How did you start out quilting?

[Mary K.]

I want to know how all of you started out quilting :shock: Have you been quilting your whole life, or just started?

I started quilting in 1989..20 years ago by accident
With 3 small childeren I wanted 1 night off a week to do something for just me.
I browsed the class lists...did I want to learn speak spanish, cook, write esseys or novels etc?? No...but that Lappeteknikk-thing (lappeteknikk=fabric piecing) sounded kind of interesting mainly because I had never heard of it before :shock: :shock:

Ok, off I went, with some blue fabric in my bag..no rotary cutter, cutting mat or ruler :wink:

First think I learned was to make Log Cabin Blocks...I thought by myself..I will make 2 blocks and turn them into pot holders :lol: :lol:
My pot holder project grew...and grew..and grew! I hunted for fabric all over, at stores, friends houses..and ended up with a queensized quilt :P In pinks and blues ops: (It is posted on my profile).

Since then, quilting has been with me in sickness and in health, for richer and poorer....and will be till death us do part! :lol:

[Mary K.]

I always sewed since I was a little girl.. sometimes well and sometimes not so good. My mom made drapes so I grew up helping her in various stages. I made extra pennies by sewing side-seams of the drapes. I put myself through college doing that... That is why I hated hand work til recently. VERY labor intensive work.

I made quilt for my niece and nephew when they were babies cause I was childless. I had thought that when I had kiddies I would get to sew for them.... WRONG.. between work and loving my babies... my machine just gathered dust. I did try to teach my daughter how to sew.... I sent her to SEWING CAMP, but she did not appreciate it until she had a home of her own. NOW SHE wants me to sew project for her and her home.

I was at loose ends in a new area when I found a little quilt shop that had FREE meetings once a week, where we actually got to work on quilt projects. We went through a lot of different type of projects... That gave me the interest and the dreams but not the techniques. I have since taken classes to learn how to do it correctly... so as a QUILT ARTIST I can now do it MY WAY... creating my visions. I later took classes... lots and lots of wonderful classes.

I feel strongly that anyone should learn the correct techniques then they can branch off from that.

I have been quilting for about 5 years... I start lots of projects but only get one or two quilts actually done a year.... I now make most of my trial blocks (B.O.M.s) out of the same fabric stash so they all will go together. I am currently working on finish all my UFO before I start on a new project. ( NOT likely to happen... something else will catch my eye. )

I looked at my stash and even if the quilt shop closes tomorrow I have enough fabric to make a 100 quilts. So more sewing less buying for me.

Since I got my machine and I am not fighting the machine to get things to work. I found I enjoy the sewing more... I have been coming home and sewing for an hour each night. VERY LIBERATING AND SATISFYING.

ANNA

[Mary K.]

In 2002 I was looking at magazines and saw QNM. The cover quilt grabbed me hard so I bought the magazine. Read through it for weeks before deciding I could do that. I started watching Simply Quilts. I finally picked out a rail fence pattern and went to walmart and picked fabrics that matched the pattern. I dug my very old cheap machine out of the bottom of the closet. It froze up almost immediately so DH said go back to walmart and buy another. Okee dokee! That was it for me-totally and completely hooked. 8)

[Julia L.]

Many years ago my Mom bought an old wool blanket at a church rummage sale and gave it to me and said "why don't you make a quilt and use this for the batting,it would be nice and warm" and I thought "why would I want to do that,I hate to sew?" At the time I only did hand work(embroidery,etc).But,I got out my fabric scraps and cut a bunch of squares and fought my way through the process calling a friend who sewed many times for advice.For my birthday this friend gave me a quilting book---Huh!! Lots of surprising information in there.Needless to say with the right information and the right tools the next quilts were better and easier.And now I have TQS to point me in the right direction. Julie

[Julia L.]

I had always sewn since age 10. When I was first married, we had trouble conceiving. I figured I should have something to keep my mind busy. I took classes. Flower arranging (no good!), caligraphy and cooking (also no good!) Finally quilting. This was in 1987. We cut templates and sewed by hand. We did some machine piecing, but machine quilting was not taught. I made a sampler quilt in pinks and blues and yellow.

I was hooked. Then I began making baby quilts for all my friends' babies and finally, after a few more years, outfitted our nursery and made a quilt for our bed, couch, etc. Raising 2 kids put quilting on a back burner except for the occasional teacher gift or other gift. (I made all the kids Halloween costumes, Christmas stockings, etc.) Once the kids got to middle school and I no longer helped in the classroom or in scouts, my obsession blossomed!

Along the way, I found a quilt guild, SQ, discovered retreats, Padukah and took lots of classes. The owner of my favorite QS asked me to teach and I found that I was good at it and got lots of compliments and repeat students. She later closed and I began teaching at JoAnn's.

Hardly a day goes by that I don't sew. I've rediscovered the other kind of sewing - garments, stuffed animals, totes, home dec, etc. but quilting remains my main thing. I love all kinds from fusing to needle turn to hand quilting to long-arming to thread painting to machine embroidery. I have 5 sewing machines ranging from an 1886 treadle to a 1970's Singer, 2 Vikings and an embroidery-only Brother. I do envision a long-arm someday, but for now, I can rent time on one.

It's been an interesting 22 years! Nancy in Brrrrr western NY

[Jules M.]

I have been sewing since jr. high when I could finally take a Home Ec class. My mom sewed but I was child #4 and she was too busy then to help me. It just came naturally tho.

I sewed clothes and purses and curtains for my bedroom at home.

When I got married in '83, I sewed more and enjoyed making winter coats. In '85 I was expecting dd and heard of a sale on Bernina machines. A few ladies at church said that was the best brand! So I got a 930 and the special was the free serger with it. That really made my sewing explode! And then our baby born the next month was a girl! :lol: She had a new outfit for church nearly every week! :wink:

It was mid 86 or so that I started quilting.

I still like to make clothes but don't stop often to do that! :wink:

I moved up to an 1130 (which I still have), wandered astray to a Babylock Esante' (dd uses it now), and now have a Bernina 200.

And now my dd is a student at The School of the Art Institute in Chicago... in Fashion Design. See, I created a monster!

Joyce :wink:

[Jules M.]

My mother and grandmother both sewed and crocheted, but did not quilt. My mother had four daughters--I'm the fourth--before she had two sons. She sewed and smocked most of our dresses, and also made lots of clothes for our dolls.

Honestly, I don't remember being taught or learning how to sew, just like I don't remember learning how to walk. I'm guessing I must have started pretty young. All of my sisters also sewed, but only two of us really took it on as a hobby. My sister, Janet, even took tailoring classes and became quite an expert sewer. She taught me some tailoring techniques, but she stopped sewing as an adult. By junior high school, I made lots of my own clothes. During high school and college, I continue sewing for myself and others. I earned money by making bridesmaid dresses and party dresses for friends. I enjoyed making dresses for my nieces.

My great-grandmother was a quilter. So, when I got married, she made a quilt for me as a wedding gift. That sparked my interest in quilts, but I didn't make a quilt until many years later. I never made quilts for either of my own two baby boys ops:

When my brother was expecting his first child, a quilter coworker suggested that I make a Rail Fence baby quilt as a gift. I had no quilting knowledge or experience, but used my sewing skills to make the quilt and I handquilted it. No rotary cutters, no 1/4" seams, no quilting thread/needles and I doubled up the batting to make it extra thick and warm. No wonder why it was so difficult to quilt, but it actually looked pretty good.

I continued occasionally making baby quilts, learning more from Simply Quilts, books and quilter friends. However, it wasn't until I attended my first quilt show in 2004 that I fell head over heels in love with quilts and everything quilt related. Shortly thereafter, I joined the guild that had put on the quilt show.

It wasn't until after joining the guild that I considered myself a quilter. To me, membership in a quilt guild was essential to hone my quilting knowledge and skill. Also, the friendships I've made there have been invaluable.

[Jules M.]

I was fortunate to have a mom that taught me how to use her sewing machine, gave me fabric and thread, and said, "Have fun - I'll be right here if you have problems." Then she let me sew to my heart's content - doll clothes, mostly - without ever criticizing or making me rip anything out. I made many of my own clothes in high school and my wedding gown and bridesmaids dresses in college. When my 2 kids were small, I made many of their clothes, including flannel shirts for my son, who liked the satin that I faced the collar bands with. Several sets of curtains and drapes and many odd projects followed as the kids got older, along with more clothes for me. (I just remembered the navy blue leisure suit I made for my husband - yuck! The wool sportcoat a few years later was better.) My sister actually took up quilting about 10 years ago and started a quilt for my 25th anniversayry. Her circumstances changed, and she gave it to me partially finished, and the process of completing it was what got me hooked. I still do lots of other sewing (grandkid clothes and toys, home dec, etc.) but really love quilting.

[Jules M.]

I had a baby-sitter that taught me to sew on a trendle machine. When I was 13, I bought a pattern and made am outfit using my mom's sewing machine while she was in the hospital having my baby brother. When I got married I had my first sewing machiine--a cheap Kenmore--I love that machine--I sewed everyday of that year with it. In 1995 I had my first grandchild due and made my first quilt--I am quite embrassed by it, but he loved it. Haven't quit quilting since.

[Jules M.]

I was working in the finance department of an insurance company when I was in my 20's. While delivering a document to another department, the secretary there asked me if I'd like to see what she was working on. She showed me 3 blocks she had made in a class. That was it! I had to learn how to do it. I found a class through our local city Rec program and haven't stopped quilting since. This was close to 30 years ago. In those days we made templates, cut out individual pieces, and had very few options in fabric. There were maybe 3 books to choose from: Jinny Beyer's book, Ruby McKim's book, and Quilters Newsletter. Our tools consisted of Gingher scissors, cardboard, graph paper (we drafted!!) and a sewing machine. Thanks for helping me remember the excitement I felt during those early years.
Barbara

[Gloria H.]

I think I've related my beginning story somewhere else in the forum. But here it goes again. I grew up sewing. Like someone else said, I don't remember not doing it. I sewed all my clothes through school. When DH and I got married we didn't have a pot to p*** in or a window to throw it out. When the kids started coming, I cut up our old clothes and made their clothes. As things got better, I started buying fabric to sew but never gave a thought to quilting. In 2001, we moved into our present house. One of the rooms had a wallpaper border with stars. I went to the "fabric store" to find some star fabric. That was the first time I entered a quilt shop :lol: The ladies working that day showed me a sampler book that had star blocks in it, helped me pick out fabric, gave me some pointers and the rest is history. It's like this is what all that other sewing was practice for.
Gloria

[Gloria H.]

I started sewing in high school in home ec. I started quilting when I was 24 years old. 1980 My Aunt Mildred got me hooked into quilting. Then grandmaw Lorean would always visit and stay a week or two afew times a year and we would all sew together. Their sister Milly owned a drapery buisness in Cincinnati and she would give us her scrap fabrics and she let us sew in her shop on Sundays,She had huge tables. My grandmother Lorean and aunts Mildred & Milly have passed away. It was always fun sitting around sewing and chatting catching up on all the latest. We didn't have alot of money back in those years,so all the scrap fabrics were great. It was many years before I got really serious about quilting and wanted to learn all that I could,heck with cutting paper templates with sciccors- intro: rotary blades, mats,templates,books,great machine, many great shows of simply quilts and ect. I started building a stash and finally got a sewing room and I haven't stopped since. There were afew years break inbetween raising two beautiful daughters Cinda 29 & Trisha 24. Cinda got married and started sewing at the same age I started and she joined a guild in N.C. learnt alot and has taught me alot. I think she started out just like Bridget never a beginner,Advanced in the beginnings. Trisha started quilting at 21,doesn't get much time with three little ones,Cinda doesn't either with work. I have learnt alot from Cinda,Simply Quilts, Alex,Ricky,Eleanor Burns, many more I can't even begin to name. I owe alot of my growth to TQS.
I Love Quilting and I know with out a doubt that I will be quilting as long as I'm possibly able.
Kathy

[Gloria H.]

When my hubby and I were dating, we stopped at a quilt store and were just fascinated with the quilts. My then fiance crazily enough, walked out with a brand new Bernina, and decided he was going to learn to quilt.

We got married shortly after (I tell everyone that's why I married him to get that Bernina :P ) and that machine sat untouched for 4 years. Then one day I decided I would learn to quilt! I was terrified of using the rotary cutter though, so I took a beginner class. Just one. Haven't looked back since. :lol:

Have you "Tinkled" today?

[Jean H.]

I always loved quilts, But in 1996 I had gotten sick with EBV and was home from work for 8 months and I started watching the Simply Quilts program I think the hosts name was Alex Anderson, LOL and then I was really hooked. I was going to make my mom & dad a quilt well I did not do too bad but I did not know how to do the boarder so it sat for 12 years and it is still 1 of my UFO`s, I keep saying I`m going to finish that before I start my next project, well I`m collecting fabric for the Kaleidoscope quilt now so maybe after that . So it was Alex that got me hooked...Jean

[Jean H.]

I got interested in quilting when my Uncle John's partner Peter, showed us the quilts he was working on. He pieced during the summer months and in the winter would set up the big frame and hand quilt all winter. BTW he hand pieced and cut out all of his quilts the old fashioned way.
Well, my SIL was expecting her first and I figured I'd give it a whirl, who knew it would lead to this? :lol:
I myself was not about to piece a quilt by hand, but I did quilt it by hand. Unfortunately, I think she thought that it was too precious to use. The last time I saw the quilt it hardly looked like it had been touched and that baby is now 12 yrs old!
I stopped for a few years due to time and money constraints, but am going strong now with 2 BOM's on the go, plus other projects as well.

Jean in Windsor, ON