Quilt Show has successful first run

ALPENA, Mich. — A new show had a successful first run at the APlex this weekend.

The complex’s first-ever Quilt Show had plenty of attendees on Friday and Saturday.

The event featured guest speakers, a raffle, and more than a hundred quilt submissions.

Elaine Sommerfeld, who organized the event, said she was inspired by a trip to an out–of–state quilt show with her sister.

“And coming back, we started talking and thinking. And thought ‘you know what? Alpena doesn’t have quilt shows that we’ve known of.’ So we decided to try and bring one in here.”

There were Fourth of July quilts with stitches in the shape of fireworks. Another quilt depicted a sewing machine; its stitching was made up of mechanical, parallel lines. These things aren’t just bedcovers; they’re works of art in their own right.

Enthusiast Gaylann Rowe–Brown said she loves going to these shows because they give her a look into other quilters’ minds.

“To me, quilting is just a cool culmination of how you feel about color and design. Every one of them is so different. These fabrics that you can be so familiar with, but it’s how someone has chosen to use them.”

Sommerfeld said she looks forward to next year’s show in May.