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How It All Began
LaRue Hansen was born and raised in Northern Utah from Pioneer stock. LaRue grew up learning the arts of hand work. For over 45 years LaRue has been quilting
professionally and over 25 years ago she began her own fabric store and quilting business in her home in Brigham City, Utah. She has raised her children almost
with needle in hand.
Her daughter Melanie Capener began designing doll dress as a young child. At the age of 5 she was making Barbie doll dresses with her older sister on an old
Treddle sewing machine. By the age of 8 she was designing new ones. She learned a lot from her older sister and patient mother.
When Melanie was 8. Her mother, LaRue opened a tricot fabric and quilt store in Brigham City, Utah “Ye Olde Curiousity Shoppe” This is where Melanie had
her first retail sales and learned to mark quilts for hand quilting.
Hand work took on a life of it’s own. While growing up she learned to embroider, crochet, knit and rug hook. (Her first afghan still has a crooked
edge). Even while watching TV she learned never to be idle. Her hands were still busy working even while watching, or listening to the show. Melanie
even surprised college roommates, by taking her crocheting to the movies in a dark theater. The better the show, the faster she would crochet.
Melanie didn’t want to learn to hand quilt, because she was afraid she might like it. So every time her mother asked her she would say no. Finally at the
age of 12, her mother said “Just thread a few needles, for me.” This was the line that got her hooked on quilting and she’s been stuck ever since. After
watching mom she thought that this hand quilting thing didn’t look too hard. The trouble was it turned out to be fun!
Designing has became second nature. She designed her prom dress and many other clothes in high school. By about 16 Melanie was figuring out new ways to
make things, or re-engineer a project.
Her first original quilt was blocks set together and bound on point with one foot points. This was 12 liquid embroidered blocks, both tied and big stitch
quilted, with gingham alternating blocks done in the 1970’s.
In 1981 her mother, LaRue Hansen joined several other ladies to open “Cedar Chest” a handicraft and consignment store in Brigham City, Utah. LaRue bought
out the other partners after two years and LaRue’s Country Quilts was born. It later moved to Honeyville, and in 1992 to Tremonton, Utah.
In 1994 Melanie got the first hand guided quilting machine in the county and has designed several whole cloth patterns, and re-designed others for continuous line machine
quilting. She began teaching and designing new projects. She has designed homes, decks, yards, crafts, wall hangings and quilts of course - over 100 patterns.
In 2004 we opened Pattern Gal Express. We’ve added a few new friends along the way and we'll probably be quilting for the rest of our lives or until "as old
quilter's never die, we'll just go to pieces."
Contact Us At:
- 435-257-0801 or 800-Ma-Kuilt (625-8458)
- 145 W Main, Tremonton, UT 84337
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