Jeri McKay

Jeri McKay

FL34106-015

Jeri McKay

Joanne Gasperik

04/15/2005

Moda Fabrics/United Notions

Naples, Florida

Joanne Gasperik

Joanne Gasperik (JG): This is Joanne Gasperik. Today's date is April 15th, 2005 and it is 11:01 in the morning. I'm conducting an interview with Jeri McKay for Quilters' S.O.S. - Save Our Stories. We are in her home in Naples, Florida. Thank you, Jeri, for allowing me to interview you today.

Jeri McKay: (JM): Oh, it's my pleasure.

JG: Good. Tell me about the quilt that is behind us. Who made it, the origin, the age, approximately? Describe it to us, please.

JK: Okay, that was made by my great great grandmother Edna Frances Sanders Carrell. And it was passed on to me by my aunt who had a few of her quilts. I'm the only one now that has one of her quilts in the family. We never knew what happened to the others. She gave them to friends, but not to family at the time. It's a New York Beauty and I found that I was given that in California, where I was born and raised. But the New York Beauty was not in a state that any of my family ever lived in. And it turned out that I lived the last half of my life in New York. And so it was really quite amazing how certain quilt patterns I have picked through my life, which I'll probably mention later have turned out to be very portentous in what has happened in my future. [JG: Yeah. Yeah.] An interesting thing about Edna, my great great grandmother was that, I was looking for a little information on her, to help us today, and I found that my aunt had told me that during the Civil War Confederate invasion in Arkansas, where they were living she was hung by someone in the Confederate Army. And she was hung for 4 hours. She survived that. And when they brought her down, she lived and she went on to live for about 4 to 6 years after that. So I don't know how old she was at the time, because I don't have it documented any further than that. But it was an amazing thing.

JG: [sighs.] Oh. When do you think this was made, approximately?

JM: From what I can remember my aunt told me that she thinks she made that about 1850 or 1860.

JG: [agrees.] And it's a red and white, or red and cream, now, I guess.

JM: Yes, yes. All hand quilted. It's a really beautiful quilt.

JG: Yes it is.

JM: Very dear to me.

JG: Yes. How do you use this quilt?

JM: I keep it in my closet. [laughs.] I don't use it.

JG: Yes.

JM: I did when we were up North and I had a very traditional home. But now the house we have here has very little wall space, a lot of windows, a lot of doors and I don't have many of my things hanging, or I don't put it on the bed either, because I'm afraid I don't have the darkest room--

JG: Too much light.

JM: To worry, so I worry about it.

JG: Protect it from fading, yes.

JM: Right.

JG: What are your plans for this quilt?

JM: I'm going to pass it on to my daughter.

JG: No particular time frame?

JM: No, oh no. I'll probably keep it [laughs.] until--it's in my will.

JG: In your estate.

JM: Yes. One other quilt that I started in1994 and finished 10 years later was selected by my son Jim as a high school graduation present. He chose the pattern Byzantine Star, the fabric and the size, a full king. He was out of college before his quilt was finished. I hand quilted it, retired and moved to Florida. He has been living in Turkey for four years in the heart of the old Byzantine Empire. So our dreams can come true

JG: Oh, goodness. Well, when did you start quilting, Jeri?

JM: I started in 1976. And the more that you see people that talk about it, I think a lot of people started at that time, because there was a big revival with the big two hundred years of our country.

JG: The Bicentennial.

JM: The Bicentennial. Right. But then I had a lot of years where I didn't do anything. I just sort of dabbled in it. I started because my sister was having her first child. I just have one sister and I made a very patriotic baby quilt [laughs.] totally by hand, which I've never done anything totally by hand again.

JG: Hand pieced.

JM: Right. Hand pieced, hand quilted and so -

JG: And that quilt still exists?

JM: It does.

JG: And it's still taken care of?

JM: Well I don't know if it's well taken care of.

JG: But it is taken care of. Okay.

JM: It was used lovingly for a long time.

JG: Yeah, yeah. Oh for heaven's sake. So what is your first quilt memory?

JM: I have been thinking about that question and I really don't have any memories except when I started I said "I need a baby quilt," so I'll try this, because I had a friend or two that were quilting at the time, and so I went to the guild and I joined and I took classes and started that way. Yes.

JG: I see, I see. Did you take you did say you took classes. [rumble noise on the tape, perhaps
the wind.] Do you still take classes now?

JM: Oh, more than ever. [both laugh.] Fortunately the Naples Quilt Guild has wonderful teachers that come in and then we have a lot of experienced guild members too, who share their knowledge and so I've learned more. I'm really blossoming in the five years I've been here with my desires and my quilting skills because of the help you get here. Plus being retired gives you more time.

JG: That's sort of not necessarily true. [Jeri laughs.] We just spend our time doing good things.

JM: [laughs.] Sounds true.

JG: How many hours a week do you quilt?

JM: Oh. I would say probably five hours a day. Maybe four days a week. [JG hums approval.]

JG: Is that pretty steady or do you go in spurts?

JM: I think it's pretty steady.

JG: Outstanding. Oh great. Who has influenced you the most in your quilting? Is there any particular teacher that sticks out? Or you just always have your ear to the ground?

JM: I'm not sure there's been anybody who's particularly influenced what I do. I love Nancy Crow and her work. And I've looked at I've done a lot of research on what she's done. And I've always thought that this is something I'd like to try to emulate in my own way, but I haven't yet. But I've designed several quilts. [laughs.] And Kumiko Sudo, I really do enjoy her taking traditional ideas and turning them into something very soft and unusual. So I find that I'm I started out very traditionally. And now I do traditional things, but I turn them more into artsy looking things.

JG: Well you're an artist and you're branching out.

JM: That's true.

JG: You're not stagnating.

JM: Don't you think a lot of ladies find it hard to say "I am an artist." It's easy to say "I'm a quilter." But it's been hard for me to tell people "Well what do you do? I say "Well I'm an artist. I'm a fiber artist." [JG: Good. Good.] But it's still sometimes hard to say. [JG: Yes.] Tooting your own horn. [laughs.]

JG: Yeah, right. Well we can understand that because in the past quilters didn't even sign their quilts, sometimes because they didn't toot their own horn either. But, how does quilting impact your family?

JM: I think it impacts them greatly because it's for one thing, I'm a happy person. So that spreads a lot of love around. And I give all my children have quilts, and my grandchildren have quilts, and I make quilts for new babies of friends and housewarmings and I also make quilts for friends who have a bereavement in their family. Mostly you just share that with people and it creates a bond.

JG: Special. Well quilters do that anyway, but I think it sounds like that's your specialty. Do you sleep under a quilt?

JM: No. I just sleep under a sheet. [laughs] Very seldom is it cool enough that I need anything. But I guess I do have a quilt that I keep by my bedside. When I made a T-shirt quilt through the guild, I cut up all my tournament--I'm a tournament tennis player. I don't do that presently, but I have drawers and boxes of T-shirts that I won at tournaments and they give you. And I cut those all up in a collage affair and I made a quilt of it. I keep it under the side of the bed and when I do get cool I pull it out, when I [inaudible.] use it. [laughs.]

JG: [laughs.] Well you said earlier that you designed quilts. Do you commercially design quilts? Do you have patterns that you sell?

JM: No I don't.

JG: Do you intend to?

JM: I hadn't even thought about that. Probably not. I designed only a couple. And one of them is still hanging on the freezer paper side, and I'm looking at it saying "I don't know what the next step is here." So I guess you just sit back and wait.

JG: Work in Progress. Work in Progress. [both are talking at the same time.] It's not unfinished. It is a work in-progress.

JM: Right.

JG: It's just taking its sweet time. [both laughing.] Do you document your quilts?

JM: I do, by putting them on the back in a very detailed label. I've learned that a long time ago. [airplane is flying over.] And taking photographs and I have a book of all my quilts.

JG: You must have more than one book now. Either that or it's a very fat album.

JM: It is.

JG: Expand on your documentation.

JM: Well I usually write, obviously the name of the pattern of the quilt and maybe the pattern name and then the name I give the quilt, who it's to and the date and, by me, and you know we all have our maiden names and stuff. And when I do all this I write out my full long name, so that people in the future will remember. My maiden name is almost lost now. We have had no men in the family. So, then I write, I sometimes I write special notes to the people that I made it for. Like the last one I did was a college graduation gift to the dear friend, my son's best friend. I wrote some sentiments on it. That's about--

JG: That's very thorough. That's very thorough. It's something we all should do and we don't really expand--

JM: And the people who receive that, years later you know they look at it and they, they don't even appreciate what you've done. Sometimes I put "This quilt has 4300 pieces in it" which one of them did. [laughs.]

JG: And a mile of thread.

JM: Yes. [JG laughs.]

JG: What would you like your quilting legacy to be? How would you like to be remembered?

JM: Now that's an interesting question. [8 second pause.] I'm not sure. I just assume the only thing I can think of is that when somebody looks back at something I gave them, that I cared enough to make something for them. And that it was done obviously with a lot of love. So that's probably a good legacy. [laughs.]

JG: Yes. Right. And you have children and grandchildren, you mentioned and they'll all be passed on. Or are you giving them away?

JM: I have very few quilts that I make, here. A couple of years ago I made one for a guild challenge and it was for my husband. And he just loved it and somebody asked if they could buy it. And so I asked him and he said "Okay, if you make me another one." But I've never been inspired to make another identical quilt, but-- [laughs.]

JG: Yes. Some people enjoy making sequels and others I can't do it either. I can't do it either. What do you find pleasing about quilting?

JM: I think the whole process. I've listened to other interviews, read other interviews in there and people pretty much say that, I think because from the inspiration at the beginning and working with it and being sure that your fabrics are in the right place and sitting down and finishing it. Right up to the very end, putting the binding on is like saying good bye to something that you've spent a lot of time and love on. [JG: Yeah.] There isn't anything in the process I don't' like.

JG: [agrees.] Do you are you saddened when a project comes to an end? Are you sort of apprehensive?

JM: I am. Especially if I'm giving it away. [laughs.] I am sad that it's--because then you usually don't see your quilts anymore, give them, even to family you know, because you don't see them.

JG: [agrees.] What aspects of quilting do you not enjoy? Or are there not any? What don't you like?

JM: I guess the only thing that I find difficult is sometimes taking directions, written directions, I find that difficult sometimes. To convert it into what I'm thinking, to turn it around in my head and cut and do it right. I think I make a lot of mistakes when I'm following a pattern. [JG agrees.] Unless I see it done, or we go to a class and everybody's doing it, then it's easier. To open a pattern and read it is difficult.

JG: Yeah, Okay. Have you ever used quilting to get through a difficult time?

JM: No I haven't. My husband is my rock. He gets me through difficult times. And quilting- I don't quilt when I'm sad. I quilt when I'm happy. So I just found that if I've ever tried to do something that I really am enjoying when I'm not happy, it doesn't turn out well. I make mistakes.

JG: How do you feel about hand quilting versus machine quilting versus long-arm quilting now?

JM: I have done hand quilting and machine quilting and I still like to do them both. I would only hand quilt smaller projects. I love to machine quilt, but I'm learning the free motion and I'm having a great time. And you were part of my inspiration on that because you do beautiful things. And you gave me that little quilt once when I helped you with membership and it was amazing that quilt. But long arm, it serves a purpose, but it isn't anything that I--I have had it done before in my quilts, but it isn't anything I would do any more. Because it's a pattern that just comes out and there's--it doesn't have that creativity of the personal touch.

JG: So for one quilt or another you have hired the service of a long arm quilter [JM: Yes.] but not any more? You're going to --

JM: No, I'm trying to learn this new technique, where you can - even a queen, king-size quilt you can quilt this and then you seam it together and move along. So that's what I'm doing, because I like to have a quilt totally done by me.

JG: Yes, it makes it more special.

JM: It does for me, yes.

JG: I'm getting short answers here. Tell me, have you won any awards with your quilts?

JM: The last two years I've won awards at our guild quilt shows. And it's always really surprising when you walk in and see that, because I feel like I'm still new at quilting, and I am compared to an awful lot of people. But it's a most exciting thing to see that. And I've been in charge of the judging for the show, so I'm able to be there at the judging of them. And I see what the judge looks for and it's made a big impact in my perceptions of what I do and how I will take things out now and redo them, because--not that I'm looking for perfection on the judge's standpoint, but I just am getting more particular.

JG: It's raised your own standards.

JM: It certainly has, absolutely. But I have my ribbons hanging in my art studio and I just enjoy them very much.

JG: Have you [coughs.] Excuse me. Have you sent your quilts to other venues or just the guild?

JM: No I haven't.

JG: When will you start that?

JM: I'm not, I'm not sure. I talked with a few ladies in our guild who do that, but I'm not sure that I would just take that extra step either, because it all takes time, and I'd rather just move on with something else.

JG: [agrees.] Do you teach other people to quilt?

JM: I would say "no." I answer questions and I have few friends that maybe liked what I did, a pattern or something I made and I will share with them how to do a little of that. But I don't think I'm a good teacher. I don't direct people well. I can't explain things in an easy way.

JG: But you're more than willing to share.

JM: Oh, definitely. That's what we all do, isn't it?

JG: Yes, yes. So yeah, you've taught other people. [both laugh.] What do you think makes a quilt artistically powerful?

JM: [an airplane is flying over.] I guess I would say it's just the impact that makes them view visually, because "powerful" you could say, "Oh" [inaudible because of airplane noise.] the colors are very mild and they blend together and that just depends on how it's put together and how it impacts you. And I did have an answer for this [laughs.] but I can't remember [both laugh.] what it was and I look at my notes here, but anyway.

JG: So it's color, it could be design.

JM: It's a very personal thing I think, what makes a quilt powerful. I've seen quilts in the magazines who get the huge accolades and I can really appreciate them, where the work and everything that's gone into, but they don't have an impact on me, particularly. And we all walk through quilt shows and say "oh, this is the one that I would have picked" to be the Best of Show or Judges Choice and things like this, so it's a very personal issue on a lot of those.

JG: Yeah, it's true. Well it affected the photographer and the author of that particular article, but it doesn't have to have you been to MAQS? [Museum of the American Quilters Society.] Have you been to Paducah to see the quilt museum there?

JM: No. Next year I'm going. Next year I'm going for sure.

JG: Oh excellent. There you go; there will be some that are riveting.

JM: Oh I know that.

JG: What do you think makes a quilt appropriate for a museum or a special collection?

JM: I would probably think there is a lot of different ideas that people would pull a collection together or a museum would want to collect, and that would be antique quilts or era type quilts or contemporary quilts. I don't believe that museums should be just looking at old quilts. I think that there are a lot of fantastic things going on nowadays, that deserve that kind of appreciation. And that's what inspires everyone else is when they see these. [airplane flies over.]

JG: What makes a great quilter?

JM: I think it's their inspiration and drive and their dedication to it, because I know a lot of people who don't think themselves great quilters, but they are because it's their life. They love it. Their family loves it. And if they don't share it with shows and things that doesn't mean that they're somehow diminished in that. There isn't anybody that I don't think isn't a great quilter, really.

JG: That's an interesting comment. There are many aspects to a quilter. There is passion and there is technique.

JM: That's very true. And even if there are excellent quilts out there that maybe the technique isn't really professional, but the idea is into it and the colors they use are. So I think we should all be pleased with what we do and consider ourselves very good at it.

JG: Yes, right. So you're, did I hear you say that it's not--even if the technique is not perfect, you maybe drawn to a quilt, over and over again, just because of other aspects?

JM: Very true, right. Probably judges wouldn't do that, but they're there for their own specific reasons, to make sure that a piece that they choose is totally perfect in all the aspects. But making a great quilter is in my opinions worlds away from what you see in shows with ribbons.

JG: [agrees.] Are there certain avenues that quilters should take if they want to expand and learn or learn how to design their own patterns? Can you what are your recommendations?

JM: Well I think taking a lot of different classes. Things that you may not even think would be of interest to you, I think that most things that are out there help you in unexpected ways. I tape a lot of the TV shows and I look at that. And I save those tapes and a year or two later I go back and I say "wow", I'm not interested in this technique any more, but I interpret it maybe a little differently and use it somewhere else. So you do change and I forgot the question. [both laugh.]

JG: Well [coughs.] where do you learn? I mean how do you learn, how does a quilter learn? Well, I was going to go somewhere with this too. [thinks out loud.] The art of quilting, learning to design a pattern, I've lost my train as well. That's okay. Why is quilting important in your life?

JM: It's very satisfying for me personally. I can go into my room and spend hours and be just totally absorbed and absolutely love it where I don't answer the phone. I don't do the things that interrupt my life and then I get the satisfaction of gifting what I've done to someone.

JG: It's a rich life.

JM: It is, for sure.

JG: A rich life. Do you think your quilts in any way reflect your community or region? How do your quilts reflect you?

JM: My quilts reflect me by my background, my desires. I travel a lot. I love to travel. And so I find that I have quilts that I have given to friends in Korea and Turkey and England and
Australia. And I'm influenced greatly by the things that I see when I travel. So I tend I do a lot of African designing and Asian work. But it's just the fabrics and the prints that I like too.

JG: Yeah, well, I noticed your collections here reflect that interest in Africa and in the Orient. So do you make notes when you travel?

JM: I take a lot of pictures. I usually don't make notes. I always keep a journal when I travel, but it's basically events, places I've been or things that America has the richest quilting history. So when you go to other countries you don't see much of that.

JG: True, you may not see quilts--

JM: Quilts, right.

JG: But you'll see a design.

JM: Oh, definitely. And tiles and floors and windows. They all are inspiration.

JG: Have you actually come home having seen at tile or design and interpreted that as a quilt?

JM: I've tried. [laughs.] A couple of them are still sitting unfinished, because I had to move on to something else, but I have. I have a whole pile of fabrics that I'm going to do a travel quilt with. I'll probably give it to my son Jim, who lives in Istanbul, because we've traveled a lot together around the world and I think he would certainly appreciate it, when I get it done. I collect labels and tickets, train tickets and other things. And I'm going to incorporate that all in a quilt one of these days.

JG: With printing on fabric? Photo?

JM: Some of that, but I think I'm also going to collage it on and sew it in.

JG: The actual [JM: The paper.] medium, paper. [JM: Yes.] That should be interesting.

JM: It's been working in my mind for a while.

JG: So is it on a certain level, on a layer on your table? Where is it now?

JM: It's only in the fabrics that I buy and I say, "Oh, this looks perfect for"--fabric of the world's maps on it or stamps, airplanes and things like this. And the colors of things that I?ve tried to keep together in one area.

JG: Are some of your souvenirs fabrics from those countries?

JM: They are but, they're not cotton. They're all a lot of different; sometimes I don't even know what they are.

JG: Well, if you can use paper in your quilts [JM laughs.] then you can surely -

JM: Oh, definitely, definitely.

JG: [laughing.] There's no limit then. What do you think about the importance of quilts in American life, past and present?

JM: Well, we have already talked about the rich history we have of the quilts from our ancestors and the other people we look at. I think it has made women's lives richer because everybody's getting back into it. And it certainly is not a utilitarian need any more. It's more artistic. I think its spread all around the world, obviously. There are quilters in all the countries who are doing marvelous work. But we certainly have a lot of drive here in this country and a lot to be proud of.

JG: So do you think that quilts will be made in the future or do you think there will be a lull, do you expect? How are we going to continue the interest of quilting?

JM: I can't imagine that there'll be any kind of lull on this because in our guild every month we sometimes have 5, 10 new people who are joining. And a lot of younger people are getting into it now. I have a friend whose 6 year old daughter is starting to quilt. So I think that it will blossom more and more.

JG: [agrees.] So we won't need another revival?

JM: Hopefully not. [both laugh.]

JG: How are the ways that quilters can be reached, for education or the sky's the limit? How are quilters reached? How do we inform them? How do we--

JM: Well I think quilters are always out there looking for these pieces of information and new techniques, new ideas and wanting to learn about what other people are doing. I think this venue that you're involved in now is a wonderful way. I've looked at several interviews online and it's so inspiring that and you learn about people this way too, that you didn't things you just don't know, because those are questions that you ask. Quilters get together and they learn a lot about each other, but it's very hard sometimes to get back, you know "Where were you inspired" You know these are not the questions you ask, so I think this will inspire more people to have more magazines, more articles, more work that other people will read and move on with.

JG: How many guilds do you belong to?

JM: I belong to two. Yes, I forgot. [laughs.] The one in Fort Myers and the one in Naples. I just joined the one in Fort Myers.

JG: And before you moved here, did you belong?

JM: I just was in one. One guild and that was the oldest guild in America. So--

JG: Which one is that? Elaborate.

JM: The Genesee Valley Quilters Guild in Rochester New York. They're the longest, the oldest guild that has run the longest period of time. I guess I don't remember when they started, but--

JG: So, in the thirties or in the twenties, perhaps?

JM: I think it was maybe early thirties or late twenties.

JG: [agrees.] I think we forget that guilds really haven't been around that long. The possibility of women getting together in a group. There were bees, but a guild is quite different from the bee. And when did you join that guild? The Genesee.

JM: Probably in about 1975. I had a friend who was a quilter and that was the way I wanted to learn. And they didn't have a lot of classes at that time. There weren't many fabric stores. I don't think there was a quilt shop there. You just went to regular stores and tried to find . We were dealing with a lot of polyester back then too.

JG: [agrees.] Did they have teaching--did they share their teaching skills? How did they

JM: They all had little bees and once a month getting together and then the longer I was with the guild, they started bringing in people from around the country, just to teach.

JG: Do you belong to a bee now?

JM: Yes. I belong to three.

JG: Ah, see, so it's not just guilds.

JM: [laughs.] Two of them are once a month and one is every week, I just started. I think I'm going to love that.

JG: What do you do there?

JM: Talk. Basically. I find I can't take many of my things. And I don't right now have a lot of hand projects, which I never have. But I'm hoping to get a few things done that I can do by hand and sit and chat. But they share a lot of things. They bring, a lot of ladies bring projects. And so you learn what they're doing and that type of thing. It's very inspirational.

JG: That's fun. That's fun. Good. What did you think I might ask you that I haven't touched on?

JM: I think you've touched on a lot more than I was even anticipating [JG laughs.],_but I guess the only thing that I didn't start off with at the beginning was, just to tell you the other things that I do in my life. [JG: Yes, please do.] I know some people who are basically quilters and that is their all consuming passion. I do play tennis, about 4 days a week. I do a little gardening, not as much as you. And I''m active in the fire department. I?m a Community Emergency Response person, for emergencies [JG reacts.], for the fire department, and I?m very active in a couple of clubs that I belong to. One is social, one is not. And I organize my friends. [laughs.] I have at least once a month or so I have a big dinner party. Tomorrow night I'm having 18 for dinner.

[JG: Oh, boy.] So I do a lot of, a lot of things. And I'm finding that those things are starting to get into my way of quilting [JG: Quilting.] because it was always before, quilting was a little more on the back burner, now I'd rather do quilting.

JG: [nods.] Do your friends, when they come to the house, do they want to see your latest project?

JM: They do. Yes. And I started this little, last summer I started this little purse business. It's a very small thing, but I've been to art shows here in Naples through the season. I have a tent. I go and put up this tent and I do that and I'm very busy with that. I have a lot of orders right now that I have to get done. [laughs.]

JG: Wonderful. Well that's good. It's all good news.

JM: [laughs]. Life is great. [JG laughs.]

JG: Do you have a big stash?

JM: I do.

JG: How do you organize it? Share. [laughs.]

JM: I organize it by color, basically that's it. And I do have my Africans all in one pile, and my Asians in another, my baby fabrics for all my quilts in there, and birds in one stack, and flowers in another.

JG: Very organized. It sounds like a big stash.

JM: It is. I put in eight shelves on one wall in my sewing room and then I have a closet from floor to ceiling and a dresser in there. [laughs.]

JG: Do you have your smaller fabric patches in separate places, or are they kept [coughs.]--

JM: No I have all sizes, from fat quarters up to 10 yards all together, just by color.

JG: By the color.

JM: Right. I found that easier. I've rearranged it many times [JG coughs.] and I find that I must be more color oriented when I'm looking for something, that's what I want.

JG: [nods.] Is it a neat sewing room?

JM: Most of the time. Because it's very small. I have to keep it neat.

JG: [laughs.] Well do you still plan to do some hand quilting?

JM: Yes I do. I love to hand quilt.

JG: Do you have a project now?

JM: No.

JG: Not even a Work in Progress?

JM: Oh, I thought you meant a hand quilting project.

JG: Yes.

JM: I don't have a hand quilting project. My niece is getting married in 3 weeks now and her quilt is still up on the design wall. I haven't even finished the top.

JG: You need to hear Cathy Miller's song about that. [both laugh.] "It ain't finished yet." Do you plan to get it done?

JM: Oh, definitely. Yes.

JG: With as few interruptions as possible, no doubt?

JM: [laughs.] Well the tough part is behind me now. Because I did more or less design it with traditional blocks. It's nothing basically totally new. But I'm just ready now to put the sashing and the borders together and then machine quilt it.

JG: [nods.] Using your new found techniques [JM: That's right.] for free motion.

JM: That's right, and I have a, my first sewing machine is what I still use. I don't have any of the fancy ones at all. It's a Sears Kenmore, that I bought in 1961 and I still love it and it works like crazy.

JG: We just need we can only use one sewing machine at a time. And if you're happy with that--

JM: That's right.

JG: That's phenomenal. That's phenomenal. Oh [sighs.] Anything else that you wish to add?

JM: I don't think so, Joanne. This has been a wonderful, wonderful time. And I appreciate it.

JG: I have run out of questions at this point. [JM laughs.] And I know I lost my train of thought before, so I will wrap up this interview now.

JM: All right.

JG: And thank you very, very much for taking the time. I know you have a busy schedule, and you have something going on this afternoon, too. The time is 11:41 [a.m.] and I've concluded this interview with Jeri McKay. Thank you Jeri.

JM: Thank you, my friend.

[tape ends.]