The Write Stuff

Back in the early days of my quilt making past I had very few tools with which to work and I collected them slowly and judiciously. My sewing space, when I was a newbie quiltmaker, was a semi-finished corner of our basement. I had a sewing machine down there, a formica-clad kitchen table, chair, iron and ironing board; it was everything that I needed to work for a few hours in the afternoons when our son was taking his nap and our daughter was in elementary school. Oh, how I recall the excitement of working on those first quilts in that dedicated, yet barren, space! I remember ordering this woven wicker utensil caddy from the Miles Kimball catalog, it seemed to be just the perfect thing in which to store and organize my quilting tools: #2 pencil, 1/4" tape, shears, sandpaper, cardboard for templates and ruler, I planned to place it on the back side of that worktable. Back in those days (1983) the ordering process was a bit more drawn out: filling out a paper order form, enclosing a check and mailing it off, then eagerly waiting weeks to receive the order in the return mail. It didn't take very long at all for my ever-burgeoning collection of tools (marking, cutting, gadgets and gizmos) to outgrow the wicker organizer and yet, it has stayed on the desk in all of my sewing rooms and quilting spaces ever since; faithfully organizing (sort of) this, that and an odd assortment of pens, pencils, markers, highlighters, scissors and junk that defies a space of its own-- the WRITE stuff. It has been falling apart, bit by bit, for years and I've been looking the other way. Last week I dropped a pencil in one the front compartment and it fell straight through to the floor! (See circled area above) It had served its purpose; sadly, it was time to move on.

Two days later I had a replacement (thanks, Amazon!): something sturdier and more reliable to hold essentials. So much has changed in the years since I began equipping a sewing space, it's almost mind-boggling; and, yet, the excitement for making quilts hasn't waned. I love thinking back to making those first quilts and how it all began. I'm grateful for friends that I've made along the way and how far I've come; but I wouldn't take anything for those early days and the road that got me here. This week, it simply took a piece of worn-out wicker to remind me. 

If you're interested in my very first quilt, and the story behind it, you can read an old post here. 

Life is Good!

My Magnificent Mentors

Marianna ~ one of my magnificent mentors,
circa 1992.

I started quilting back in 1982; the first class that I took was at a small fabric/quilt shop from a wonderfully kind lady who remains a dear and treasured friend to this day, her name is Ann.  Ann encouraged me to join a local quilt guild, it was there that I first met the magnificent mentors. These ladies may not have even realized how important they became in my life as the years progressed. There was Fannye, I have blogged about her and her legacy here before; then there were the Pfafftown Four. The Pfafftown Four were ladies who demonstrated nothing but pure and honest appreciation and love for quilting; Lib, Zola, Natalie and Marianna were masterful quiltmakers whom I admired, respected and looked to for guidance and direction. They quilted with open hearts, always willing and eager to sit and show me how to accomplish any little trick or technique if I even suggested I might want to learn how to do what they were doing. They were just those kind of ladies, through the years I have remained grateful to each one of them for their kindness and enduring friendship. One by one, they've left their earthly homes for a place in Heaven, taking a small piece of my heart each time. On Monday Marianna joined them, what a glorious reunion the magnificent mentors must be having!  I attended Marianna's memorial service yesterday, it was a loving tribute to a beautiful lady in every sense of that word; several of her quilts were on display at the reception afterwards, I am still in awe of her miniscule hand quilting stitches and flawless hand applique, there is a void now that can't ever be filled.  I am suddenly face to face with the fact that I am one of those older generation quilters now, the responsibility associated with that is a heavy one. I'm not all together sure that the next quilting generation is as sponge-like in their quest to absorb knowledge as I was. With the proliferation of classes, books and you tube videos today's young quiltmakers are equipped with everything they need to be successful from their very first project; there's value in that, but, from my perspective, they're missing out on the very best part... the intergenerational relationships that add incalculable worth.  Think about this: who do look to as a mentor (in any regard, not necessarily in quilting) today? And now, think of the flip side of that question: to whom can you act as a mentor right now? What skills can you offer freely from your own heart and hands? Personally, I know that so much has been handed down to me; others saw fit to preserve and protect what was of greatest value by passing down that torch personally; it's too heavy to hang on to by myself... out of loving respect to my magnificent mentors I want to reach out in kind wherever I can. My heart may be heavy this evening but my gratitude is overflowing, I am deeply thankful to each and every magnificent mentor who has touched my life along the way with love, kindness, friendship and the desire to be the very best that I can be in whatever I set my mind to do.

Life is Good!

Why We Quilt... And Yet, One More (But Not The Last) Reason

If you've been following along with the last few posts you'll find the theme of "why we quilt" a continuing one.  Today I would like to touch upon those who have gone before us and how inspiration has played a big part in why we quilt, and continue to, to this day.  As a new quilter back in the mid 1980's I recall being inspired, and nurtured, by the established quilting community within my own local Guild. These ladies were all highly competent, gifted quiltmakers in their own right who, seemingly, had all the time in the world to guide a wide-eyed, ready to learn young woman in the proper quilting direction. I quite literally sat at the feet of some of these quilting masters soaking up every tidbit they had to share! Here is one, Vera Bell, these photos were taken at a Guild show back in 1992, she was 77 years old. I am particularly interested in both of these photographs because I just so happen to be piecing both a sixty degree diamond quilt and a tumbler right now. As you can see, Vera was an accomplished, and stylish(!), quilt artist; a lovely lady both inside and out. She was no stranger to winning ribbons and the colorwash beauty, hand-quilted of course, on the right won her the Best of Show that year. I recall falling in love with a most stunning Carpenter's Wheel quilt that she made for her son's home. He lived in a converted barn and she leaned heavily on a silver-gray color palette  incorporating a few, choice, bright accent colors to complement the rustic two-story barnboard wall where he planned to hang it. I can't see a Carpenter's Wheel quilt today without remembering Vera.  Does this lovely lady inspire me still? Yes, she does!  Looking at these photos reminds me that I can always go that extra mile, do a little bit more, challenge myself. That sixty degree diamond quilt as well as the tumbler that I am currently piecing I had planned to trim up straight and square along the edge. Now I am thinking about appliqueeing them to a border, capitalizing on the shapes and not destroying the integrity of the pattern, that's exactly what Vera did. We quilt because we love it; we're nudged to be our best by those who have gone before and encouraged us along the way, those who recognized that spark and had the good sense to breathe life on our fledgling attempts, thus igniting the flame and passing the torch!  I will always be grateful for that inspiration that has fueled me and drives me still... it's why we quilt.

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Vera E Bell 1915 - 2005 was a member of the Bell family. Vera was born on April 24, 1915. Vera died on February 17, 2005 at 89 years old. Vera E Bell's last known residence is at Winston Salem, Forsyth County, NC 27103.

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Life is Good!

I'm A Half-Lifer

I realized the other day that I took my first quilting class early in 1983, that was twenty nine and a half years ago; half my life! As startling as it is to think about how this last half of my life has been transformed through discovering the art of quilt making; it's just as astounding to see how the quilt making world has changed during this period of time. When I began collecting a few meager quilting magazines, back in those early days, some were still being  printed in  black and white.  My first quilt was a sampler and the templates (yes, templates!) necessary for piecing were made from cardboard. I cut out the fabric pieces with shears and marked my lines for hand quilting (of course!) with very thin soap slivers. A LOT has changed over the years, and most of the changes are for the better... there's no doubt that we can finish our projects quicker and more accurately now thanks to better tools and technology; but I wouldn't trade those early learning experiences, or my tools of today, for anything; they've worked together to build a strong foundation, one that I can confidently build the rest of my quilts (and life) upon. The huge community of quilting friends is a priceless dividend. What percentage of your life have you spent quilting?

Life is Good!

Advent Wallhanging

Today is December the first, the date when our Advent wallhanging used to make its annual appearance in our home... twenty plus years ago. I was a novice quilter in those days and had come up with this design of twenty five trees for our children to "decorate" as they counted down the days to Christmas. The idea was to begin at the upper left tree and spiral to the right and into the middle, one day at a time, until the permanently decorated center tree was reached on Christmas day.

Minimally quilted, I remember struggling to hand stitch around each tree and in the border with gold metallic thread. I was forced to use short lengths of thread as it frayed terribly and would fall apart if the piece was too long.

The tree below is decorated. I purchased twenty four different resin ornaments at a local Ben Franklin store and hot-glued pin backs onto them. I numbered the backs of them (why? who knows) and they were kept, two per compartment, in an egg carton. The children took turns pinning them on.

In a courageous, or maybe foolish, move I entered this in a judged quilt show. It was displayed fully decorated, the judges comment sheet contained the compliment: "nice pin collection". Really! That's one way to build a quilter's confidence! (But I'm over it!!)

Back then my binding technique needed a little tweaking. I used to fold the corners on the front side and run a little gathering stitch around the corner on the back of my quilts as I whipped the edge down... hmmm, maybe that judge was being kind when she complimented the pin collection! In the photo below you can see the edge of the attached label, I rolled a sheet of muslin through a typewriter back in 1987. Prairie points were one of my favorite edge finishes in those days!

The Advent wallhanging has come out of retirement, I believe that the grandchildren will like it. Mason will spend this weekend with us and he'll enjoy pinning on a few decorations, I bet he'll never even notice those corners!

Life is Good!

It's A Wonder...

... that I ever stuck with quilting when I look back at early patterns and the lack of instructions! I ran across this one, circa 1986, when I was searching for something else a few weeks ago. I remember mail-ordering this pattern back when my stash consisted of what I could fit inside a shoe box! (No kidding.)

..."use extra pattern to make cardboard templates"... "sew together and lay out in a pleasing arrangement" ... "add borders, mitering corners"...

This is a DOLL QUILT pattern, and certainly not written for a beginning quilter, not a word about grain line or how to miter a border. Quilting4U had a post on her blog last week featuring a similar pattern from the same era which caused me to reexamine this one. My very first quilt class (1983) was from simple xeroxed pages and a thin magazine publication. I had an excellent teacher back then who coached us through the pitfalls of cardboard templates and grain lines, thank goodness! I was then fearless (or foolish) enough to start adding more patterns, such as these, to my files. Despite all of that, a quilter was born! We've come a long way since then. Let's hear it for all the teachers, from those early days, who persevered to cultivate another generation of quilt makers despite the lack of books, patterns and tools that existed as recently as twenty-five years ago.

In response: Research has provided that the Olfa rotary cutter was introduced in 1979, we certainly didn't use these in that first class of mine in 1983, in fact I don't remember purchasing one until a few years later.

Life is Good!