Homemade comforts on display at the Charles City Arts Center

By Kate Hayden, khayden@charlescitypress.com

Ana Blickenderfer’s quilts have traveled across the U.S., but Friday’s reception will start the first solo showcase of her cozy crafts.

Twelve samples of Blickenderfer’s work will be on display at the Charles City Arts Center through May, with a reception running from 5-7 p.m. to open the show.

“It’s really exciting. I was surprised to be asked,” Blickenderfer, who operates a custom quilting business out of her home, said. “I’m really honored. A lot of time has gone into all these projects. I really hope the show gets people interested in quilting, either because people like to look at quilts or want to make them.”

On display are quilts that have already received awards and high praise for Blickenderfer at shows, and one brand new quilt she will be submitting to shows this year — called Amazon Star. The quilt, made with purple, blue and white fabrics, took about 120 hours for Blickenderfer to assemble the paper piecing over three weeks’ time.

“That one is gigantic,” Blickenderfer said. “It takes a lot of old techniques like the lone star pattern … I really, really love that one. It’s huge, but I’m hoping it does well at shows this year.”

The quilt is one of the many paper-piecing samples Blickenderfer is creating as she undergoes training to be a certified Quiltworx instructor. By the time she receives her full certification, Blickenderfer will have spent more than four weeks working with Quiltworx founder Judy Neimeyer on paper-piecing technique.

Blickenderfer’s involvement with Quiltworx is changing the landscape of her at-home workshop as well: Blickenderfer and her husband are building a workshop addition to their home, where she will host workshop sessions for quilters interested in learning paper-piecing techniques. Currently those classes are held in her home, but she hopes to open the workshop space early next year with regular hours.

Blickenderfer will also carry Quiltworx fabrics — the current closest retailer is 75 miles away in Rochester, Minnesota, she said — and she will move her longarm quilting machine from her basement to the workspace. Her custom-quilting business — through which she creates commissioned quilts or finishes other quilt tops with backing and binding — is booked up until September.

Anyone interested in commissioning a project can reach Blickenderfer through Facebook, @SewThat, or visit her website at www.icansewthat.com.

“I really want to pass on my love of quilting to other people, and get younger generations involved in sewing,” she said. “I want my daughter to keep sewing, and maybe get people my age involved. Sewing is a good skill.”