Bits n Pieces

Photo caption: The original quilt made by Marsha Bray in 2002 and later used by Mac McKeever to create the Bits website banner and logo.

That colorful design at the top of the Bits ’n’ Pieces Quilt Guild website isn’t a graphic. It began as a real quilt—made by Marsha Bray in 2002.

Marsha’s husband, Mac McKeever, later used the quilt to create the familiar Bits banner and logo. Together, Marsha and Mac were also responsible for launching the guild’s first website.

Exactly when did that happen? Well…that part has become a bit of a family-history mystery.

When asked, Marsha and Mac began comparing memories and searching for clues. They know the website existed before 2014 because newsletters from that year already refer to it. Their best estimate places its launch somewhere between 2007 and 2013, with 2010 currently leading as the most likely year.

The story began in 2007, when Mac decided he wanted to learn how to build websites. He created the original WordPress website for The Quilted Fox—and Marsha was promptly “drafted” to maintain it.

Later, when Bits began discussing the possibility of having its own website, Marsha remembers that everyone looked in her direction because no one else knew how to manage one.

“And that’s how I ended up doing the Bits web for way too many years!” she recalled.

Mac’s contributions to the guild didn’t end with the website and banner. He continues to take the professional photographs for Fanfare of Quilts, helping preserve and showcase the work of our members.

Most of all, we owe Marsha and Mac our gratitude for having the vision—and, yes, the bravery—to take on something entirely new for the guild. At a time when few members knew anything about websites, they stepped forward, learned as they went and gave Bits a professional online presence. Their work helped put Bits on the map as a serious, established quilt guild and created a foundation we are still building upon today.

The exact website launch date may remain uncertain unless someone uncovers an old newsletter or meeting record. But the larger story is clear: Marsha and Mac gave Bits its first online home and created a visual identity the guild still uses today.

So the next time you visit the website, take another look at the banner. Behind it is a real quilt, a creative partnership and an important piece of Bits history hiding in plain sight.