Quilting

Recently, as I was working on a baby quilt I began to reminisce. I thought back to when I first began to quilt. The very first quilt I sewed wasn't actually quilted. I tied it. I made it out of scrap squares. At the time I was pretty tickled with it but looking back it was nothing special. When Katie and Grace were still little I decided to try real quilting. The first quilt I made was a tumbling block pattern. I  traced the pieces using a cardboard template I made. I cut the pieces out with scissors. I stitched the quilt together by hand and also hand quilted it. I gave it to Grace. It was on her bed when she was little. I was pleased with that quilt and it was what piqued my interest in quilting.

About 30 years ago I made a quilt for my bed using a somewhat complicated design. Again I cut the pieces out using cardboard templates and scissors and stitched it together entirely by hand. It could have been beautiful but I have never really loved it. I bought the fabric at Ben Franklin, a five and dime store. I bought pieces that had flaws so I could get it cheaper. Back in the 80s dusty rose and light blue were popular and I was going for sort of a country look. I didn't pull it off very well. I still have that quilt stored away. Since then I made a few things here and there but nothing very impressive. I went to work for LPS and for the most part set aside my sewing.

Jump forward to the present. I retired from school and decided to pick up sewing again. Only now, I felt as though I was very out of touch with all the new methods. Several years ago I made a rag quilt for Gail when she was going through chemo. During that time my mom's machine stopped working and since they no longer make its parts I had to replace it. Now I have a new fangled machine which I am still learning how to use. I have graduated and am using a rotary cutter which was a scary transition for me. I've also found some wonderful places on line where I can buy fabric. I am greatly challenged when it comes to choosing fabrics that go together. Now I can shop on line and know that if I stay within a certain collection my colors will all match. 

I realize this may not be the most interesting post. My main purpose in writing this blog is document my thoughts and memories for my girls.