25 years of keeping customers in stitches

The stitches in time have added up to 25 years for a widely recognized Spokane Valley quilting and fabric store.

Longtime Valley resident Jackie Wolff is celebrating 25 years of owning The Quilting Bee, a regional fixture in the sewing and quilting community that offers specialty fabrics, patterns, sewing machines, classes and workshops for all ages.

This month, the shop is a hub of celebration and customer appreciation specials including an Oct. 31 open house, as Halloween commemorates the silver anniversary of Wolff’s purchase of Mary’s Quilting Bee – then located along Dishman-Mica Road.

“Love of community and fellowship,” Wolff says, is the common thread that bonds the years and keeps her involved. “And the love of quilting brings us all together.”

And it’s that involvement in the business, joy for quilting, and staying abreast of market trends that keeps her 15 employees motivated and enthusiastic.

Ask them about the changes in quilting over the years and they will definitely point to the machines. But they will also agree the heart of the craft remains the gathering together and combining creativity with a sense of calm.

“When you’re here, you’re a quilter and it’s empowering,” said store manager Joyce Haiar, who first worked at The Quilting Bee when she was in high school. She added their celebration is in part about their customers and the opportunity to say: “Thank you for letting us be around so long.”

Wolff relocated the shop to its current location when she and her husband James built a retail center in 1994.

Upon entrance to the 3,000 square feet of retail space on the main floor, customers are greeted with a variety of finished quilts of various sizes and patterns to fit a given season. Another 3,000 square feet of the building’s lower level is used mainly for offices and classrooms.