Quilting

somewhere in the unknown world

a yellow eyed woman

sits with her daughter

quilting.
-from "quilting" by lucille clifton

I have always been drawn to quilts, intrigued by the womanly art of them, appreciative of resourcefulness of the craft, and respectful of the warmth of their beautiful practicality.  Quilts carry family history in fabrics cut from old garments and in stitches sewn by mothers or grandmothers or aunts or sisters or friends.  I cherish quilts passed along from women in my life--two from my family and one from several circles of friends who hand pieced a quilt presented to me when our family moved away; I love that quilt...

Thirty six years ago, I even made a little quilt myself.  It was for a new baby (our Barbara), assembled with leftover gingham from a bassinet skirt I made.  Using cardboard as a template, I cut out squares, stitched them together, backed it with some yellow fabric, fashioned a ruffled border, and then knotted it.  It is amateurish in design and construction, but that quilt was used for two Campbell babies (Rob as well) and was pulled out for our first grandchild Alexander. It still washes up well.

One of my retirement goals was to make a quilt.  I am not sure I was even all that serious about it; however, in a moment of impulse in June, I signed up to take a quilting class at our local yarn store, Stitch Your Art Out.  The class was listed for beginners, the project was a small quilt (perfect for a baby quilt), and the instructor was Deb Kerr, a fellow State High faculty member who I admire both as a teacher and quilter. I just finished the first two classes this week, and I am hooked.

Each step of this new adventure has been enjoyable and gratifying.

Picking out the fabric was made easier since I knew I wanted the quilt to complement the blanket I knit for baby James. I find it liberating that this new generation of mamas no longer adheres to traditional baby colorways, so I felt free to go colorfully wild in choosing fabric and colors.  

Sewing machine, fabric, and recommended tools in tow, I climbed the shop stairs last week to begin my class.  Sitting with three other women, I spent a stimulating afternoon learning about rotary cutting, quilting rulers, 1/4 inch stitching (I am thrilled with my trusty old Singer Featherweight for this!), and grey thread.  It is a new lexicon for this knitter.

In two afternoons, we cut, pieced, and began to sew it all together.  This morning I finished stitching together the top of the quilt.  Learning something new and stretching my mind in different directions has been a stimulating first step into retirement. It has been a good week....