Having acknowledged that Buds & Blossoms would not be a raffle quilt, we began to question whether or not we really needed to have one. As we could see no better way to promote our upcoming show, and we would need the funds, it was decided to give it one more try. Buried at the back of our closet was a box of Dresden Plate pieces that our group had inherited. Surely we could bear to raffle a common little Dresden plate quilt.

Several of our members preferred to work on this more humble quilt, rather than on the "masterpiece". The petals were sorted into the usual lots of sixteen. Then the ladies set to work creating the circles. All of these came out poking up in the middle. A Crumpled up newsprint pattern from the bottom of the box solved the problem. It read" Lazy Daisy Quilt, cut 17 petals". When the ladies added the extra petal, the "plate: lay flat. Daisies, of course, need an odd number of petals so it will always come out "He loves me!"

Regarded at first with some disdain, our cheerful little raffle quilt began to grow on us. Careful consideration of background colour, an accent print to give it substance, and an appropriate choice of quilting pattern had produced a quilt of which we all felt proud.

We entered it in the 1986 Handcraft Competition at the C.N.E. where our Friendship Circle Quilt, a.k.a. Dresden Plate, won the following awards: Best Quilt by a Group, Best Quilting Overall, and .. ta-daa Best of Show!

At last we had a quilt that we were happy to raffle. Displayed downtown in a member's shop window, our mundane little quilt just sold itself. Even as it was being hung, a lot of people began to gather outside. Flaunting its bright red C.N.E. ribbon, our little raffle quilt lured people into the shop to buy tickets. Everywhere it went it did us proud, raising money and drawing attention to our upcoming show. Five thousand tickets were printed; all were sold. The happy winner was Harriet Rook, of Kingston , ON .

For a more detailed picture, click on quilt.

Send questions and comments to: khq at quiltskingston.org
Last modified by dhh: January 20, 2006