My Mom and Grandma were my techers. When I was little my Grandma, Mother and my aunts would always get to gether on the weekends and sew quilts. Us kids would get the scraps and we would hand sew small quilts for our dolls. My sister and I would also sew doll clothes from the scraps.

My grandmother was definitely my influence, and she passed away on New Years Day in 1973. She was frugal to a fault. I can remember my mother going through her freezer and tossing out spoiled food. She didn't throw ANYTHING away. And she didn't waste her money on time-saving devices either. She would have sniffed with disapproval at all of these tools. All she needed was a needle, thread, some sharp scissors and a pile of rags.

My Mom never quilted. But she make all our school clothes etc. My friend, Joan, asked me if I would attend quilt lessons with her. I really went as a favor to her so she wouldn't have to go alone. That was 1984. Funny thing is that I got hooked on quilting and after a few years she became disinterested. Guess you never know.

My grandmother always "had a quilt on", my mother did a few quilts. My grandmother helped me do my first quilt when I was a young teen. I am the only one of my family that quilts now, and every time I am working, I am thinking of Mom and grandma. Grandma "wouldn't give houseroom to a tied quilt" she thought that was the epitome of laziness, and slothfulness was in her mind the WORST of the 7 sins. I still have a sunbonnet quilt made from the dresses of each of my sisters, and a ninepatch, also made from sewing scraps from dresses my mom made, that both of them worked on.

I was in early grade school when Daddy came home from an emergency assignment as an electrician; he asked if Mother had had the radio on, then we all learned that the U.S. was in war, due to bombing of Pearl Harbor. Thus our geography lessons began, along with watching Mother caring for my little sisters and continuing her artistic quilting. Mother died when I was ten, in her 37th year, so my memories of her are sketchy. Practical women in the family quilted, and I vaguely remember two she had made, immediately recalled when I saw them again at a relative's house on a visit to the area. Daddy's loss of so many things when he left after her death caused hurt feelings, but those losses were not mine or my sisters, so I said nothing, hoping for continued use of these quilts by someone-- which I had hoped, would have been Mother's wishes. I now realize that this opportunity influenced my reactions and activities through life since. I have just tried to give pleasure through quilting to people I know, during the last 40 or so years, and also to "let go" what others should do or think.

Odd one out thats me. Grandma and mom sewed cloths No one in my family made quilts. But my daughter wanted to take a quilt class as R&R and her company was going to pay for it. Da I said who buys fabric and cuts it up and sews it back together. Well She made 2 quilts and I havent stopped.

No one in my family quilted, but they all know how to sew garments and knit and crochet. When my mom was a child, knitting every day was a given - how else did you keep a family of 11 in socks!
My mom has training to be a seamstress but never worked the trade. She did however pass on her love of sewing to me. She taught me to use a sewing machine at age 8 to make dresses for my dolls.
She taught me how to draft patterns, using either newspaper or opened up paper bags for patterns.
Quilting is a gift I discovered once my son was born. A woman in my church who was 93 at the time, made a quilt for every child born. She made one for him too. She was an opinionated but lovely woman who was about 4'6" tall. And she held "court" after every sunday sermon. She'd hand out hugs and kisses and got as many in return.
She passed away on 9/11. At her eulogy, the pastor commented that it was probably God's blessing that she did not have to see the devastation of 9/11, for she no doubt would have had something to say about it!

My grandmother taught me how to sew and make quilts. We did't do the fancy stuff. We cut squares from clothes, sewed them together, used clothes for batting and tied them off. As I got older I taught myself the fancy stuff. She is 97 years old and she love for me to come over and show my latest project. I have made her lots of stuff.

I chuckled as I read this, cuz my DGD does that at my house when the quilt frame is up! I tie my quilts and she thinks they are for her (she got the first one). She plays and plays under there... I even put a rocking chair under it for her to sit in while I tie. I hope she remembers it later in life!

My grandma quilted out of necessity (she had 12 children and a sick husband!) Clothing was used. My mom quilted as I grew up. I remember looking at the scrap quilt and saying "I remember this dress! I loved that shirt!" LOL! Now I buy material that no one has seen let alone wore! Sad. But clothes aren't made of a lot of cotton anymore either.

My good friend was an embroiderer with her 2 Berninas and really sparked me into getting back to the sewing machine. I knew Berninas are so way out of my range, so I used my old Singer which was failing fast. Then I moved on to a Janome. If I move up from this will probably do Babylok as there is a rep close by.

So those three were all good influences along with all my sisters who are quilters. While I am enjoyig making quilts, I don't hold a candle to them...all extreme quilters! Love them dearly!

No one in my family quilted. I never even saw a quilt until the year I turned 21. My mother graduated with a degree in fashion design. I never even knew she went to college until after she died. She tatted, crocheted and knitted amazing things. She would thumb through Montgomery Wards, Ragamuffins, and Penny's catalogs and then one day these clothes just materialized in the house. I was a hyper child and no one thought that their lessons would "stick". My mother taught my sister and my only cousin on that side to embroider. My grandmother sewed and worked as a seamstress during her evening hours during the war. During the day, she worked at a factory that helped the armory supply ammo to the boys overseas. No one taught me anything or even thought I would be interested. A friend of my mom's taught me how to chain stitch in crochet and nothing else, so all that is self taught.

Fast forward a few years, to when I met my husband. He couldn't believe that I called his favorite quilt the weirdest bedspread I had ever seen. He still chides me about it. My mother in law didn't really approve of us at first and didn't send a quilt to us until we were married 2 years...and even then it was hurried. I went to visit her and sat in a chair and told her I wasn't going anywhere until she taught me how to quilt. So she got these tiny little knit squares that were about 1 1/2 inches and told me when I could sew them together by hand I'd be ready to quilt.

My stubbornness softened her heart and we became great friends. She gave me better than any wedding quilt, she made sure I got bit by the quilt bug!

My wonderful MIL and mother both passed away in 2007. I made my grandmother a sampler quilt 18 months ago and she couldn't believe I could make something that beautiful. She kept it on display for anyone to see when they came to visit. She died 3 weeks ago tomorrow and now I have that little sampler back.

I have a lot of other influences, but wouldn't have any of them if it wasn't for my grandmother, mother and MIL as they all knew one of them....I miss them all very much, but stitch a little something special for each of them in my quilts. I recently finished hand quilting a queen size sampler for my husband for our anniversary. The names of his mom and my mom are quilted into it...our initials are in the bottom, and I put the years of my grandmother's life next to the binding.

What I find so funny is that to this day my sister and cousin gripe about all that wasted time in their embroidery lessons...and here I am, the one that wanted lessons and I'm the only one that makes anything. Serves them right! : - )