30th annual quilt show
underway at Lawshe Museum

Hosted by Dakota County Star Quilters through April 11

By Jake Spitzack | Staff Writer | April 2025

South St. Paul natives Rosemary Root and her mother Jeannette Root, 93, have once again transformed Lawshe Museum, 130 3rd Ave. N., into a stunning gallery filled with brightly colored masterpieces. More than 75 quilts of varying size and style are on display through April 11 during the 30th annual Dakota County Star Quilters quilt show. Each is meticulously crafted by club members and the public can vote on their favorite quilt. The winner will receive a gift card to help cover the costs of supplies for future projects. Sue Heinz, owner of Kismet Quilting, will demonstrate quilting techniques at 3 and 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 8. The quilt show is open the same hours as the museum, and there’s a suggested donation of $5.

When describing the quilts in the show, Rosemary said, “There are modern quilts that use bright colors and simple geometric shapes, and then there’s old fashioned ones that are made with reproductions of Civil War fabrics. Those quilts actually look like they could be a hundred years old, except that the fabric is all new.”
The Dakota County Star Quilters has about 55 members from all over the county. Jeannette founded the club in 1995 after branching away from the statewide Minnesota Quilters club in search of a tighter-knit group. She has held the quilt show at Lawshe ever since, except for the year the museum was under construction and the show was brought to the Burnsville library.

Rosemary has five quilts in the show and another member has seven, but most quilters typically submit one to three. Each year features a special challenge for quilters to take on if they choose. Last year’s was to incorporate the initials of their name, and this year’s is to use a panel – a printed picture on fabric – in their quilt.

“I have lots of panels of things like lighthouses and planets, but I chose to use eight panels that have a leaf design…you add complementing fabrics to go around it,” she said. “When we’re getting ready for the show, my mother and I bring them [registered quilts] to the museum. My mother loves those days because she gets a first look at all the quilts.”

Rosemary said the club’s monthly meeting will be held at the museum on Tuesday, April 8, along with the lectures, so that will likely be the busiest day for the show. The museum will be open 9 a.m.-8 p.m. that day. When the exhibit is done, two of her quilts will go to charity, as has become commonplace among members. For the past year, the club has made quilts for Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a nonprofit that makes beds and bedding for kids in Dakota and Scott counties. It also creates placemats for Meals on Wheels, and donates quilts to 360 Communities, a nonprofit that finds places they are needed.

Rosemary made her first quilt at 16 and has been quilting ever since. Her two sisters tried their hand at the hobby but didn’t catch the bug like she did. One of her most precious family heirlooms is a quilt her great-grandmother created using chicken feed sacks.

“The feed for chickens would come in fabric sacks and that’s what she made it out of because that’s what she had and she wasn’t going to spend money buying fabric,” she said. “If she knew what I spent on fabric now, she’d be appalled.”

Quilting was originally a thrifty way for people to use leftover fabric from handmade clothing. Today, however, most quilts are made from purchased fabric because few people make their own clothing, said Rosemary.
“There are still some people who like the ethics of using stuff up,” she said. “We have one member who likes to save even the smallest leftover pieces, and she’ll sew them together to make blocks and get some very interesting effects.”

The club welcomes new quilters but doesn’t offer lessons. Those seeking to get into the hobby should look to community education or local fabric stores for help. Rosemary said fabric costs and the amount of time it takes to finish projects can be barriers, so she recommends people try creating something small before tackling a bed-sized quilt. For more information, visit dcsq.org.

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