Inspirations

June 14, 2013
Located in a former general store in Hills, Iowa, Inspirations offers small-town charm and a gathering space for quilters.
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Dream Come True 

Shop owner Nancy Lackender and her husband transformed a 100-year-old building into a quaint quilt shop.

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On Display

Antique display pieces, patterns with historical connections, and reproduction prints set the tone at Inspirations.

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Meet the Staff

Front row, from left: Nancy Lackender (owner) holding Madeline Putney, Mary MacNeil, and Jo Young; back row: Adele Monserud, Sandra Irvine, Cassie Putney, Mary Ellen Timbs, Jessica Grout, and Anna Dizack.

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Bundles and Bolts

A stitched sample of Simply Rectangles from the book Just Your Style (Leisure Arts; 2012) by Midwest-based designer Gudrun Erla drapes over a cart holding precut fabric bundles and bolts of fabric.

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Shelves of Color

A mix of prints and color palettes makes a quilter's visit to Inspirations a visual feast.

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Bright and Bold

A flower quilt that combines rickrack, yo-yo, and button embellishments can be found in the back room of the shop, which also houses bright fabrics.

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Eye-Catching Embroidery

Hand-embroidered towels rickrack, embroidery floss, and other handwork supplies fill an antique cabinet.

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Checks & Balances

Shop owner Nancy Lackender designed Checks & Balances, a quilt featuring reproduction prints, for Quilt Sampler® Spring/Summer 2013.

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Machine-Quilting Details

Kym Ward machine-quilted wavy lines diagonally in the Four-Patch units and curved lines following the seams of other block pieces. In the outer border, she stitched a feathered vine.

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Get the Magazine!

Contact Inspirations to purchase a copy of Quilt Sampler® Spring/Summer 2013 magazine, pick up a copy at your local quilt shop or newsstand, or get the digital issue online.

Peek inside Keepsake Cottage Fabrics, another quilt shop featured in Spring/Summer 2013.

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