Educational

The main mission of our guild is to further education about quilting – both for the public and within our guild membership. Below are some events from our past where we brought our handiwork out into the community.

Uncle Eli’s Quilting Party – annual event each 1st Thursday of April

Many of the members of Alamance Piecemakers participate in “Uncle Eli’s Quilting Party” on an annual basis. This is a community event, where many aspects of quilting are celebrated. The “impromptu” quilt show depends on quilters (like us) to arrive early and bring quilts to be hung and admired during the day. There are no ribbons in this “show,” but the rewards are great!

Started in 1931 and running through 2019, Uncle Eli’s Quilting Party had been on a 89-year running streak without missing a year, even during war time! The organizers of the Uncle Eli’s event make a point to not only tell the history of quilting, but to bring it to life! Every year there was a quilt frame in the center of the Eli Whitney Community Center – for those visitors who remember hand quilting with needle and thread to “sit and sew” to their hearts’ content! Also on display were scrapbooks, newspaper articles, and various other historical memorabilia to educate the public on how quilting has changed over the decades. At noon, visitors and quilters alike brought out covered dishes and enjoyed an old-fashioned potluck lunch. It was quite the event! Keep your fingers crossed that we can meet again in Eli Whitney (a rural community in southern Alamance County) on April 7, 2022!

QuiltSpeak – Raleigh NC (May 2019)

At the grand opening celebration of the year-long exhibit “QuiltSpeak: Uncovering Women’s Voices Through Quilts” at the NC Museum of History, several members of our guild went to Raleigh on a Saturday and participated in a “community day,” where the public was invited to come meet quilters, see demonstrations, and even make things!

Quilt Shows – at Village at Brookwood (2017, 2018, 2019)

For several years in a row (before the pandemic), Alamance Piecemakers solicited quilts made by our members and conducted a “judged” show. The quilts were then displayed for public viewing from Wednesday through Saturday in the Gathering Room at Village at Brookwood in Burlington, NC. (We were “all prepared” for the March 2020 event when the pandemic caused it to be cancelled.) Here is one photo from our 2019 show – a special quilt honoring a veteran.

You can check out other photos from our 2019 quilt show at Village at Brookwood here.