Heart of the Hills Quilters
Upcoming Events
Join us September 7th and 8th for the 25th Annual Hill City Quilt and Fiber Arts Show
Featured Quilt Artist
Joyce Hoyer
Joyce Hoyer, from Rapid City, SD, was born in Iowa and moved to South Dakota in 1973. She learned to sew in junior high home economics class and in high school took an advanced home economics class to further pursue her love of sewing. She learned to hone her skills by making a tailored suit, her prom dress, and later bridesmaid and flower girl dresses for her wedding. Sewing fell by the wayside with raising a family, working, going to college, and years later she found her passion shifting to quilting. She attended quilt shows, amazed by the artistry and skill, and knew she wanted to pursue that craft. She was 50 years old when she signed up for her first quilting class through a community education program and was hooked. Soon thereafter she was participating in the Passionate Quilters Retreat at Outlaw Ranch in Custer, a cozy group of quilting enthusiasts who shared their talents and love of quilting. Joyce is locally known as the "applique queen" at local quilt shows as she will have multiple quilts displayed in this category each year. Joyce's favorite part of quilting is the shopping and collection of fabric as well as bonding, sharing, and learning with fellow quilters. Her goal is to design a pattern (applique of course). She calls her sewing room (which was the feature that sold her on the home she purchased) her refuge where she finds a creative outlet and escapes for hours. Joyce is now retired and winters in Arizona where often the sewing room wins out over activities in the sunny warm climate. She enjoys sharing her quilts as gifts to friends and family, her church's bazaar, raffles, fundraisers, and natural disaster victims.
Featured Fiber Artist
Jean Selvy-Wyss
Jean Selvy-Wyss has been weaving tapestries for over 40 years. Her first exposure to
weaving was in college. When she graduated from Emporia State University in Kansas
with a BS in Art in 1977. With a move to Rapid City ,SD, she apprenticed with a
Norwegian Master Weaver for two and 1/2 years and have had numerous opportunities
to work with national and international fiber artists. Jean has a resume of many shows
in Denver, Co, Portland, Or., Vancouver, Canada, and Rapid City, SD. She received
the Rushmore Honor Award from the Rapid City Chamber of Commerce 2007, and an
artist grant from the SD Arts Council in 2006.
Jean explores and researches new techniques, design, and color study for the
development of her craft. Many of her designs were inspired from the Black Hills where
lives, and from her travels to different countries and national parks. Working in series
allows her to pursue a concept. Her recent studio experiences culminated in an
exhibition at the Dahl Arts Center in Rapid City, SD with 40 tapestries, including several
woven 3-D sculptures.
She continues to develop new concepts in using the woven structure of tapestry in her
sculptures as well as large format tapestries.
Services
Pillowcase Project
The Pillowcase Project’s purpose is to provide pillowcases for the ill, temporarily displaced, and those in need in our community who may enjoy a little uplifting at a difficult time. Sewists volunteer their time and materials to create the pillowcases which are collected throughout the year and displayed during the Quilt Show. After the show, they are donated to local organizations including Sleep In Heavenly Peace, foster children, hospice patients, women’s shelters, Hill City Purse Project, an Alzheimer’s care center, the Alpine Inn’s Gifts from the Heart Christmas Tree, Custer Rehab and Care Center, and others. Last year, over 165 pillowcases were made, exhibited, and donated within the community.
Anyone is welcome to make a pillowcase. They can give it to a member of the Heart of the Hills Quilters by August 29 to join the colorful array at the show.
Valor Appreciation Quilts
The Hill City Quilt Guild was asked to participate in Operation Black Hills Cabin in Custer to supply quilts of Valor. This is a home in which veterans who are 30% disabled can go for a week at a time to re-connect with their families and heal. A quilt as well as passes for meals and local attractions are given to them. They asked us to supply six quilts annually. I enjoyed this but felt we could do more. One morning as I was on my daily commute to work, I came up with the idea to make quilts for local veterans in the Hill City area. I spoke with the Quilt Guild and the school administration and the next thing I knew, we were placed on the program of the annual Veterans Day Program.
When it began back in 2015, we gave four quilts to local veterans. Each year the number seemed to increase so we decided to cap the recipients at six. We have awarded 49 quilts to date. Each year people nominate veterans and I am honored to read each story in front of all the students in the school as well as community members. If you have never attended, you should. It is very touching and I am honored to be a very small part of it.
2023 Awards
Gallery
Guild Member Projects
2023 Quilt and Fiber Arts Show
History
In 1999, Betty Dahlin and Valerie Begeman came to Lou Schuelke and Sherryl Alexander with the idea of having an outdoor quilt show in Hill City, in addition to their Great Black Hills Quilt Escape Retreat. At that time, we formed the Heart of the Hills Quilters, and the first quilt show was held in 2000.
We continued under the name of Great Black Hills Outdoor Quilt Show and Classes through 2002. During 2003 and 2004, the quilt show was classed as a featured state event by the South Dakota Board of Tourism and the Governor’s Top Ten Events. This provided a lot of advertising that we did not have to pay for. It was a win-win situation for us. We hung all of the quilts that were entered outside, either at the fronts of the businesses or on teepee poles that we constructed for this event. It always looked so beautiful.
In 2003 the Great Black Hills Quilt Escape decided to move their retreat to a space in Lead, so we changed the name of our show to Hill City Outdoor Quilt Show and Sale. The Hill City Chamber of Commerce came on board with the Heart of the Hills Quilters to put on the show in Hill City. We continued to have classes for a few more years.
History
In 2004 we were chosen as one of ABA’s Top 100 Events in North America. This was a great honor and provided more publicity for our show.
In 2010 we moved the bigger part of our show inside at the Hill City School and made a two-day event for the quilt show. We continued to have some quilts hung outside, but most were inside. The wind was always a challenge with the outdoor quilts.
In 2019, we expanded the show to include fiber arts.", or something more clever. Also, would it be possible to change the sentence below? "The Hill City Quilt and Fiber Arts show continues today to be a very popular event for those who want to display their quilts or fiber art and those who just want to come and enjoy them.
For the last several years the Hill City Arts Council and the Hill City Chamber have organized the show with the help of the quilt guild. This year the quilt guild will be organizing the show again.
The Hill City Quilt Show continues today to be a very popular event for those who want to display their quilts and those who just want to come and enjoy them.
Sponsors
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