How to Make a Mineola Quilt

By James Kennedy

The art of quilting goes back over 200 years in American History. It is through the efforts of people such as the members of Nimble Fingers Quilters, who meet at the Mineola Community Center every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., that this folk art form has achieved an amount of recognition and respect.

Quilting began out of necessity commented member Louise Morea who recalled how her mother made quilts for her back in Massachusetts to guard against the cold. MaryAnn Farmer said the necessity transformed into an art form and also into an addiction for avid quilters such as the Nimble Fingers.

Fingers Be Nimble...

A sewing group, consisting of a group of about five women, began meeting in each other's homes in 1983 under the auspices of first president Dorothy Gedat.

As news got out, the group got larger and a request was made to Bea Gardner to use the Mineola Memorial Library's Auditorium to house their meetings.

The group, Lillian Conolly is credited with naming, The Nimble Fingers met every second and fourth week of the month.

Farmer first read about the group in the Mineola American in 1986 after she moved to Mineola from Flushing, Queens where she had lived for 28 years.

Farmer could not join the group because The Nimble Fingers did not teach beginners. Farmer instead watched the women work and with her experience sewing doll's clothes soon enough picked up the craft.

Farmer and some of the quilters, such as Morea, lobbyed to meet more than twice a month. Soon, 17 members were meeting once a week in the library, and eventually moving on to the community center.

The Nimble Fingers are an open group but they put limits to their size. The requirements for joining are that one must be able to quilt and one must be able to pay their yearly dues.

The organization is not instructional. "We do not have time to teach. We tell people to take lessons and when you can quilt come back," explained Morea who is quick to add that they never turn away someone who has questions.

One woman from Israel, while spending time in Mineola, picked up the art form by watching the members of the club as they quilted. The quilting bond stretches across the ocean as she occasionally calls the Mineola Library from her home in Israel to speak to her quilting friends.

Keeping Each Other in Stitches

Every member of the group gets to have a quilt of their own made by the collective Nimble Fingers. Originally a raffle was held to find out who would receive the quilt, but some member's names were never chosen.

So now everyone takes a turn getting a quilt, the newest members getting on the back of the line.

Each member chooses a pattern in a block form and every member quilts a block. After the blocks are assembled, the group works on binding the material together. There must be a lot of cooperation in the group said Farmer.

The Nimble Fingers also put their quilting acumen to use raising money for charity. In the past they have made baby quilts and crocheted bonnets for North Shore and Winthrop-University Hospital, as well as dolls that doctors use to explain to child patients what kind of surgery they might have.

Some of the money they raised from their first quilting show held in 1993 was given to the library, as well as revenues raised by some of the boutique items the group made and sold.

The Tortoise and the Hare

Farmer said she goes to stores and is excited by all the different colors and new materials she encounters. When quilting she likes to go back and forth between projects.

Morea on the other hand likes to take her time concentrating on making one quilt before going on to the next. Farmer described herself and Morea as the tortoise and the hare, respectively when it comes to quilting.

Farmer started quilting after she visited Pennsylvania and became enamored with a quilt she encountered. She drew the pattern on a piece of paper and tried to get as much information as possible.

Finding the information difficult to come by, her quest eventually took her to The Nimble Fingers of Mineola. Through trial and error she learned. "I was determined that I was going to make that quilt."

Morea said she sewed since she was a child, doing knitting, needlepoint, crochet, etc. "Quilting was part of the natural progression," said Morea.

The Tools of the Trade

"You can collect all sorts of gadgets," said Morea. "And you do when you start," added Farmer.

Though a machine can be used, both Morea and Farmer agree that there is a certain look to a handmade quilt that is very appealing.

The fabric should be washed and ironed before it is used.

Special needles, hoops, pins, a cutting board, plastic templates, rulers with quarter inch markings, a scissors for paper and a scissors for fabric are just some of the tools of the trade.

Quilting thread is necessary for its strength and preferably should be made of 100 percent cotton.

The needle should be sharp, short and have a good sized eye. A thimble with a dimple is also a good tool according to Morea. Farmer suggested the use of a silver or yellow pencil to make marks on dark cloth.

A Quilt by Any Other Name...

Quilts come in all sizes such as wall quilts, lap quilts, sofa quilts, bed quilts, comforters, bedspreads, coverlets for pillows and toppers to place over bedspreads.

There are generally two types of quilts; piecework and applique. In piecework quilting the pieces are stitched together. It must be very accurate according to the quilters as a slight inaccuracy could throw off the entire quilt.

A crazy quilt is a piecework quilt that originated in the Victorian Era. These quilts are comprised of rich fabrics such as satins and velvets linked together depending on the shape of the piece that is needed.

These quilts of rich fabrics are often adored with beads, embroidery and other embellishments.

In applique quilting shapes are cut out and the edges are turned in to represent leaves, birds and cats. A blind stitch, one that is not visible on the quilt, is used in this type of quilt and they are bound to a background.

Punch the Clock, It's Quilting Time

The process basically begins with a decision of what kind of quilt to make, piecework or applique. Using primarily cotton material or calico for small prints the material is piled into three layers.

The top layer is the design piece and it is placed over the batting which is the fluffy stuff between the design layer and the bottom layer. The bottom layer is the backing, and can be fancy or plain muslin.

Pencils are used to trace plastic templates such as the standard Grandmother's Flower Garden in designs on the top layer of the quilt. Then working from the center of the quilt outwards the lines are stitched.

A quilter does not want blank space on the quilt because the space allows for air to enter the quilt and cause it to balloon. "The more quilting the richer the quilt," said Farmer.

In applique quilts, the pieces are pinned down, basted or tacked down to keep them from shifting.

A quilt or running stitch of quilting thread in straight lines or patterns goes in and out through the three layers of fabric in all types of quilts. Then the quilter binds the outer edge.

"A quilt is not a quilt until it is quilted," said Farmer.

Thank You from the Nimble Fingers

The Nimble Fingers wish to thank Tommy O'Brien who helped them with their recent show at the Mineola Community Center. "He was a real doll," said Morea, "We could not have done anything without his help."

The Nimble Fingers would like to additionally thank Sean McCrave and Frank Temperino from the Mineola Department of Public Works for making them the quilt racks they used at their recent show.

With their shows and their activities, this group of Mineola quilters are

(Kristin Bonfanti contributed to this article.)