Hilda Williams Bio

Featured Quilter 2024

As I move through my 10th decade, I cannot remember a life without fabric and thread. One of my earliest memories is sitting under my mother’s big quilting frame sewing buttons into a string as she and others quilted and chatted above. Later, I eagerly learned the sewing basics my mother taught me. My home economics teacher honed my skills over three years in school. I was proficient and passionate about sewing by the time I married in 1945, but only had a sewing machine every other month as I shared one with my sister-in-law.

My husband and I were dairy farmers. Whenever he went into town for cattle feed, I reminded him to buy 4 or 5 feed sacks that were alike. As soon as he got home, I excitedly ran to the barn to tell him which ones to open first. Those feed sacks became dresses, quilts, and even a slipcover for our couch. 

For the next 40 years, I wore out two Singers and a Pfaff as I sewed everything from printed cotton from the TG&Y dime store to double knit from Rubenstein’s department store. Even before I started quilting, I stitched around the world many, many times as I sewed for myself, my two daughters, and other family members. I especially remember the Christmas that I made patterned boxer shorts for all the grandsons—the granddaughters (who received vests) were jealous! 

Then in the late 1980s, my husband and I vacationed in Branson, Missouri, and I discovered the quilting world. I was in awe of the quantity and variety of the fabrics, threads, and patterns available in the Branson quilt shops. I was seriously hooked! I narrowed my choices to the pattern for a dahlia quilt and started my long quilting journey, on which I still travel daily. Yet, even now, my favorite part of quilting is selecting fabric for a particular pattern. Not only do I study the pattern I want to make and fabrics that will be best in it, but I also love touching the fabric to get the feel of it. I like bright colors, muted colors, and everything in between. Mostly I just love to select colors that play well together.

I am 96 years old, with 3 children, 9 grandchildren, and 16 great-grandchildren. I make a gift for each of them every Christmas—from table runners to king quits and everything in between. I piece quilts every day. For years, I quilted most of my quilts on my domestic machine. These days my go-to-quilter is my daughter Vickie Phelps—and I keep her and her long-arm machine busy.

In addition to quilting, I enjoy crocheting baby afghans for RRQ Community Outreach. I also am active in my church and have been a Sunday school and Vacation Bible School teacher, along with being an active member of our Home Extension Club for over 50 years and a 4-H leader.

It is a great honor to be the featured quilter at the Red River Quilt show this year. I am in awe of the talented quilters in our guild. I have been a member of Red River Quilters since 1999. I enjoy Red River Quilters and Sew and Sews Tributary. In my 25 years of membership, I have appreciated all the help and inspiration I have received as well as the friendships I have made.