Saturday Snapshot - Straight Lines

My life these days is reduced to a series of straight seams and endless checking with rulers and cutting board grids. This is a simple 'flying geese' pattern with three borders that will make it suitable for a double bed. I love the vintage 30's feed sack calicos. They're so cheerful and bright - I'm a sucker for all that nostalgic vintage stuff. At this point, my 'wintertime project' is one border shy of being ready to layer and put on a quilt frame.

From then on, my spare time will be portioned out with a quilt needle, a spool of quilting thread and solitary thoughts. I say that because quilting in a meditative activity when done alone. I've always wanted to have a 'quilting group', but this approach to craftwork is hard to organize in this too busy world.  I once tried to get a group of family members together to work consistently on a quilt that I was making for my niece. It was too difficult for them to commit to the ongoing work of quilting a large piece. It languished for years - finally turning into an embarrassment. I worked on much of it with Gwen (my niece), but foolishly dug my heels in on finishing it all by myself when it had been meant to be a community effort. I finally caved to the pressure from my sister-in-law and handed over the incomplete quilt so that she could find someone to finish the quilt. I'll always be sad that the family couldn't make arrangements to come together and finish that quilt for Gwen and Dan. Oh well.

Since that first quilting debacle, I have always worked on smaller projects that I knew I could manage alone without having to 'guilt' somebody into helping with. This past Spring, I joined a quilt guild. This group has women who are passionate about their craft. I am a definite beginner compared to the skill set that  some of these women bring to the group. I have made friends with one woman who is devoted to handquilting. I helped her with the last bit of quilting that she had to do to finish a quilt she was making this summer. She has said she will help me get my quilt done in return. Then, I will do the same for her when she gets her next project on the quilt frame. I am hoping to get a few other women who are interested in handquilting to join us over time. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have five or six women in a group to help get these massive projects done and on the beds and walls where we envision them ?

Little steps ... like little stitches.

This is a my photoshare that is linked with Alyce's weekly blogpost called Saturday Snap Shot. Check it out at the link above ... and perhaps you'll want to post your own snapshot with the group.

Til next Saturday!