I finished a baby quilt for a friend. She and her husband moved to the Chicago area last summer with their three young sons, and in October, she had a baby girl. I saw her parents at our high school reunion in August, and they were bubbling over with the news—after three boys, a little girl! I thought I will make a quilt for this little girl. Their excitement was infectious. They had five children themselves, so family is everything.
It takes me a long time to make a quilt. Look at my stash of fabric, see what I have to use, and then augment that with a trip to the quilt shop. There was a piece of fabric I had been itching to use with little lambs, so that’s where I started. For some reason, I felt this quilt needed pink, and I had some pretty batiks. Then there is the pattern I often use because it has so many variations. Getting the colors right is a learning experience. Remove the pieces that are too pale and lack vibrancy, turn the squares to get the right combination, remove a fabric that doesn’t go with the rest, and make sure the color is varied throughout the quilt. Sew consistent straight seams so that when you put them together, the seams will match. When it is all pieced, get it as straight as possible and be kind to yourself about your mistakes. Put it on the design wall and come back later to look at it and see what you think. When it is where you like it, sew the blocks together, then the rows, and it is pieced. When it is all done, I take it to a long-arm quilter friend to quilt the whole piece. I make the binding and a quilt label. The hand stitching to complete it is like meditation.
In the fall, Womanspace, an organization in our city that does many wonderful things in the arts, was having a Holiday Market, and I decided to contribute. I made some quilted purses, travel pillowcases, tooth fairy pillows, and my recent specialty—litter bins for the car. The fabrics are so beautiful, but that slowed down my quilt progress a bit.
Then, in the new year, I decided with the surgeon that I would have another foot surgery. I had the surgery last April, but the foot didn’t heal as it should, and it was decided that the hardware needed to come out. I will be traveling soon, so my foot required time to heal, and it has healed well. I am grateful.
In the meantime, I worked on this quilt a little at a time.
I delivered it to my young friend this morning, held the new baby, greeted one of her brothers, and had a lovely conversation before driving back.
What a lovely day, even though it is raining heavily. I just welcomed a new baby with a pretty little quilt. I think it was more for me than for them. It allowed me to create a piece of art that a baby will spit up on, and that’s how it should be.
What do you think?
Life is good.