The Craziness of Quilting ;)

Over the years, I've had many people wonder and comment about why someone like me would take a perfectly good piece of fabric, cut it up into a lot of little pieces, only to sew it all back together again.  I suppose it's a perfectly rational question.... but to a quilter, we look at them as though they are visiting our planet from Mars.  I mean, seriously???  Look at a quilt, really LOOK AT IT.  There's no way you can get something quite like that printed on a piece of fabric.  Lord knows, many have tried, but it's never quite the same.

My grandmother, Mamo, began teaching me to sew when I was still toddling around in those hard leather baby shoes that were so common in the 60's.  By the time I was 4 years old (and graduated to wearing red keds instead;) she was teaching me to sew on her Singer sewing machine (of which I have the very same machine and sewing cabinet in my living room.  A loving reminder of days gone by).  I remember her telling me that she was saving pieces of all the clothes she ever made me to make a special quilt... she'd chosen a log cabin pattern for that project.  Then, when I was about 13 years old, while we were having a family garage sale, I spied a black old fashioned foot locker sitting at the curb.  Nobody could get it unlocked and didn't really want to try, so they set it out for the trash. I was nosey and had nothing better to do, so I spent the rest of the day prying that trunk open.  When I FINALLY popped the lock.....BONANZA!!!!!  It was the Mother Lode for my vintage loving little heart!  Old linens, tea towels, embroidery hoops and floss, all from the 30's-50's.  And then, buried on the bottom, underneath the mounds of stamped linen table dressings waiting to be sewn....3 hand pieced quilt tops full of authentic flour sack prints, all pieced by my Mamo before she had children.  A Bow Tie, Grandmother's Flower Garden, and Double Wedding Ring.  She'd never gotten to quilting them and had forgotten all about them until that afternoon.  Those three quilt tops are what spurred my passion for quilts and quilting.

Fast forward about 10 years.  I still had every bit of "loot" I'd found in that old musty trunk.  I was married and a young farm wife, enjoying making our little house into our home.  I wanted to finish those quilt tops, but I wanted to know the proper way to do it so as not to mess them up.  Although I'd sewn nearly my entire life, and I'd pieced some simple quilts, tying or machine quilting them in the most basic of ways, I wanted to respect these three treasures and treat them well.  I took a beginning quilting class through the community college... what was suppose to be a 6 week class to learn the basics of REAL quilting, turned into a lifetime passion.  I honestly didn't think I'd really enjoy it; I really only wanted to be able to finish those tops and thought that would be it, because I HATED to hand sew anything.  I loved (still do) making clothing, bags, home decor, but all that is done with a machine, hand sewing seemed tedious to me, not fun.  One session of that class and I was completely hooked!

Thankfully God gave me a husband who appreciates craftsmanship and handmade things as much as I do.  A husband who also encourages me to express my creativity and to enjoy the process.  He was thrilled to watch as I grew in my newfound hobby.  After a few years, that hobby turned into a small business and it allowed me to share this art with others through lessons, classes, and fellowship.  COMMUNITY....that is what quilting is.  Whether it's quilting bees like in days gone by, or simply one generation passing this skill onto another, quilting is the physical essences of memories encapsulated within fabric....and in the end, you can wrap up in those memories to keep warm.  Can you think of anything more beautiful than a bed with a stunning quilt, a picnic enjoyed on a quilt tossed on the grass, a blanket fort made with quilts, or even a wedding in the country will quilt covered hay bales as the seating?  I can't!

While living in the country, I enjoyed quilting with my friends each month at our quilt guild.  I loved it when friends would come to either my shop or home to enjoy working on projects - new or old.  And, quilt shows in the summers during the local town celebrations; those were amazing and so full of inspiration!  Over the past dozen and a half years, my quilting has dropped down to occasionally finishing a project I'd started years ago and dreaming as I poured over quilt books and magazines.  But now our girls are older and they don't require so much undivided attention.... which means that I can once again enjoy quilting.  I've started piecing again, working on a Block of The Month kit I ordered over the holidays.  Cutting those little patches out of "perfectly fine" beautiful fabric serves as therapy for my heart and soul.  As I'm piecing each block, I get lost in the moment, my mind floods with memories, I have the time to just talk with my Lord and pray for friends and family, dream.  I look forward to eventually getting moved back to the country and hosting quiltings with my friends, sharing stories, catching up, swapping fabric and recipes, enjoying a meal together, laughing together, even sharing one another's burdens.....COMMUNITY.

So, for those who've asked and wondered why anyone would cut up a perfectly good piece of fabric, the answer is Friendship, Community, Heritage, Memories....most of all, because it's FUN :)