By Jacqueline Blumhagen
Annie Cox has always loved fabric; designs and the way that quilts came together. As a kid she starting sewing doll clothes and then starting quilting in the 1980’s because of the love of fabrics, and the creative ways to make quilt tops stand out using embellishments. There is also a strong history behind the art of quilting and the people that quilted in the early years.
Quilting started when people wanted to save fabric from clothes that weren’t thread bare, but were still useful for making blankets. This preserved the heritage of fabrics, early quilts told a story about the people that the fabrics came from; such as, Uncle Charlie’s overalls that he wore in the corn field, or Grandma Lily’s apron which she worn to make her prize winning apple pie. Quilts that have been preserved in museums can date back to the early 1800’s. Today’s quilts still tell a story and are often works of art that get passed down through the generations.
Annie’s love of quilting led her to open her own quilting store in Fernie in 1998. When she relocated to the South Country she took her business with her. She felt that there was a great need to offer the opportunity to learn the history of quilts and how to quilt. Her store front is located at the former Country Treasures in Grasmere on Highway 93. She offers classes, a beginner class using triangles will be in May, and a colour workshop will be in the fall. In her studio she has quilts for sale, fabrics, quilting notions and tools and she will custom finish your quilt using her long arm quilting machine. For more information give her a call at 250-423-0706.