Here's My Story and I'm Sticking to It!

Good Morning!

So, here is my story (and I'm sticking to it!)

I have always been a crafty person. As far back as I can remember I have done handy work. My mom taught me Macrame when I was 6 or 7, and I remember sitting watching her sew clothing for me and my 6 sisters when I about the same age. I taught myself how to crochet when I was 8 or 9. I have always been a very self taught person, when I decided to learn to paint miniatures I did a lot of reading then jumped in. With crochet I made up patterns as I went, I was in my 20's before I learned to read a written pattern. Oh and cross stitch, I was an avid cross stitch er for years and years. I use to teach cross stitch to some of the women I was stationed with while in the Army, there is a picture for you, all of us sitting around in out BDU's (Battle Dress Uniforms) cross stitching!

The funny thing was I never picked up sewing, I did take a home EC. class in high school, made a horrible blue apron, it was terrible, I still to this day have a hard time reading patterns and making clothing, I did try several more times as I got older, all through my 20's as a matter of fact, just couldn't get it. I have always had a sewing machine for that matter, knowing that I wanted to but the skill just would not come.

So now we fast forward to my late 20's early 30's. I made friends with my mother in law's best friend Jo after my MIL passed away, Jo was a wonderful wonderful lady who adopted my girls and me as one of her own, she helped me through one of the hardest times in my life. Jo was a beautiful seamstress, she could make beautiful out of a sows ear! I spent hours with Jo, shopping for fabric, picking patterns, and watching her sew, I did not realize how much I learned from her until years later. I still miss Jo, she was a true friend. With all of the time spent with Jo you would think that I had learned how to sew clothing. Nope not a bit, still to this day cannot make clothing!

After Jo passed away, I spent a lot of time painting and no sewing, then as time went by I changed hobbies, I don't recall what prompted me to do it but I purchased a Brother embroidery machine, I think the idea was to decorate some of my kids clothing. Well from there I went to making place mat purses, and then one day it happened, I found an embroidery site that sold in the hoop quilting patterns, now I had NEVER given any thought to quilting, that was something "little old ladies" did, and how boring, and why would any one want to take perfectly good fabric, cut it into tiny pieces and then sew it back together again, insanity! But this in the hoop thing, well that not quilting, that's embroidery. So I bought the patter and tired it, well needless to say I had no idea what I was doing but tried my best, and with much trial and error made a small little quilt,

COOL! WoW Oh MY Gosh, Look What I Did. I was in love!!! I can do this it is so easy!!! So I made another bigger one, Hey that's pretty neat too, now what, I hated hooping all of that stabilizer! How can I make these without my embroidery machine, Off to the book store I went,

(this is a picture of the first quilt I ever did. I have this hung just above my sewing machine. It is a good example of all the things I did wrong, take a close look, corners don't even come close to matching, the binding is a joke, mitered corners, never heard of them, batting shows through, and the quilting, even worse! BUT, I love it it helps me when I get frustrated with a quilt, and it reminds me how far I have come from!)

(remember I am self taught) Got a wonderful book called the Quilters Bible, read that darn thing front to back, and started sewing, and sewing and sewing! Of course now that I had learned how to piece (knew what that meant now too!) Oh and learned that "quilting" is the sewing of the three layers together, Wow didn't know that! Oh I have to learn that too! So I made my first full quilt, I used the small one I made on the embroidery machine, YUCK, more practice, then quilted the larger one, YUCK, More practice and more and more. And three years and more than 30 quilts later, I do believe that I can proudly call myself a quilter! I love to piece and I love to quilt in about equal measure!

It has been such a wonderful journey so far, I am still learning and don't think I will ever stop. That is what draws me and keeps me quilting, I have always gone from one hobby to the next because they don't hold my interest. I get bored. Stuart teases me about it too, he has been surprised that I have stuck with quilting this long, but think about it. The patterns are ever changing, I am always learning a new technique. The range of fabrics are amazing and the Colors and I could go on and on, I don't need to because if you have made it this far in my story then you are probably as addicted as I am!

So that's my story. I love to quilt and so far have not had the itch to try something else....

Now it's your turn, please share your story!

Have a wonderful day!

Ginny