J200: Profiles of Grace Carpenter

Photo by Jacob Kriese

Restoring quilts is painstaking work.

Grace Carpenter values her past and her ancestors. Her great grandmother, a Shoshone Indian, taught her the skills of sewing, beadwork and other Indian arts. While she had only six short years with her great grandmother, Carpenter recalls many memories and lessons learned.

“She taught me not be a perfectionist,” Carpenter said, “to do the best you can without obsessing over it.”

One of Carpenter’s favorite crafts is restoring antique quilts. She said the restoration process can be very painstaking, but worthwhile. Along with restoration – which involves taking apart the quilt – Carpenter also makes her own quilts.

“I try to keep the flavor and character of the quilts,” Carpenter said. “It’s very heart-warming, the preservation of history.”

—by Lauren Falk, J200


“We were poor,” Grace Carpenter said. Carpenter’s family did not have much money. Therefore, she had to learn to make things she could not afford to buy. This situation encouraged her to begin sewing at a very young age. Grace’s great-grandma, a Shoshone Indian, taught her the skills of beadwork, sewing and other Native American arts. Today, Carpenter restores and repairs antique quilts.

—-by David Griggs, J200