[Quilt #4] [Quilt #5] Space Quilts. Masterpieces for My Little Misters, Part 2

So I started 2012 with new resolve to finish these quilts, but also hatching the hope and plan for Quilt #6, and the space quilts got set aside for a bit.  This turned out to be a very good thing!  I'd started quilting the space quilts when I had to set them aside, but I learned so much with Quilt #6 that it ended up making the space quilts so much better.

I learned about batting.  So far, I've been very devoted to using 100% cotton, and so the space quilts were pinned to an all-natural cotton batting that stretched and tore easily.  With Quilt #6 I had reason to use Warm and White batting, though it is 12% something other than cotton, and I immediately saw the great benefit of that, especially since the space quilts had those large, almost-10" photo motifs!  I had started quilting the space quilts as close to 4" as possible, which meant quilting had to happen within the photo pieces and I was completely unhappy with how all that was turning out.  

So.  I learned to do what has to be done, even if it's going to make you cry over it the whole time.  I unquilted the first space quilt to replace the batting and start over.  I seam-ripped black stitching on black fabric.  It took a couple of weeks' worth of evening times.  But I did it, because I sincerely wanted these two to be the best quilts I would ever make.  

I unquilted the one, replaced the batting on both, repinned and stepped back to figure out the opportunities of only having to quilt 10" apart this time.  I'd also learned, from the process of Quilt #6, the value of a walking foot on your machine.  Though it was tricky to find one that fit my Kenmore-that's-older-than-me, the internet helped out spectacularly and I was no longer afraid to quilt around the squares, meeting at corners without puckers.  

I splurged on an online Craftsy class that was very helpful, "How to Quilt Large Quilts on a Small Machine," and watched parts of it over and over before setting to work.  By the time I started quilting these two babies for real, I was ready to get them done and I made hard, but precise work of it.  My shoulders and back ached from carefully pushing and pulling and turning those quilts under my sewing machine needle, but I got them done.  And I'd learned so much, and most of all,  I'd done the great and beautiful job that I had desperately hoped I could do.  I even hand-finished the binding!  And my boys absolutely love them.  In a way I'm glad I didn't finish that first Christmas, because all the work I did on them after that, the boys saw and experienced, and they know that these are something special, and they understand just a little bit more of how special each my little astronauts are to me.  

[Quilt #4] [Quilt #5] Space Quilts. Masterpieces, for My Little Misters, Part 1

As a family, we're into space stuff.  Included in the Top Ten List of most awesome things I have experienced would be the crazy Easter Sunday we left after church to drive down to Titusville, Florida, arriving after 2 in the morning and laying out with a crowd under the stars while we waited, and followed the countdown, and saw the launch of STS-131, Discovery.  Night launch.  Amazing.  I get tears in my eyes recalling it, and our young sons' reaction to it.

That was our first close-up launch experience, and we were addicted.  We followed along at home on NASA tv and online and with three more drive-downs we were able to see 2 more launches live and in person, including the very last.  And for a couple of years, all our boys could talk about was space shuttles and rockets and wanting to be astronauts.  

And over a full year I looked at space-themed fabric online and gradually made purchases.  Only the best for my boys, but after seeing all that beautiful, fine fabric together in one place, I was completely intimidated by what to do next.  I relied on what we were taught in Landscape Architecture school: when you're stumped, look at pictures, lots of them, until you get excited and find inspiration and direction again.  And they taught us that before the internet!

I still had no idea what I was doing as far as quilt design goes, but one of the fabric lines I'd chosen was printed with actual NASA photos, so I was working with incorporating images that were roughly 10" square.  I scoured the internet for images of quilts that included square patches of fabric without being too static in their layout.  I knew I didn't want to simply frame and sash the images, I wanted movement and variety.  Finally I found this image, the blog from which it was taken being, unfortunately, no longer available:  

The varying sizes and shades of the blocks seems to make them appear and recede - like the fictional movie images of travelling through space.  I took some measurements from the photo, converted them to what they would proportionally be based on using 10" images, then printed out the above photo in black and white.  (Lots of landscape architecture drafting skills and tricks coming into play!)  From the black and white photo I was able to number the fabrics from light to dark, and when I laid out my space fabric collection from light to dark, I had almost exactly the same number of fabrics to work with.  Suddenly this quilt design process became as simple as mathematics and I was able to move forward confidently with my rotary cutter.  

Making 2 quilts at one time was certainly an undertaking.  Part of me wanted to move forward and do one start to finish, than the second start to finish, leaving the possibility for tweaking things and finding quicker/better ways with the first to use on the second.  I was honestly afraid, though, that the first one might be so overwhelming that I may not finish the second one, so I went with the production-line method.

I bought fabric during 2009 and 2010.  I started cutting early 2011 and worked very gradually on them until that Christmas.  I had hoped to have them finished before that Christmas, but I was trying to keep the project a secret, meaning I could only work on them late at night, and I only got as far as finishing the tops and pinning them up with backing and batting.  

That Christmas morning after all the presents were opened, I spread the unfinished quilts out on my bed and called the boys to come look.  My youngest was too young to realize what they were, but my oldest one gasped and jumped for joy.  It was a reaction more than I could have hoped for!  

[Quilt #3] By Request, from family

It was such an honor to be asked by my aunts and great-aunt to make a quilt for a shower gift for my cousin.  It was plenty frightening, too, as I'd only made 2 before and didn't feel ready to take on a commission, but I'm usually not one to turn family down!  My cousin had a little boy and was expecting her daughter and they wanted to give her a special quilt.  They sent me pictures of the nursery with freshly painted green walls, black furniture, and pink accents; and with all that in mind I went to Hobby Lobby.

I found a really fun group of fabrics that had all the right colors that would work nicely in the striped layout I wanted to try.  So far I'd only done squares, and so I was looking forward to trying something different.  I was also expecting the striped layout to be simpler to quilt and that turned out to be true, mostly.  I once again couldn't resist the urge to piece the back and learned why you must very carefully choose how you piece the back if you are wanting the quilting threads to match the fabric.  I changed bobbin thread about 756 times while quilting and it was so frustrating!  But, once again, it turned out quite pretty and everyone in the family was so proud and thrilled!  I was too, and so happy that something I'd made would be a part of a little girl's fond childhood memories.

[Quilt #2] Throwing myself into quilting, for a friend and for community

My first quilt was biting off more than I can chew since I had no idea how to make a quilt and I knew no person in real life who made quilts.  I knew how to sew, and my first one was on the small side, and I almost always have excellent Beginners' Luck, so it turned out just fine.

But the second time around... let's just say I tend to learn things the hard way.

I blame it on an online board called amitymama.  It's something that got started in the early days of online group communication - a message board for young moms who liked to do things the all-natural way.  It met a great need at a time in my life when I was home with two tiny boys and no car to go anywhere and no money to spend if I could.  I learned a lot from those women.  I began to see how I could find my place within a community, (even if it was an online community) and how I could both learn and contribute at the same time.  I longed for the way, as a community, they looked out for each other and took care of each other, shouldered burdens and wow those mamas knew exactly the right way to say "I'm sorry you're going through such a hard time" that made you feel so supported.   But technology is tricky, other sites came around, this one is still there but not quite what it used to be.  One thing they did sometimes was to send quilt blocks to the mama volunteering to make a quilt for someone who needed it.  That cooperation, that kind of giving, inspired my soul.

So when a friend of mine, a local police officer, was brutally attacked and stabbed multiple times by an insane thief, and came very close to dying, I knew I had to make a quilt.  This terrible attack was so horrifying to her family and many close friends, as well as the community at large.  So many people wanted to do whatever they could to support her in her very long recovery, so I told her sister if she would send the word out to get fabric to me, I would make her a quilt.

My, the fabric that made its way to my home!  Lots of it and lots of different colors and prints.  I had no idea how to pull all of it together.  My abilities at that time were nothing beyond piecing simple squares, and after hours of staring and arranging and rearranging, I had something.  Two somethings, actually - with that much fabric I had to piece the back.  I was so grateful to the ladies at our local quilt shop who helped me pick out border and binding fabric - I had no idea how to pull all those colors together.

Finally it came down to quilting it.  I had so little idea how to go about it, and it was so much work in my little machine, so many pin pricks as I learned how to work it all under the needle.  The fear of failure made me cry some nights, and the push to get it done caused me so much anxiety.  But I did get it done, and she loved it, and she felt from it not just the love from the individuals who contributed to it, but from her community as a whole.

I learned a lot about how to make a quilt through this - by doing things the wrong way and having to redo them.  I learned why often, quilting was historically done by a community of women coming together to do the work, and I longed for that kind of community in real life.  I met a few ladies at the quilt shop, but I still didn't know where to start talking or asking questions.  After this quilt though, I knew there would be another, and probably another, and maybe a few more after that.  I knew that although I would stare at my progress for too many hours and still have to take things apart and redo, and though I would cry to myself late nights wondering why I get myself into such projects - although it seemed like the most impossible thing for me to ever get good at - I knew I wanted to become a quilter!

Father's Day Stylin'

For my man's first Father's Day I made him a camp shirt, and made our 2 month old son a jumper out of the same fabric.  Then 2 years after that I made them matching camp shirts.  Now that 2 month old is  now 8 and he's got a 5 year old brother.  3 camp shirts seemed a bit daunting, but I was willing to give it a try.

Now, though I have boys and though they are young, they are surprisingly opinionated about fabric.  They wholeheartedly agreed that Parson Gray's Curious Nature was the winner, so we went to the website where my youngest son's eyes fell on the photo of the vest and tie set.  "MOM!  Can you make THAT?!"  Well, with a response like that I should at least try!  I got the other two men on board and bought Simplicity 4762, which has both men's and boy's vest and tie sizes.  And here's what we got, for church on Father's Day.  Love my boys!

Group Gifts: Seven Tote Bags

A friend asked me to make 7 tote bags for her to give to her daughter and her daughter's best friends as a high school graduation gift.  And since I love a good production line, I couldn't resist!

This is a simple reversible bag; back when I was in college a friend of mine gave me one like this, and I used it until it wore out.  It is SO easy to make!  Here is a pattern for one version of it.  

And Another Stuffed Owl

My friend who needed a shower gift also needed a gift to take to a one-year-old-girl's birthday party, themed "Look Whoooo's Turning One!"  And with a stack of leftover Joel Dewberry, Modern Meadow lying right there on the ironing board, I just had some fun all over again!  It's a fun little challenge to find eyes and beak out of the fabric prints, and I think this little guy turned out to be just plain adorable.  So do my kids.  They've put in their orders.  As well as the husband of the friend who needed the gift.  Might be ordering some Parson Gray rather soon!

[Quilt #13] Baby Quilt Request

A great friend asked me if I had anything laying around that she could buy from me for a shower gift.  She didn't want to "just do the registry thing," she wanted something hand made!  I told her I didn't and we talked over a few ideas of what I could do quickly (she needed it in 4 days).  It's funny how these days, the thing that comes together most quickly for me is a quilt.

I took a look at the baby registry to get ideas of what they were after - pale green, purple, and yellow, and they'd registered for things with jungle animals on them, and in another case, an owl.  As I glanced through my fabric, the quilt suddenly became quite clear: the soft greens, grays, and periwinkle in my collection of Jane Dixon's Primitiva were absolutely perfect.

I told my friend that this would be a very simple quilt, and she was fine with that.  I bordered two cuts of fabric - one for the front and one for the back, and then for the first time ever, attempted to applique' something onto a quilt top.  I've applique'd a couple of times, just for kicks, but this was the first time I did it onto something that really mattered.

Notice how I didn't have to piece the eyes for the owl - I cut them right out of the fabric and sewed them on!    The owl came together more easily than I expected, and the wavy lines in the fabric were so beautiful to quilt by.  I was pleased with how adorable it turned out.  So adorable, in fact, that I simple had to take it one step further.  My very first stuffed animal:

Landscape Architect Quilter

Photo Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/Japan Space Systems, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team

This is where the Quilter and the Landscape Architect in me collide.  The quilter sees this image and immediately responds: "What a beautiful quilt!"  The Landscape Architect immediately thinks: "Irrigation!"  The Landscape Architect wins, but the quilter wants to sew it up.

It's a photo of Finney County, Kansas, and was part of an Earth Day slide show on Space.com that included beautiful images of earth from space. This land that was once prairie and dry much of the time is now a beautiful patchwork of green due to the conversion to farmland made possible by irrigation systems, mostly center-pivot systems.

Wouldn't this make a beautiful quilt?!  I really like the offset angle at which the land was captured.  The consistent same-sized squares are quilt-ready, and the simple variety of colors of green and shape and size and configuration of the circles makes it dance.

I long to make quilts like this - from aerial photos:  photos taken from space of cities full of blocks ready to be expressed in fabric (Chicago is to me one of the most beautiful), rivers winding through still-empty lands, the textures of mountains in the deep shadows of sunrise.  I suppose this is where the quilter, Landscape Architect, and lover of all things space collide.

[Quilt #12] Baby Girl Crib Quilt

All fabric is from Joel Dewberry's Modern Meadow, and I wish I could buy more and more of that line and makes lots of these!  I also wish it was as easy to quilt a throw-size quilt as it is to quilt a crib quilt; it was very satisfying to sit at the machine for just an hour and have this all quilted up!

While designing this quilt I learned to measure/calculate and work with the triangles to piece the 45-degree squares into a square block.  I also learned how great a trick it is to quilt in an "x" across such blocks instead of around the edges.  In using the kaleidoscope blocks I learned that you've really got to get those corners where the kits meet the diamonds super tight and secure - without tight seams these will wear quickly and need repair.  I had to go back over this quilt after I was finished and tack those down just to make sure.

Ahhh... I could stare at this quilt for hours.  Well, the pictures of it anyways, even though I hung it upside down when I photographed it!  It has been safely delivered and opened with joy at a most beautiful baby shower.  I know it brought the new mama joy and I hope this little baby girl loves it for a very long time!  

At some point, I might have to admit I have a problem

Things that have always appealed to me: geometry, patterns, beautiful fabric, and putting things together in an unexpected way to make something beautiful.  And so I seem to be developing a new habit with these kaleidoscope squares.  I used to not love larger-scale patterns in fabric, but now every time I see a motif of suitable size, I begin to imagine what it would look like cut and pieced this way.  The fun thing though, is that you never really know how it will come together until it actually comes together!

Take Joel Dewberry's Modern Meadow, Sunflower in Berry for example:

I had ordered a selection of half yards from this collection in order to make a crib quilt for a baby shower.  I had a design in mind for the quilt, but once I saw the sunflowers would fit so perfectly to the required kite shape, well I got that crazed look in my eye and had to stop what I was doing right then to get to work.  And then I realized, that even with just a half yard, I could cut enough motifs to lay the block out two different ways, with completely different results!  This is all just too much fun.  

And now I'll be trying my first "free form"-ish quilting layout - as I figure out what will go around these blocks to complete the quilt.  Hmmm.....

[Hand] Quilting

Awhile back I came across some bird nest fabric on sale and just had to buy it.  It made me think of my GrannyAnn and her love for birds, and though I didn't know what it would be, I wanted to use it to make something for her.  I've already made her a full size quilt with a different set of bird motifs, and when I remembered how pretty she likes to make her table in the springtime, I thought of a table runner!

This was the first small quilted project I've made in awhile, and as I was finishing up the piecing, I realized it might be the perfect thing to try some hand quilting - for the first time!  So I pulled out some betweens, some thimbles, and a large embroidery hoop.

Though I have longed for the experience of hand quilting, I've held off.  Though it's hard enough to quilt using a small, old machine with a walking foot, due to my back/neck/shoulder/wrist woes I've been fearful of trying it by hand.  I've learned to sit with reasonable posture at the sewing machine, but wasn't sure how I could make hand quilting work.  Lately though, I've not been as pleased with the results from my machine.  I feel that as my skills are growing, they have reached the limits of what my machine can do, and I've been thinking that the next step in pursuing this passtime might require a substantial investment: either a great, ergonomic hand quilting frame or a machine designed for quilting.

So this little project was a bit of a test to see which direction I might take, and what I learned is that either I'm not doing it at all right, or I'm most definitely a machine quilter!  Though after a bit I was able to get consistent, pretty stitches, it created a great tension in the muscles of my hand, wrist, arm, and shoulder.  I had very little endurance for the work with that kind of pain and cannot at all imagine doing this over a whole quilt!  Also, though the hand-stitched look is appealing, as I think through the type of quilting I do most often, it seems more appealing to be able to match a bobbin thread to the backing and the top thread to the quilt top than to have the same thread visible on both sides.

I'm not giving up though - going to search for some tips or videos online and see if I can improve my method, and overall I'm completely pleased with how this pretty little thing turned out.

Kindle Cover by Request

 By request, and maybe kinda never again.  This stuff is tough!  Matching up all those little edges, stitches, and the triangles just so, so that they actually hold the Kindle in.  This had to be a very zen-like project, slow and steady, little bit by little bit so as not to make a mistake.  I didn't use a pattern or tutorial (maybe I should have?!)  and I had to undo stitches a few times to get things exactly right, and sad that there's a bit of double topstitching so that it doesn't look completely polished; working with plastic inserts for stability was a first, but it looks and works mighty fine.  This was a special request for a great friend and wonderful person who boldly and beautifully heads up our childrens' ministry at church, and who made me the most wonderful cards as a birthday gift.  Since it was her birthday recently, I'm happy to return a gift!

Quilt Show!

Being a homeschooling mom of two very active little boys, and being wife to a wonderful husband who has in recent years been a working musician, quilting seems to happen most late at night, when I'm by myself.  I don't know anyone else, in real life, who quilts.  When I am stumped about how a layout is coming together or how I should go about quilting a particular quilt, I have no one to ask.  The internet can be very helpful to a point, but there are still plenty of those moments when I've got fabric spread all over my bed and I'm standing there staring at it... staring... staring... getting no closer at all to a solution.

But this might change in the future, after going to my first quilt show!  My husband was leaving one weekend for a fishing trip, to be gone 3 days, and as I was looking around for a fun way to fill some of my solo time with the boys, I stumbled across an announcement there would be a quilt show.  SERIOUSLY?  A QUILT show?!  And right around the corner from us!  I was ecstatic.  "Hey BOYS!  How would you like to go - well, wouldn't it be FUN to go together to look at some really awesome quilts and fabric and stuff like that at a show?"  They actually said it would be!  I wasn't that surprised, these boys do take an interest in what I love, especially since I often make things for them.  

So we went!  And we all had fun!  And the quilts were just so beautiful, and so much inspiration was gleaned.  And as it turns out, the show was put on by a local guild that meets monthly and I am going to try to find myself available on those nights so I can meet some quilters in real life.  

I took many pictures at the show but don't want to post many since in the busyness of keeping up with little boys at a quilt show I wasn't able to document the maker of each one, but here's my cute little quilt lovers:

It means so much to me that these boys are interested in what I do, and that they enjoy looking at quilts and playing with fabric.  My dad so sweetly commented that it's because of the way I invest in them and teach them and share things with them.  Maybe that's it, but regardless, I'm so glad that things that are important to me are making an impact on my boys.  It's something happy to think about during those late nights, when I'm staring at fabric, stumped.  

Quilt in a Day [Quilt #11]

Yesterday morning when I woke up I had no thought about sewing.

Scratch that.  My waking thought was about sewing, but I kept putting it aside as I had other things I needed to do: lots of home schooling, clean the house, garden - catch up on things while my best friend kept one of my sons so that I could have a bit more peace and organization to my day.

But as I dropped my son off, my best friend mentioned she needed a gift for her sister's baby shower today. "What can I do that's cheap?"  she asked me, because we both know what it is to not have money for such things, regardless of how badly we wish we did.  I suggested flannel receiving blankets since I had some flannel.  But after looking at my flannel, it didn't seem to fit what I'd want my best friend to give to her sister at her family baby shower.

Because, there are some reasons why she's my best friend.  And when it comes to family, and when it comes to her loving her sister, and when it comes to family sometimes maybe not always being what one would really hope family to be but that my best friend consistently makes every effort to be what family is supposed  to be - well, my flannel wasn't good enough.  And it's ok if that doesn't make any sense because, like I said, there are reasons why we're best friends, and we get it.

So, I said to my older (7 yo) son, "School is officially finished.  We're going to the fabric store!"  He was nonplussed.  This is not his favorite thing to do, but he was willing to be my bud and go along.  Honestly, it's not my favorite thing to do - I much prefer to shop online for fabric as our area is for some reason devoid of what I really look for in a fabric store.  We went to one - and found nothing.  We went to another - and found almost nothing.  Bud-bud was starting to resist the idea of a third, so I started to make something work in my head.  Always attracted to blue and red for boys, and anything with stars... then there was this blue with teddy bears with red bows, and this neutral toy toss and look here - some coordinating flannel - okay!  We were off and running.

I didn't really have extra money to spend on fabric.  But I was babysitting this week and I would make some extra money - I'd had other uses for it but hey, this is my best friend.  Who keeps my kids way too much without letting me pay her, who made me dinner and cried with me when my dog died, who does so much for other people all the time and always has kids over at her house eating up her snacks when they are on the smallest grocery budget I know of... I will most definitely spend my extra money on fabric for my best friend.

And I will most definitely take it home and make a crib quilt, finished before bedtime (surprising myself once again!).

I've been wanting to try the quilt-as-you-go method and it worked great with this little project!  And the flannel backing turned out so soft and warm-feeling.  I might make all future crib quilts with flannel backing.

So - yesterday I woke up with absolutely no intention of making a quilt, but went to bed with this neatly folded and ready to deliver.  That's a good day in my book.

I Have Surprised Myself

Well over a year ago my Aunt Jimmieann happened upon the library when they were clearing out their periodicals.  She noticed a box of quilting magazines on it's way out and asked if she could have it and they said yes, and months later we finally found the time to meet up so she could give them to me.  I think there's 30 magazines all told, all different types.  It's been so much fun looking through them in quiet moments, and I've learned a lot from them!

Some of them I'll pass along to others, but I have a pile of keepers.  Recently this one was on the top of the "Keep" pile:

It's the January 2007 edition of The Quilter Magazine, and my what a beautiful thing they put there on the cover!  I read about this quilt, how to make it, and the reason it was in the "Keep" pile is precisely because I wanted to make this quilt, one day.

When I say "one day" I mean when I'm much better at doing what I do.  This one was tricky!  So far I've only worked in squares, rectangles, or strips but this one had angles!  Kites and diamonds, both fussy cut, and very exactly stitched and matched to pull off those medallions.  And it would require the right fabric, with a certain size and shape motif in order to pull it off.

After playing with a number of half-yards yesterday, I'd laid them aside, by chance next to my pile of "Keeper" magazines, and by chance, with this one on top:

That's from Anna Maria Horner's Innocent Crush collection.  It hadn't made the cut for the quilt I'd been playing with because the blues in it were standing alone without anything to bring them along with the rest of the prints.  And then there was a moment in my evening when I realized THIS would make the PERFECT cuts for block like that quilt!  I couldn't wait to be done with dinner and boys' bedtime routine.  I was going to play!  I thought I'd play with cutting, goof off with seaming, and learn a few things while, unfortunately wasting some pretty fabric.

But the cutting went along much better than I expected:
(Though with my 1/2 yard I didn't have quite enough whole motifs and had to piece together 3 of them.)

And the seaming went along just as smoothly!  And so I took a chance matching a fabric at night, under my incandescent lighting, and within an hour I had something pretty special:

Nope, it's not perfect, but I am THRILLED; and for two reasons.  One, I completely surprised myself with how much I've learned without even realizing it, being able to meet those angled corners and stitch that scant 1/4" without any trouble at all, and the whole things lays completely flat without puckers.  Two, I've been struggling finding the right design for a purple flower gypsy quilt for my mom, but even though this fabric didn't originally make the cut for it, it's going front and center and the rest of the design is starting to come together in my head.

And it's making me wonder - what else could I be doing, that I'm holding back from, because I think I'm not good enough?

All Done Up [Quilt #10]

It's not as perfect as I aimed for, but I'm pleased with it.  I think my sewing machine needs servicing - we didn't have the same great chemistry that I've had - more little puckers that I couldn't find my way out of.  I'm really happy with how the different fabrics came together.  Most are from Sarah Watts' Timber & Leaf, two are from Fairmount Park by Lonni Rossi, and it seems I can't design a quilt without some Joel Dewberry (in this case Modern Meadow) thrown in.  There were 4 other prints from my fabric order that didn't combine as well in real life as what I thought I was seeing on my computer monitor, but that's just fine - they'll make great additions to my stash!

As usual I didn't buy enough backing fabric and so a little creativity with leftovers stood in the gap just fine.

I hope this quilt brings beauty and encouragement and a little joy into my dear friend's life during this hard time of losing her home and everything in it.  I was too emotional and a bit insecure about it to give it to her myself; so I sent it along with another friend.

Quilting : A Process

Quilting is a process, and one that for each quilt happens over days, weeks, and sometimes months or years.   I sneak in moments of quilt-making on sunny days, an hour or so on rainy days, and many hours of it late at night.  The daily moments and hours intertwine and mix together with the other events of my day and my life.

And then there are those kind of moments when something happens and you will always remember where you were, what you were doing, and if you're quilting, you know exactly where and what.

I was matching the seam in the last column between the 4th and 5th block when my phone rang.  I'd taken our beloved Georgia Black Dog to the vet that morning, and though we had some very real concerns, the tests they had done so far that day were hopeful.  But I knew that the timing of this call was not good, and indeed, what they had to tell me led to a hasty call to my husband and a necessary conclusion.  It was time to let him go.  After talking to the vet one last time, I called my sons in to share the sad news with them, then I cried and I cried and I cried and I cried.  Then I texted my best friend who would want to know right away, and then I called my dad.  Then I cried and cried some more.

Then I got up, cleaned up my face, and sat back down to sew that seam.  Then with a heavy heart I sewed the sashing on the next block, stitched it in it's place, then added the last block and the last bit of sashing.  I pressed the seams, feeling as if the weight of sadness was pressing down into my heart.  And then I sat there staring at the work I had done.  My late night quilting endeavors will never be the same. He will no longer be there to sleep curled up on the couch and occasionally open his eyes to check on me.  He will not be there to inspect this one as it's laid out on the wood floor, getting pinned.  He won't give me that sweet look and sweet wag of his tail as if to ask, "Is this soft thing for me to lay down on?"

This quilt is going somewhere where I will visit in the future, and I hate to say it, but I will always remember that seam.  And I will remember how absolutely beautiful this fabric is, and how staring at it, even through heavy tears, brought me comfort.  And how the process of lining things up in a neat, orderly way and rhythmically stitching, stitching, stitching made sense to me and busied my hands and busied my mind and busied my heart in a way that kept myself from being too busy trying to figure out why, or questioning if he knew enough how much he meant to me, or wondering if we could have or should have done something different - and all those other confusing thoughts and questions that have no answer and are not at all helpful.  Straight seams, keeping my mind straight, orderly, rhythmic, on track, not giving in to an unhealthy form of sadness.

A process, sometimes for processing life.  

A Quilt is Enough [Quilt #1]

This is a photo of my first quilt.  It is also a photo of my best friend, half an hour after her third baby was born.  This quilt was a gift to her at her shower for her second baby - I hosted the shower and asked everyone invited to bring some fabric.  Everyone chose fabric in burgandies, greens, mauves, and cream and it all went together so well!  Like anything else new that I try, I had a grand idea in mind with no idea how to bring it to completion and I begged God for help and mercy every step of the way and scoured the internet for advice.  I'm humbly grateful that this turned out to be a beautiful thing!  She used it at the hospital during the birth of her second child, kept it on her bed at home after, brought it to the hospital to snuggle around me as I had my second child, and here we are all together in this photo.

Being a creative soul, I've spent my creativity in many efforts.  Jewelry design, sketching, writing poetry and short stories; I've designed gardens and communities, sewn clothes, crocheted - something about taking raw materials or a paper and pencil and creating something beautiful that did not exist before has always brought me great satisfaction.  It's thrilling to manipulate color, line, pattern, texture, theme - all the elements of design to create something simple or complex in beauty.

Being a passionate person, I've been passionate about all these efforts; but I recently realized that I am more happy, more satisfied, more excited about quilting than anything else I've ever done.  It answers my drive to create, but it's more than that: it's enough.

When my heart warms with the greatest joy of my best friend bringing her first daughter into the world, when my heart aches for a friend facing a year of multiple surgeries and long recoveries, when my heart breaks for friends who have lost everything they have in a fire, when my heart is full of deep love and gratitude for my grandmother who taught me to sew, or when my heart swells but fails to find words to express the love I have for the people in my life and when it feels like I can't give or express enough what is in my heart, a quilt is enough.

It's the beauty in my heart expressed through design, the hard work of my hands, the many prayers prayed for that person as I work, and a beautiful thing that person can wrap around them and never forget how much I love them.  I'm not a terribly materialistic person (all fabric puns set aside), but as much as any material thing can encourage and remind someone of love, I'm very happy that I can make a quilt.

Everything That's Beautiful

I've always had superlative thoughts for my friend Heather, and I think of her a lot, because I want to be like her.  She and I were roommates in the one household I lived in between college and marriage.  We got married within 6 months of each other, she had children first, and we started our family a few years later.  She made a beautiful home for her family - a wonderful log cabin along the dividing line between a hardwood forest and a meadow.

She created a whimsical home for her children, and the most comfortable, hospitable place for anyone who visited.  Her home was full of life, cheerfulness, and warm practicality.   Her home might not have been perfectly clean or perfectly decorated - but it was perfect.  Many many people felt they could stop by anytime and sit and chat, letting the kids play their hearts out in the forest or meadow.  Another friend referred to Heather's home as the place where all our children wanted to live, and it's true!  Additionally, their home was built on solid principles, and was paid for.

She and her husband eagerly hosted gatherings: Bible studies, prayer times, and for holiday dinners, anyone was welcome at their home.  She was over-the-top in celebrating holidays with friends and families.  They made themselves family to those who didn't have family of their own.  They offered their full basement to college students, singles, couples, and families when anyone had fallen on hard times and needed a place to live as they got back on their feet.  Hundreds of people have many important memories that were made in their home.

Last Friday in the middle of the night, their beautiful home full of so many loving memories burned to the ground.  Everyone - Heather and David, their two children, and the newlywed couple living in the basement - made it out alive, with only the clothes they'd been sleeping in.  I can't imagine the terror, the fear, the trauma of that experience.  And then to be left - with literally nothing: no keys to their cars, no wallets, no photos or toothbrushes or Christmas ornaments or shoes or clothes or... anything at all.  The next day all that remained were the basement walls, the chimney, and a flat pile of ashes covered by gnarled pieces of metal roofing.

There's lots of thoughts and tears and prayers I'll have over this for quite awhile.  One of the first thoughts being, how fast can I make a quilt and get it to her.  How fast can I give her something beautiful that she can be sentimental about - something that might be valuable in keeping her warm and in decorating her future rebuilt home, and something that she can own and hold and feel love from?  Today I ordered fabric for this quilt, so happy to have found the perfect line with deer and squirrels and foxes (Timber & Leaf by Sarah Watts)  and all the things that brought rustic whimsy to her original home.  It was, however, the most stressful fabric order I've made - I could have ordered three times as many prints, but had to pare it down.  I just want her to have everything beautiful that she can possibly have right now.

Take Two

I made these potholders for a friends' birthday present in August 2011.  I was thrilled to get into the 1/2 yard bundle of Joel Dewberry's Heirloom fabric that had just arrived, and thrilled to use these prints for her since, in the middle of the Georgia Bulldog Nation, she staunchly remains... well, not-so-subtly orange-and-blue.  Couldn't bring myself to using orange and blue outright, but this was a subtle approximation, out of respect and love for her.

Her husband is a Bulldog.  Coincidence that he used these at the grill and burned them up?  Well, we'll not make accusations here; but it did make its way around to me that my friend lamented the loss (of the potholders, notwithstanding this years' loss of the big rivalry game) and really really wanted another set.  This time I let her choose the fabric - and what do you know!  Another Joel Dewberry from my stash, and there we have it.

The pattern for these is included with Amy Butler's Cafe' Apron Pattern (which is an old one, and I couldn't find it on her site currently).  These are a great project for anyone learning to quilt, and they fit and protect hands so well.  In my kitchen experience, it's so important that the top side of the potholders have the same plush batting as the palm side and these readily fit the bill.  

I learned a good bit the first time making these.  I learned that I needed to invest in a walking foot for my machine, and I learned the right way to make and sew binding.  It was encouraging how much faster this second set came together, and always encouraging to make something beautiful that will brighten someone's kitchen!  Maybe I should make some for myself, huh!

Two things I Love about this Valentine's Day

1. I have a fabric stash such that I can simply pull out a vintage piece and a new piece that look lovely on our tea party table:

2. I finally put aside my sewing to-do and made something for myself.  Something completely nonfunctional and superfluous and... simply celebratory:

I've had in mind what kind of banner I wanted, but was nervous about how to go about it.  I didn't want to quilt it, I wanted the pieces to be more stiff than plush.  Each piece was made with a strong canvas back fused to a decorative canvas top, with some Joel Dewberry fabric appliqued on top of that.  At the end I took some thick vintage thread (or thin twine) off an old wooden spool I've had lying around and simply sewed the edges of each heart and bird together.   Time will tell if this was the right way to go about my vision - we'll see how it holds up from year to year.

It was so encouraging that my boys exclaimed when they saw it, "Wow Mom, you made this?  It's very beautiful."  Precious, precious boys!

Pintucking and Box Pleating

I've never before done either one, but had so much fun with this apron.  

One of my favorite things about having sewing skills is that when you need babysitting but can't pay for it, you can offer to make something in trade.  One of my favorite things about having young, hip friends is that they tend to love handmade things and it all works out quite nicely at times.  For this friend I'd offered a number of ideas of things I could make for her, but since I left it open-ended, she sent me a link from a popular high-end retailer with "Can you make something like this?" in the subject line.

Why, yes, I can make something like this!  And I thoroughly enjoyed the simple but patient fine-tailoring of the details.  The original was made of solid fabrics in several different colors, but this combination of prints did just fine.  In fact, I'm scheming on whether or not I could make this into a sundress, as it is just way too pretty to just be an apron.

A New Year's First Quilt [Quilt #9]

There are other quilts I should have started.  There's a couple I have planned for family members, a couple coming together in my mind for friends, then there's the one - or two (I think I have enough of the fabric for two) - that I want to make to raise money for Swamp Corps; but I just couldn't get this one out of my head.

All of the quilts I made last year began with a love for a particular fabric, or a desired color scheme or theme, kept in mind while I spent my quiet moments looking at photos of quilts all over the web.  Eventually the fabric or theme in mind would start falling into place in a way similar to something I'd seen, then I'd start laying things out and rearranging until it settled into something that expressed what I had in my heart and made sense in my head.

This one though, was different.  It was inspired by my friend who collects paintings of poppies on her living room wall - all sorts, different styles.  The poppy fabric made sense to go in frames, lined up together, with the striking teal green against the rich red.  Then Joel Dewberry's plaid came along!  It threw in that hipster element that's been haunting me.  I knew something needed to go across the expanse of red at the bottom and when I closed my eyes to think about it, the stripes at odd angles popped into place.  This one wasn't based on anything else I'd seen, it came from my own mind and it wouldn't get out of my mind until I'd sewn it up!  It was creating a block against any other quilt I might have been making.

And just in time, too: this one had no name, no claim, but ESP's annual Big Hearts Pageant was coming up, complete with silent auction, and since this seemed to me to be quite appropriate for the Valentine's season, I  sent it off.  My very first silent auction!  And I thought this would be a simple thing.  Drop off the quilt, feel great about supporting a great cause.

I do feel great about it, but other feelings and thoughts came along too.  Suddenly I worried if it would be good enough!  What if it didn't sell for much?  What if all this hard (well, not so hard... as I'll explain) work didn't help ESP out diddly-squat?  And who would buy it?  Would they really love it?  And then I realized - this was the first quilt I had made that I was sending out there, somewhere, where I could not visit it.  I can visit every other quilt I've made.  I can pet it and stare at it and remember what I've learned from each one and the love in my heart for the person I gave it to.  But this one is gone.  I've sent this part of my heart off in a way that it cannot return to me - not that I'm deeply attached to the quilt itself, but the process, the love that went into it - is out there, somewhere.  I hope that love connects with the person who bought it.  It sure was unceremonious to fold it, put it in a Trader Joe's bag, put that bag inside a big Hancock Fabric's bag since it was an overcast day, and drop it off at an office with only a nice-but-unknowledgeable volunteer sitting there, tapping away at a computer.  He was so kind as he said "Thank you" - barely turning around to look, but then followed that up, with a full-turning, "Yes, thank you very much," without even looking at what was in the bag.

I am pretty happy with the pictures I got of it.  I'm looking forward to improving on my quilt photography - not to becoming a pro at it, but I'm happy enough to get some good shots that show off what I love about my work.

This quilt reinforced in my mind what I already knew about myself: I have learned most of what I know the hard way.  This, the 9th quilt I've made, is by far the easiest I've ever made!  It is my habit to jump into projects that form in my head without realizing what I'm getting into, and the other 8 quilts I've made would not necessarily fit into the beginners' category - far from it in some cases.  That's why I say this one wasn't as much hard work.  It was most enjoyable work.  So much fun playing with these fabrics.  The richness of the teal green against the brilliant red just made me happy.

The limited piecing of this one made for very relaxed quilting.  I've learned to quilt long lines all in the same direction, and I've learned it works better when quilting around squares or rectangles to do all the horizontals at one step and the verticals in another - instead of literally sewing around the rectangles.  I figured out with this one to use strips of masking tape to keep the long quilting lines relatively straight and lined up from top to middle to bottom, and to tape along the diagonals so that I could stop the long lines at the right spot to meet the angled quilting lines perfectly.

I learned that form might follow function but really, Form Follows Fabric - especially the amount of it.  I didn't know how this quilt would lay out when I ordered fabric, and realized in plenty of time that I did not have enough teal for the backing to be all in one piece as I'd intended.  So I chose the 2 other prints that most closely matched my bobbin thread (lesson learned the very hard way from quilt #3) and worked with it as I could.  This throw-sized quilt measures 48" by 68".  And it makes me very happy.  Maybe a couple bought it for their daughter.  Maybe it happened to match somebody's living room perfectly.  Maybe it was bought for a wedding present.  I'll never know.  I just hope somebody out there loves this quilt like I do.