Tuesday, August 25, 2009

A Favorite Quilt

I belong to a quilt group that has been meeting together monthly for over 15 years now - we take turns hosting the meetings in our homes and/or yards, and sometimes meet at a restaurant during the holidays. This quilt was made by my friends in this group - I had chosen the theme of "Home is Where Your Story Begins" and asked each person to make a block that represented that theme to them. I chose the color palette so that all the blocks would coordinate when completed, and this is what they came up with. Some of the stories that they told.
  • Jackie's family spent a lot of time in a canoe at a local lake so she made Crossed Canoes.
  • Kathy's family had 7 children so she made a 9-patch to represent each person, and paper pieced a small house for the center block to represent their home.
  • Kaye lives in a log cabin currently.
  • Carole stitched up a 'family tree' growing out of a heart.
I stitched the 'theme' block, made a couple more blocks to make the quilt bigger, plus added some applique details. The best thing about this quilt is that when I look at it I remember all the friends who contributed to it and bask in their longstanding friendship!


It's interesting to see how we have all evolved over the years. In the beginning we were all stitching miniature paper-pieced quilts. Now we have a doll maker, a jewelry maker, an art quilter (or two) and a rug hooker.

6 comments:

Karen said...

What a very good idea! Interesting why each person chose to make the block that they did. And the quilt turned out very good.

The Wool Cupboard said...

Gayle ~ What a wonderful keepsake to remember your friends in the group. Great quilt!

carolyn@simple~primitive~devotion said...

That is so nice! The story makes the quilt even more special.

I have always wanted to learn to quilt, but am too impatient. So I admire the people that do it.

I remember my Granny teaching me to sew little squares together by hand when I was 5. (I can't imagine my little grandaughter handling a needle at that age! She will be 5 in a couple of months.) I wish I had payed more attention and learned all I could from her while I could. Now she's gone, and all the knowledge of her craft is gone with her.

Have a great week, Gayle!

Linda - Behind My Red Door said...

I can see why that would be a favorite. What a treasure and what stories it holds. The colors are wonderful too - so warm. To me that is everything a quilt should be!

Unknown said...

Great quilt and great idea.
Wonderful memories put into cloth.
It is so pretty

Barb said...

I love your quilt....