My first Quilt (that wasn't an EB rip and stitch)

I started making things in my teens. I am thankful to my Home Economics sewing class in junior high for giving me a love of sewing and my mom (who didn't sew) for buying me a 1963 Singer portable (which I still use regularly) for encouraging my sewing adventure.  I made most of my clothes in high school and most of the Christmas and birthday presents that I gave.  I remember the first outfit I made in home economics because we had to wear it in a fashion show.  It was well made but the material was big bright flowers which I am glad I don't have a picture of today-the visual memory is bad enough.

Old Faithful-made in England-I love this machine

When I married at 21, I went on to make a lot of my husband's shirts (in calico of course because it was the 70's).  I also started to make applique pillows.  They were my own design and were really "art" pillows.  I also designed a wall hanging done in my rather funky style and gave it as a wedding gift. In the late 70's I took an Eleanor Burns "Quilt in a Day" class and made hand tied quilts for everyone in my family and me too.  I recently saw my son's quilt when I helped him move last year.  We used a lot of sheets for backings at the time-I have not saved any of those treasures (and neither did anyone else except my son and I don't think he saved it on purpose) but I do still have the first pieced quilt I made:

Faded and wear weary but still special to me

Hand quilted hearts

Appliqued hearts

It was made in the late 80's in my first "template" quilt class-I just came across my notes and cardboard templates I used and the name of the teacher (Ann Albertson) who happens to be a fellow guild member all these years later.  I also made another one in that class; an alternating snowball and 9 patch in calicos of course.  I had hand quilted it and was about one quarter finished when I put it away. I spent a couple of nights removing the lovely muslin backing and the polyester batting.  I will practice my quilting skills on that one.  Unfortunately I have packed it so I can't show it. 

I went to college about then and didn't fit quilting in again for almost 20 years.  Two years before I retired from a career in education, I took a class at our high school and made my first granddaughter a pink flannel baby quilt in the Irish Chain pattern and have been quilting ever since.  My favorite quilt so far is this one:

Middle of quilt pattern by Janice Ellertson

I loved the challenge of making this quilt and changing the materials and pattern to make it my own..  I had to completely dismantle the checked border (that I designed) to make it hang right.

I can't wait to see where my quilting journey will take me.  I feel as if I have just begun this experiment in fabric and only wish I were 30 years younger so that the ride would last longer-however, that could be dangerous:)  Quilting has become such a part of my life, I know I could never put it down again-it would be like losing an old friend.

I wrote this story because I love to read stories and I subscribe to Quilting Arts magazine and they are running a contest-you can check it out Here.  if I were fortunate enough to win the contest, I would want the Quilting Arts TV Series Premium Collection Download.