MY QUILTING STORY

The story of my (very) slow and continuing progress as a quilter:
I thought that I was quilting, just because I had put together 5" squares for many, many baby quilts.


Several years ago, I also made a photo quilt for my mom, again just straight stitched machine quilting.


About the only piecing I did that wasn't squares (though still straight line piecing) was this vest I made from my Dad's ties. It's very precious to me, although I rarely wear it--mostly on his birthday!


I also appliqued quilts for 3 grandchildren (mimicking the fabric backing for the patterns) using a simple zig zig machine stitch on the first 2.

1999




2002


By the time I did the third, I had my Janome and used the appliqui stitch. What a difference!

2005





And, OK, I had done some hand quilting on: 1) a wonderful quilt that DD made in a college fabric class, 2) pieced squares bedspread for one DGD, 3) the attic-found squares of my grandmother (who died in 1948, so you know they were really old!). I had sewn them together with tea-dyed looking flannel and backed it with flannel. Though very fragile, I have occasionally covered new grandbabies with it.



But I really wasn't doing the "real thing". Then I met these wonderful ladies on the Quilter's Thread of the "50 year old" Weight Watchers message board, and my quilting life would be changed forever. Not to mention that at about the same time Free Spirit Fabrics found my DD's designs to be a perfect fit for their fabrics. And, of course, I just HAD to use some of her wonderful designs. So a quilting wanna-be was transformed in to a quilting addict!

In a few days I will share with you some things that I have made in the past year doing something besides squares . Still just straight lines, (YIPPEE, I've progressed to triangles!), on pillows, baby blankets, and quilt blocks for exchange with my special quilting friends.

See you then. But in all fairness, before that, I need to share some of my knitting projects with the knitting friends that I also met through Weight Watchers. AND a couple people have asked for the cake recipes after seeing the wonderful cake that daughter Eleni decorated for me for Easter. So I'll be sharing those too. Goodness, this blogging can keep a gal busy!