Tricia Cribbs

Designer of Turning Twenty, Turning Twenty Again and Turning Twenty Around the Block quilt patterns

by Sandra Bennett 

While surfing around the fiber blogs, I noticed a lot of knitters and crocheters were also quilters. Crafty women enjoy working with their hands in as many venues as possible and it's not enough to have a yarn/fiber/thread stash, some have to have a fabric stash as well.  

Last autumn a group of quilters invited me to join their Thursday night quilting bee. When I protested I didn't know how to quilt I was told, "No problem, we'll teach you". That first Thursday night I took my knitting, so my hands would be busy while others quilted, and I oohed and aahed over their quilts in various states of sewing.  

Those quilting women were smart cookies! They knew not to overwhelm me with the possibilities of Double Wedding Ring or other intricate patterns. They used the KISS method, Keep It Simple Sweetie, and enticed me with the Turning Twenty quilt pattern. Even then, they kept it simple. They didn't show me an actual pattern but told me, "Oh, you only need twenty pieces of one-half yard fabric in different designs." No instruction of light, dark, medium; no hints about matching colors or fabric. Just, "go buy twenty pieces of one-half yard fabric in different designs" and “go to Wal-Mart”, fifteen miles away instead of the quilt store, seventy-five miles away. 

They reeled me in like a salmon on a line.  

At the fabric counter, I picked out twenty bolts of fabric in soft, neutral colors that flowed together. Bernice, the "quilting lady" at the fabric counter, was hugely helpful and encouraging. She encouraged me to buy twenty pieces of one-yard fabric in different designs so I could make two quilts at once.  

She reeled me in like a salmon on a line. 

Next week, I took my fabric to the quilting bee and they helped me frame and cut the blocks. They thought I was absolutely brilliant because I was cutting out TWO quilts at once! Lordee, doncha just LOVE people who think you're brilliant! This salmon was totally hooked. They were gracious and kind and let me think I had pulled the wool over their eyes when, in fact, it was the exact opposite. They instinctively knew I'd love quilting just as soon as I cut the first block. 

God Bless all those Ladies! They were, and are, absolutely right. I love quilting but, more specifically, I love quilting the Turning Twenty pattern. I love taking a one-half yard piece of fabric, called a "fat quarter" in the quilting world, cutting out four pieces of material and then piecing/sewing those together to make a quilt. I love the Turning Twenty pattern because it's easy, simple (or so I thought) and can be as Plain Jane (apologies to all you comely Jane’s) or as lavishly beautiful as one desires.

It is THE perfect quilt pattern!  

Which started me thinking...who designed the Turning Twenty pattern? How? Why? When? So, back to the i-net for a search which landed me on Tricia Cribbs website.  

Tricia is a gracious, lovely woman living in TX where she and Gary, her husband, are employed by FriendFolks, Tricia's quilting company. In the 1980’s while working as a secretary, she began quilting using magazine patterns. She quilted in her spare time and wanted a long arm machine but couldn't justify the expense so when Gary encouraged her to buy one, she went to the bank and asked for a loan which, much to her amazement (and everyone else's) she was given. She thought she could make money by quilting for other people and pay off her loan so she put an ad in the paper and the telephone starting ringing. Her boss thought her little business was cute and said her customers were welcome to come to the office to talk quilting and place their orders. In short order, her customers outnumbered his customers and three months after her advertisement, she quit her job to do long arm quilting full time.  

Tricia said, "It was a huge thing for me to do, getting that loan. I had spent my life raising my kids, keeping house and this was just a huge step. After I paid off my loan, I upgraded to a bigger machine but, at that time, I thought I'd never do something as expensive as opening a quilt shop. I wouldn't do something like that because it would jeopardize the security of my family. 

"God's hand was, and is, at work in all of this. My customers would come to my home to buy fabric, etc. and I, eventually, had to move furniture out of my house so I'd have more room. One of the fabric reps came to my house and, while we were talking, he saw on of my quilts hanging on the wall. He asked about the pattern and I told him it was my own design. At that time, I wasn't marketing my patterns, they were just for my own use. He asked if I'd ever thought of designing and selling patterns and put me in touch with a company who gave me an invitation to go to Quilt Market. We filled their booth with our quilts and out of that first Quilt Market, we were given a book contract."  

FF - Quilt Market happens twice a year, in May and October and the October Market is always held in Houston at the George R. Brown Convention Center. It's held for designers, wholesalers, magazines, publishers, shops and is the largest event in the quilting world. The May Quilt Market moves around and in 2007 will be in Salt Lake City; the Quilt Festival is three days after the Market and open to the public. 

Tricia - That first Quilt Market in 1999 was amazing. The first day on the market floor, it was one of those things where the blessings of God chased us down the street and overtook us. We were given contracts to consider and our first book was with Leisure Arts Publishing.  

Then, FriendFolks Quilt Shop opened because God gave me the desire of my heart and, at that time, I wanted a quilt shop. Basically, though it {our quilting business} boils down to the goodness of God. Gary and I have been together ever since we were teenagers and we've worked really, really hard. Neither one of us came from anything and we've both worked hard all our lives. I just believe this is just part of God's reward while we're here on earth. God has blessed us and it's been successful for us. 

FF – How did you come up with the Turning Twenty quilt pattern? 

Tricia – My mind is always aflurry with ideas and I design a lot of patterns but this one has made our mark in the quilting world. God gave it to me. It was just a simple idea and actually what I was doing was looking at beautiful fabric. I thought, it seems a shame to cut it all up and then sew it back up; I wanted to find the best way to show what the fabric could do. 

I was looking at the fabric, sitting and sketching, drawing a pattern and it just occurred to me...like it was coming from someone else. I could make simple cuts, sew it back together and it was beautiful but still simple. 

That was in 2003 and I wasn’t even going to write the pattern down. I made the quilt, displayed it on the bed in the shop and people would come in and look at it. I had several pretty good patterns but all my patterns are simple. I try to come up with quilt designs that look like you've spent a lot of time but actually haven't.  

When I did this one {Turning Twenty}, I did like it but I thought no one would ever buy the pattern, it was just too simple. But I liked the quilt and put it on display in my shop. People would just ooh and aah over the quilt and some friends/customers would just whip them out, come back and buy more fat quarters and make another one. One day a lady came into the shop, (she makes very intricate quilts) and stood at the quilt display and sketched my design. That night,  I took the quilt home, wrote down the design and instructions and took it to market in October. We sold everything we took with us and came home with so many orders I had to reprint. 

Turning Twenty was inspired; it was a gift. After the first one I had to go to prayer, I couldn't see anything beyond the first one. People would call and e-mail and ask, "Would you do another one?" It was hard for me to come up with another very, very simple quilt that would be different but similar. 

FF – After Turning Twenty, did you think there was another pattern and book? 

Tricia – Turning Twenty Again and Turning Twenty Around the block were hard work. It takes a lot of thought and I’m not a robot and can’t just crank them out. I need a lot of quiet to just see if there’s something there. 

FF – Turning Twenty Again takes the same premise, twenty fat quarters, but with eight pieces per fat quarter instead of four pieces per fat quarter. How is Turning Twenty Around the Block different from the first two? 

Tricia – Turning Twenty Around the Block came to me because I started thinking in terms of having twenty blocks but having a focus to each block. Actually, it's putting 20 fat quarters on whatever you want the focus to be on or whatever you want to shine the light on. The “Love Covers” pattern is an assortment of embroidery stitches that my Mother drew years ago to teach her Sunday School class their embroidery stitches. "Love covers a multitude of sins"...there are all those stitches I put into one of the Around the Block quilts to show you could use a photo or embroidery design or antique quilt and then build a quilt around that particular focus.  

As long as I can do this and as long as people are asking I'll do a new pattern every fall. We introduced the third one {Turning Twenty Around the Block} at Quilt Market in October and in January people already wanted “the next one." 

Turning Twenty make me think of this...opening a puzzle box and enjoying a puzzle...sort of like that...another quilt pattern is like a challenge. With the Turning Twenty quilt the challenge is not that great; it's a mild little challenge. Taking the next step is making the Turning Twenty Again quilt. It gives the opportunity where seams do have to match, there’s a four-patch block which is another little baby step. The Turning Twenty Around the Block is still simple but requires more thinking, more ideas and gives an opportunity to do some different things. A lot of quilters are working on photos and this is a perfect quilt for the focus of a photograph. Each one will build on the other and a beginner could start with the third one and made a quilt.  

FF – What do you have planned for your next book?  

Tricia – I’m following through with the same concept - twenty blocks but with a twist. This one has a unique twist but the book hasn't a name yet; I still need to be inspired. This is the first spring we won't be at Quilt Market because my Dad's health is critical and we're at a place where we need to be home. We'll introduce the fourth book at the Fall Quilt Market. 

FF – Do you have a favorite book? 

Tricia – I’m working on the fourth book and I never thought the first book would be something I could market much less go on with that idea but it's supernatural, just out of the ordinary that something so simple would be such a good success. Anyone would have to look at it and say it's just a simple thing to confound the wise. 

FF – Do you knit? 

Tricia – I wish I could knit. I tried to learn two or three times. I can crochet up a storm...doilies or afghans...I love working with yarns and my aunt tried to teach me to knit but I could never get the hang of it. A few years ago when knitting took off, I really considered adding yarns to the quilt shop because people were looking for all of it. 

FF – Why did you close FriendFolks Quilt Shop? 

Tricia – In 2004, I made the decision to close the quilt shop. I loved it and Gary and I worked together, and enjoyed working together, it was rewarding but I reached a place…and Turning Twenty did this...I reached a place where my designing was larger than my shop. I don't want to give up my life for the shop. It was really a hard decision and there's no quilt shop w/in 100 miles of where we live and it had became a hub. It was more than giving up a business; I felt I was betraying friends. People understood and I think for the most part they wanted what would be best for us. The shop was just for a season and we had good success there; God blessed it and the thing I loved so much about the quilt shop it was to me and people who came in just like stepping back in time.

Quilters are the most precious people. They have a good center and good focus with God in their lives; they love to share. It's one of those things like things used to be.

FF – Tricia’s husband, Gary, has taken early retirement to operate the business end of FriendFolks. They recently started their own publishing company and market books and patterns to distributors and shops worldwide. Tricia also designs fabric for the Northcott Monarch Company.  

FF – What’s next for FriendFolks? 

Tricia – I feel this is what God wants us to do, the path He wants us to take. When I look at how God is blessing us now in our business, we don't deserve it but everything in our lives has brought us to this place. We've never been afraid to step out and do what we needed to do. We're able to bless our children and our grandchildren and are in a position to do things we've never been able to do before now. In quilting there's so many places you can see God at work. 

I feel very fortunate and very blessed to be doing what I love to do and making a living at it. It's one of the greatest gifts...to be able to do what you love. The other thing is, it's taken a long time to find my place. I tell people it's taken me a long time to figure out what I wanted to do when I grew up. We homeschooled and poured our time into our family and I feel so blessed. I'm honored and humbled when people tell me that my quilt pattern inspired them to get into quilting. Working with our hands is a gift and I love helping people find that gift and talent. 

FF – Visit Quilts Inc. and http://quilting.about.com/  for more information about quilting.

Thanks to Sew What in Wytheville, VA for their assistance in finding the Turning Twenty books