The story of this bright, beautiful quilt, which uses patterns from my Teapots to Appliqué:

My quilting bee was asked by by son’s girlfriend, Lyndsay Benson, to help her DAR chapter make a teapot quilt. The name of their chapter is the Wilmington Ladies Tea Walk Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

We began this project in October of 2008. My bee, which is part of the Quilters by the Sea Guild of Wilmington, North Carolina, attended one of the Tea Walk meetings to show them how to applique and quilt. Each person in my bee and each lady in the chapter were given a choice of the teapot patterns and then made their block from material that was chosen for the project.

The quilt will be used as a raffle to make money for the projects that the chapter does for the community. As you can see there was hand quilting, machine quilting, hand applique, and machine applique as each person did their own thing. After getting all the blocks back, I then put them together and added the teacups in the corners and the border. It was really a fun quilt to do.

Ann, this bright quilt is brightening your community in so many ways. Your bee took time to teach appliqué and quilting to the chapter, and you all collaborated to benefit the good programs of the DAR. I love the fact that all kinds of appliqué and quilting come together in this way. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for choosing my teapot patterns for this wonderful group project. I hope it raises lots of $$ for the cause. By the way, did you know that North Carolina is my home state? I grew up in Chapel Hill.

I think those are picnic ants making off with a chocolate chip cookie.

Teapots to Appliqué, which was my first collection of teapots, is now out of print, but an unbound pattern pack is available on my website. Teapots 2 to Appliqué is still in print.

Still smiling at the cheerful teapots,
Kay
By Kay Mackenzie

I sent off an email asking about the quilt, and soon received a reply from MJ Peters in Vermont, on the left in the photo. Here’s the story behind her teapots.

“My guild in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont has a monthly activity we call friendship blocks, and my choice was to have my friends make each a teapot from your collection. It was a challenge for some members as they do not do appliqué often (myself included) but I am a teapot collector (65 approx.) and I have even thrown a formal tea party for friends. We will be having a tea party in August for the guild at my house.

I am also a retiring Family and Consumer Sciences teacher (31 years) so it will be a treasured memento from this great group of women I see once per month. I really enjoyed the patterns and you have helped to make a wonderful treasure.”

Okay, folks, this is what it’s all about. I love hearing these stories more than anything!

I have to admit that I had not heard of the Northeast Kingdom, but Google soon educated me. I learned that it’s a region in the northeastern corner of Vermont known for its lovely countryside and recreational opportunities.

MJ, congratulations on your retirement, and thanks for sharing your beautiful friendship quilt with us.

Until next time,
Kay

P.S. Teapots to Appliqué is now out of print, but there’s a pattern pack available over at Quilt Puppy, as well as a brand-new collection of teapot designs, Teapots 2 to Appliqué.

Our guild meeting was last night. When Jean arrived, I said to her, “I heard you got something.” Beaming, she said there was a funny story about it. At their last get-together, Jean had gotten out some books for the ladies to look at, and when she came to mine, she said, pointedly, “Now I like this book, and I like these teapots.” The other ladies looked down, looked sideways, held a straight face. Kathy told me, “We wanted to pull the table runner out right then, but was hadn’t all signed the card!” So fifteen minutes later, when all was in readiness, Jean was presented with the teapot table runner. Each of the gals had signed her block, seven in all.

Kathy (left) and Jean (right)

I asked Jean what the occasion was. With a broad smile and a twinkle in her eye, she replied,”Because I pour out my hospitality for quilters.” Oh my gosh, that got me “right there.” Jean always hosts her group at her house, and this was a thank-you from all of them to her for her generosity.

Kathy Rickabaugh, Linda Fazendin, Barbara Lockwood, Teri Gardner, Tish Criswell, Alice Olsen, and Megan Bowen, I’d like to thank you for including a little piece of me in your lovely expression of gratitude.

Until next time,
Kay

Denise Martin, a member of my guild and also of the Santa Clara Valley Quilt Association, had been keeping me posted on a Round Robin project that she was participating in. Denise had used designs from Teapots to Appliqué as the center of her project, and had sent it with the book on its way through the round robin process with four other quilting friends.

Almost a year ago, Denise wrote to say that one of the participants, Cheryl Booton, was working hard on the last border and was doing some beading. Denise pictured her friend doing some embellishments on top of the teapots. When Denise picked up the completed quilt top, this is what she wrote to me:

“OOOOH Kay! You will not believe what she did on the last border. It’s of a very pretty yellow/gold print. Then, on that border and overlapping onto the squares of the previous border, she took motifs from your book and really ran with them.”

I’ll say she did! Here’s Denise’s Round Robin Teapots quilt, outer border by Cheryl Booton, which was displayed at the SCVQA show last weekend. It is very special.

Continuing in Denise’s words, “There a ‘Lancaster County’ teapot with your motif, but the flower is ruched. My mother and a neighbor took a class years ago on Pennsylvania Dutch painting and I still have some of the things they made. How did she know?

“AND, on the top, she needleturned italic letters that spell out Tea Time For Good Friends… I used to teach calligraphy but I don’t think she knew that! Below that there’s a ‘Broke the Lid’ teapot with a bouquet of ruched flowers with beadwork in the centers.

“There are five teacups, each on a crocheted or cutwork doily. And they’re SYMBOLIC of the five people who worked on quilt.

“There’s a rectangular cutwork doily on the bottom with the sugar and creamer on it. And, there are three plates, one with cookies, one with chocolates, and one with lemons.”

Denise concludes, “I am totally overwhelmed. Every time I look at it I notice something new. Kay, you are going to LOVE seeing it. It is spectacular. Thank you for writing the book that inspired us, and thank you again, Cheryl, for all your work.”

I do love it. I love the story behind it, the spirit of friendship that it embodies, and how it is such a demonstration of what good friends do for one another. I love how excited you are with it, Denise, and how it touches your heart in so many ways.