Staff writer
Women of the Peabody Community Quilt Project will host a quilt show and auction on Oct. 27 to raise money for improvements to the playground equipment at the city park.
The show, to be held at the multi-purpose room of Peabody-Burns Elementary School, will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be no admission charge.
The auction will begin at 5 p.m.
“We have about 30 to 35 items to auction off,” said PCQP member Susie Schmidt. “Some are large items and we have smaller things like runners, placemats, and wall hangings that will make wonderful gifts for the holidays.”
The group of a dozen or so women gathers one or two afternoons a week at the Scissor Cottage to cut, press, and stitch on their creations. Several sewing machines and ironing boards are available along with cutting surfaces and piles of fabric, batting, and partially completed projects.
“The group has decided to try and find a product that will create a surface on the playground equipment that paint will stick to,” said Schmidt. “Over the years, we have put in hundreds of hours trying to get paint to stick to the rides and swings. Nothing ever lasts more than six months or so. We are hoping to hire someone who can do the job once and for all.”
The group has been working for several years to create enough quilted items to host an auction. They have sold or auctioned quilts and quilted crafts several times since 2007 when they hosted a quilt auction that brought in nearly $8,000.
The other sales were smaller and, while successful, did not generate as much money. All of the funds the group has raised have gone to playground equipment improvements at Peabody City Park.