I know that in days gone by making a quilt was often a matter of necessity. You had to keep the family warm, or freeze to death. Frequently, you made do with what was on hand. You didn’t get to go to your LQS, or actually have a “stash”. You did what had to be done in order to provide for your family.
In this day and age most of us don’t HAVE to make a quilt for the necessity of it…we have central heat / air, gas logs, and usually more bed linens they we know what to do with.
This being said, I’d put a quilt on every bed in my home, (I just need to make enough to do that). I LOVE quilts! I enjoy the process of selecting my fabrics, color schemes, design / pattern layout, and most important, (to me), who the quilt is for.

So, WHY do you quilt?

Is it for the love of the craft?

The ability to create what will hopefully be a piece of your family history?

The joy it brings you?

Artistic expression?

So, Why Do You Quilt?

Love of the craft
Love of challenging myself and expressing myself artistically. I used to do stained glass and painted and no one seemed to appreciate my products as much as they do the quilts.

For the pleasure of it!
or, because I can....

Love constructing something I've created.

Just.....because!!:)

ALL the above

i'm an artist and my medium is fabric

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
Would you believe I have a sign in my studio that says the same thing? I quilt, because I can. Great minds...

Ditto!

It's a creative outlet that is functional in addition to pretty :)

I think quilting is my therapy. It is much cheaper that a psychiatrist. It makes me feel ilk an artist and it is relaxing.
Sue

It's the artistic creativity coming out of our fingers and brain. No one else has the same thoughts and abilities. It is so wonderful! God is good.

Its gives me something to do...love it. I am always amazed on how the fabric look once they are put together. Its a fun hobby...not cheap but so worth it.

I like creating something that is practical and gives aid and comfort to its owner.

I have to make things with my sewing machine. Quilting is something I can do with the sewing machine, so I quilt.

It takes me away like nothing else ever seems to! I have always loved fabric, so it works out great for me. It's my creative outlet, & I can do things on my machine that I can't do otherwise. I don't think it's a crazy question, but if someone doesn't quilt, they might, lol!....

I quilt/sew because my family says it keeps me out of the local bars and off the street corners...... Damn family I was having fun and miss the boys.... :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

Because......I can!!! And it beats housework!!!!!!!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

ROFLMAO :thumbup: :thumbup:

How true, how true!!! :thumbup:

Because my co-worker told me I could do it! lol
That is how I got started. From there I became addicted.

It is an outlet of my creativity, artistic ability, and great therapy.

It is also a hobby (that has become a business) that when I drop it or make a mistake it doesn't break! I used to do glass etching. Luckily I didn't break very many of the pieces I made but there is more of a call, request and use for quilts vs items that have been etched.

Phyllis
QuiltingGrannie

I quilt because I got tired of sewing clothes. I started to quilt because I thought it was something that was being lost from our heritage. WRONG! Who know so many of us were quilters! Then after the first quilt, I had such a sense of accomplishment and felt good about myself. For many years, I was not sure what my purpose in life was, other than wife, mom, sister etc... But after I did a couple of quilts for others and saw how many they enjoy them, I decided that that was my purpose... to make others feel good!

I also quilt to relieve stress from a long day at work. I don't watch tv much so I quilt! Oh I quilt, so I don't do housework!!! lol

Obsessed with fabric.

I just love everything about it! All of the quilts I make go to charities (for children and adults). I guess you might say this is my way to bring something to a lot of people who are hurting right now.

I quilt 'cause I had a sewing machine already, and my mother gave me her stash (a 20' truck load) of old vintage fabrics, mostly cotton. Plus I had/have left over calico's from lots of costume making.

So what do I do with all that? (should have given it away...!) But NOOOOO... I had to take up quilting!

Now I'm hooked. Some days I just go into my sewing room and.... putter. For hours. Some days I sew a little too.

<sigh> I'm pathetic.... ! lol!

i fell in love with the quilts my great aunt put on my bed when i visited. and i've always loved to sew and make things out of things i already have. so it was a natural to me.

here, here....

<clears throat> Hello, My Name Is Kim and I'm a Recovering Stash-aholic.....

TOO funny!

this is my answer too... because I can

What alikat110 said :D

WOW!!!
A 20' TRUCK LOAD???? Can I come to your house and play?
I'm not drooling...I'm not drooling

For me it is a completely rewarding, relaxing and enjoyable past time. :)

It's my creative outlet
Because I can
I love working with color
I love making gifts for others
I love working with my hands
It keeps me out of trouble
I'd like my family/friends to remember me when they look at what I've made them
Quilting keeps me sane

why not??

It's a great stress reliever, it's challenging, I like to stretch myself and push myself to see what I can do.

I was one of those little girls playing 'tent' under the quilt frame as my relatives and family friends worked on the quilt over the heads of myself and my cousins. Then I graduated to threading dozens of needles onto a spool of thread to help out the more aged eyes among the quilters...but of course, I was still young enough to want to get under the frame with everyone after my chore. This is something I still do (with my thankfully good eyes...when visiting relatives or friends in senior homes..... thread all the needles they have onto the spools of thread they are using...that way they can pull off the amount of thread they need, slide one needle onto it and clip off. All the other needles remain till needed.) In time I was moved to one of the chairs with the other quilters and loved being included in the group. I have been quilting (meaning my first tops) since I was a teen, but every quilting session, whether on the treadle, the featherweight, pfaff, or nolting longarm, is a time to commune with all the other women in my life, my family and merely others who enjoy my hobbies. I love the sense of herstory that accompanies all handwork that may have been a necessity at one time and is a hobby now.

What wonderful memories you have :D

Well said...thoughtful and from the heart :-)

I love fabric, love to sew, love to handquilt, love quilts on my beds, on the walls and all around my house. Reason enough?

All of the above. I have always sewed clothes for myself and have gotten to the point I don't like doing it anymore and quilts have always fasicnated me. My grandmother would say why are you cutting up that perfectly good fabric into pieces !! She made do with what she had; I have her summer quilts-no batting and other unfinished tops that I finished and they seemed to have alot of bubblegum pink and turkey red in them.
I am now making Sunbonnet Sue for my grandaughter with some of her scraps included; to me that is what quilting is about.

No matter how frustrated I am with a pattern, or how many 'duh' moments I have had in my sewing room, when that light bulb goes off in my brain and I graph out, calculate, cut, sew and finally see my one of my 'idle thoughts' come to life...at that moment I feel like I could conquer the world. It can be as addicting as drugs.

And I think THAT FEELING is the reason that I have never found a pattern that I could not 'improve' upon--and make more difficult!

My name is GingerK and I am a sewing room junkie.

Artistic Expression...Can't draw or paint a picture but can do it with fabric and thread...