Quilty

I've always admired my mother's beautiful and seemingly effortless quilts, but my preteen attempts at sewing a 12" block together quickly discouraged me from perfecting the skill. I felt like I spend more time threading the needle or repairing a mistake than I actually spent sewing or quilting. For a friend's Christmas present, I decided to give her a practical gift since I knew she would be moving soon. So, with a lot of help from my ever-so-patient mother,  I spent about a month working on and finishing my first 'real' quilt. I'm proud to tell you that I've nearly perfected the skill of fixing my mistakes, even though threading a needle still sets me back quite a bit.

This new hobby has really become something I enjoy doing, especially during those long winter nights. Despite the fact that quilting seems like SUCH an old woman pastime (yes, go ahead say your sarcastic remark, I know you're thinking it. But then, no more judgement :), I've found it nearly therapeutic this past year probably because it's one of the few things in my life where I can see where I'm going, and see the progress along the way. From the beginning stitch to the finished product, every time I work on it, I walk away seeing the progress. Whereas so much else in my life relies on believing that the progress is happening but not seeing it yet. Anyway, it's a good feeling to work with your hands and finish a project, right?

Have a look at 18 months worth of long winter nights:

The quilt that began it all (on the right)...I still haven't quite finished quilting that one. And another quilt to match on the left.

I wish I would haven't started with a simpler design. Hey, go big or go home, huh?

A quilt Beth and I worked on together for a friend.

Another joint effort. A quilting circle of one isn't much fun. This is primary made from leftover fabric and old shirts.

The latest and greatest! ;) For my Granna!

Beth's in on the fun too!  This is one of her masterpieces - the cat likes it too!