Staff photo by Fritz Busch New Ulm Quilt show Featured Quilter Carolyn Kramer of New Ulm stands between two of her favorite quilts, a spiral quilt, left, and a quilt designed like a Frank Lloyd Wright stained glass window.

NEW ULM — Necessity and a serious car crash decades ago led Carolyn Kramer to sewing and quilting, a hobby she continues to enjoy.

Kramer is the featured quilter at the New Ulm Quilt Show that continues 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Royal Oak Event Center.

Growing up in the Gibbon area, Carolyn began sewing clothes for herself under the guidance of her mother Alice (Bode).

“I didn’t start quilting until the 1980s. I was teaching piano at the time. My husband (Lee) was hurt in a car crash in the late 1990s, so I became a caretaker,” she said.

Her first quilting project was a patchwork quilt made from fabric squares her mother gave her. Completing a quilt without help from others gave her great satisfaction.

“Once the (New Ulm) Quilt Guild was created (in 1994), I was hooked. It was a small group at first. We’d share idea. It was wonderful,” Kramer said.

Then she began doing charity quilting with friends and St. John’s Lutheran Church members in New Ulm.

“A bunch of us did quilting for Japanese tsunami victims (in 2011) and sent hundreds of quilts there. It was wonderful,” Kramer said.

She also makes quilts for the Prairie Piecemakers that are given to New Ulm Medical Center cancer patients and Brown County Cozies quilts and tummy time floor quilts donated to needy Brown County Health & Human Services Children, Youth and Families (CYF).

The group also donated quilts to charity auctions for Minnesota Valley Lutheran High School, a brain injury support group, the Committee Against Domestic Abuse (CADA) and many other organizations.

Kramer continues to quilt.

“I’m grateful that I can still quilt. It keeps my mind busy. The best things about being in the quilting guild are the knowledge from others and friendships I’ve made,” she added.

Kramer said the New Ulm Quilt Show, held every other year, is a highlight.

She is showing a number of her quilts at the show including a spiral design and another depicting a Frank Lloyd Wright stained glass window, which received a mayoral award.

It’s just a wonderful show. The girls do a wonderful job setting it all up,” she said.

Sylvia Aufderheide of New Ulm is showing a colorful Rosette Rainbow” quilt based on a Willyne Hammerstein rosette pattern that she used to create her own, hand-pieced quilt. The quilt received a mayoral award.

“I like to fussy-cut the fabric so I cut out the designs individually. I suppose it’s more work, but I don’t like machine stitching. I’m old school. I hand-sewed them. I like circular designs rather than square blocks,” Aufderheide said.

“I used to make brown and blue quilts. Now I like brighter colors. It’s my escape, entertainment and happy place when I’m not in my garden,” she added.

The quilt show includes door prizes, a share-and-tell by guild members, beverages, lunch and treats and vendors selling quilt-related items. A boutique features fabric, patterns and a variety of things people have donated that are new or gently used.

A raffle quilt designed by Carol Helget was quilted by Ann Wendinger.

The Prairie Piecemakers guilt includes quilt lovers, novices and experts who share their love of fabrics, design, color and finished quilts. The group of more than 70 meets monthly September to May. Meetings are held at 7 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 201 N. State St.