Skip to main content

Quilting Class

There is nothing like quilting.

Creating beauty from scraps is very satisfying. Scraps of fabric that seem insignificant by themselves can be joined with others to make something useful, beautiful, and lasting.

Recently, I finished a class where students were taught hand-quilting for a twelve week period. We literally quilted the winter away. The world is now better because there are three more quilts in it.


Funding for this class was provided by a grant from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. Thank you!!!



Charlotte McDaniel (left) and Nancy Ledgewood work on Tulip Quilt, quilting around each piece.



Wanda Robertson works on the Tulip quilt. An antique quilting frame was used to keep the layers together while they were being quilted.



Left to right: Wanda Robertson, JoAnn Haeger, Charlotte McDaniel, Nancy Ledgewood works on the Tulip Quilt.

An excellent way to spend a cold winter's evening!

Left to right: Nancy Ledgewood, Jo Ann Haeger, Wanda Robertson

Tools needed for hand-quilting: strong thread, thimbles, needles, and glasses for most of us!

Left to right: Nancy Ledgewood, Charlotte McDaniel, Jo Ann Haeger, Wanda Robertson, and Mitzi Hatton work on Christmas quilt using the fan pattern for quilting.

Charlotte McDaniel, Jo Ann Haeger, Wanda Robertson, and Mitzi Hatton. The white chalk lines remind us where the seam goes.


Wanda Robertson (front) and Mitzi Hatton quilting on the Christmas Quilt. What concentration!


Star quilt, with quilting lines drawn in chalk, thread, thimble, scissors used in quilting.

Left to right: Wanda Robertson, Charlotte McDaniel, Jo Ann Haeger, and Nancy Ledgewood



Left to right: Nancy Ledgewood, Charlotte McDaniel, Wanda Robertson, Jo Ann Haeger



Star quilt was quilted with straight lines except in the middle, where it was quilted around the pieces.

Completed Star Quilt

Completed Christmas Quilt


Completed Tulip Quilt

Three finished quilts were raffled based on attendance. Jo Ann Haeger holds her Star Quilt.

Charlotte McDaniel was the winner of the tulip quilt.

Nancy Ledgewood was the winner of the Christmas Quilt.

It is said that hand work is for the past; an artifact that is no longer needed. This theory couldn't be more wrong. Quilting is more popular today than it has ever been. Could that be because in this fast-paced culture, we are seeking something to slow us down, to calm us? Or because the world of Walmarts and eBay doesn't gratify our need to create, to surround ourselves with beauty?

Will the next generation produce any quilters? I don't have any idea how many, but I know there will be a least one!

Ten-year-old Amanda Robertson quilts on the Christmas Quilt. Amanda couldn't attend the Tuesday night quilting bee, but did her work on Saturday.




We know people have been quilting since records have been kept. Roman women, who lived before Jesus walked their roads, may have formed a group to quilt soft garments that their men wore under armor. They may have gathered in a circle to work on the quilted mats they used for their floors and wall.

Women who traveled in wagons with all their family and earthly belongings found time to quilt at the same time they were helping build a country. When their country became a battlefield, women quilted so their sons and husbands wouldn't have to sleep on the dirt.

For some of us, it is just something we have to do and teach. We have to make sure the next generation, children of the 21st century, like Amanda, have the skills needed to continue. I am thankful for the small contribution I have made in preserving this beloved art.

Comments

  1. I can barely sew on a button-I wish I had learned to quilt as a child-like Amanda is. Looks like a wonderful time was had by all. I loved your words about the history of quilts too.

    (This spring was the first time I ever ate poke sallet-I like your post about it too)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks like fun! And lovely quilts to boot. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Beautiful! I wish I could've been a part of the class! Maybe next time. . . ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. It was great fun! Thanks for the opportunity.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Amish in Stantonville, Tennessee

Last week, my sis and her hub went with us to the Amish community near Stantonville, Tennessee.  It was a beautiful day, and we love driving to new places and finding new treasures.  We enjoy these mini-trips we take together, where we giggle a lot and get caught up on everything.  Also, the squirrels ate all our tomatoes, so we needed to find some to buy. You know the food you are buying is fresh when they bring it from the field while you are standing there waiting for it. Here is part of what we brought home, and it was all delicious. Stantonville is located in McNairy County, Tennessee, northwest of Shiloh National Military Park.

Holy Smoke Pie

I think it was in the late seventies that I first had Holy Smoke Pie.  It was at a party at Debra Morris Harville's house.  After we ate, Debra had to give the recipe to everyone there.  I came home and made it for my family, and it has been a favorite since then.  I always make it at holiday dinners, because I believe tradition is important.  It has become a favorite of our granddaughters. I've heard it called Chocolate Delight, Four-Layer Chocolate Dessert, and other odd things.  We call it Holy Smoke.  Here is how I make it: Chop us a cup of pecans; set aside. Add a stick of softened butter (NOT margarine) to one cup of self-rising flour. Cut the butter into the flour. Add the chopped pecans, and work it all together. Save two tablespoons of the pecans to sprinkle on top. Pour into a 9" x 12" pan that has been sprayed with cooking oil. Spread it over the bottom of the pan.  It helps to use your hands (or hand, if you have t

Cedar Trees in Cemeteries

If you ever wander in old cemeteries, and I know many of you do, you are bound to see some cedar trees. The tradition goes back to the early days of the United States and even earlier  in Europe.  Cedar trees were not always used, but some type of evergreen trees were planted because they were a symbol of everlasting life.  Some  Cherokees believed that cedars contained powerful spirits, including the spirits of the departed buried beneath them. Perhaps because they are known as burial trees, there are many superstitions that surround cedars.  My grandmother told us in no uncertain terms that if we planted a cedar tree, we would die when it was large enough to shade our graves. Some others are: Never transplant a cedar tree; it will bring bad luck. If you transplant a cedar and it dies, you will die shortly. Planting a cedar tree in your yard welcomes poverty. Some say Christ was crucified on a cedar tree, and will bring bad luck if you burn it. If a cedar tree com