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 Join us in the celebration of the 17th Annual National Quilting Day on March 15, 2008. Whether you celebrate with your quilting friends or alone, take time to reflect on the rich traditions of quiltmaking and the contributions to family and community made by quiltmakers for many generations.
The NQD logo for 2008 is a block called "Eight Hands Around". In her block reference book, Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns, Barbara Brackman cites the first publication of the pattern in 1895 or earlier in the Ladies Art Company #149. LAC is listed as the first mail-order quilt pattern company – another tradition generations of quilters have cherished: shopping from catalogs (and now the Internet) and waiting anxiously for delivery of those special packages!
NQA began sponsoring National Quilting Day with a resolution passed by members attending the 22nd Annual Show in Lincoln, Nebraska, in June 1991. The third Saturday in March is officially designated as National Quilting Day, but quilters are flexible and we love a celebration - especially when fabric is involved - so over the years, observance of National Quilting Day has unofficially been expanded to the whole month of March!
 2008 Special Project - Happy Birth Day, Baby!
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Our "Happy Birth Day, Baby!" project has become an annual tradition, and you're invited to extend that tradition to your community by donating a baby quilt for the first baby born on National Quilting Day in your local hospital. Some quilters even provide two quilts - one for the first boy and one for the first girl. Guidelines are simple. First, contact the hospital - we've found that most are eager to participate, but you need to work out arrangements with them in advance. Some quilters like to deliver the quilt to the baby's parents in person, some even have photos taken, but hospitals all have different regulations, so you'll need to talk to them about procedures. Before you deliver the quilt, be sure it is "baby-ready". Avoid using buttons or embellishments that could be pulled off or caught on tiny fingers and toes. Check for stray pins and loose threads. Be sure the quilt is free from dirt, pet hair, smoke, etc. - it is best to wash the quilt in unscented laundry products. (The new owner will probably appreciate printed washing instructions, too.)
You are welcome to use this pattern to make a 40" square Eight Hands Around baby quilt. Instructions are set up so they can be used as a group "mystery" service project quilt if desired. It's quick to make one for a boy and one for a girl, just by changing the border and center fabrics. Or, the center block would be a perfect place to show off your special appliqué or embroidery. We'd love to see photos of your "Happy Birth Day, Baby" quilts.
or mail photos to the NQA office at the address at the bottom of this page. We need a signed release from everyone in the photo in order to publish it on the website or in The Quilting Quarterly.
Click here for the "2008 Happy Birth Day, Baby!" pattern.
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2007 Special Project - Happy Birth Day, Baby!
Consider yourself invited! Join us in our celebration of the 16th Annual National Quilting Day, Saturday, March 17, 2007.
The response to the 2006 NQD "Happy Birth Day, Baby!" project was so positive we are doing it again for 2007. All quilters, individuals and groups are welcome to join the fun. To celebrate the "birthday" of NQD, all you need to do is make a baby quilt to donate to your local hospital for the first baby born on National Quilting Day. Wouldn't it be fun to see hundreds of new babies across the country snuggled in their special "Birth Day" quilts?
The guidelines for the "Happy Birth Day, Baby!" project are simple. You will need to check with your local hospital to work out details - we found that most facilities were thrilled to participate, but please make arrangements with them first. Last year some of the quilts were presented in person, with photos of babies and quiltmakers. If you submit photos to us, we will need a signed release from everyone in the picture.
Your quilt can be any pattern you choose. With NQD falling on St. Patrick's Day in 2007, an Irish Chain in shades of green would be a fun choice! Be sure your quilt is "babyready" - check for stray pins, avoid buttons or items that can be pulled off and swallowed, etc. Remember, the quilt could be going to a family unfamiliar with quilt care so washing instructions are helpful, too.
More details will be revealed in the coming months, but we wanted to give you plenty of time to get started on your "Happy Birth Day, Baby!" quilt. If you have any questions, please contact me at nqdcoordinator@nqaquilts.org. I hope you will participate in this project and help spread the word about National Quilting Day.
2006 Special Project - Happy Birth Day, Baby!
  At the NQA Board meeting in Columbus on March 17, Lorraine Covington, Pat Moore, and Lynn Kough admire a baby quilt made by NQA member Mike Weatherby. The quilt was then delivered to Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus for the first baby born on National Quilting Day, March 18, 2006. Don't forget to send photos of your "Happy Birth Day, Baby!" quilts to the NQD Coordinator, either by mail to the office or
All quilters were invited to join us for a special project to celebrate the 15th "birthday" of National Quilting Day - "Happy Birth Day, Baby!" The project was to make a baby quilt, with at least one heart incorporated in the design, and donate it to their local hospital for the first baby born on National Quilting Day, March 18, 2006.
Reports and photos are still coming in for the 2006 project, Happy Birth Day, Baby! It sounds like there were lots of new babies and mothers who were delighted to receive an unexpected gift on National Quilting Day. The Millennium Quilters of Clarksburg, West Virginia, presented a quilt to the first baby born at United Hospital Center, and they plan to make it an annual event! President Eleanor MacLean reports that the quilt was a collaborative effort to show their commitment to the community. A new NQA chapter, the Greater San Antonio Quilt Guild, delivered 13 quilts to 11 different hospitals around San Antonio, Texas. Ruth Felty reports that the group was excited about the project and really enjoyed making the quilts.
Betty Dobberpuhl reported that the Aberdeen Area Quilt Guild delivered their quilt to Avera St. Lukes in Aberdeen, South Dakota. "As oft times happens, ... the quilt barely had the last thread cut before we took it to the hospital," so there is no photo of the quilt, but she continued, "I’m happy to report the Mom had a big smile, the Dad looked very pleased, and the baby was very snuggly."
 The Rangitikei Country Quilters in Marton, New Zealand, participated in our NQD project again this year, making it International Quilting Day! Georgina Greenwood reported that the local midwife, who also belongs to the group, alerted them to the birth of "their" baby. The whole family was pleased to receive a quilt for their new baby.
We continue to collect reports and photos of these special baby quilts and share more of them with you in QQ and on this website. We’re hoping to make this an annual project -- stay tuned for more details.
Questions?
National Quilting Day coordinator.
2005 NQD Friendship Star Block Exchange
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Thanks to everyone who participated in the NQD 2005 Friendship Star block exchange. We received blocks from across the country - and even some from Germany and New Zealand!
Block winners were:
Virginia Beck - Danville, Iowa
Carol Farrell - Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
Georgina Greenwood - Marton, New Zealand
Pat Henry - Lewes, Delaware
Claudia Hieber - Neuhausen, Germany
Phyllis Jacobs - Big Rapids, Michigan
Ruth Ann Johnson - Old Fields, West Virginia
Dixie Klinger - Reynoldsburg, Ohio
Carolyn Knauber Quick - Delaware, Ohio
Delores Simpson - Sarasota, Florida
Mary Schwind - Burlington, Iowa
Susan Van Atta - Malibu, California
Pat Zotos - Warwick, Rhode Island
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Dixie Klinger, Reynoldsburg, Ohio, with the wallhanging she made from the NQD Friendship Blocks she won last year |
History
How did we get our own holiday? In 1989, the Kentucky Heritage Quilt Society organized a "Quilters' Day Out" on the third Saturday of March to celebrate the rich tradition of quiltmaking in Kentucky. In 1991, the NQA officers were so enthused with the concept and success of "Quilters' Day Out" that they voted to take it to a national level.
The first National Quilting Day was observed in 1992 and since then it has grown to a global celebration for all quiltmakers and quilt lovers. Helen Storbeck, a founder of National Quilting Day, wrote in Quilting Quarterly, "Groups of quilters were encouraged to hold special events, publishers and shop owners were invited to sponsor promotions especially for quilters and it quickly became a grass roots endeavor with quilters in every part of the country participating. In the first year of National Quilting Day, quilters in other countries asked to participate. They were welcomed with open arms. As our feeling of a community network has evolved to include a world community, it is only appropriate that quilters and quilt lovers everywhere united to give recognition to this special art form."
Celebrate!
There are countless ways to celebrate National Quilting Day...
- Make it a service day and work on a quilt for your favorite cause – national projects such as ABC Quilts and Project Linus or local projects. If you don't have a local service project, start one! Check with police and fire departments, children's services, nursing or rehabilitation facilities or local hospitals to see if they have a need for quilts.
- Organize an exhibit for your local library or historical society. Exhibit quilts, tools, books, etc. Organize a quilt history day or a quilt documentation project.
- Work on a quilt with a school, 4-H, or scout group, or spend the day passing along your love of quilting to your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or neighbors.
- Contact a local senior citizens group or facility and organize a show and tell of their quilts and yours. Or sponsor a sewing day to make lap quilts for seniors. Turn it into an oral history project to gather quilters' stories from your community. You will be amazed at what you learn.
- Organize a stitch-in, banquet, workshop, lecture, retreat, bus trip or even a shop hop.
- Contact your local hospital and make arrangements to donate a baby quilt to the first baby born on National Quilting Day. Make it a statewide project: As part of Ohio's bicentennial celebration in 2003, a coordinated effort ("Happy Birth Day, Bicentennial Baby!") resulted in a quilt for more than 90 babies born in Ohio hospitals on National Quilting Day!
- Celebrate on your own - visit your favorite quilt shops, pass your love of quilting on to a child or friend, or spend a few hours sewing or reading your favorite quilt book.
The possibilities for National Quilting Day are limited only by your time and energy! Even if you just curl up with your favorite quilting book, do something special to celebrate your place in the community of quilters.
Please let us know how you celebrate National Quilting Day, and we can share your ideas with others. After all, sharing a great idea is how National Quilting Day got started!
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