A family that crafts and quilts together, stays together—never truer than of the Hartzell clan, with four generations often under the roof of The Hartzell Homestead, Creative Mercantile & Quilt Shop.
Sharla Hartzell, a lifelong Arkansan, had a 25-year teaching career, and all the while, she crafted and created on the side, regularly hosting a booth at craft fairs. As a young girl, Sharla fondly remembers playing with her grandmother’s fabric scraps. She took sewing and garment making classes at school, but her quilting skills were self-taught.
She made her first quilt in 1998 for her first daughter, but career and family kept her from regular quiltmaking. Sharla said, “I looked for projects that I could start and finish quickly.” But she shared her love of creating with her two daughters, Shelby and Gracie. Every summer, she conducted a mini summer camp where she taught the girls a new skill and created something fun with them. Today, not only do they live nearby, but they also work with her at the shop.
Nearing the end of her teaching career, Sharla contemplated what she might do next. The shop idea was a bold move in a new direction, but a small jump in concept. It basically put her craft fair booth in her own brick and mortar building and incorporated her love of teaching, crafting, and quilting. “I swapped lesson plans for creative workshops,” Sharla recalled.
The venture got off to a rocky start, though. She opened a small shop in downtown Russellville in January 2020, offering precut fabrics, little projects, and classes on Saturdays and two evenings a week. Then, COVID-19 closed everything down. From a business perspective, “We basically had to start over after COVID-19, rebuilding momentum,” she said.
In 2023, an opportunity to buy out another quilt shop presented itself. Sharla recalled, “This was a big leap in faith.” Buying that inventory would require them to move to a new space, in order to accommodate twice the amount of crafts and quilting fabric.
But they took that leap, bought out the other shop, and moved to their current location: a country log cabin in Dover.
They are now a full quilt shop, carrying 1,000-plus bolts of fabric, as well as artisan goods and crafts. Not only does that make them unique, but they are also the only non-box store within an hour’s drive in any direction. Along with quilting workshops, the shop offers CrafTEA Saturdays featuring hot teas and projects, Bible journaling, and sewing classes that teach basic concepts for pillows and other items.
Although Sharla never imagined they would have grown so much in five years, she is open to even more evolution. A 2025 building addition will offer a larger gathering space for stitchers. Sharla also wants to grow their Etsy shop beyond fabric to include crafts, and she plans to do more designing and pattern writing, too. “I’m a huge goal setter! Each year, I set creative growth goals and try to learn new skills, so I can reach more people. I want them to know we were created to be creative and to give themselves grace to make mistakes in trying new things,” Sharla shared.
Sharla calls this second career her “fun season of life.” She said, “The shop is my creative outlet. It brings me such joy. It doesn’t feel like work.” And she is surrounded by her family while she’s there. In addition to her daughters, her mama, Anna, and grandson are often there, too. The adult men are involved as well. Sharla’s husband, Eric, is a woodworker; Gracie’s husband, Alex, does wood turning; and Shelby’s husband, Parker, assists in his family’s candy making company, Juanita’s Candy Kitchen. Sharla boasts that it’s an Arkansas favorite with the best brittles. The family’s artistic handicrafts are offered for sale in the shop.
Sharla said, “We all craft together—diverse types and mediums. We all enable each other. It’s a loving and supportive environment.” It’s clear her faith and family are the heart (and charm) of The Hartzell Homestead.
Diane L. Murtha is an award-winning quilter, fiber artist, author, and international lecturer and instructor. Quilting for over 30 years, she gravitated to art quilts and discovered she loves challenges. Her quilts and articles are included in books, 30 + magazines, and multiple juried exhibits and international shows. Diane published her first book, Artful Insights in Fiber: Quilted Bits of Wit & Wisdom in March 2023. She currently resides in Iowa. Learn more at www.dianeLmurtha.com, or follow her on Instagram @dianelmurtha.
