Shawl Knitting Pattern

Patience Quilters Guild patterns piece together its organization

It's hard to imagine needing a little extra warmth during these, the hottest of Louisiana summer days.

But quilting isn't just a time-honored tradition. It's a year-round endeavor.

The ladies (and singular gentleman) of Alexandria's Patience Quilters Guild live the quilter's life of material scraps, batting, needles and thread in an effort, for many, to maintain a family tradition and, for some, to begin a new tradition of creating heirlooms for their families.

The guild is working now on quilts to hang in their annual quilt show to be held next month at Kees Park in Pineville.

Patience Quilters began in 1982 as an offshoot of another needlework guild in town.

"There was a group here called the Needlework Guild," said Marge Harrington. "There was so many of us at (a needlework worskshop), and we had such a good time, that we formed a group. And from the Needlework Guild, the quilting guild was formed."

Jean Lohrey joined the guild about a year after it started.

"It was a brand new hobby for me," she said, as she talked with other guild members during the guild's recent week-long retreat at Willowbench Meeting Place in Pineville. "I'm a Yankee, and the quilts we made were wool.I moved here from Wisconsin. I had a friend who has become an empty nester, and her sister on the East Coast told him that she needed a hobby. "

Lohrey friend attended a quilt, and, not wanting to go alone, asked to accompany Lohrey.

"I spent two weeks learning to bite Georgia Bonesteel," she said. "And that's how I started. It was purely accidental. "

Brenda Mathews is president of current guild.

It is a relatively new maker, who started the quilt just four years ago.

"I've always been associated with fabric," she said, and then detailed a long list of fabric-related arts and crafts.

It's not that she never tried to quilt, she simply would get stuck.

"I always would make a block and then I wouldn't know what to do with it," Mathews said.

Guild members gave Mathews advice and tips, and now she knows exactly what to do with those blocks - make more, and put them all together.

"The definition of a quilter is someone who takes perfectly good fabric and cuts it up into small pieces just to put it back together," Mathews said. "It's just the thrill of when it all fits back together. I've probably made 30 or so; it's all I do."

To the untrained eye, the quilt patterns may seem like "happy accidents" (to steal a phrase from the late painter Bob Ross).

Romney Kerchief Knit with Lavold Hempathy Yarn

Hempathy blends three plant fibers for a yarn that’s easy on your hands and creates a fabric with beautiful drape. It combines cotton’s softness, hemp’s strength, and modal’s elasticity, making the best of each.

Hempathy comes in a palette of shades that range from neutral to soft pastel to fun and bright. For Romney, we chose Sunflower for a burst of bold summery gold. The result is a generously-sized (50.5 inches wide by 23 inches tall) shawl that’s a fantastic three-season accessory.

Christianna used a size #6 (4mm) needle and 3 balls of Hempathy. She knit 21 repeats of the pattern, although this is a shawl that can easily be made smaller or larger, just stop bind off when it’s the size you want. Easy-peasy!

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