Quilting

At long last.. and I do mean long.. I am completing the quilt I began in 1975.  I am amazed that I managed to keep the pieces for so long though in those years I moved only once so that no doubt was a factor.  For a long time the quilt lay in a box in the upper reaches of a closet or under a bed, untouched and not thought about and unfinished.

Then, during the last several years my interest in it was renewed and every year I got it out, did a little bit more.. a block finished one year, a border completed in another time frame.  The winter of '09 saw the quilt reach completion and this spring, prodded by an old friend, I made the "sandwich" of top, batting, and bottom, ordered a Q-snap quilting frame and yesterday the quilting began.

I stand in awe of all the women who make quilts.  I have seen some with the tiniest of stitches.  Can you imagine 20 to the inch? Quilting is not for the faint of heart.  It is a art  that takes time, patience, persistence and skill.   I was almost ready to fold my quilt back up and put it away again yesterday morning.  I couldn't seem to get the rhythm.. couldn't rock my needle.. stitches were huge and uneven.. oh what a mess! 

I kept running back to the computer, reading more instructions, more blogs hoping to find a "secret" to quilting mystique.  And, I did find help and much encouragement that with time and practice the sewing will get easier.  I called a friend who gave me more help and a push in the right direction and I kept on working.  By noon I could see improvement and I could feel the rhythm that earlier I could not grasp. 

Today, I am looking forward to getting back to it.. to complete this beautiful, practical piece of art that I began as a young woman.


xposted to LJ/rosegardenfae