Breakfast on the Farm at El-Na – the sequel
Making a difference
July 27, 2026
FOND DU LAC – What started as a destination for quilters is becoming a creative hub for makers of all kinds.
President and CEO Amanda Bauer-Frisch said Quilting Legacies has opened its new Creative Studio, expanding beyond fabric arts to offer paint-your-own pottery, mosaics, fused glass and other hands-on projects.
Since opening three years ago, Bauer-Frisch said the business has built a following for its quilting supplies, sewing machines, classes and machine service.
The new studio, she said, reflects her vision of creating a place where creativity extends well beyond quilting.
“Around here, there really aren’t a whole lot of options for creativity,” she said. “So, we felt we could serve the community in this way.”
Known for fostering a welcoming and collaborative environment, Bauer-Frisch said Quilting Legacies and The Creative Studio offer hands-on classes, workshops, retreats and community events designed to help creators of all skill levels build confidence and connect through shared interests.
“We have been increasing our opportunities for different types of classes, like fiber arts classes and quilting classes, obviously,” she said. “But we saw a need and an interest in the community for other types of creative classes. After doing some research, we felt like The Creative Studio and offering painting and pottery classes, including a ‘Paint Your Own Pottery’ option, was a natural fit for our skills and our space and also something the community would appreciate.”
Bauer-Frisch said The Creative Studio also hosts painting classes, ceramics workshops, sewing parties, birthday celebrations, date nights, family gatherings, girls’ outings and team-building events.
“I would say The Creative Studio is a paint-your-own pottery place that allows you to explore your creativity and express yourself in a new way – one that maybe you’ve never thought about before,” she said.
Per quiltinglegacies.com, the studio’s summer lineup also includes a variety of children’s classes, with projects such as puppet-making, dreamcatchers and air-dry clay sculpting.
Bauer-Frisch said staff provides the materials and guidance needed to get started, helping beginners work through challenges along the way.
She said anyone can walk in with little to no experience and leave with a finished creation.
“We believe creativity belongs to everyone,” she said.
Bauer-Frisch said costs vary depending on the pottery piece selected, with prices ranging from $12 to $200.
She said the price includes the pottery, glazes and paints, as well as the kiln-firing process that completes the finished piece.
Bauer-Frisch said The Creative Studio welcomes walk-ins, allowing visitors to choose from the studio’s selection of pottery pieces and begin creating without a reservation.
Those who want to participate in a scheduled class, however, must pre-register, she said.
“On average, most people finish their project in one to two hours,” she said. “But if they need more time, they’re welcome to take it, especially if they’re doing something super intricate or detailed.”
So far, Bauer-Frisch said the response to The Creative Studio has been “overwhelmingly positive.”
“People have been planning their trips around coming here,” she said. “Grandmothers, for example, have been bringing their grandkids in. It’s a great family activity when it’s a rainy day or when you don’t know what else to do. We’re very pleased to have had such a great response from the community so far.”
Growing community needs, desires
When she moved Quilting Legacies from Oakfield to its current location at 1325 S. Main St. in Fond du Lac, Bauer-Frisch said the business initially occupied about 4,500 square feet of the 10,000-square-foot building.
Since then, she said the business has steadily expanded its footprint within the space.
“The landlord had been looking for someone to fill up the rest of the space – thankfully for us, no one else came to rent the other space,” she said. “As our business grew, we slowly took over more and more of the building. So, we were able to just kind of naturally fill up the rest of the building over the last two years.”
Bauer-Frisch said the main level of the store houses the craft shop, including its wide selection of fabrics and space for sewing classes.
The upper level, she said, features the sewing machine sales and service center – a unique offering in the area – while The Creative Studio is located on the lower level.
Bauer-Frisch said the space has also become a gathering place for local makers, with a group of about 50 people meeting monthly for sewing and embroidery projects.
“Those are the quilting and embroidery-related classes that the store has been offering for 28 years now,” she said. “I inherited those folks and groups three years ago when I bought the store in Oakfield, which was then called Stitches in Time. But, despite our moving to Fond du Lac in 2024, [the group] still comes every month for quilting or embroidery-related projects.”
For smaller groups and individuals interested in specific projects, Bauer-Frisch said there are also a variety of classes and workshops, with current offerings available on its website.
“We also have a really great following of people who like to come every month and create the same project we’ve created from scratch,” she said. “They like to re-create those projects on their own, using the pattern, instructions and so forth on how to complete the projects.”
Bauer-Frisch said many of Quilting Legacies’ customers are women over the age of 60 who may be hesitant when it comes to technology and software.
She said the business has responded by developing tutorials and video lessons for its machine embroidery software, as well as offering live virtual classes that extend its reach beyond the local community.
“We’ve been developing all these projects for a while now,” she said. “So, we write the pattern for the project and then come up with a machine embroidery file or a design file. We’ll [then] sell those to interested people. So, if they have seen a certain pillow or a certain quilt we made in the store, and they want to re-create it at home, they can buy the pattern and the embroidery files from us and then do it at home.”
Bauer-Frisch said online tutorials and videos are promoted through Quilting Legacies’ Facebook page, YouTube channel and website, giving customers additional resources to learn at their own pace.
A ‘natural fit’
Bauer-Frisch said losing her husband, Adam – who died unexpectedly from a genetic heart condition while she was pregnant with their second child and raising their one-year-old son – became a defining moment that strengthened her determination and shaped the entrepreneurial path she would later pursue.
“As I put my life back together and tried to figure out what I wanted out of life, my life was fueled in a different way,” she said.
Bauer-Frisch said that period of transition led her into entrepreneurship, where she began selling children’s piggy banks with separate compartments for “Give,” “Save” and “Spend.”
“I made them in my garage in honor of my late husband because even though he was a sheriff’s deputy in Winnebago County, he was very passionate about financial literacy,” she said. “I called that business ‘Small Legacies’ because I felt it was a small way that I could carry on his legacy.”
Before purchasing the quilting shop, Bauer-Frisch said she spent nearly 10 years as the human resources manager for Festival Foods, where she developed a passion for retail and the importance of creating positive experiences for both customers and employees.
In 2023, when the owner of Stitches in Time in Oakfield was looking to sell the business, Bauer-Frisch said the opportunity felt like a natural fit.
With her background as a machine embroidery expert, she said she could easily see herself as a quilt shop owner.
Bauer-Frisch said she purchased the 25-year-old business, operated it in Oakfield for its first year and renamed it Quilting Legacies.
After that, she said she decided to move the business to a more thriving area.
When she purchased the quilt store, Bauer-Frisch said she quickly noticed customers were coming in not just for fabric, but to create meaningful projects for their families.
“They are driven by the same desire to carry on either their own personal legacy or to help someone in their family remember a legacy,” she said.
Whether it’s quilting, pottery, sewing or another creative pursuit, Bauer-Frisch said she enjoys helping people find an outlet for their creativity.
“My new husband, Dan Frisch, is a psychologist, so I understand, from a brain science perspective and a mental health perspective, just how powerful flexing your creativity can be for your overall well-being,” she said. “I feel like we are serving the community by providing these various outlets for creativity or creative expression.”
Since taking ownership of the business, Bauer-Frisch said she has grown Quilting Legacies into a team of 25 full- and part-time employees.
Visit the shop’s website for more information, including hours, upcoming events and online shopping options.
