I took home economics in high school but really only learned how to use a sewing machine (my mother worked outside the home all her life and did not sew; we never had a machine). During my first job out of high school, I bought my own machine--a 99K Singer which I still have--and taught myself to sew mainly so that I could have clothes that fit (I had a small waist but was--am--hippy; my Dutch ancestry!). For years I made all my own clothes, baby clothes, curtains, etc., and once even made my husband a suit.
My grandmother had been a quiltmaker and I had friends who were quilters so I was interested but had no extra time while raising my family and working. When I retired I bought some fabric and, knowing nothing, made my first quilt, a simple 9 patch. Then, following a health issue I discovered that cutting, piecing, and putting together a quilt was excellent therapy......and so I'm still at it!
I've learned a lot since that first 9 patch! And I learned most of it from the internet, including this board. I laugh now when I think how little I knew when I began; even experienced sewers discover quilting is different from clothesmaking and requires different, often more precise, skills.
Last edited by Friday1961; 09-13-2013 at 02:00 PM.