I’ve always been the kind of person to delve into something – ANYTHING – creative. I’ve been a crocheter for over 45 years, had a cake decorating business at one time, baked and made candy as a child, sewn clothes for my children by hand (when I didn’t have a sewing machine), and myself, and quilted. I tried knitting at one time, but it just wasn’t my “thing.”
The quilting, however, IS my “thing”! And I have long-lasting love for it. The patterns. The colors. The joys. The triumphs. The catastrophes. The disasters. The ugly. The failures. They’re ALL in there.
My first foray into quilting patchwork was making a bowtie pillow and not the easy way, mind you, the hard way with Y-seams. This experience taught me three things: 1) I liked the pattern, 2) no one told me I couldn’t do it, and 3) no one told me this would be hard. I learned three valuable lessons, WAY back in those beginning days. The first lesson I learned was that you never learn or succeed without having at least tried it once and to pay attention to what you are doing. The second lesson I learned was that practice doesn’t make perfect, but it does make good – and that’s O.K – do your very best regardless of the outcome. The third lesson I learned was not to listen to people who were naysayers or negative about the pattern, the fabric, or the technique. It wasn’t for them, to begin with, it was for me, and I should have fun with it.
I’ve been quilting off and on for over 36 years, and I have loved almost every minute of it. I am finally doing all the things that make me happy and bring happiness to others. And in the end, isn’t that what it’s all about? To find joy and happiness in what you’re doing and sharing that joy with others?
Sew Charming Quilts 