Why quilts matter blog

Hopefully my quilts will be as loved as the ones I now care for. Quilts feed my need for creativity and beauty. They bring love , warmth and caring to everyone they touch.

Sharing quilts and quilting develops new and strong friendships and brings great joy into my life. Quilts matter to me because they tell a story. They helped to communicate with the Underground Railroad, they are part of our history, they are part of our culture. They have provided me with a way to express my creativity, learn from my mother her skills. I have formed incredible friendships as a result of quilting.

I can look at quilts my mom has made for me and I remember my childhood, certain events in my life. They will be a part of my future-lots of quilts to finish and to start. So many wonderful thoughts have been expressed prior to mine. Why do quilts matter and why do I make quilts?

My quilts are made for one of two reasons: to accomplish a challenge of some kind, or as a gift of love — to tell the recipient they are loved. When I enter a competition, I am taking the work of another and changing it in some way to express myself creatively and that expression has provided me an avenue for growth.

I can tell you now: it is a passionate "passion". I just looked at the intro to why quilts matter. He loved it! A couple of years later his dad told me that while looking around in flea markets while down south, they saw many different "quilts" that resembled the flag … he said they were very inexpensive … but when he looked closer he could tell they were not handmade. He also said that they were not the quality of the one I had made.

It made me very proud that I was able to make this treasure for his son to have. I love quilts. My favorite is a sunbonnet sue and overall sam quilt made by my mom out of my baby clothes. Its so cute. I might add that I am 64 yrs old. I know I just left a post … but I had to share this too. I started making quilts to give to my grandchildren in We have 17 grandchildren now and 6 children and they each have received at least one quilt and some have two … it does my heart good to see the kids take their quilts with them when they go off to church camp or when they go camping or stay over at a friends house.

I embroidered their names on each one. My latest I finished it yesterday was a two sided quilt … a Vermont scene on one side and a Hawaiian scene on the backside … so it can be reversed depending on whether the recipient is thinking of snow or the beach….

Quilting is my passion. I have been quilting for over 30 years and feel like I love it more every day.

It is my connection to my inner self and the past lives of other quilters. It is so important to me. I give a lot of my quilts as gifts and love sharing what I love so much. Thank you so much for the chance to win them. Being a quilter is who I am. My grandmothers on both side of the family were quilters.

One from necessity, one from the love of hand work. I grew up seeing both of them always working on something. I give my quilts away because it is the love I have for my family and friends. I share in this way. To me giving a quilt is a gift of love and hope and healing. The quilts all are made with love and they also tell me who needs each one.

I have watched some of the segments of "Why Quilts Matter" on television. I think this would be a good video to have going at a quilt show. I think there are a lot of die hard quilters, me included, that can really learn from the research that went into production of this programming. There is so much discovered and yet to be discovered past and present history in quilts and quilt making… If I win this, it will be viewed by me and shared with others in area communities. Thank you for offering this.

Quilts matter because giving one away is a work of love. Some of the "work" is quite enjoyable, other parts, maybe not so much.

True joy is the completion of project, started with a purpose, done with love, and finished with the knowledge that the recipient will love the gift. Quilts matter because receiving one means someone care enough to give away a piece of their heart. This is the gift quilters give themselves, every time they share their work. Quilts matter because they speak when words cannot.

Quilts matter to me because they can be a lasting remembrance to give to my children. A piece of me. They can snuggle under their quilts and know that their mom is just as close whenever they need me. Quilts matter for lots of different reasons. Quilts are made and given with love. Quilts do matter for so many reasons. One big one for me is that I can leave a little piece of me with each of my children adn grandchildren for long after I am gone, jsut as I avhe little pieces of my mom and grandma before me.

A hidden proclamation of creative vision and a genuine expression of love. Quilting brought me out of despair during illness and continues to bring me joy and delight. Thanks for the chance to win! Quilts matter for many reasons — They connect me to the past and remind me of people in my family who have made them. I have quilts made by my great-grandmother, my grandmother, my mother, and myself. They wrap me in comfort and love. They allow me to pass on that love in a tangible form to my children and grandchildren.

They allow me to express my creativity, and they are pleasing to look at. And last, they are a joy to look at and wonderful to sleep under.

I love teaching quilting to all the Girl Scouts in the troops I"ve led in several states and my 3 daughters and now my 8 year old granddaughter. These girls are learning about the past through seeing quilts and going to leave their footprints in history by leaving the new quilts they make today with the new fabrics, patterns, and their creativity.

I just love quilting for the joy and love it brings to the quilter and the recipient. There is no other need to quilt than this. For me quilts matter because they are history. They allow me to connect with relatives that have passed on.

When I pick up an old quilt and hold it in my hands I get such an emotional jolt. I especially love the old quilts that appear to be made from clothing and those that are not always the prettiest or most precise in pattern. Those quilts tell me either the artist wished to hang on to precious memories, or that she was resourceful, or both. Quilts, of all art forms, can communicate and share history we know or can imagine.

They are visual journals and diaries. Quilts matter to me because they are a link to the past. I own quilts made by my Grandmother and Greatgrandmother and when I look at them I think about how they made the quilts to keep warm as well as be a beautiful addition to their lives. Quilting makes me feel closer to all the women who came before me. My mother, grandmother, and great grandmother were all quilters.

Quilting is something I have in common with them and I love that! Quilts matter on so many levels: historical, familial, artistic, and utility. I enjoy everything about quilts and quilting—especially the satisfaction of creating something from pieces and patches. Scrap quilts speak to me the most. When I quilt I feel closer to both of my grandmothers, both now gone, but both made quilts, which I am fortunate to have. I hope that I will always be able to enjoy and appreciate this passion!

Joye in SC. Andrews by the Sea, NB. She was very generous with her art quilting knowledge and I haven't seen anyone else do her quilting technique other than me. Now that I use it so much, I've decided to call it Lair Quilting after her. Hope she doesn't mind! Usually when I do Lair quilting Heathia , We the North Since , Triad , it's using one or two colours and it's meant to blend into the background.

This time, I wanted to experiment with making the design with the quilting. First, I laid down some black guidelines, with a mix of straight lines and circles.

Next I started filling in the spaces between the lines in different colours with my favourite Aurifil colours. Here it is from the back. Mmm, loving that texture. Just as I was finishing up the quilting, I thought it needed a little more. I started adding some hand stitching to define the shapes and make the colours pop more. I used 3 strands of DMC embroidery floss -- it adds a good line of colour, but isn't too heavy.

Finished up the hand stitching this morning and blocked it. Updated: Here is the full view of the blocked quilt. Just the binding and hanging sleeve left to go. Calling this one Blessed. I'm getting impatient for this one to be done. One of the ways we can ensure the continuation of the tradition of quiltmaking in America would be to include American Quilt History in our secondary and college curriculum.

Iconic images such as the silk Diamonds quilt are every bit as memorable as the famous paintings and sculptures studied in Art History. Alphabet Crib Quilt, c. With the advent of the internet, it's so much easier to learn about quilt history today than it was 30 or 40 years ago. Now, we can find a lot of information at our fingertips, but with so much information, it's important to always assess the quality of the information and the credibility of the sources.

The group is a virtual quilt history think tank, and includes collectors, curators, dealers, historians, quiltmakers and enthusiasts. Sometimes, if you're very lucky and very quick, you can find wonderful quilts available from members of the group. Crazy Quilt, c. I told the story of buying my first wool quilts, what attracted me to them, and how wool quilts appear throughout quilt history. I also shared pictures of some of my favorite wool quilts collected over the last eleven years.

Applique Counterpane, c. This monumental fancy spread, made with cut out chintz appliqued on to a Marseilles cloth ground, caused a sensation in quilt history circles as I tried to grasp the importance of what I'd unwittingly found.

It was a great year, full of great quilts, and I'm happy to say I will continue blogging for Why Quilts Matter in Look for my next guest blog this month! YankeeQuilter January 1, at AM. Annie January 14, at PM. Newer Post Older Post Home.