Quilting Queen of Racine builds community at Stitched Quilt Shop 🧵

RACINE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Inside Stitched Quilt Shop in downtown Racine, the hum of sewing machines mixes with conversation, laughter and the rustle of fabric.

“Welcome to Stitched Quilt Shop. We are a modern maker space in Racine, Wisconsin,” said owner Autumn Latimore.

But the shop didn’t happen overnight.

Latimore first learned to quilt while living in Rochester, Minnesota, when a nurse at the Mayo Clinic — where she worked — taught her the craft.

“When I went to quilt shops, they kind of gave me the hairy eyeball,” Latimore said. “And I said if I ever had a quilt shop, I would never let people feel like that.”

That experience planted a seed.

She began imagining what her own quilt shop might look like — a place where creativity and community were equally important.

“I would go to different shops and say, ‘Oh, I could do this differently. I’d do this better. I’d do this different,’” she said.

For years, the idea stayed just that — an idea.

“I have a friend, Vicki, who would always say to me every time I saw her, ‘So how’s that quilt shop coming?’” Latimore said. “And I’d say, ‘I don’t have time for a quilt shop. I have a seven-year-old. I have a new job.’”

But after being laid off last year, the timing suddenly felt right.

“On February 14 I was having brunch with a friend and she said, ‘I hear you’re working on your quilt shop.’ I said, ‘I’m going to work on my quilt shop plan.’”

Soon after, an opportunity appeared — a space in downtown Racine.

To make the dream happen, Latimore made a bold decision.

“I didn’t want to be beholden to banks… so I liquidated my 401K. I'm hoping it'll work because this is my retirement all around you," she said.

Opening day was surreal.

“I was probably as happy as I was the day I gave birth to my daughter,” Latimore said. “It just blew my mind what I had done and who was willing to come with me.”

She’s quick to credit the people around her.

“I definitely didn’t do it alone. Truly, it takes a village.”

Today, that village is visible inside the shop.

Customers gather around a large cutting table Latimore jokingly calls the shop’s “kitchen table.”

“Most people congregate around our cutting table,” she said. “You’re buying fabric and someone asks, ‘What are you doing? How long have you been quilting?’ And all of a sudden, you have a community.”

“It's important to me to create community, and community is what most crafts are all about. That includes inclusivity and diversity and that level of connection you don’t always get in everyday life,” Latimore said.

That sense of connection is exactly what Latimore hoped to create.

“Community is what most crafts are all about — inclusivity and diversity and just that level of inclusiveness that you don’t get sometimes walking around in daily life,” she said.

Quilting itself is a massive industry — but not a very diverse one.

“The quilting industry is a four-and-a-half-billion-dollar industry in the United States,” Latimore said. “But there are fewer than a dozen quilt shops owned by African Americans.”

That reality makes spaces like Stitched Quilt Shop even more meaningful.

“Having the ability to have a space where people can kiki, chat, have tea and talk and also buy stuff is like chef’s kiss,” Latimore said.

For longtime quilters like Stevie Bright, the shop fills a need.

“This is exactly what Racine quilters needed,” Bright said. “They have a lot of stuff at other stores, but they don’t have a spot like this where you can just sit together and chat.”

Bright met Latimore through the local quilt guild and quickly became part of the community.

“We went to quilt camp together and really got to know each other — sewing, chatting, hanging out and eating — all the stuff you do at quilt camp,” she said.

Latimore says quilting often begins with a spark of inspiration.

“It starts with inspiration. So, either a pattern or maybe a fabric that you fall in love with, and then you match those two together. You say, ‘Okay, I think I can see what this would look like.’ You start looking at the pattern, read it through, and then you start cutting. The process is taking fabric, cutting it apart and putting it back together.”

Bright has been quilting for nearly three decades.

“I started quilting 28 years ago,” she said. “Before I finished my first quilt, I was planning my second quilt, and I just fell into it. It’s really an art portal.”

For her, quilting is about creativity — and finishing what you start.

“I’m really motivated by finishing things,” Bright said.

The shop also creates opportunities for quilters to gather during events like “sit and stitch” sessions.

“Usually there are a couple people here I can chat with and get to know people — or people you already know,” Bright said.

Friends say they watched Latimore chase this dream for decades.

“It makes me cry. I mean it’s been her dream,” said Kathi Wilson, a friend who has known Latimore for more than 25 years.

“She’s talked about it the whole time I’ve known her. To see that this is finally happening for her — and that all of us can be part of it — that I get to belong… this is a place where I belong.”

Wilson helped connect Latimore with the building that would eventually become the shop.

“We were having breakfast with a group of quilters and I invited a friend of mine who owned this store space. Autumn said she was looking for a building, and I thought maybe I need to connect these two.”

When Latimore shared her vision, the quilting community jumped in to help.

“Quilting people are a tribe. They’re a family,” Wilson said. “When Autumn said this is what she was going to do, everybody said, ‘What can I do?’”

That spirit of support continues today.

“It’s the people for me,” Wilson said. “Creativity is important, but it’s the people that come together that make everything tick.”

Latimore hopes the shop will continue growing and inspire younger generations to pick up the craft.

“Succession planning — that’s what I’m all about,” she said. “Let’s make sure young people have an outlet that’s not just a screen and that they know how to do something with their hands.”

She also hopes the shop shines a light on Racine itself.

“I don’t think folks in Wisconsin know that Racine is truly an untapped mine of creativity and amazing people,” Latimore said.

And already, word is spreading.

“Just last week we had customers from Australia, Massachusetts and California — and they came to Racine specifically for things in Racine,” she said.

For Wilson, the shop represents something bigger than quilting.

“I feel like now this store is like the center of Sixth Street,” she said. “Because of what she’s created here, I think it’s going to bring amazing things to downtown Racine.”

Inside Stitched Quilt Shop, pieces of fabric are cut apart and stitched back together to form something new.

Latimore believes the same thing is happening with people.

“You have to be what you want to see,” she said. “The tides lift all the boats. If you want to put your mark on something, you commit to it. And we’re committed.”

Stitched Quilt Shop is located at 505 6th Street in Downtown Racine. 

You can contact Autumn at [email protected]

Follow Stitched on Instagram here: Autumn Latimore, owner (@stitched_quilt_shop) • Instagram photos and videos