Loving The Quilty Opportunities Coming My Way!

September 07, 2023

During the first months of retirement, I have had many opportunities thrown at me! It’s been amazing to spend time with friends and family, to reconnect with my hobbies and interests (quilting, quilting, quilting!), and to especially take advantage of leadership challenges that have come my way.

Right off the bat and practically timed with the beginning of my retirement year, was the opportunity to serve as co-chair of the Heritage Quilters of Huntsville Fanfare Quilt Show, set for March 15 and 16, 2024. This is a very big undertaking, but I know that co-chairing with my wonderful friend Cheryl Heeth and with an awesome committee, we will make it happen with great success! We are stepping it up this year by taking on a much bigger space at the Von Braun Center (South Hall 2), which is providing more room for the show itself along with vendors, special exhibits, and demonstrations and lectures. In August, we unveiled our show's Opportunity Quilt! Isn't it wonderful! We are hoping the publicity from this quilt will draw a large crowd to our very awesome showing of more than 225 quilts!

I also currently serve as the vice president of programs for HQH. That, in itself, has brought some cool opportunities my way. I love planning programs and collaborating with a wide range of speakers. During national speaker Trish Stuart’s visit with us in February, I learned about her art and creative process. Next, we have Chris Schulte from Green Light Quilts in Nashville coming to our guild in October and then Nina Clotfelter will visit in January. It is one of the perks of the job to get to know these awesome nationally recognized quilters and to learn about the industry from them.

In the spring, I actually launched my own business – Kari’s Creations. It’s a slow process for me because I have so much going on and because I’m retired – as in “If it isn’t fun or rewarding in some say, I’m not doing it!” I’ve started this blog, purchased a business license and business cards, and am working on a website. Who knows where this will take me and if I will ever really make any money. But, there are so many possibilities! And, since I’m in this for the long haul, I don’t mind taking my time making it happen.

One of the coolest opportunities I’ve had was an actual speaking engagement! David O’Dell, president of Madison Station Quilters, asked me to speak at the guild’s July program. It was such an honor! I put together a program on Quilts with Personality. I showed several quilts and talked about my creative process and how I like each quilt to sparkle with its own character. It was so much fun and so exciting that at one point my audience got to see me dance a jig! I hope I inspired the members of Madison Station Quilters because I can assure you they inspired me!