Stikine Stitchers quilt their way to a pattern of fun activities

In a room decorated with bright, quilted wall hangings and filled with stacks of quilting pattern books, the Stikine Stitchers discussed upcoming projects, swapped tricks of the trade and displayed recently completed work at their monthly meeting last Saturday.

Lisa Torgramsen unfolded a few of her massive, colorful quilts, covered in twisting vines, bright flowers and complex geometric designs.

Chris Ellis shared work that was smaller but just as intricate. Her hand-pieced cloth coasters featured Alaska wildlife in miniature, including colorful crabs, bears and moose.

Karen Leak showed off her giraffe baby blanket, which was made with extra-soft backing fabric - perfect for a baby's sensitive skin.

The Stikine Stitchers is a quilting guild that was founded about 15 years ago as a way for Wrangell's quilting community to come together. The group meets monthly, with an average of 12 members attending each meeting.

"They're a wonderful group of people," said longtime member Torgramsen. "There's some genetic magic that happens with quilters, they're all pretty much nice people." The guild offers a supportive space where area quilters "all learn from each other and we all encourage each other," she added.

Torgramsen started quilting 43 years ago, before the birth of her first child. After retiring from her job as a hospital clerk, she started The Fishwife Quilt Shop and began pursuing her craft full time. "It's just my passion," she said. "When I don't have anything else that I need to do, I will sew."

When she was working full time, a single quilt could take between six months and two years, depending on the size and complexity of the design. Now that she's retired and has made the switch to machine quilting, they typically take four to six weeks.

Many of her regular customers are members of the local quilting community, but some are cruise ship tourists or fisherman seeking repairs on their boat canvases. She recently opened an online Etsy store that could expand her geographic reach.

Chris Ellis has been a member since 2004, when she moved to Wrangell from Craig. She likes to juggle multiple projects at once to keep things interesting and avoid tiring her fingers. "I tend to do mine as the spirit moves me," she said. "Patterns are a suggestion. ... I switch things up."

The group prioritizes community involvement, explained president Mary Shilts and secretary Janet Buness. Members donate quilts to Hannah's Place, Christmas Tree Lane, Cancer Care and long-term care at Wrangell Medical Center. The organization is also planning to hold a bear-themed quilting display at the Nolan Center for this year's BearFest.

"The club makes a decision that we want to do something," said Buness. "It's a group project."

Learning to quilt can be overwhelming, but having a supportive group to bounce ideas off of can help with the learning curve, Shilts said.

Quilting is "difficult to do when you're working," Buness acknowledged, but for her, the time commitment is worth it. "There are so many things that you can make."

Their next meeting is scheduled for Feb. 11 at 1 p.m. in the room behind the Episcopal Church.