Local Women Quilt With Creativity

The love and labor of six Long Island women who spent more than a decade hand-sewing quilts and wall hangings, some of which took anywhere from 50 hours to several years to complete, is on display at the .

Amy Capobiano-Geraldi, Liss Geraldi, Leslie Isabelle Levine, Stefanie Menake, Helga Pfeffer and Sherry Ross met in a quilting class nearly 12 years ago and found themselves sitting next to each other in every session.

“You tend to gravitate towards people you connect with and have a bond with,” Pfeffer, a Hewlett resident, said as she reflected on the group’s meeting.

After the class ended, the women decided to pursue their love of color, appreciation for different kinds of fabric, their individual styles, creativity and most importantly their passion for quilting, and formed the group the Hedda Gabbers. 

“It was an opportunity for a group of friends to be creative and show our individuality,” Pfeffer said.

When choosing a name for their group, the women decided to "play" on Henrik Ibsen's play "Hedda Gabler," borrowing the Hedda, signifying the strength of women, and altering the Gabler to more accurately describe the friends who saw themselves as a "bunch of gabbers," according to Pfeffer.

Now, a little over a decade later, the Hedda Gabbers are exhibiting their quilts, some of which are sewn traditionally and others that have adapted more modern designs, for the second time. 

Many of the pieces in the nearly 30 quilt collection were hand-quilted by the women. Others have been pieced together by quilting companies with bigger equipment to accommodate the size and texture of the fabric.

Liss Geraldi, who is originally from Denmark but now lives in Valley Stream, has been quilting since 1977. Geraldi said she has always admired American quilts, and after moving to the U.S. started quilting American patterns while working with the Hedda Gabbers.

Geraldi, who has about seven pieces in the exhibit, said that the time it takes to make any given quilt, from the cutting of the pieces, putting them together, layering the fabric’s top, middle and bottom then hand quilting each piece, can take anywhere from 38 to 50 hours to complete and in a few cases several years.

“Quilting is a very peaceful process for me, so sometimes the time goes by quickly," Geraldi said. "This is my passion.”

Levine, of Lynbrook, also admits that quilting is a very “soothing and meditative process” that gives her great joy when she looks at her end product.

Levine's work varies from the rest of the women in that she specializes in wall hangings using three-dimensional objects and different mediums such as jewelry and hardware, making her pieces more avant-garde.

“We all have distinct styles of work,” Levine said. “We mesh well as our pieces mesh well together.”

The Hedda Gabber’s melding of colors, fabrics and textures is currently on display daily at the Hewlett-Woodmere Public Libarary until April 25.

After the exhibit ends, the women will sell, keep or gift their quilts. Geraldi donates her pieces to charities, which are then auctioned or raffled off as part of fundraisers.

The group meets twice a month taking turns at each of their homes and said they are all pleased with the way they have evolved.

“It is a very accomplished feeling knowing that you have spent so many hours working on it, then to look back and be pleased with the outcome," Geraldi said. "To see it hanging there is a great feeling of accomplishment.”