QUILTING 101

Little bits of fabric
Sewn into a quilt
Form a warm and loving blanket
From which memories are built.
And when you seek peace and comfort
In the quiet of the night
It will keep you warm and snug
Until the morning's light.


I have succumbed to a decades-long wish to learn how to quilt. I LOVE LOVE LOVE quilts and have been collecting them for years. I have always been fascinated by the designs, the artistic use of fabrics and colors,and especially the history behind each quilt. Most of my quilts give new meaning to the decorating phrase "shabby chic", or as I read the other day in Ebay..."shabby sheik"! My quilts are worn and some are threadbare in places. Whenever I pull one up to my chin to snuggle in, I wonder who made it and what their life was like at the time. Now that I am in my Sunset Years, I thought making quilts might provide me with a legacy of sorts. The seams in my first quilts are guaranteed not to meet at the right places, the binding might be a little wavy, perhaps the colors won't look as great as I envisioned them. But one piece, one block at a time I will be laboring with love. My friend Ursula took a quilting class this summer and now she is whipping quilts out weekly. They are gorgeous. She is a natural. She is helping me learn the basics. Quilting is not for the impatient (me). Quilting is not or the mathmatically impaired (me). I have completed my first project which was a table runner using the Ohio Star pattern.
That is it above. Now I am working on a Queen sized one for Katie. I hope to have it finished by Christmas! I figure low expectations might help me not to give up on it!