Ye Olde Schoolhouse

When Jeanie Rudich noticed a for-sale sign in front of a former schoolhouse, she knew a quilt shop would be a perfect fit for the building. She and her husband, George, purchased the historic Cedarburg, Wisconsin, structure, restored it, and opened Ye Olde Schoolhouse quilt shop.

Reproduction prints and homespuns fill the shelves at Ye Olde Schoolhouse. Fabrics from some of Jeanie’s favorite designers, including Nancy Gere, Mary Koval, Paula Barnes of Bonnie Blue Quilts, and Margo Krager of Reproduction Fabrics, and entire lines from Barbara Brackman, Jo Morton, and Judie Rothermel round out the collection.

Seated, from left: Jeanie Rudich (owner) and George Rudich; standing: Diane Govern, Carol Scharl, and Laurel Hornick; not pictured: Mary Corrigan.

Original bookcases from the former schoolhouse library hold miniature bolts of fabric. Jeanie cuts cardboard bolts in half, folds fabric in half, then wraps a new mini bolt to make space on the larger shelves for new fabric bolts.

Oopsie Daisy by Darlene Zimmerman graces the wall and Chain Reaction by Tea for Two is on the table in a sweet 1930s vignette.

The pieced blocks and machine quilting on the back of Army Stars are just as stunning as the quilt top. In the center of each block, Kathy Holz machine-quilted a star surrounded by a feathered wreath.

The pieced blocks and machine quilting on the back of Army Stars are just as stunning as the quilt top. In the center of each block, Kathy Holz machine-quilted a star surrounded by a feathered wreath.

Kathy machine-quilted a daisylike design where the blocks intersect and feathers in the borders.

Pretty pastels from the Sanibel collection by Heather Mulder Peterson and Deb Mulder for Henry Glass & Co. reveal this pattern’s lighter side. By using the same fabric combinations for all the star blocks, side units, and triangle-squares, quilt tester Laura Boehnke completed a less scrappy version. To simplify, Laura used only the Army Stars A blocks.
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Contact Ye Olde Schoolhouse to purchase a copy of the Fall/Winter 2010 issue of Quilt Sampler magazine. Issues are also available at your local quilt shop, on newsstands, and online.