ann31039

[quote
mum is now in a nursing home since the house burnt down and now my sewing is in the shed but my DD came over and helped me clear the shed out and now I can cut out on a huge table tho I must get DH to make it about 6 inched higher so my back doesn't ache so much. quote]

have you checked out the bed risers? you can just stick them under your table legs and it will raise the table.

karenpatrick

OK. Here goes. I took 6 years of home ec in high school so I knew how to sew and after I married I made all my clothes and my son's and even some of my hubby's. So I knew how to SEW! About 10 years ago I was bored and prayed about it and asked God to find me a hobby. Well, as the old saying goes, be careful what you pray for! I had been watching the sewing shows on tv - Sewing with Nancy, etc. I was on the internet one day and I saw a popup for a site that had free quilting patterns. So I went there and saw this quilt that looked fairly easy. The only fabric store near me was Joann's. I didn't know that there was such a thing as a "Quilt Shop." So I went in and spend probably an hour choosing just 4 fabrics for this quilt. I thought I was an expert and now I was a quilter! The clerks kept asking me if I need help. No help for me, I was an expert at choosing fabric! Well, I took that fabric home and cut out some of the fabric for the blocks. I didn't cut them all out because I couldn't wait to start sewing this quilt. It was an applique with only 4 pieces in kind of a wave pattern. Well, months later I had the piecing finished and the top complete and I hand quilted that sucker. It was filled with mistakes and imperfections but I was soooo proud of it. I look at it now and I'm amazed at just how bad it is. So I put in away in my cedar chest and I get it out once in awhile just to see how far I've come. I've never taken a formal class but I've attended lots of "classes" by recording and watching over and over again all the quilt shows on tv. I've bought lots of books and subscribed to several quilt magazines. When I was introduced to a real quilting fabric store, I was stunned! And I was hooked for good. I am now proudly a fabriholic and a quilt addict 10 years later. Even though I just turned 65, I've been retired for 3 yrs. I now have all the time in the world to sew. Life is good and God really answered that prayer.

tlstick

I wanted a quilt that I remembered as a child, Sunbonnet Sue. I tried on my own with no direction or skill what so ever, I don't know what I was thinking. My girl friend showed me some quilting techniques to get started on a beginner level.That was about three years a go and I have made a lot of baby quilts for my hope chest. This year I am going to try a more advanced level. Sunbonnet Sue, probably not as I think I have a good years worth of patterns I want to do now. Dresden plate for one out of ties. I love Missouri star quilt co. tutorials.

numberonenana

I've always loved to sew...started way back when in 4-H then sewed some of my own clothes in high school. I made lots of cute dresses for my daughter and now my gd. But I never made quilts. Then, I started watching Simply Quilts. In fact, I watched Alex and all her different guests for at least a year before I jumped in and made a quilt. That was 4 years ago. Got hooked immediately..started building my stash. Now I have a dedicated room for sewing (now it's 90% quilting) and just love, love, love to make quilts. I love both traditional and art quilts. That's what I especially love about quilting...you can do whatever you want and make it your own.

Stitchnripper

I've always sewn - nothing dramatic, costumes for kids, curtains, some of my clothes. When Simply Quilts was on, I watched it every morning before work, enjoying, never, ever considering making a quilt. But I was fascinated by it. So I watched for several years. I hadn't even told anyone I watched Simply Quilts.Then I retired. Within weeks, one of my sons (who doesn't live with me and who never saw me watching the show) said "now that you are retired you can make me a quilt". What???? I said "I don't quilt" and he said "well, you are retired, so you can learn". I didn't make any commitments, and almost stopped thinking about it, and then there was an ad in the paper about a quilting class, which I signed up for, and, the rest is history. My first quilt was a flannel baby quilt, round the world. Then I tackled his king size, microfiber, which was no picnic. I did it on the basic dinky Brother mechanical. Only SITD, but, he still has it 6 years later. All that watching Simply Quilts has helped too.

Kimmy P

Mine started a few years ago, when one Christmas, I was totally broke and fabric was still fairly cheap. So I decided to make everyone a "quilt". All it was, was a pretty top fabric, batting, fleece bottom, and I tied it together with yarn. But everyone loved them and the rest of the family started asking for them. So I started doing more research and walla found this board! :D

Emma S

Thank you everyone for sharing your stories. So much fun to take a look into everyones journey.

I started back in the 70's. Those who are seasoned enough to remember the time probably remember that there was a resurgence of all things hand crafted. I had been a garment sewer but more than anything loved colors and textures. Quilting was a natural. I made a few tied quilts and small items such as pieced pillows but as some of you have noted life kept getting in the way. That did not keep me from amassing a sizable stash, like a miser I would just spend time running my fingers through the fabric. In short I became a collector not a quilter. Two years ago I retired and now spend at least an hour a day quilting and at least an hour a day on this board. Life is good!

newbee

Thanks to everyone who has shared their stories, they are fascinating! Here's mine. I learned to sew in Home Ec back in the 1960s. I sewed my own clothes through high school and college. After college I got married and took classes to sew things like sheets, lingerie, and even my husband's underwear! Soon after we got married my DH was doing some uranium exploration in Wyoming in the late 1970s and was staying at a cozy lodge in the mountains. I joined him over the weekends, and admired a baby quilt hung on a wall in the main room. I told DH "I can make one like that" so when I got back to town I bought material and started sewing. This quilt was just a yard of fabric with big Bambies on it and I decided to hand quilt around every Bambie. Well, I started out making it as a baby quilt for one friend, and 13 years later finished it as a baby quilt for a different friend! I hand stitched around one Bambie each year--slow as a snail. During this time, I took a class in machine piecing and was amazed that I could both piece and quilt with my sewing machine. So now I do everything by machine--but I sure am proud of completing that first quilt. I continue to be amazed at how one little incident--seeing a quilt on a wall--can lead to a lifetime of creativity and joy.

Dianne1

Bought my first Quilt magazine in 1996 and it was the Quilt Almanac, it was $4.50. Been hooked eve since.

Akes

I sstarted sewing in 4-H. I had one year then I took some sewing lessons at Singer in the city. Had 4 yrs home ec. I sewed for my little cousin and myself and then after I married I sewed for my children. Took lots of different classes, stretch & sew, under garments. It wasn't until I saw an embrodery machine and the store had a "club". Each month we would get together, she would introduce us to different techniques and offered a class on a wall hanging with a Christmas theme, candles, balls & flowers. Then I took a class where you use photos. I was soon ready to retire, started to watch Simply Quilts and saw a show about the Grandmother's Garden. I thought I could do that for on our bed. I purchased the templates, picked some of the fabric & started. That was in the spring of 2003. i went with my dil to adopt a baby in China. I took it along. I think I finished 1 1/2 rows. Talk about time consuming! It took me 6 years to finish it, that is just the top. It is big enough to cover a queen bed as a spred. I have it put away for now. There were weddings and babies that needed some gifts. The plan is to hand quilt it. I took some classes at a show so I could learn to quilt properly. My main problem in hand quilting is when I quilt away from me, my stitches are not as nice. I'm still working on it. Quilting some of the smaller items I sit with my DH while he is watching TV and old movies & use my lap quilting frame to do that quilting. Yes, quilting is addictive and very relaxing. I have done the other crafts, needle point, cross stitch, knitting, crocheting, etc. But this by far is the best!