Every Stitch a Blessing, Every Stitch a Prayer

This is not the post I'd hoped to begin the new year with. My dad’s health has been declining since Christmas, and sadly, he passed away last week. He suffered from Lewy Body Dementia, a debilitating neurological disease with symptoms similar to both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Dad died peacefully in his sleep while in the care of hospice. He was a devoted husband, great dad and grandfather, and all-around good guy who will be remembered for his cheerful, fun-loving spirit.

People manage grief in different ways. For me, it's natural to turn to needle and thread for solace. My needle got quite a workout in the mid-1990s when we lost several family members and friends within a few short years: a beloved aunt and uncle, my dear brother and his partner, a favorite grade school teacher, and the owner of the quilt shop where I worked. 

It was tempting to wallow in self-pity during those years, but I had to keep things together for my health and family’s sake. In true “fake it till you make it” fashion, quilting helped me cope with grief and loss.

I began by pulling fabrics from my scrap basket. I'd give them a casual trim with scissors and sort them into piles of light and dark strips. When there were enough pieces to run through the machine, I'd stitch them into "liberated" log cabin blocks. The beauty of working intuitively like this is how relaxing it is.

What started as mindless sewing, soon became a form of prayerful meditation. Snip, sort, sew. Snip, sort, sew. Gradually, the quiet focus and rhythmic hum of my machine began to mend my broken heart. 

I don't know how I'll feel about this quilt in the future. I like to think there's more healing in it than grief. Maybe I won't try to finish it -- just keep it for the next time I need some therapeutic sewing.

The Party’s Over: Confessions of a Control Freak on Thanksgiving Day

How was your Thanksgiving? Ours was quiet and casual. My husband did all the cooking and William and his girlfriend joined us for dinner.

I had a different blog post prepared about the challenge of balancing MS symptoms with my perfectionist tendencies, about wanting to control things I have no control over and having a hard time relinquishing control to those who don’t take control quite the way I want them to. You know, a typical family holiday scenario.

My husband said that if I wanted to focus on the negative, I deserved to feel miserable. So, instead of whining and griping ad nauseam, I've summed up my frustration with a single photo.

This was our guest's view from her seat at the Thanksgiving table. Apparently, I was the only person bothered by this mess, since no one thought to hide it before dinner.

CLICK PHOTO for the festive details.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Veteran's Day

PFC Edward Haeger

I usually call my dad on Veteran’s Day to thank him for his military service. This year, his dementia is too advanced to sustain much of a conversation on the phone, but if I could be with him, I’d try to prompt a few memories.

In the early 1950’s, Dad and his buddies volunteered in the Army reserves at Chicago’s Navy Pier. They enlisted and went to basic training together at Fort Riley, Kansas. Dad completed his Army stint at White Sands Proving Ground, New Mexico.

I used to tease Dad that he spent the Korean War stateside, defending America’s southern borders from marauding Communists. Joking aside, he's very proud of his military service.

A couple years ago, the assisted living facility where Dad lived, honored its veterans with a brief ceremony and certificate of thanks. Dad was brought to tears by the acknowledgement, so I called the director to tell her how much the gesture had meant to him. She said his reaction was not uncommon. A person’s military service, no matter how long ago it occurred, played a significant role in his or her life.

I don’t know how much Dad remembers of his Army experience from sixty years ago. I do know that something deep inside him would still salute the American flag, rise with hand on heart for the National Anthem, and beam with pride at a firm handshake of thanks.

Happy Veteran’s Day, Dad!

Marriage Milestone

Our newlyweds celebrated their first wedding anniversary with a belated Niagara Falls honeymoon!

It was also time to wash their wedding quilt, so James called me for laundering advice. What I wanted to say was, “Hold your breath, cross your fingers, and pray the colors won‘t run.” What I actually said was, “Fill your washer with cool water, add a little mild detergent and several color catchers. Swish the water around to dissolve the detergent before immersing the quilt. Let it soak for 30 minutes, then run it through a gentle wash cycle and tumble dry." 

All in all, I'd say they got pretty good results. As you can see, six color catchers absorbed the excess red dye from the wash water. There was just a little color bleeding along the seam line of the red fabric and no color migration to the white background fabric or the back of the quilt.

Happy Anniversary James and Rachel. You're off to a great start!

*Has anyone had luck reusing Shout Color Catchers? Do they continue to absorb fugitive dyes or are they good for one use only?

Coming of Age

In my early years of quilting, I read about a tradition of presenting a son with a special quilt on his twenty first birthday. The custom (Amish, perhaps) represented the breaking of bonds with home and family as the young man ventured into adulthood and life on his own.

The idea stuck with me, and when our younger son, Will, turned twenty-one we presented him with a Coming of Age quilt of his own. It's a Jacob’s Ladder design that I pieced years ago and recently had machine quilted by Cheri Gabrielsen of Elmhust, IL.  

The name Jacob’s Ladder comes from Genesis 28: 11-22 which refers to seeking the Promised Land. Also known as Underground Railroad, the block represents finding the path to freedom.

These colors aren't patriotic per se, but this sure would make a great Fourth of July quilt!

I prefer using larger blocks when making masculine quilts. These measure twelve inches. 

It’s an added bonus when blocks form a secondary pattern where they intersect.

As usual, the fan quilting pattern is my favorite for traditional quilts.

72" X 96”

Happy birthday to Will, who's been independent since the day he was born. He's handling the responsibilities of adulthood with maturity and grace. Dad and I couldn’t be prouder! ❤️

May Baskets

Hello everyone, and happy spring! Mother's Day! Mine was filled with simple pleasures but felt very special

It wasn't our son''s visit or the pancakes and bacon he fixed for breakfast. And it wasn't the phone call from our other son and daughter-in-law. Naturally there were big smiles for those things, but this particular grin came later... with!

A refreshing walk was my surprise, and I welcomed the opportunity to soak up as much springtime as I could. The cloudless blue sky and lilac-scented breeze were accompanied by a peaceful quietude uncharacteristic of our family neighborhood (Where was everyone; church, brunch, Grandma's house?). There were flowers to enjoy in every yard--big bushes of lilacs, red climbing roses, deep purple iris with golden beards, cheerful clumps of white daisies, each one prettier than any bouquet I could have wished for. All in all, it was a glorious stroll! 

 

We even found a spot to photograph my "May Baskets" quilt. It’s one of three quilts made from blocks swapped by Piecemaker friends (and generously shared with me). Although we started with the same 3" baskets, look how different our quilts turned out.

Mine is set in a block-to-block arrangement with baskets alternating direction in every other row. I like this simple layout and the subtle interest it creates.

Originally, I added a muslin spacer between the baskets and sawtooth border. It gave the baskets some "breathing room" but friends convinced me otherwise. Now, I wish I'd left it in. The final layout looks a bit cramped to me.

Oh well... all the more reason to keep the quilting simple.

"May Baskets"

30” X 39”

Sheila Lewis patterned her quilt after one in the collection of the New England Quilt Museum. The solid red alternate blocks make a striking setting, don't they? Can you spot where the baskets change direction? Right down the center of the quilt!

Barb Vedder grouped her blocks by color, then arranged them into four-basket sets.

It reminds me of a popular U.S. postage stamp from the late 1970s. Remember these? 

Barb enlarged her quilt with bold sashing and generous borders. You can read more about it here.

Thank you, my friends, for including me in this swap and for helping me get my quilt together!

Skipping Christmas

I promised to “be back soon” with the final reveal of the wedding quilt, but it felt weird skipping Christmas without a mention. The “kids” were “home” for the holiday, so we had lots of family time together.


William spent three months in Russia this fall, studying at the Moscow Arts Theatre. It was the trip of a lifetime, but he was happy to get back to his girlfriend and American food. He made Anna her first Christmas stocking.

At least someone is using my sewing machine.

James and Rachel brought along two additions to their family, our grand kitties, Gandalf and Carrot.

We intentionally kept the décor simple to minimize kitty mischief. Hanging a couple red and green quilts made the house look festive.

We even managed to host a party for 25 friends. It’s an annual gathering that I usually have to miss when it's held at someone else’s home. But with the kids here to help and everyone bringing an appetizer or dessert, all went smoothly and we had a great time.

I hope this holiday season sets the tone for 2012 and that the coming year will offer plenty of opportunities for fellowship with family and friends. Happy New Year!

The Wedding

We are still basking in the memory of James and Rachel's beautiful late summer wedding. Jim and I were pleased that so many family members and friends could join us for the out-of-state event.

From start to finish, it was an elegant affair. The ceremony itself was very traditional, and even though some of the rituals were new to us, we found it all very moving.

Watching my dad walk down the aisle, escorted by my brother Carl, was especially touching. In spite of Dad’s worsening dementia, he clearly enjoyed the ceremony and dinner. A smile from him is a fleeting thing these days, but the photographer managed to capture several.

A fabulous live “swing” band accompanied the reception and even lured me (and my wheelchair) onto the dance floor. At the end of the evening, the bride and groom opened their wedding quilt, which I'll share more about HERE.

Mazel tov to James and Rachel!

Be Back Soon

We're off to a very special family event!

Be back soon.

Thank you all for your kind words and condolences on the passing of my mom. Your support was a great comfort to me.

At Rest

Mom passed away this week. I'll be taking

some time off to spend with family.

Checkin' In

You know it’s been too long between posts when your nonbloggy friends point out your infrequent updates. I got an email from my buddy Sheila recently, asking what the heck I've been up to. Well, there’s plenty going on, just very little that’s appropriate to share here on a quilt blog.

Health and family matters require my energy and attention right now. I need a little time to process all that’s happening. When I can write about things without sounding like I’m completely spilling my guts, I’ll share. I know many of you have dealt with the same issues I’m facing. They’re not new, just new to me.

In the meantime, let’s look to quilts for the solace and distraction they provide. My quilt (above) was inspired by a late 1800’s quilt (below) which appears in Sandi Fox’s book, Small Endearments: Nineteenth-Century Quilts for Children and Dolls.


I don’t know if I tried to recreate the antique quilt from memory or if I was just lazy, but I substituted four patch blocks for the nine patches of the original quilt. The result resembles the antique enough to please me.

The primary fabrics are from Harriet Hargrave's Heirloom Collection, produced in the mid 1990's. It was a great line of reproduction fabric, with lots of fine detail and several strong colors.


The background fabric is a mottled chocolate brown print which makes the quilt look old while still letting the colors shine.


Mine looks like it could do with a good pressing before it gets quilted!

Thanks for checkin' in on me!

Con"grad"ulations

Thank you for your congratulations and good wishes on James and Rachel's engagement. We are so pleased! What a joy it’s been to watch them fall in love.

Our family passed another milestone last week with James’ graduation from college. Bet you can’t tell where he went to school (that's Carolina blue).

Can you spot James and Rachel in the stands? Just kidding; they sat on the field, creating their own “pomp and circumstance” by playing in the band.

With diplomas in hand, they're off to graduate school in the fall.

Best of luck!