Margo Duff is a teacher, quilter, and Saint Johner and her creative combination of all three has her currently in 3rd place in DIY Hero contest. The winner will take home $25,000 and be featured in Make Magazine! But, she needs our votes.
Margo describes her Hometown Quilt as, “A tribute to my wonderful city I call home, Saint John, New Brunswick. It is compilation of various quilting techniques that truly pushed me to dig deep into my skills, creativity and my love of history…I consider this quilt a work of art that tells a story of city that has overcome challenges and continues to prosper.”
Her Hometown quilt took five months to finish, starting with ideas from family and friends. She told CTV, “I put it out on social media saying, ‘I’m making a quilt of Saint John, what makes you think of Saint John, what comes to mind. The amount of ideas was incredible, I could have had eight quilts.”
Then she sketched the ideas out, and finally the true artistry: the cutting, quilting and creation.
The final piece shows the doors of Uptown, a Sea Dogs jersey, the Marco Polo ship, Area 506, the Great Fire of Saint John in 1877, a chickadee, lighthouses, Loyalist Man, and former mayor, Elsie Wayne’s, famous descriptor for Saint John – “The Greatest Little City in the East.”
It even gives tribute to Duff’s great-grandfather, Harry “Dutch” Ervin, with a stocking with 1912 written on it, honouring his foundation of the Empty Stocking Fund.
What does Duff plan to do if her king-size tapestry wins first prize?
“I have a dream of owning my own business which would share my passion of sewing and quilting with others. This cash prize would be a wonderful kickstart to this dream. The business would include a store and studio to teach and inspire sewing and quilting to all ages. Of course, it would be nestled in my Hometown in the historic uptown Saint John!”
You can vote daily HERE for Duff’s entry in DIY Hero for free, but there is also the option of buying additional votes with the proceeds going to the American Lung Association. The first cut is on Thursday March 24th at 11PM AT.