My name is Paula Lanphier, owner of Cat’s Meow Quilts, a small cottage type business born of early retirement and a deep-seated love for sewing and fabric art. Having the time now to devote to the work I love, I am able to live and breathe in my fabric stash and pattern designs. I also enjoy helping others to find the same joy and success with sewing - be it useful, decorative or otherwise. It is an honor and joy to be able to use the talents and gifts God has given me!
I began sewing at the age of 7 with my grandmother and two aunts, all three of whom were excellent seamstresses. Evolving from the treadle machine of my youth (still used in power outages), I have been sewing for 58+ years - whether doing alterations for a small town dept. store, creating wedding attire, clothing my family or decorating my home. I made my first quilt 44 years ago and the rest is history, a LOVE was born! Oh, I still do take time out from quilting to sew for my now adult children and 13 grandchildren but always return to one of many quilt projects in progress. When one of my creations was undoubtedly unique and well-made, my mother would always say, “Now ‘THAT’ is the Cat’s Meow”, and hold up two fingers on each hand like quotation marks (a fond memory).
Today I volunteer my quilting talents for area non-profit organizations such as Birthline (a yearly raffle quilt) which have raised betwen $3,500 and $5,000 for their programs!
I also do special order quilts for weddings, new babies, graduations, and most recently began doing grief/memory quilts. Somehow I manage to find time for a quilt club meeting regularly.
