we are happy tohelp you get what you need.Also if you happen to hearabout a special, let us know,we would love to work withyou to get you that samespecial. We are happy to helpyou any way we can.

Spotlight Customer Focus

Row by Row has started and we are loving it. It’s so great to meet new peopleand hear where they have traveled from and where they are going. If you don’tknow, Row by Row is a nationwide shop hop. All the stores that areparticipating are listed at www.rowbyrowexperience.com. If you are travelingyou click on the states you are traveling thru and find the stores along yourroute. Each store has designed their own row. You can see the picture of ourrow there as well. We have kits available that contain pre-fused, laser-cut piecesfor the center panel and the other precut fabrics for the rest of the row, alltogether in a super cute zippered pouch. We are also a premier location for theRow by Row Jr. and the 9th row. We have kits available for three of the Jr.’srows. The 9th row is a charity row. We will make a donation to the Make aWish foundation from the proceeds of this row. We have kits available andwe throw in a free pre-fused, laser-cut sewing machine for the top of the car,which matches the one on our bicycle. We have all the coordinating fabricsand license plates available. Come see us while supplies last!

Marcia Bearden

arcia Bearden was born inCamden, AR., the baby offive girls. The wholefamily helped raise herand her sisters. At times,she lived with differentfamily members, her

Aunts & Uncles, Linda and TG, andNell and Jack, her Granny Stringfellowand Dad and her Mom and Stepdad.So, she lived in Camden, Traskwood,Benton and Glen Rose. Marcia said shewas never gonna get married becauseshe wasn’t gonna wash and cook forany man. She has been married for 36years now. (Hehe). Her granny toldher, “Never say never”. Marcia metJerry after high school, on the steps ofthe courthouse. Both of their groups offriends would hang out there. It kept

them out of trouble. They met in Oct.,were engaged by Nov. and married inMay. Her Grandma Williams had somemarriage advice for her she has neverforgotten and puts into practice. ‘Nevergo to bed angry--you’d hate it if one ofya didn’t wake up the next morning andthe last words ya spoke were in anger.’And ‘Never say Goodbye to your spouse.Goodbye is a finality.’ So when Marciaand Jerry talk on the phone they end withTa-Ta.

Marcia knew in high school that shewanted to work for the State of Arkansasso she could retire at age 50. She workedin 29 various state jobs, as a clerk,firewatcher, clerk typist, secretary,medical secretary and administrator II.She retired at age 48.

Marcia currently has 7 fur-babies, (5dogs and 2 goats). Over the years shehas had 12 dogs and all have been

rescues. She has 9 nieces andnephews, 4 great-nephews and 2 great-nieces.

Marcia and Jerry spend almost all theirtime together and much of that is doingvolunteer work. For 10 years theyhave worked with the Saline CountyToy Commission for under-privilegedkids. They have worked for 6 yearswith the Salvation Army, 2 days aweek, every week, at the pantry andworking the Christmas Kettles.During the time that they work theKettles they are there from 7am til9pm, 6 days a week, fromThanksgiving til Christmas Eve. For5 years they have worked the AngelTree, which runs from Sept to Dec 20.

Marcia loves to work with her hands.She has crocheted for 35 years, done

cross-stitch and sewing. Jerry alwaysgets the first of everything shemakes—and never uses them. He hasbaskets of toys, afghans, clothes, hats,scarves, and quilts. She has made a lotof hats, scarves and quilts for theChildren’s Hospital and NewBeginnings. She started quilting in2014 because she saw a free class atthe library. She then joined the SalineCounty Quilt Guild in 2015. She hasmade all her nephews and brothers-in-law the bionic gear bag and for all hernieces and sisters, she has made ascrapbag/pincushion. She is in theprocess of making quilt for all hernieces and nephews.

Marcia’s other hobbies are gardening,car races and making a “trike”. Jerryis helping her with the trike. The front

half is a motorcycle and the back halfis a Volkswagen.

She has only traveled out of state ahandful of times: to Florida, Virginia,North Carolina, and Texas. She hasnever flown because her hubby saysyou shouldn’t travel in anything that,if it has a problem, you can’t get outand walk. (He does have a point).

If you haven’t met Marcia, you cancome hang out with us at the Bed-Warmer Quilt & Sew. Marcia hasbeen helping us like crazy with classes,kids camp, stuff in the shop and evenhas traveled with me several times toteach “away” classes. She is amazinghelp and a pleasure to be around.Come spend time with her and you’llfind what a wonderful friend she is.

Story CornerThe Traveling Quilt

Part 1 of 3Written by Darren Blake

Zina McIntyre inspected her work anddetermined that it was some of her best.It had been a bit of a struggle makingsure this particular quilt stayed out ofsight of her precocious seven-year-olddaughter who forever seemed to be inZina’s business, but she had managedit with only a couple of close calls.Olivia’s eighth birthday was still fourmonths away, but Zina had wanted toput something special together for her,and a quilt fashioned with each blockcontaining an Ohio Star and usingvariations of Olivia’s favorite colors ofpink and purple had come together ina way that had surprised and pleasedZina. The final step had been to addthe embroidered label on the back. Itsaid:

For my daughter Olivia on her eighth birthday.I love you sweetheart.

Your Mama,Zina Elise McIntyre

Zina’s quiet musings came to a jarringhalt as the brassy bell on the phonejangled loudly. These new phones thatsat atop the kitchen cabinet were muchharsher sounding than the older wall-mounted phones Zina had grown upwith. Those older phones rang with adelightful tinkling sound that resonated

more like music than an alarm, butthese new contraptions….

Zina picked up the handset from thephone’s cradle while stretching out thecoiled phone cord. “Hello?”

The voice on the other end of the linesounded distraught. “Zina? It’s Lydia.Have you heard about Grace’s daughteryet?”

Zina began to feel alarmed just by thetone of Lydia’s voice. “I haven’t heardanything. What’s happened?”

“Rebecca had gone with Grace to thegrocery store,” Lydia began. “Afterthey finished their shopping and werecoming out, Rebecca had run aheadtoward their parked car and a bigpickup backed up suddenly. She wascaught under the wheels before thedriver realized what was happening.Zina, I’m so sorry to tell you thatRebecca was killed.” Lydia paused fora few moments while the news had achance to sink into Zina’s mind. “Whatare you going to tell Olivia?” shefinally asked.

Zina didn’t know what she was goingto tell her daughter. Olivia and

Rebecca had been best friends since thetime they learned to walk and wereonly a month apart in age. She knewOlivia would be nearly inconsolable,but as a mother, she also knew that thelevel of grief that Grace must be feelingeclipsed virtually every other level ofpain imaginable. The merecontemplation of losing her owndaughter Olivia was almost more thanZina could bear. “I don’t know howI’m going to tell her,” Zina finally saidin response to Lydia’s question. “Iguess I’m more worried about Graceright now. Do you know if she’s backhome? I feel like I need to dosomething for her…to comfort hersomehow.”

The two friends continued to talk andcommiserate for another ten minutes,with Lydia providing Zina all of thedetails she had so far. Upon hangingup the phone, Zina lingered with herthoughts while sitting quietly for a fewminutes, pondering how best to helpher cherished friend who had lost somuch. Almost without thinking, Zina’seyes fell on the quilt she had justfinished. The pinks and purplesreminded her that not only did herdaughter Olivia love those colors, butso had Rebecca. A certain clarity

descended on her and with a furrowedbrow and determined attitude, Zinasorted through her stash and chose apatterned fabric, then used her scissorsto cut a square just larger than the labelon the back. Rather than remove thelabel dedicated to her daughter and riskhaving the fabric, stitching, andquilting unravel, Zina carefully hand-sewed the replacement fabric over thetop of the label and then added somehand quilting to match the existingquilting. Looking over her work forthe second time that day, she concludedthat it would not be possible for anyoneto ever discern that the replacementfabric was not original. The integrityof the primary stitching would remainintact and the beautiful new quilt couldfind a new and perhaps more exalteddestiny. Fortunately, Zina still hadtime to make a replacement beforeOlivia’s birthday rolled around.

It wasn’t until the next day that Zinawas able to visit Grace at home. Thetwo women embraced and shed manytears, while their husbands moved intothe back yard to talk and grieve the waymen do. Of course, Grace didn’t wantto talk about the details of the accident.She wanted to reminisce about thejoyful days and happy experiences inwhich Rebecca had found such delight.Eventually, Zina picked up the bag shehad brought, opened it, and removedthe new quilt. “I know that Rebeccaloved these purple and pink colors thesame way Olivia does,” Zina said,while handing the treasured article toher friend.

Fresh tears began to fall from Grace’seyes as she took in the sight of the quilt

that Rebecca would have loved. “I’lltreasure it,” she whispered. Later thatday, Grace took the quilt and placed iton the empty bed where Rebecca hadslept, but it didn’t remain there forlong. Grace’s other daughter, Ivy, whowas now just five years of age, took thequilt and began using it as her ownbedspread. At first, Grace was goingto reprimand Ivy for her selfishness,but when she saw her younger daughterwrapping herself in the quilt andtalking to Rebecca as though she werepresent, Grace realized that Ivy wasworking through the healing process aswell. The quilt that had Rebecca’sfavorite colors clearly provided Ivy alot of comfort in those many lonelydays and nights following the death ofher sister.

As Ivy grew older, the pink and purplequilt remained a quiet part of her life.She wrapped herself in it on coldwinter nights as she studied her highschool homework. Her youngersiblings, who had come along after thedeath of Rebecca, sometimes borrowedit to make a blanket fort using thekitchen table and chairs. By the timeIvy was ready to head off to college,she packed the quilt more out of habitthan sentimentality.

The college experience for Ivy was anew phase in her growth and maturity.Among the most treasured experienceswas the friendship she developed withher dorm roommate, Rita. Almostfrom the moment they met, the twoyoung women were almost inseparable.In fact, most of the women in the dormsswitched out roommates every year, ifnot every semester. But Ivy and Rita

managed to stay together for theirentire four-year run at college. Often,Rita took notice of the pink and purplequilt that continued to adorn Ivy’s bedand commented at how beautiful it wasand the exquisite workmanship thatclearly went into making it. Over thosecollege years, Ivy considered Rita hersister in every respect. When it wasclear that life would take the friends inseparate directions, Ivy obsessed overwhat she could do to express her greatlove for Rita, and the idea of passingalong one of her most treasuredpossessions began to take shape in hermind.

On the day of college graduation, twovery important events occurred inRita’s life. First, after she and Ivywalked in the graduation ceremony toreceive their diplomas, Ivy presentedRita with a gift box. Upon opening it,Rita was surprised and delighted todiscover the quilt that had adornedIvy’s bed over those years. The twofriends embraced and shed tears as theyrealized this formative period in theirlives was past and that in all likelihood,they would begin to lose touch withone another, despite promises to thecontrary. The second important eventof the day came a little later when bothIvy’s and Rita’s families gathered at arestaurant as part of the graduationcelebration. Among the guests was ayoung man by the name of Gavin.Everyone at the dinner knew whoGavin was, because he and Rita hadbeen sweethearts since middle school.Rather than attend college with Rita,he had been accepted at the UnitedStates Military Academy at West Point,where he had just graduated and

Copyright © 2017 The Bed-warmer Quilt & Sew

Read Part 2 in Next Month’s Newsletter

received his officer’s commission.Toward the end of the meal, many heldtheir breath as Gavin approached Rita,dropped to one knee, and asked her tobe his bride. Of course, there wasnever any question concerning Rita’sresponse. The two had been in constantcontact by phone and by mail eventhough they had been 1300 miles apartover the last four years, and theireventual marriage was a generalassumption among the members ofboth families.

Gavin’s military career took his familyfrom station to station across nationsand continents. He and Rita and theirgrowing family spent time in Georgia,Germany, Korea, Italy, and NorthCarolina. Over the years, as one dutystation led to another and as the familyhad to make room for more necessitiessuch as toys, computers, furniture, andclothing, some items had to bediscarded along the way. Through it

all, the pink and purple quilt remainedwith the family. When a child was sickor cold, the old quilt was often used tobring comfort. Often, it was simply themost convenient covering for amember of the family who wanted tocurl up on the couch, snack on potatochips, and catch an episode of theirfavorite sitcom.

After twenty years in the military,Gavin and Rita decided it was time toretire from a life of constant moving.It was time to settle down, work in theprivate sector for a few years, finishraising what was left of their family,and slow down the pace of life. Withonly one child left at home when thisdecision was reached, Rita and Gavindetermined to purchase a condo wherethey would have no yard work andrestricted square footage in the livingspace that didn’t require perpetualattention to upkeep and cleaning.However, with this decision came the

realization that virtually all non-essentials would have to be eliminatedif they didn’t want to feel like theywere pack-rats or hoarders living amidmounds of clutter. With somereluctance, Rita folded the old quilt andplaced it in a box with some other itemsdestined for Goodwill. This was oneof the hardest things she had done inher marriage. In addition to the quilt,Rita was forced to give away toys thatthe kids had treasured in their youth,dishes and kitchen items that had beengathered in faraway lands from exoticpeoples, and many decorations andwall hangings that had been with themsince the beginning of their marriage.With the new reality of their livingsituation, certain truths had to be faced.One of those truths was that room forsentimentality was limited, even if thatmeant parting with items that carriedcherished memories.