Sit and Sew at the Winthrop Library

Friends, Gail Dwyer and Beverly McGrath, have been quilting for 30 years, and enjoy creating anything from bags and blankets, to placemats day and night. After being featured in an art exhibit at the Winthrop Public Library, the ladies began a free, informal sewing circle in October 2022.

“It’s a social event to connect with people,” explained Dwyer, Winthrop resident.

Quilters share ideas, patterns, and fabrics during Sit and Sew, held at the Winthrop Public Library on the first Saturday of each month, 10:30am-12 noon.

“They’re both very knowledgeable,” commented Donna Cordisco about why she enjoys Sit and Sew.

Cordisco is a retired nurse from East Boston. The crafter is a grandmother of five and new to quilting.

Dwyer and McGrath belong to quilting clubs and travel on quilting-related trips together in the mid-west. During the pandemic, the ladies would gather in friends’ yards and garages to quilt.

“It keeps me out of trouble,” said McGrath about her quilting. “I started off making clothes in my junior high home economics class.”

McGrath, a Peabody resident, was described as a “prolific sewer.” She is a retired nurse with 10 grandchildren; and recently welcomed a puppy into her home: Billie Jean, named after her late son.

Dwyer is a retired prison guard and grandmother of two. She and McGrath have made quilts for all of their grandchildren.

“I hope that my granddaughters, Natalie and Olivia, will appreciate all I left behind,” said Dwyer, who hopes to teach her granddaughters how to sew.

Kathleen Bertulli is retired from the marketing and sales industry, and likes attending Sit and Sew events. She learned how to sew at 10-years-old when she began making her own Barbie clothes; and eventually sewed items for herself, mother, and sister.

“I make scarves, table runners, and fabric accessories for home design,” revealed Bertulli. “I went to a quilting group at the senior center 20 years ago because I needed help to sew. They introduced me to quilting and I’ve been hooked ever since.”