Most of the Christmas decorations are put away--only the tree remains. The days and evenings are quieter and chillier. Time to get back to my quilting.
It is shameful to admit that I am behind before I even get started. One baby blanket is close to being completed. It should have been done months ago and the little one for which it is intended will be walking before I get it done if I don't get busy. Our new little Zachary's quilt is pieced, but needs quilted. There is another baby quilt that is in need of being started for a friend who's baby is due in the spring. Then there is my big project that was started almost two years ago. A replica of a dear friend's quilt that has been in her family since the late 1800s.
There is something relaxing to me about the feel of fabric, especially a good cotton fabric or a good muslin. It is calming. If I were a knitter or a crocheter, I think that the yarn would work the same magic.
Since most of my quilts are smaller, I do them in a 12 inch hoop. I have a smaller 10 inch size for smaller spaces. This keeps my project mobile--from comfy chair to Amish rocker or quiet corner. It also helps to keep me warm. Our big old house is a bear to heat, so to have my work covering my lap helps to keep the chill off. I've done a couple big quilts in my frame. It is, obviously, not portable and takes up a chunk of the dining room.
The baby quilt I am in a hurry to finish is all white or a whole cloth quilt. My Amish friend, Sarah marked it for me on white muslin. (Since then, she has started a little business marking quilts for others.) It isn't difficult, but I let it sit during the summer with gardening and grass and that is how I got behind. I'm also pretty slow. Whole cloth quilts are my favorite. The design that shows up on the fabric from the stitches is beautiful to me...not that my stitches are all that beautiful. I just enjoy the process.
Both my grandmothers made quilts. My paternal grandmother is famous for making lap robes for elderly folks as well as quilts for all of the grandchildren as we were growing up. My cousins and I would always look for patches that were made from the scraps our mothers would send to Grandma from their sewing to use for quilts. There was Suzanne's dress, or Paula's shorts, and even my own or my sister's dresses. I still have a few of my grandmother's baby quilts that she made our kids. These quilts were not prize winners nor were they hand stitched. She tied them with colorful yarn and bound them with love. I've kept them so I can pass them on to my grandchildren so they can have a piece of the family's past.
While I can never be the quilt maker my Grandmother was, I hope to give my grandchildren something they can enjoy and use to keep warm. It is a connection to my own past and reminds me of the love my grandmother showed to her family in her sewing.
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