Quilts have always held a special place in my heart. I love seeing the fabrics that the quilter has chosen to work with to create a colorful piece of art that is also a functional item that can be treasured throughout our lives. The intricate stitching done by hand and now, more often, by machine that joins the quilt top to other layers of the quilt form yet another picture. The Quilter takes what may, at first glance, look like totally unrelated pieces of fabrics and paints a picture with cloth. I have often related life as a quilt with the people in our lives representing the fabrics, joined together with a common thread, making the unique pattern of our lives.
I've tried my hand at quilting and wish that I had more time to quilt. I guess you could say I am a "wannabe" quilter. The women and men that I have met that are quilters always have a stash of fabrics for future projects. Although I have not met her in person, BuckHawk is one such person who has quite a collection of fabrics to work with. She tells us in A Fabric-a-holic's Story about her life with fabrics and quilting. I can tell you right now, I envy that closet! So organized with gems of colorful fabric that just make my mouth water. She shows us some lovely examples of quilts that she has completed and gives some personal insight of her passion for cloth.
I admire Susan (BuckHawk) for her organization and quilting talent. Taking her special pieces of fabric from her closet and joining them into pieces of art to adorn a bed or wall takes time but also passion. I couldn't help but think when I saw her pictures of quilts if someday in the future an Antique Dealer would be offering one of them as a treasure of the past. I also admire Susan for keeping a tradition and art form alive with her special eye for color and her loving stitches placed in each quilt.
When old quilts come into the shop, I go into a trance imagining the woman who chose those fabrics to work with, wondering who she was and who she loved so much that she would make a quilt for them. I am in awe of the tiny little stitches that create another picture as they bind all of the pieces together. Even the pattern that she chooses with the blocks gives a little insight into the woman she was.
Thank you, Susan, for letting us see the wonderful woman you are by sharing your lovely fabrics and telling us about your passion for the cloth and the quilt.
Visit A Fabric-a-holic's Story
Image Credit: Quilt Patch One
Bev, what a wonderful post you have written to honor what is so near and dear to my heart! I'm not sure I can thank you enough, but I will try. Thank you a million times over!
ReplyDeleteI love that image of life as a quilt joining different patterns (people) in a unique story, Bev! And I too envy Susan that closet! I enjoyed her illustrated story of one quilter's passion for this craft and am going back to admire the finished quilts some more.
ReplyDeleteBev, a wonderful find and great write up. Susan has a fantastic sense of humor and it is obvious she has found her passion. I was amazed at how organized her fabrics were.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful story, Bev. My grandmother made untold numbers of quilt with her quilting ladies. I can remember roaming around a quilt as it hung in her dining room and watching the expert fingers of the ladies as they talked and sewed.
ReplyDelete