Quilting shop opens in TRE

Step through the door of the new Quilter's Quarters in Topaz Ranch Estates and you enter a world of warmth and comfort. Alice Raymond and Sylvia Milam, a 30-year quilting veteran, are there to greet you with a welcoming smile. The country charm of colorful quilt designs in the valance decorated windows and wall hangings, intermingled with shelves filled with bolts of cloth, racks of threads and other quiltlng notions as well as books and all the necessities to complete any artistic quilting project imaginable catch the visitors immediate attention.

Quilting is no longer considered just a craft ... it is an art and, although utilitarian in nature, it has now become a means to preserve thoughts or memories of special things that can be handed down for generations in a visual and touchable art form. It is truly "art from the heart."

The Quilter's Quarters is now here in our area to provide the classes to perpetuate the art and easy access to the materials to do it.

Raymond moved to Smith Valley three years ago having retired from the Las Vegas Police Department as a Fingerprint Identification Specialist after 31 1/2 years.

When asked why the odd number of years, Raymond said, "I chose Groundhog's Day as the day I wanted to retire and I was set on that date, then three years later, I open my shop on ... Groundhog's Day.

"It was like an ending and a beginning for me," she added.

After moving to Smith Valley, Raymond met a wonderful group of women, the Pineneedlers, a quilting club in the Valley. Twenty-seven members strong, Raymond found camaraderie with the group but soon realized the difficulties club members faced in getting materials to complete some of their quilting projects. Those difficulties were the beginnings of Raymond's idea to open a store in the area.

Raymond was quick to point out a story about the beautifully quilted valances that decorate the three windows in her shop. As a grand opening gift, each member of the Pineneedlers made a quilt square of their own design, each individually signed and dated, presenting them to Raymond who, in turn, made them into the valances to decorate the shop. Now, when Raymond looks around her shop, she has a little piece of inspiration from each one of her friends to remind her of her dream for shop ownership.

A TRE resident for the past 19 years, Ginger Sagran, also a member of the Pineneedlers and a quilter for almost 30 years, will be providing the first beginner's lessons of six sessions each, at Quilter's Quarters starting this Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon. The classes, open to six students at a time, will be $15 for the first class meeting and $10 each for the following five sessions. Class will meet every two weeks to give students time in between sessions to complete each step in doing their projects.

"We are going to be pretty flexible in the beginning," Sagran said, "until we see what people want and how much interest we have."

Sagran just came back from a weekend quilter's retreat in Bishop, Calif., where she had lived when she began quilting.

"I used to do a lot of quilting but then with all the other things I have done, I just didn't have the time," she said.

Sagran has been a professional dog and horse trainer. She was the program director for Kids & Horses Therapeutic Riding Center for several years as well.

"We all met in the Bishop Masonic Temple for the retreat. Our project was a mystery quilt. We were all supposed to show up with a box of just pieces of fabric and we had no idea what we were going to do. From 8:30 in the morning until noon on the first day of the retreat the project was laid out for the quilters. The next day was a marathon session of sewing with no interruptions as they worked from 8:30 in the morning until 8:30 that evening with dinner provided."

Sagran's daughter, who lives in Bishop, joined her.

"I got to spend some real quality time with my daughter," Sagran said.

Quilter's Quarters will be open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed on Tuesdays and Sundays. The shop is located at 1490 Albite Road, Suite 6, in the new Arden Square. Directions can be found on Web site www.quiltersquarters.topaznv.com or you can call 266-4350 for more information.

-- In other news, Iggy and Squiggy's in Holbrook will begin their spring season by offering an event "Hamburgers & Beer." Enjoy their 1/2 pound burger with a 16 ounce beer or soda for $7.50 or add cheese for just a little extra. The will be available from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on Fridays and 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. They will also offer Burgers & Beer Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, and President's Day, Feb. 19, from 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m. They will be closed Easter and Mother's Day. Starting April 10, Burgers & Beer will be offered Wednesday through Friday 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m. on weekends. On May 28, Memorial Day, Iggy and Squiggy's Junction Bar will celebrate their 25th anniversary with a complimentary barbecue. You are invited to bring your favorite stories, pictures, etc. and join in the fun.

Until next week just keep on keepin' on.

-- Jonni Hill can be reached through The Record-Courier at jhill@recordcourier.com or by calling 782-5121, ext. 213, or after hours at JHILL47@aol.com