Friday, July 18, 2025, 10:30am – 11:30am, First United Methodist Church, 624 S Adams Street, Marion, IN

Step back in time with this special presentation featuring remarkable quilts from the 1920s and 1930s created using the patterns designed by the influential Ruby Short McKim. The Quilters Hall of Fame Collections Committee will showcase these historical treasures while sharing insights into McKim’s significant impact on American quilting history.

Ruby Short McKim was one of America’s most beloved and widely recognized quilt designers of the early 20th century. Her innovative block patterns were syndicated in newspapers across the nation, bringing quilting instructions directly into homes during a time when the craft was experiencing renewed popularity. While McKim herself designed the patterns, quilters throughout America brought her visions to life, creating beautiful works that reflected both her artistic sensibility and their own craftsmanship.

During this presentation, you’ll examine authentic quilts made from McKim’s designs that now reside in The Quilters Hall of Fame collection. You’ll learn about her distinctive design aesthetic, the cultural context of her work, and the stories behind her popular newspaper-syndicated series like “Quaddy Quilties” and “Flower Garden Quilt.” Committee members will discuss McKim’s artistic influences, her business acumen, and her legacy in the quilting world.

Whether you’re a quilt historian, a collector of vintage patterns, or simply fascinated by the evolution of American quilting traditions, this presentation offers a rare opportunity to see these historical interpretations of McKim’s designs up close while learning about one of quilting’s most influential pattern creators.

A How-To Memoir with 25 Quilts to Make

“Why do I make quilts? Every step of the way is an enjoyment. The process is rewarding and as a teacher there is a need to pas it on and share.”

Bet inspired with the Grande Dame of American quilting and use your scrap fabric to make your best quilts ever! Blending art and ease, Georgia Bonesteel, the creator and host of PBS’s Lap Quilting, shares updated methods for making 25 classic quilt patterns using only your fabrics on hand. Along the way, enjoy homespun wisdom, funny stories, surprising moments, and personal lessons Georgia has learned through her decades of trailblazing in the quilt world, and get an entertaining glimpse into her home and studio.

For all levels of quilters; pattern templates are included.

Join beloved TV personality Eleanor Burns for this exciting workshop where you’ll create a stunning 24″ x 24″ patriotic wall hanging!

In this hands-on session, you’ll work with beautiful patriotic fabrics (included in your kit) that have been pre-fused with interfacing and precision-cut into an eagle shape using an Accuquilt cutter. Eleanor will guide you through the raw edge appliqué technique, showing you how to enhance your eagle with colorful threads using a buttonhole stitch around the outer edges.

Eleanor’s warm personality and expert instruction make this workshop not just educational but truly entertaining. Don’t miss this opportunity to create a beautiful patriotic piece while enjoying time with one of quilting’s most charismatic teachers!

Kit Included: Pattern, pre-cut eagle, fabric for 24″ square wall hanging, and binding.

Tools to Bring:

• Sewing Machine with buttonhole stitch and wide mouth throat plate
• Scissors
• Stiletto
• Seam ripper
• Thread in red, yellow, green, and blue

Notes: We will have some machines available for loans. Please make a note on the checkout page if you would like to reserve one. Machines are available on a first-come, first-served basis. If you are a TQHF member, enter “member” into the coupon field on the checkout page for a $5 discount.

Skill Level: Suitable for confident beginners and beyond

Techniques Learned: Raw edge appliqué, decorative buttonhole stitching

Friday, July 18, 2025, 3:00pm – 4:00pm, First United Methodist Church, Parlor, 624 S Adams Street, Marion, IN

Join us for a fascinating bed-turning presentation celebrating the South’s rich quilting heritage. Renowned quilt expert Mary W. Kerr will guide you through a curated collection of Southern quilts, revealing the distinctive characteristics that set them apart from quilts of other regions.

During this immersive experience, Mary will showcase the unique elements that define Southern quilting traditions—from distinctive pattern choices and the meticulous use of tiny pieces to characteristic color palettes that reflect regional influences. As each quilt is unveiled, you’ll discover the stories behind these textile treasures and develop a deeper appreciation for their historical and cultural significance.

Learn how the South’s diverse quilting traditions developed across all socioeconomic levels and within various communities, including African American, Scots Irish, and German settlements. Mary’s expert commentary will illuminate how these cultural influences shaped distinctive regional styles and techniques that continue to inspire quilters today.

Whether you’re a passionate quilt historian, a collector of Southern textiles, or simply curious about America’s rich quilting heritage, this bed-turning presentation offers a rare opportunity to examine these remarkable quilts up close while learning from one of the field’s most knowledgeable experts.

The Quilters Hall of Fame is a well-known organization dedicated to celebrating those who have made outstanding contributions to the world of quilting- quilters, authors, historians, and others. This book features 42 quilting legends who have shaped the art- from early twentieth-century quilt designer Ruby McKim to quilt curator Jonathan Holstein to contemporary art quilter Nancy Crow. Accompanying these profiles, you’ll find a showcase of great quilts with more than 100 glorious color photographs of the artists’ work as well as historical photographs, ads, and pattern booklets.

Saturday July 19, 2025 10:30am – 11:30am Marion Public Library, Meeting Room B, 600 S Washington St, Marion, IN

Bertha Meckstroth (1875-1960) created during her lifetime 180 iconoclastic quilts she called “sculptures in cloth.” Utterly original, her masterpieces featured reverse applique, trapunto, and hand quilting. Her will stipulated the 89 works still in her possession be kept together, citing the $70,000 she set aside for their stewardship. Instead, her life’s work was scattered to the wind. In a probing and entertaining presentation that received a standing ovation at QuiltCon 2024, Mary Fons relates the shocking story of a woman done wrong.

About the Presenter: Mary Fons is a writer, editor, and livestreamer who specializes in quilt history and the life of quilts in popular culture. Her livestream broadcast, Quilt Nerd, airs twice a week on Twitch.

Since 2016, Mary has worked in various capacities at Quiltfolk, serving as editor of Quiltfolk magazine (2017-2021), and contributes currently as a writer and online workshop instructor. In 2023, she became the creative director behind the Quiltfolk Foundry project. Prior to that, Mary was editor and creative director of Quilty magazine, and developed, produced, and hosted more than 250 episodes of Quilty, a how-to show for beginner quilters on YouTube with combined views in the millions. On television, Mary hosted or co-hosted Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting on PBS alongside her mother, Marianne Fons. She is the author of Make & Love Quilts: Scrap Quilts for the 21st Century (C&T/StashBooks) and Dear Quilty (F&W Media). She has served as a columnist for Quilts, Inc., and her articles on quilt history and culture have appeared in publications such as Quiltfolk, Blanket Statements, Curated Quilts, Modern Patchwork, and Love of Quilting, among others.

Saturday July 19, 2025 1:00pm – 2:00pm Gethsemane Episcopal Church, 111 E 9^th St. Marion, IN.

The Quilters Hall of Fame is proud to present Laurel McKay Horton as its 2025 honoree. A distinguished quilt scholar, researcher, author, editor, lecturer, consultant, and teacher, Horton has made significant contributions that have shaped the world of quilting in research, publications, museums and preservation. Horton’s impressive career includes ten years as editor of “Uncoverings,” the American Quilt Study Group’s prestigious annual publication.

Laurel’s presentation compares and contrasts two early American white bed covers and details the lives of their makers. Maria Upshaw (1770-1852) was born to a wealthy Virginia family and came to Kentucky with her husband in 1801. Elizabeth O’Neal (1786-1892) grew up in a large family on a farm in Nelson County, Kentucky. They were among the numerous daughters of Revolutionary War veterans who silently expressed their identity as patriotic American women through their quilts and embroidered and woven counterpanes. This presentation summarizes the results of Laurel’s two decades of research on the origins and significance of these largely ignored and misinterpreted textile treasures, serving as an example of the scholarship and skills for which she is widely recognized.