Earlier this month we gathered in Cedar for Quilt Camp with fairy-quilt-guides Cody Cook-Parrott, Ellen Rutt, and saylem m. celeste. Ten makers from across the country came to Leelanau County for four days of stitching. We find over and over again, that when you step away from the world to spend four days on a farm crafting, that it’s not just about the craft. It’s about some deeper truth. These are some of the silly, brave, and beautiful truths that drifted through the room at Quilt Camp.

“I want to live in this neighborhood”

– referencing the blocks and structures on their quilt 

“My fine art paintings are in an attic, but my quilts are on my friend’s couches”

– on the love and utility of making your friends quilts

“I was afraid to do this, and I did it”

– on embracing imperfection and creative vulnerabilities

“Every September, I do something for myself. It helps me to be more generous to others when I extend that generosity to myself. This September, I’m giving myself quilt camp”

– a student on why they’re at quilt camp

“I’m here to remember I have a body’

– a student on why they’re at quilt camp

“When I sit down, I ask myself: will this help piece me back together?”

– on quilting