Quilting in a She Shed

When you live in a cold climate like Cristin Drewes, you understand words like “cozy” and “alpenglow” better than most. Cristin lives near Salt Lake City, where the high mountains become a deep orange and rosy color when the sun goes down (that’s alpenglow). Her light-filled she shed reflects the wintry wonder of Christmas this month in our She Shed Living calendar, and she is sure to transform the decor many times throughout the year for significant holidays.

Lately, though, Cristin’s she shed has become an important part of her new passion: making quilts. In the past two years Cristin has made more than 30 quilts and also collects vintage quilts. She’s added quilting to her impressive list of pastimes that includes cross-stitch. Her shed is often the place she goes to for making things and consulting her growing store of brightly colored fabrics.

A Quilt Retreat Started It All

A few years ago, Cristin’s friend invited her to a quilting retreat in the mountains. “She helped me make a simple quilt from a kit before we went so that I wasn’t starting from scratch,” Cristin says. “The rest is history. I had such a great time with her. I made a few quilt tops while I was there and then came home and made many, many more.”

Quilting is historically a social craft, providing the excuse for hardworking farmwives over the centuries to get together with their neighbors and friends. The act of making quilts, swapping patterns, sharing fabrics and teaching each other better ways to sew, bind and finish all commingled with conversation and social interaction.

Those without quilting companions close by have a lot of options online to join virtual quilting bees, or they can plan a trip Hamilton, Missouri. There, you can meet Jenny Doan and see the extraordinary world of shops, classes and community called the Missouri Star Quilt Co. YouTube is Cristin’s go-to community: “I’ve found the answers to of my questions via quilt tutorials,” she says.

Still, the peace and quiet of a light-filled she shed is what Cristin chooses when she’s working on her quilts. She has plenty of space in which to lay out her design, select the fabrics and then piece the blocks together. In particular, Cristin enjoys creating her quilt bindings, which she sews by hand. (The quilting stitches, which are the stitching patterns that hold all the layers of the quilt together, are often completed by someone with a long-arm sewing machine, which is much easier and quicker.)

Why Quilts and Sheds Go Together

Cristin has literally woven her love for quilts into her she shed life. Here are the ways she does it (and maybe you might pick up a few ideas for yourself):

• Morning time is the best light for working on quilts. Cristin is also fortunate to have alpenglow, which comes either in the morning or at sunset when the sun is low on the horizon and lights up the mountains. The rosy light perhaps inspires her with new ideas for color or design.
• Bindings are an important design element in Cristin’s quilts so she takes her time and stitches them all by hand, in her shed.
• The shed has a built-in bench, which is always accompanied by one of Cristin’s quilts. A quilt is also always on hand in the loft, for book reading or a nap.
• Cristin has held baby and bridal showers in her shed and is now thinking about a quilting bee in the spring. “The shed may be a bit small but we could spread out the quilt in front on the lawn and work on it in a circle outside,” she muses.

Have you thought about learning to quilt? Maybe now is the time to make that resolution with New Years right around the corner! If you’re thinking a she shed could be useful for all of your creative pursuits, take a look at our gallery for inspiration.