This is Stellafane ’90, a quilt inspired by one of many trips to an annual telescope makers convention and star party. My son, Kevin, and I went to those star parties for nearly 20 years.

I was reminded of this quilt when a rare event happened in the sky a week ago, when Northern Lights put on a show in the nighttime sky. A show that was visible to us in Virginia, and south to Florida and beyond. A friend reminded me how I missed an opportunity to see a similar show in Vermont when Stellafane 1990 was taking place.

It was Saturday night of the star party. I didn’t stay out extremely late that night anticipating a ten hour drive to get home the next day. When I got up the next morning I heard great stories of a remarkable Northern Lights display that looked like flames undulating above the tops of the trees. The other members of my astronomy club, The Northern Virginia Astronomy Club, seemed to enjoy telling me about it and what I had missed.

The event that I missed moved me to create this quilt. The one I missed at Stellafane ’90.

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