Submitted by Janice Henderson –
Sometimes it seems that “quilting” is impossible to define. As a practical art form, it straddles the world between creativity and usefulness. Many quilts are intended solely for warmth, adding layers of comfort in cold winters. Others are made purely for artistic reasons and meant to be displayed on a wall.
No matter the intention, style or design, members of the Ottawa Valley Quilters Guild (OVQG)pride themselves on the high calibre of their quilts. Recently some of their members won high honours at the Canadian Quilter’s Association’s National juried show in Toronto, including Kitchissippi’s own Joan Dorsay.
Joan Dorsay’s incredible quilt titled “Not Now, Maybe Never” won first place in the “Quilts from Patterns/Books/Workshops” category. This comes as no surprise. Joan has won many awards for her quilting, including several Best of Show awards at the OVQG biannual quilt show.
This quilt was inspired with permission from many sources: including Aunt Millie’s Garden, Piece o’ Cake, C&T and designs by Jane Zillmer and Deborah Kemball. The sashing design is entirely original. She originally made this hand appliqué quilt for her daughter, but as a very large queen size quilt, it took over 2000 hours to complete. After several very hot and humid months of hand quilting on a lap frame, Joan “realized this quilt would likely be destroyed by her [daughter’s] two very frisky cats.” She’s decided to keep the quilt on her daughter’s behalf for now, though it is currently travelling for a year as part of the International Quilt Festival.
Joan is already pondering, planning, and making the hand appliqué, hand quilted quilts she hopes to show next year, in the biannual OVQG quilt show on May 12-14, 2017. One of them, titled “If at first…” is already completed. This show’s goal is to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday, and with award-winning quilters like Joan it promises to be an amazing show.
Janice Henderson started quilting in grade 11 when she grew too big for her childhood quilt. She is past president and current publicity coordinator for the Ottawa Valley Quilters Guild. Recently she has been delighting in bringing a variety of quilts into local schools and community centres to showcase the artistic value of quilting.