The Comfort of Quilts

“Beautiful things come together one stitch at a time”

There is something special about the making of quilts…

There’s the delightful hunt of choosing fabrics for a pleasing colour scheme, a special theme to fit someone’s likes, going outside your normal “go-to” favourites, or imagining how they will look within a chosen pattern.

There’s the layout from which you’re going to cut up perfectly good pieces of fabric, and piece them all together and making something new, beautiful and unique.

There’s choosing the pattern, the size, or the serendipity of simply going at it and seeing what happens.

The process of sewing, choosing complimentary threads, the hum of the machine, with soothing background music or perhaps the silence of your own thoughts, prayers said over the person you are making it for, perhaps with a furry friend nestled at your feet.

The ironing process, smoothing out the seams, your favourite scent of Best-Press starch…

Then choosing your fabrics for backing and binding, at a local quilt shop where you can get helpful advice, bountiful selection, have a good chat with a fellow-quilter, and oodles of inspiration for your next project.

My least favourite part is sandwiching the quilt top, batting and backing, the backbreaking floor work with a can of basting spray, a plethora of pins, on knees that are not as young as they used to be. This for me is the “storm before the rainbow”, the “hard work before the pay off”… but it is worth it. Or sometimes you can take the easy way out (I choose this probably half the time now) where you can have a long-arm quilter do the work for you on a frame, with myriads of templates that will best fit in with the design elements already begun. This part is SOOO much more fun.

Then the binding. There’s nothing like enjoying the quilt warming your lap on a cold winter’s day while you hand-sew away. But sometimes, doing the machine binding is so much quicker, especially when you’re desperate to see it complete or are pressed by timelines of gifting it away.

And there it is … something you created, you personally achieved, you finished, you made from your heart, for your enjoyment or someone else’s. An investment, not just in supplies, but of your time.

It is a wonderful thing to give of your time. To give of your heart. That’s what quilts are for me … a giant hug from my heart to the recipient. Every thread, every fabric, every stitch, made for them, specially. Something to be used, something to be cherished, something that can warm their toes, and comfort their soul. And comforted yours in the making of it.