Quilts and Coverlets: American Needlework in White

Hey, ho! This is exciting!

Well, for this midwest gal, anyway…

Just down the road in St. Louis, there’s a free exhibition at the St. Louis Art Museum until April 18, 2027.

The exhibition is titled Quilts and Coverlets: American Needlework in White, and it promises to be a good excuse for enthusiastic needleworkers, textile lovers, needlework historians, and quilters to visit the Gateway to the West!

I love visiting St. Louis, so this exhibition is definitely on my radar if I can get a chance for a break between now and April. The city is an easy 5-hour drive down the road, and I’ve stayed in the surrounding areas many a time over the years, when traveling to and from other destinations.

When I get a chance to stay in the vicinity, I do a little research before hand and pick out one part or place in St. Louis that I haven’t been to before. And I usually revisit old favorites, too: Forest Park, Tower Park, the botanical gardens, the basilica, the Hill, and oh-so-much more!

There’s a lot to do in St. Louis and Surrounds! There are many free attractions – like beautiful parks, the art museum, the museum of history, the zoo, the basilica – and lots of historical neighborhood areas with boutique shopping, several needlework shops, a great food scene, the river, the arch, ballgames, and so forth. St. Charles is just a hop, skip, and a jump away, too, with the Katy Trail, the Lewis & Clark boathouse & museum, the shrine of St. Philippine Duchesne, a lovely little historical downtown with a colonial vibe… It’s a fun area to explore! And not too far away from there is Hermann, with some lovely bed and breakfasts, wineries, and other attractions. It’s especially pretty in the autumn!

If you live in the midwest or happen to be passing through between now and April, you might consider a stop in St. Louis to enjoy this free exhibition at the St. Louis Art Museum. If you’ve been to it already, I’d love to hear what you thought of it!

What’s New & Coming Up

We can’t seem to keep these wonderful little mini awls in stock! Every time we get more in, they fly out the door again – but we did just get a shipment, so if you’ve been waiting, they’re here!

We also restocked a few popular hoop sizes and we have more on order. We have thread drops in stock, too, as well as more linen sample packs in white and natural. These sample packs are very popular and we only stock them as we can, so if you would like to try a few different weights and types of linen, feel free to pick one up while we have them!

We are working on our next stitch-along, which is this year’s Christmas ornament. I’ve ordered all the kit supplies for it, so we’ll be assembling those soon. I’ll be sharing some sneak peeks! We hope to offer a variety of extra designs in the same style, so Anna and I are both working on those as time allows.

I’m still functioning on a Dad-Care Schedule, so studio life is a bit off and on. We’re trying to pull everything together into a coherent schedule so that I can reasonably keep up with work and home life. It’s crucial for me to keep up with work. This is one of those unforeseen situations that makes jumping from a (secure) career into self-employment ever-so-risky. Needle ‘n Thread wouldn’t survive without your continued support, so thank you for that!

I’ll keep you posted as things change, because I’m pretty sure things will continue to change. It’s about the only thing I’m sure of at the moment.

But we’re hanging in here, and I’m glad we have our Christmas ornament coming up for you soon! I can’t wait to show you! It’ll be a fun one!