The Face of Quilting

Jennifer at Sewhooked says she's read one too many articles that pigeonhole quilters into the "50-plus group" (Ahem, check) or ready for the "retirement home" (okay, not that far gone yet).  I'm even more irked at the notion of quilting as a "dying art".  So Jennifer is encouraging us to show our quilting faces and to write our quilting story.

Quilting has always fascinated me, even though I didn't learn until 2008, four years after I stopped working.  My grandmother was a quilter, and I can only think that my interest developed from seeing the beautiful quilts she made.

It was always fun to visit her home and to see her latest creations, which were all hand-pieced and hand-quilted.  I could find my mother's and my dresses in their patterns, and the many different shapes and perfect points were always beautiful to see. 

She made this double wedding ring quilt, which won her grand prize at the county fair. 

Her hand-quilting was exquisite.  I can only imagine the patience she must have had.

She made this one especially for me.

The pattern is called star and diamond.  You can see more of her beautiful quilts right here.

My mother was an excellent seamstress, but she didn't quilt.  However, my Aunt Joan was a quilter, and she was another woman who influenced me to take up the art.

In 2008, completely on a whim, I took a quilting class at my local community college.  The first quilt I made was a nine patch and rail, and I learned so much making just this one quilt.  From there, I've learned everything I know on my own from books, blogs, and forums.

It was the first of many quilts.  You can see my quilts in progress and my completed quilts by clicking on the links in my left side bar.

So that's me.  And here I am.  I'm a mother of two, a wife, a friend, a retired social worker, a cat lover, a cook, a photographer, and a gardener, and I am one of the faces of quilting.