Calico Cutups Quilt Guild to raffle off quilt

Some quilts need a special quilter. Bella Vista’s Calico Cutups Quilt Guild is raffling off a quilt at their biennial quilt show. It was quilted by an award-winning professional quilter with ties to the group.

Six members of the guild worked on blocks for the quilt, which is a variation of a classic Log Cabin design, Sharon Moravits explained. Another four people attached the blocks together. When the top was complete, they knew they had a special quilt, so they called Karen Kielmeyer.

Kielmeyer, who lives just over the line in Bentonville and is a former member of the guild, has been making quilts for 20 years and entering quilting contests for 15. She uses a long-arm sewing machine to quilt professionally. She has customers from all over the country, many of whom she never meets in person. They mail the quilts back and forth, she said.

The contest winners are her own art quilts. She’s won ribbons in shows from Houston to Salt Lake City and photos of her quilts have been published many times.

Although she seldom sells her own quilts, they have been appraised for six to eight thousand dollars, she said.

Moravits said they asked Kielmeyer to design the intricate patterns she quilted into their quilt top. Feathers, circles and short lines are repeated across the queen-bed-sized quilt. Although she uses a machine, it still takes a long time to complete a large quilt, she said.

Proceeds from the raffle and from the quilt show will go into the guild’s general fund. The guild, Moravits said, is an educational organization and speakers are often booked for its monthly meetings. The guild pays to have the best speakers, she said.

The guild also does service projects, including Quilts of Valor for veterans and fidget quilts that are donated to nursing homes.

Everyone is welcome at the guild’s monthly meetings, Moravits said. Meetings are held at the First United Methodist Church, 20 Boyce Dr., Bella Vista, at 1 p.m., usually on the fourth Monday of the month.

The raffle quilt will be at the show at Bella Vista Assembly of God Church on Forest Hills Blvd. from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on April 13 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 14. Admission is $7.

Raffle tickets can be purchased at the show, or from a Calico Cutups member before the show. They are $1 or 6 for $5.

Lynn Atkins/The Weekly Vista Karen Kielmeyer stands next to a quilt that will be auctioned off during the “Blessed are the Piece Makers” Quilt Show. Members of the Calico Cutups Quilt Guild pieced the quilt and Kielmeyer took the quilt top and quilted it.