Joel Krekelberg's 100th quilt to be displayed at Nobles County Fair

WORTHINGTON — Most people know Joel Krekelberg from his work as an athletic trainer in the sports arena, but what you may not know about him is his love for quilting.

The hobby began as an activity with his family. One of his early quilts features a simple blue and white pattern. The aged quilt has its spot in the corner of the living room — much to the chagrin of Krekelberg — but it is a beloved cover for when his sons come to visit.

“I have had up to three (quilts) at the fair — it depends how ambitious I am,” said Krekelberg. “(The hobby) started from my ex. She didn’t like to go to games and I wanted to do something that she liked to do and do it with her. That is how it started.”

The latest Krekelberg quilt, which will be on display at the Nobles County Fair this week, is the 100th quilt he has created. The quilt features a cabin theme with four pine trees in the center in warm green tones. The trees are surrounded by a variety of other colors, including a border of daisies.

The quilt was designed for Krekelberg’s long-term partner, Amy Ernst, who quipped about finally getting a quilt with her name on it after all these years.

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Krekelberg chooses his own patterns, cuts the fabric to size, sews the pieces together, cuts and sews the backing to size, and then places it on his longarm quilting machine, which he keeps in the basement.

Krekelberg’s quilts are made for a variety of reasons. Many are given to family members — soon all of his nieces and nephews will have their own. Others are given to friends. All are designed with a person in mind.

Hidden inside each quilt is Krekelberg’s signature mark, a heart with a small wedge cut out of — which he keeps. It is invisible to the eye, but represents the heartbeat — the passion and thoughtfulness — he puts into each quilt.

This week, Krekelberg will also exhibit two handmade feathers and a wooden heart in the Nobles County Fair's open class division.

“A lot of my stuff I get a little obsessed with because I just like doing it,” Krekelberg said. “If you look at my hearts, I carve a lot of them to give away because (quilting) began to be too much.”

Krekelberg began making wooden hearts after bartering with a man at his day job as a real estate appraiser. The man needed an appraisal, but did not have the money to pay Krekelberg’s rate. What the man did have was a collection of exotic woods.

Intrigued, Krekelberg worked out a special arrangement and left with the lumber. With the wood, Krekelberg began to make hearts. Some are sizeable but most are no wider than the width of two fingers.

“I was looking for something to do other than quilting. When you do something for too long it burns you out,” Krekelberg shared. “I can’t tell you how many people have told me, I got a special place in my house for the heart. I don’t make them just for people that are dying, I also give them to people who have succeeded in something and I have done that with feathers too.”

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Krekelberg makes a lot of hearts. Some have little paw prints drilled into them, which he gives out if he knows someone who has lost their dog. Others are made of unfinished wood that, when touched by human hands and their oil, will create a finish.

The handmade heart headed to the county fair is as large as a hand — with a big knot taking out part of the right hand side.

The feathers are handcrafted, with one made out of a myriad of glued woods, and the other a bison horn. A rough shape is cut on Krekelberg’s band saw before he begins to do the tedious work of detailing.

Above Krekelberg’s living room couch is a dreamcatcher-esque band of feathers. Across from it is a display case filled with feathers made from woods, horns and antlers.

The buffalo horn came from a connection to a buffalo processing plant in Colorado. Krekelberg can turn a single horn into four feathers, and said he gave two feathers back to the people who got him the material.

The Nobles County Fair is Wednesday through Sunday in Worthington. The quilt, heart and feathers will be displayed in the Fine Arts building on the fairgrounds.

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