I am a want-to-be quilter. I love the colors, the fabrics cut into circles, rectangles and squares, all stitched together to harmonize into a breathtaking medley! The feel of the quilt brings not only warmth and comfort but also a rich history of the quilter who lovingly spent hours with the planning and executing of the quilt making.
I have stood in fabric shops eyes swimming with all the possibilities. Through the years I have planned quilts, purchased fabric, even cutting and piecing the shapes into quilt tops. On one occasion some years ago I made curtains for my daughter’s room. The same fabric became the cornerstone for the quilt that would cover her bed. The top got pieced together. Alas, the curtains faded and there was still no matching quilt for her bed. Many years later she had a daughter. Perfect. I paid to have it quilted so it would be completed. It didn’t seem right that I had not entered every stitch, but she had a quilt.
A new nephew—a perfect time to make a quilt. When he was born, I presented the box of fabric and the pattern to my sister with the promise of a finished quilt. I joked that hopefully it would be finished before he started Kindergarten. How hopeful! This same nephew will turn 20 this week and he has not had a finished quilt! I wonder if he would like a pastel green quilt with pockets filled with small bears for his dorm room. Not likely!
Last year I reacquainted with this quilt. How could it be that the top was actually almost finished (I had forgotten that!). With the patient tutoring of a friend, I was shown how to tie the quilt to make it reasonable to actually finish it. What a perfect gift for my then one-year-old grandson. As you might guess, he is now two and a half and more of a dinosaur and train kind of kid than an admirer of cute little cuddly teddy bears.
My daughter is expecting another son this summer. The teddy bear quilt looks dated and not in the good kind of way. No, I will not resurrect it yet again. I’m restraining my visions of a quilt (even finished!) for this new little guy.
And I’m now trying not to envision myself heading to the yarn store for supplies and the directions to learn to crochet. I guess I will provide him with warmth from hugs.
There is just so much time in the day, & hugs from Grandma are quite wonderful. I know, I have 3 grandchildren. I just can't get started with the sewing. I know how. I sewed when the kids were younger, but now I like writing and reading better & time to spend with the grandkids, etc. plus I still work. So-as you seem to be saying, time is spent the way you wish, not making the quilts that seemed like a good idea at the time. It's great to be clear about our choices! Thanks for the thoughts!
ReplyDeleteI find that I am a wanna be in many parts of life, but don't always get to complete it. I loved the tale of the almost quilts. It reminded me of my mother and grandmother and the unfinished quilts and booties I never got.
ReplyDeleteYour gifts will be treasured however they come - from your hands or someone elses. This from a person who has also been a wanna-be quilter in the past and has finally stuck to knitting!
ReplyDeleteI hear you! I have a bunch of beautiful squares I hand sewed together but never sewed the squares into a quilt. That was 26 years ago. I am making a quilt for my new grandson born in August. I keep saying I need to finish. But it means putting so much aside - or something. I knitted a mitten once. I think I'm ADD. I didn't need to make the second mitten. I'd proven to myself that I could do it. So I was ready to do something else. Did I mention that I think I'm ADD? Want to ride bikes?
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