My quilting start

I first learned how to quilt at 8 from my mom. She taught me and the other three girls who were in my local girl scout troop. Mom taught us how to pick fabrics, cut and arrange them to make a small quilt just under a yard square. It was a simple rail fence quilt, but I learned. I remember deciding to make mine a theme quilt. The entire thing was made from strawberry fabrics.

I have tried at other times in my life to pick up quilting again, but it was not until college when I met H. (she is from a very traditional family and grew up quilting) that I started up quilting again. I had always been interested in quilting, but it really was not until I allowed myself to use the sewing machine to work on quilts that I started getting anything done.

Quilts have always been a part of our family, but my mother is a die hard quilt snob, who believes that everything needs to be done by hand, 100% cotton and that perfectionist style just does not work for how I quilt.

I remember when I was really little, watching my mother finishing up my sister's Christmas quilt. I still am slightly grumpy that I never got a quilt made for me. My mother likes to say that she has always known what she wants to make for me, but she doesn't know how to make it. She wanted to make me a rainbow grandmother's fan quilt, but she didn't know how to make curves. Honestly, I resent this a little bit because it would not have been hard to take a class or make an effort to make it for me. Though, I do understand, it still stinks.

I have been making quilts as gifts for awhile now, and am focusing on making some for myself now. I have several tops that I need to finish up but will do so eventually. In response to my never getting a quilt from mom I made myself a Christmas strippie. I still don't know how I want to finish it which is why it is still just a top. I struggle on this one. Sometimes, I think that I would like to do the back like graffiti in embroidery with clear thread on the top. However, I just don't know. I want it to be a comfortable quilt so maybe not. Perhaps instead I will make a graffiti quilt and work on that idea later.

I have quite a few quilt tops that I pieced from old t-shirts. I cut out the logos and fronts that I wanted to save for a t-shirt quilt and cut the rest up into blocks. I arranged these blocks into designs and sewed them into larger blocks of nine. I started quilting one of these t-shirt block quilts in grad school. I found a nice fleece and used it for backing without batting. Originally, I wanted to use a really thick batting and either tie or sew the quilt to make it a comforter. However, I was talked out of it by my mom and sister and have instead arrived at a summer weight quilt that has been quilted in the ditch. I really need to finish the quilting.

I stopped quilting it, due to my nickel allergy. I lost the platinum needles I took to school with me and picked up a normal needle but had to stop quilting when my allergy got too bad. I really hoped to have it done, but wound up having to spend time on my knitting (another craft I learned in girl scouts only to pick up again in college) instead.

I think the biggest factor in my quilting interest is that I figured out how to design quilts on the computer. I spend a lot of time designing quilts and layouts on the computer and then later on making my favorite designs.

I use a mac and Appleworks to design all of my quilts. I used Appleworks because it had a graph background, making it easy to draft blocks. Plus, I really appreciate the ability to manipulate the size while maintaining the look of the block. Though I have learned the hard way that I need to back up everything. I lost something like 30 original designs for quilts when my hard drive crashed. I was devastated, the designs hurt, but loosing my photographs was terrible. I lost some of the only photos I had of college friends and loosing my cell phone at the same time really stank. I not only lost photos, but my records, and the ability to get in touch with them. Seriously, if you keep anything digital, back it up!

I have only ever quilted on my own, and I think it would be really cool to get involved in a guild or quilting group. However, I am currently trying to relocate and don't really want to commit to something local, when hopefully I will get a job and move soon.

W.'s Wedding Quilt

Here is the one she picked.

W's Wedding Ring

I am waiting on her to finalize her color scheme, and pick the gray and pink that she wants. I am waiting on her input, because if it is not exactly what she wants the quilt will wind up being shoved into a cupboard and never used. I would really like to get moving on this so that I can get started on the quilting. Quilting tends to be the where I wind up spending the most time when making a quilt.

My mom, who taught me how to quilt, is kind of a quilt snob and makes me feel incrediblely guilty if I am not using the nicest and most natural (i.e. 100% cotton) materials that I can. More so, she is incredibly snobbish about hand quilting. I personally enjoy the fact that I can get a large quilt done quickly with a machine. Yet, for my sister's wedding quilt, I want the best that I can do and the hours and hours of hand quilting will be many prayers over the new start to her life and for both of them.

Right now, I am thinking about using an all over stipple to quilt, but that is just an idea. I may prefer something that helps keep the strong geometric feel of the quilt.

W.'s Wedding variations

Here are some images of quilt variations that I came up with for W.'s wedding. Her colors are gray and pink, and a very modern aesthetic. Knowing that I came up with several different quilts for her to choose.




This one wound up being my favorite, to the point that I used my Christmas gift card to the LQS to get the fabric so I could make it. I really like how it turned out, will post a photo later.

Jenny's Grad

This quilt was designed for a close family friend upon her graduation from college. It was a real race to get it done in time. Originally, we were not planning on making it to the actually graduation so I planned on finishing up the quilt and mailing it to her when done. However, at the last minute, we decided to go and I wound up finishing the quilt in 24 hours. I tied the last knot in the binding as we pulled into the driveway. It was great seeing her and her family who all adored the quilt. The quilting is in the ditch with echo quilting done on the main colored squares. The top and binding fabrics were from Jo-ann's, while the backing was found at Wal-mart. The entire quilt is made of flannel, so its an extremely nice lap quilt.

Current Quilting

I like to design quilts and am working on testing my patterns. My patterns tend to be a modern take on more traditional quilt blocks and patterns.

I do all of my design work on the computer and then create my favorites. I hate to throw away good fabric so I have a pretty decent stash of old clothes, waiting to be used on stash busters.

I am currently working on a massive kite-tail quilt that includes a great many clothes from high school and my family. Actually some of my favorite blocks on this quilt are the kind of off beat textural blocks. Rather than ignoring all the seams I decided to work them into the quilt and I really enjoy the random block with a button or a tag. I think one of my favorites is one block I took from some boxers my sister used to wear right at the y-seam where the crotch met the legs, resulting in a seamed y in the middle of the block.

Recently, I have started a Grandmother's Flower Garden working with hexagon templates. I am trying to do the entire thing by hand, as it takes eats time and little fabric for each flower. Mainly, because I am trying to find a job and I really don't have the money to buy fabric or batting.