Well...being completely honest, I have the same problem with quilts that I have with books. If you ask my favorite book, then I will likely list at least fifteen, and then I will say, “But what about poetry...epic poems...plays?!? Can I choose from those, too?”
When I was teaching, my students constantly accused me of loving everything we read, and unashamedly, I admit they were right. Literature never fails to excite me, and I invariably find myself fully enamoured and enthralled by the works I am reading...and yes, I am usually reading more than one thing! Just like I am usually making more than one thing at a time!
As I said, I am equally as captivated by each quilt that I make, and if you ask me about what quilt is my favorite to make, then I will surely enter into a detailed description of my current project and a follow up list of at least ten other quilts I have made!
My students reacted to my inability to choose one favorite book with probably the same eye roll and “Seriously, you can’t name your favorite book---you’re an English teacher, and you don’t have a favorite book?!?” that you, my kind readers, are experiencing now. I’m a quilter, and I am unwilling to choose my favorite quilt to make?!? Really?!?!
Well, yes...I read for many reasons, so one book will never suffice. I love to ply my mind to the best pieces of literature (often more than once!) in order to think about myself and my world. The process of reading and thinking is what I love, and quilting is the same.
I love the process of quilting--and honestly I find joy in all of its parts--pressing seams, choosing fabric, quilting (hand, domestic, and longarm) and binding (hand and machine)---sewing machine work, handwork---applique and piecing---even my seam ripper has a special, warm place in my heart.
This past Christmas season, I received an order for eleven classic 9T quilts with ten of them made from the same fabric--only the t-shirts were different. At first I was really concerned that I would eventually come to hate making the quilts, but I didn’t. I really didn’t. I actually fell into the process, and I enjoyed making every quilt. I finished the order hugely pleased with myself and all aglow with the simple process of making the quilts...I never got tired or bored because the process was key for me.
I have to say, though, when I first saw this prompt, offered by a kind instagram follower, I knew I wouldn’t be able to choose one type of quilt, but one of my favorite short stories (yes, one of hundreds..okay!?) sprang to my mind. In Alice Walker’s story, “Everyday Use,” Dee returns to her family’s small hut of a home to claim “relics” of her past she thinks will look chic in her big city life. The quilts promised to Maggie, her shy, unassuming sister, are among those desired items. At one point in the story, Dee says, “Maggie can’t appreciate these quilts! She’d probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use.” You see, Dee wants to hang the them “as if that was the only thing you could do with quilts.” The girls’ mother wisely refuses to part with the quilts, and responds, “She can always make some more, Maggie knows how to quilt.” Thankfully, so do I!
The quilts I make are for everyday use--I even provide quilt care instructions with every quilt. People deserve a quilt on their beds and quilts to read on in the grass, and if you wear out your quilt, then I can have the joy of making another one of the quilts I love to make!
Sending Quilting Love,
Ginger
Coming Next Week: Business Anniversary Quilt...hmmm?
I am Reading: Elantris by Brandon Sanderson and Man in the Blue Scarf: On Sitting for a Portrait by Lucien Freud by Martin Gayford. I just finished David Copperfield by Charles Dickens, and I am trying to decide what I will read next...I might need more Victorian literature. It soothes me. Maybe Jane Austen?