pinkypig

I come from a long line of quilters, Mom, Grandmas, Aunts, Sister, but it was my Granny that got me hooked. I lived with her after I graduated from HS, had a friend that was moving back to CO and I volentureed to make her a quilt. Granny said I could go thru her scrapes (didn't call it stash back then) and pick what I wanted. I choose the maple leaf pattern, Some where I got the notion that Granny would do most of the work...NO SO. She showed me how to cut and piece the first block and said to let her know when I completed the remaining 11 blocks. Once I had all the blocks done she showed me how to strip it together and once I finished that step we had an old fashioned quilting bee and I learned how to hand quilt from 2 of the best quilters, my Granny and Aunt Bertie. Took a year to complete the quilt but my friend loved it After that I was hooked and have not stopped quilting since.

champagnebubbles

I am also a cancer survivor,
While I was sick from Chemo, my sister took me to a group. These woman are my Aunts,Cousins, and friends who meet every Friday night to quilt,talk,keep in touch. I watched in awe of my wonderful relatives creating not just quilts, but love for all things family. It has been almost 1 year since my last treatment,and 3 projects! I am blessed. Checking out the sunshine box project :) I love this idea

Quilt Mom

I have a very selfish reason for learning to quilt. As a child, I slept under quilts made by my grandmother and aunt. My mother has some quilts, sometimes out for display, but not used, from the 1860's, as well as several from the early 1900's through 1940's. She has told the girls in our family that the quilts are going to a museum when she is gone. So the wonderful family history will be stored two states away, no longer available for those wonderful stories we heard about the makers. No one will be able to snuggle under them. I am making quilts to hand down the tradition, and to allow my children the privilege of snuggling under a quilt made with love. Maybe someday grandchildren will do the same.

I hope this doesn't sound like a rant. I did not mean it as such. Quilts hold so much love for me, I can't imagine not passing some of that love down the line.

bstanbro

My grandmother was an amazing quilter. I have some of her quilts and they are masterpieces, hand-pieced and hand-quilted by her. I feel as if I have quilting in my blood. I only learned about two years ago, but there's nothing else I'd rather be doing.

Elisabrat

I am mediocre at painting with oil and slightly better with water color. Quiting is like painting with fabric and so much easier to get a REAL picture going that I can enjoy. I love fabric. I just wouldnt wear homemade skirts/blouses (no need blue jeans and tshirt girl here).. so what could I make....QUILTS. Do one your addicted. Lots of pride in the finishing of one and who couldnt use more of a self esteem boost?

weezie

My mother sewed clothing and made "quilts"; she knitted, she embroidered, she crocheted. Along with my father, she raised 6 kids on a dairy farm with a huge orchard, veggie garden, lawns, and flower beds everywhere. Obviously, she was rarely idle. She was not a nurturing mother ... I'm not whining or complaining ... she was what she was! The clothing and quilts she made were serviceable, but not "eye candy". One of my goals when I made clothes for me and my family was to NOT follow my mother's example. Ditto when it comes to making quilts. Her exceptions were cute appliqued children's quilts and cute stuffed toys. We expressed gratitude and none of us criticized her "gifts" of clothing or quilts. Like her, they were what they were!

I thought (when I was growing up) that I might be an artist someday because I could draw quite well and had an eye for color. However, I never had the discipline nor made the time to become an artist. My ability to draw pictures is pretty much "in the toilet" now, but I still have an eye for color and that comes very much into play in my love of making quilts. The first one I ever saw that I adored was displayed on a wall (museum, I think), close enough to study it, but not close enough to touch. It was 3-D. For example, the little girls had braided wool pigtails with tiny ribbons; there were aprons and bonnets, etc. sewn onto the women/girls and little curly tails on the pigs (you get the idea). There were many attachments. I've never seen anything since that I've liked nearly as well. Obviously, somebody put a lot of love and work into it.

I haven't gotten that ambitious, nor ever will, but with every new quilt I make, I try to make something a little more special or complicated.

Sharon - NC

Lisa, your quilt is really lovely, and the story behind it makes it so very special. I'm glad you shared it with us.

GladGrams

I needed to make friends, that simple. We had moved here to a very small town where it was hard to make acquaintances and I was getting lonely. Frankly, I was really afraid that I both wouldn't be able to handle the basics with the need for math and measuring and may not understand all the conversation and directions in Norwegian. I was daunted, to say the least.

The LQS however, is a place where English is spoken or understood by everyone and the owners were eager to meet an American as they order most of their fabrics from the states. I have been able to be of help to the gals with explaining some of the terminology and the funny stuff that doesn't mean as much here as it does in the states. Cultures can be very different.

sylvia77

I have always loved to sew. One day there was an ad for singer books on quilting. I thought I can do that and ordered the book and I haven't stopped since. I rememeber when I was growing up my mom had these crocheted pillowcases that her mom had made and I just loved them. That got me interested in sewing.

sassey

I have a cousin that quilts I never intended to pick up the habit but I often went on quilt hops with her so I could check out all the bead stores along the way. I gragually became interested in the fabric thinking I could buy a panel sew some borders on and have a wall hanging. This started my collection of lots and lots of fabric. Then I started buying tools and books about quilting.Still no quilting. When my husband died the kids all wanted something their dad made. That made me realize how important it is to leave something special for your loved ones to cherrish. So back to buying more fabric because I now needed to make my 3 kids a quilt and needed to buy special fabric for each child and grandchild. Being in the final stages of congestive heart disease and told 4 years ago I wouldnt last much longer I feel this great need to get these quilts made or my kids will have tons of fabric and not one of them does any kind of sewing. But earlier as someone else stated it makes me feel like by making the quilts I am giving up on life and struggling to stay alive.But I know one day I will get er done and kids will have their remembrance, so far I have made part of a rag quilt and half a cars quilt which is for my great grandson