The Row by Row Experience

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by Nina Wood

For a county the size of Grand as far as population, the talent here is amazing. And it’s in all kinds of areas, from our 4-H’ers and their projects, the horsemen and women, artists, photographers, and writers.

No surprise then to find the Fabric Nook in Granby and quilters in our area include some very artistic individuals as well. And now The Fabric Nook has become a part of a national and international fun project using their talents.

Something called ‘The Row by Row Experience” began in the US in 2011, with just 20 quilt shops all in New York. The next year there were 62 shops, and by the time Pennsylvania joined in 2013, there were 138 shops just in those 2 states.

As they say, the rest is history, kind of, since the growth is still continuing. Last year, over 2600 shops including the US and Canada are on board, and Europe is starting off as well.

So what is a “Row by Row Experience”? It’s a quilt or a wall hanging. designs differ by participating shop, created to reflect this year’s theme “Home Sweet Home.”

Here’s where the talent comes in. Tina Holley of the Fabric Nook decided to get her shop involved, so she came up with what she calls a “vision.” After creating a rough draft, she drew on the talents of Bert Schilling from Cowdrey who created a sketch to scale that was more topically accurate. A bit of enlargement later, and a minor re-draw, and it was time to choose fabrics.

Cyndi Lewis is known as the Nook’s visual design consultant, and with the assistance of Claire Rudtila, a member of the Peaks N Pines Quilters ended up with 18 different fabrics for this 9 ½ by 36 ½ scene entitled “Through the Aspens”. The end result is a stunning panel of eight “rows” depicting a visual scene of what makes Grand County home.

Pre-cut kits for this Row by Row Experience are available at the Fabric Nook in Granby, all cut by Terry Schilling and ready to sew together to create your own beauty. The first individual to bring in their “Through the Aspens” will win a stack of 25 fat quarters to begin something new.

If you seek more information on this or any other sewing or knitting project, the Fabric Nook can be reached at 887-2005