An iconic American textile art, quilts have been known to play an important thematic role in short stories like Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” and Susan Glaspell’s “A Jury of Her Peers.” Both the intricate process of their creation and their enduring meaning as keepsakes make quilts transcend their function.
In the East Bay, Piecemakers Quilt Guild keeps the art of quiltmaking alive and preserves the original function of quilts as an expression of creativity and care.
For American settlers, quilting was a way of reusing fabric scraps, as well as for women to socialize at quilting bees, sometimes even finishing an entire quilt in one day. Piecemakers got its start in 1981, with a group of women organized by Patches Quilt Shop owners Gladys Clayson and Judy Shelton. They revised bylaws used by Santa Clara Valley Quilt Guild.
Member Toni Mathues, who has been quilting for 15 years, called quiltmaking “a healthy addiction.” (In fact, she was piecing together a quilt while interviewing.)…