The first quilt

During college, there were two teaching assistants whom I got to know well. One I wish I hadn’t. The other was my Shakespeare TA. She was only a few years older, and when a couple of us chatted with her after section, we discovered that the conversation would drift from assignments to common interests. When we learned that she had cats – not fey visitors like the strays we surreptitiously fed on the back porch, but actual pets – and was willing to let us come meet them, the bond was cemented.

On the day of the kitty playdate, we discovered not only cats but also quilting. Displayed on her wall was a brand new, handmade patchwork quilt. We were fascinated. "You made that yourself?" we asked. Oh yes, she had taken a class. "You wouldn't, maybe, be willing to teach us how to do it too?" It turned out that she was.

So at the start of the new term, we made a pilgrimage to the local fabric store to pick out supplies for our new adventure. It was a crazy quarter academically, and we were working like fiends. But every week, we set aside one day to go on retreat. Our friend would pick us up at our dorm, and we’d bring along treats we’d concocted in our kitchen the previous night. We’d go to her apartment, sew and nibble and play with the cats all day, and then, before we went back, she would feed us one of her hot, home cooked meals. The food at our dorm was edible enough, but it never measured up to these cozy dinners amongst friends.

Friends, cats, and food... with such positive associations, is it any wonder I’ve stuck with quilting for all these years?

Day 1, and drafting a letter

Look at how many posts we average per month. Now try not to laugh when I tell you that I will be attempting to make a post a day during the month of November in honor of NaBloPoMo Really there is nothing to lose. Even if I don't make it all the way through, it will be a good, much-needed kick in the seat in the pants for my posting frequency. So, why not?

I wanted to begin by updating you on where we are on the Good Wishes quilt front, as there has been a bit of news that we haven't posted. To wit: since Sandie and her family have been approved, she has said that she now feels ready to start planning the quilt!

The first thing we need to do is to draft a note that we can send out to potential participants. This note should explain:

1) what the project is

There are countless examples online from other families who have created Good Wishes quilts. I think we can simply look at a few of them and adapt this amalgam as necessary to our own version of the project. Would you take the action item, Sandie, to do this and send me a draft?


2) what we need from participants.

For this second item, we need to start by figuring out what we do actually need. I can take it as an action item, and then can fold the information into the draft you send me.

Does this sound doable? Feel free to make countersuggestions if you have other ideas!

P.S. In order to figure out what size squares to request from participants, I do need a general sense of how large you would like the finished quilt to be. Are you thinking you would like a quilt she can cuddle up with, or a quilt that can cover her twin sized bed? Let me know!

Yardage or quilt?

I made some patchwork for Anna to use for her bags, but when I showed her the yardage, she said she didn't want to cut it!

What do you guys think, should I try to convince her, or should I make it up into a lap quilt instead? Is there enough contrast in value to make it interesting as a quilt if I add a border?

(Click photo to view it larger)

Kira's Pictures

I purchased some software to turn the Kira's Castle illustrations into a slideshow for Anna.

I'm not feeling up to writing a big introduction right now, but I think you'd rather just get to the good stuff anyway, wouldn't you? :)

Mango and snowball

I am waiting for the weekend to pick up some variegated quilting thread, probably in "Mango," to start quilting the flowerboxes quilt. (The quilt store isn't open very late most weeknights.)

In the meantime, I'm doing some background prep work. One of the things I am going to be working on for the holidays is a photo quilt that DH's parents have commissioned for one of the sets of grandparents. I have the photos, but I haven't gotten the size specs yet, so instead I am trying out some blocks I am considering using.

The one I am doing now is an octagon (known as a snowball block) that works very well in alternation with other blocks, as it creates interesting secondary patterns. It's a great block to have in one's repertoire.

If you queue up all your snowballs, paper piecing turns out to be the ideal method to use when you have a determined lap cat, as you can sew for a while without having to dethrone the little empress: patterns as articles of diplomacy.