Quilting as My Hobby - Then and Now

I don't know when I learned to quilt. I do know that we all (my three sisters and I) worked on piecing quilt tops as we were growing up. We also had the opportunity to practice hand quilting when Mom had a quilt in frame and also when one of our relatives had a "quilting" - we didn't actually call it a quilting bee but that's what it was.

My first solo quilt was made with corduroy. I started collecting corduroy material as a teenager, then at age 18 or so, I cut out patches 3"x6", laid them out in a stair-step pattern, and sewed them together. I picked seams back out (what quilting books refer to as "unsewing") and removed the ugliest color in there, adding in a nicer color. Then did it again, but this time it looked rather bland with the replacement "prettier" fabric. This was a good lesson in realizing that sometimes it is necessary to mix things up a little to have the most pleasing outcome. Hmmm... I wonder what else in life that could apply to?? So I left the second-ugliest one in.

I had the top done when I moved in with my sister Regina and her family in Grants Pass. I borrowed her sewing machine and machine quilted, using a pale yellow/beige piece of yardage for the backing that someone had given Mom as a gift for me when I was a baby. (People did things like that back then.) Thing is, Mom had never used it for anything - I guess there was too much of it to use for a dress for me. So she had saved it, waiting for the right project. Using it for the quilt backing seemed like a good idea. It was a bit challenging getting such a large awkward amount of bulk pushed through the sewing machine, but somehow we manage, don't we? Did I mention it's a double size?

I love that quilt - it goes quite nicely on the guest bed. There were scraps from two suits Mom had made for my brother Roger when he was little, one in a textured dark burgundy and the other a blue and black houndstooth type pattern, and I was able to get several patches from each one. These are in corners where there are the fewest "steps." I love quilts with history! At one time, I was looking for more prints because most of my fabrics were plain colored and I found a skirt at a thrift shop between Kalona and Iowa City. It was dark blue with little flowers and leaves on it. Okay, I was in highschool. There was no way I was going to wear it, but by taking the seams apart and cutting out patches from the flat areas, I had a wonderful print to add to the project.

I made a lot of baby quilts over the years, one for each of my nieces and nephews and many for the children of friends. Because I was actually buying fabric for these projects, I began with the belief that any fabric left over was wasted money and I should have planned better. I knew I had turned the corner into being a QUILTER when leftover fabric became a bonus because now I could add to my STASH! And even more so when I began buying fabrics for my stash with no particular project in mind. And more even more so when I was reluctant to use all of a fabric in my stash because then I wouldn't have it anymore. If anybody reading this is a quilter then you know exactly what I'm talking about. I found it particularly rewarding when I could complete a whole project just by shopping my stash.

I thought about quilts all the time. When I saw landscapes, I thought about how to incorporate those ideas in a quilt. I always had a pad of graph paper, small ruler, and sharp pencil handy to draw out patterns, complete with sewing and cutting lines.
I would notice color combinations like say, traffic lights against a brilliantly blue sky, and consider them for quilt colors. I always sought out fabric sales locally, and fabric stores while traveling. I have wonderful fabrics I purchased in Mexico and nearly had a heart attack when Aidan and his friends cut one of them up to make a cape. I quietly retrieved the pieces, smoothed them out, folded them up, and added them back to my stash. Which is behind glass doors in a lawyers bookcase. So I can see how pretty the colors are anytime. And gave Aidan an uglier piece (uglier to me, not to him) to play with.

So imagine the jolt I felt when trying to make a friendship quilt for Mom & Dad's 50th wedding anniversary which happened last year (2009). I had given myself like two years to do it, realizing how busy I am and didn't want to stress about it. But I realized I wasn't enjoying the process anymore. What!? How can this be?? I'm a QUILTER! What kind of quilter doesn't like to quilt?? I love to design and come up with really creative ideas. But sadly, I do not enjoy cutting out perfect patches, sewing them up with perfect seam allowances, ironing them just so, and sewing again. It makes me nuts!

I still love my fabric stash...

And designs...

Then I saw it. My new inspiration. A magazine called Cloth, Paper, Scissors. Oh my goodness. One can make art quilts without worrying about seam allowances. One can even leave raw edges. And incorporate paper into the design. Wow. Mind you, these are not bed quilts. Or ever to be laundered. These are to hang on the wall or something. So I pulled out my plastic tote with all my small scraps, prepared to dig through and find colors I wanted to work with. What? How did they get all organized in big zip lock bags sorted by color? Hmmm... I guess maybe I do remember that as a project last year. Sheesh, can't I remember anything? Well, it was a nice surprise.

It was a Saturday evening about a month ago when I started my new inspired work. I just couldn't stop. Every combination I put together was brilliant! I didn't have any bad ideas. Wow, this is easy. I used several "found objects" such as a washer, a button, some beads, and a couple sticks of incense. Hmmm, I should be getting tired. But I wasn't even close. The creative ideas just kept coming. I put the design together and began sewing. About 1:30 a.m. I decided I really needed to take a Melatonin and get myself in bed. I felt like a little kid putting my project on the nightstand next to me. :) I was so excited. I felt like the inspiration was so compelling it was keeping me awake. Well, it was. But then I also happened to remember that as an experiment, I had forgone my daily half cup of coffee all week, then that morning had a cup with soy hazelnut creamer (Yum!) and also Aidan's since he didn't drink his. It was probably noon before I finished. Oh, so now I was extra sensitive. There's a reason why I normally limit myself to less than one cup and quite early in the day. It always affects my sleep when I have too much caffeine, either by keeping me up, or I'll fall asleep and then wake up about midnight or 2 and can't go back to sleep until it's time to get up.

Well. A couple of days later when I tried my creative process on the next piece, I realized I probably did have my muse nearby that Saturday night because this time nothing worked. I could not put anything together that I liked. How frustrating. So I set that one aside and a couple of days later tried again, this time working one up in reds, using a hearts theme. That one is almost finished, but I've lost the little heart charm that came off a remaining earring I was going to attach. Shucks! Well it will look really cool when I do find it.

My idea is to make a series of these little art quilts that are 9x12. Maybe I'll enter them in a show... Maybe I'll win some award or prize or something... it could become really big and I'll be really well known!

Oh. Well. Maybe I'll just do them for fun. :)