How many of you remember the Cross Stitch Quilt Block kits from way back in the day? Did you make one? Or did you start one and never finish it like me? Mine is stored away somewhere deep within the sewing room, I think. I might have tossed it or given it away. If its here I haven't seen it in years. This one was made by my mom. She finished the embroidery way back in the 80's but never got around to piecing the blocks or quilting. In 2013 she asked me to finish piecing and quilting it for her.
%20(1).jpg)
Mom was not a quilter but she had made a couple quilt panel quilts. The quilting bug never bitten her like it has me. She was more of a seamstress, crochet fanatic and she loved to embroidery. Before she passed I finished a few of her UFO's because she lost interest long before her battle with cancer. I had only been frame quilter for about 2 yrs when I took on this project. To be honest I was scared. What if I ruined her beautiful handwork? So I took my time and it came out beautiful. My thought was to keep the quilting fairly light and simple because non quilters typically don't care for my quilt it death style. We were both very pleased with the finish, that is until it was washed. The instructions to finish the quilt called for a larger seam allowance that was preprinted on the blocks. Mom had assured me the preprinted lines would wash out so if I wanted to use the standard quarter inch seam it would be fine. They did not! The lines didn't even fade in the slightest. I washed it several times and used many different tricks to try to remove the lines but they are still there today. Oh well. Maybe time will work it's magic.
%20(1).jpg)
%20(1).jpg)
In my eyes it's beautiful even with the dark lines. Mom started teaching me to sew at a young age. By the time I got into high school and was taking Home Ec classes I knew almost everything taught in the classes. Ms. Coyle would often ask for help teaching the new skills. She would be on one side of the class room with a circle of girls and I would be on the other side with my circle of girls. The only thing I didn't know how to do was make quilts. I hand pieced one fan quilt block in a class and swore I'd never make another. I took that thing apart three times and it was still wonky. However I did make a chicken scratch baby quilt for my final project that year. When I turned in my quilt at the end of the semester I told her this is the first and the last time I'll ever make a quilt. And here I am today totally obsessed with quilting.
%20(1).jpg)
Until next time...
I hope you find time to stitch up something sweet!
What a lovely heirloom! I personally think the lines that won't wash out just add to the history of the quilt, and your quilting is beautiful! My mom also taught me to sew, embroider, and crochet. She made a few very simple quilts but never had the 'bug' either. I've been sewing garments and home dec stuff for years, but didn't get the quilt bug until a couple of years ago (I'm in my 60's now :-) ) My mom made a beautiful crib quilt for my son (who is 30 now) with embroidered blocks - each block has a different nursery rhyme depicted. I'm pretty sure it was an Aunt Martha's iron on design. She set the blocks with all different colors of gingham and made multi colored gingham prairie points for the edge. I'm pretty sure all the fabric came from KMart, because she worked in their fabric department back in the day. Unfortunately mice ate into a few of the prairie points, but I plan to repair them and use the quilt in my guest bedroom (no grandchildren, so I get to keep it, lol). Thanks for sharing your quilt (as always, I love your posts), and letting me reminisce about mine.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a beautiful quilt. Your mom's embroidery is gorgeous and your quilting just finished it off in style. I hadn't even noticed the lines until I read your story. What a treasure.
ReplyDelete