This quilt is an original design. It is premised on the center panel, Lakeside Echo. The piece is 60" wide by 69" long. It was designed, assembled and quilted over a period of three months.
The Lakeside Echo is being donated by the maker for the Serendipity Auction located in Dumas, Arkansas. The auction is on Monday, October 27, 2025. The proceeds from this event are shared between the Dumas chamber of commerce and the Desha County Museum.
About the Quilt
The center panel is the inspiration for this creation. Wetlands are an integral part of Desha County as is hunting waterfowl. Thus, the use of this panel. In order to create a useable quilt, an expansion of the length and width was needed. This was accomplished by extending the sunrise at the top of the piece and the water at the bottom. The color palette for these sections was driven by the colors present in the panel. As for the top and bottom block designs, they are both predicated on differing arrangements of half-square triangles.
Having assembled a very long and narrow quilt top, it was necessary to add some width to enhance the overall proportion of the piece. The issue for me was: What to do that will not detract from the existing work? After considering several options, I decided to employ color in such a way that it expanded the visual sense of the panel. Once again, the use of complimentary colors as well as appropriate positioning was the key to solving the width issue.
Once the warm, golden-brown border strips were added, the top was ready for quilting. The photo does not clearly show the custom quilting that was done to complete the piece. Three different quilting designs and thread colors were used on this work. Each pattern was selected to add another level of visual interest, and each thread color was employed to coordinate with the area in which it was used.
As the creator of this unique quilt, it is my hope that it will achieve an auction price worthy of its intrinsic value. We shall see.....
Update
The quilt was well received by attendees of the auction. I was able to provide a little background about the piece. The bidding started at $500.00. There was only one bid. I was very pleased with the outcome. Overall, the auction was successful and raised significant funding for both the museum and the chamber of commerce.
