Pieces of me...

Tonight

I am putting the finishing touches on a lap quilt.

It is not my finest work but it is made with love and care.

This quilt is destined  for the assisted living facility 

where our fiber art group meets to thank them 

for allowing us to use one of their rooms...

It is made with charm packs that once upon a time tickled my fancy

but now I am happy to part with them.

I even tried a new free motion quilting motif...

but as I hand stitch the binding to the backing

it gives me pause.

Once upon a time, 23 years ago, 

I took an introductory quilting course at a local community college.

It gave me enough skills to make this quilt...

my first quilt. 

 I giggle a bit now to see where I started...

Many of us begin quilting so that we can shower our future children

with quilts. 

But this quilting...

it has become so much more...

Out of that 'hobby-turned-art form-turned- I don't know what'...

come gifts...

come friends...

come experiments...

come prizes...

come comfort...

come fun...

come mistakes...

come memories...

As I look back on the photos of my quilts...

many which I will never see again...

I remember them fondly...

the inspiration that brought many to fruition...

the joy and frustration I felt 

trying to make my vision come to life...

the joy that others showed when they 

saw them, received them...

Each quilt...

no matter how big..

or small...

has a story...

some seem obvious...

others less so...

many stories I will never share..

But each quilt has pieces of me...

stitches of 

my love...

my hope...

my humor...

my dreams...

my sorrows...

my anguish...

 some even have parts of me!

Those who have made quilts

likely know what I mean...

many who have received my quilts really do not know 

what I mean..

 but they will all have pieces of me....

N. Y. C.

This past weekend, 

I made a trip to New York City!!!!

But this weekend, 

I had to share the limelight with the Pope!!!

cuz I am pretty sure these people were not lined up to see me...

I was in the Big Apple 

as part of Quilters Take Manhattan 

organized by the Quilt Alliance.

I started my weekend with a class

at Victoria Findlay Wolfe's loft....

We sewed on Juki machines

(boy can they sew fast!)

and made cute little bags...

hung out with her little dog, Jenny...

and looked at some of Victoria's beautiful quilts....

In the afternoon,

I went on a tour of the Antonio Ratti Textile Center

at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

but we were asked not to publish any photos of the old quilts 

we saw there...

but I did take photos of some quilts on display in The Met.. 

On my way back to my friend's apartment,

bands were congregating...

streets and Central Park were closed off...

and all kinds of security was visible...

I needed all the help I could get to keep the masses

 from getting too close to Olive!!!

Actually, security was for the Pope

who was going to be Central Park Friday afternoon,  

but there was a big crowd shopping at The City Quilter

where some of the quilts from the Quilt Alliance's contest,

"Animals We Love" were on display.

It was good to catch up with Olive!!

It is probably the last time that I will see her in person.

The quilts are scheduled to be auctioned off on Ebay this fall..

stay tuned!

And

next post...

Quilters Take Manhattan main event....