Hopeful Homemaker

I made this mini quilt over a year ago, before I ever mailed my Wishing Well quilt off to Quilty magazine for publishing.  It’s time to share some photos of it!

Before I say more, I need to confess something.  I never wanted my Wishing Well quilt to have that name.  I wanted to call it “Prosper.”  Here’s why:  back in June of 2014 I got a random email from Mary Fons asking me to design a quilt for Quilty.  I was stunned.  I even thought it might be a hoax of some kind, until I replied to the email and it turned out that I really was communicating with THE Mary Fons.  Shortly after that, I was pondering 2 Chronicles 20:20 which reads, “Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.”  I was pondering it because it was part of a lesson I would teach at church, but personally the word “prosper” really grabbed me.  We were experiencing some trials at the time that didn’t feel anything like prosperity, but instead felt like the opposite.  I found it interesting that this verse didn’t connect prospering with material resources at all, but instead aligned it in relation to belief.  It was so opposite of what the world describes as prosperity, and I found myself mulling it over a lot, looking for ways in which we WERE prospering, ways less obvious to me until I went digging.

Then one day I stumbled upon a tiny drawing – no more than one inch square – of a vintage quilt block called “prosperity.”  The name caught my eye and because of my personal musings I began examining the block and kind of liked it.  I did some internet searches to see if anyone else was making the prosperity block and found nothing, so I went to work adapting the quilt block to contain no Y seams, and enlarging it for a more modern feel.  Thus my design was born, and the quilt was made, all to the tune of that verse of scripture in my mind.

Need a reminder of the original quilt?


I used the scraps to make the mini (which is NOT the original block cut in half.  I went about it in a far easier way.)  And so, this quilt has always been “mini prosper” to me:


It was really fun to make, and I especially enjoyed quilting it in with a small crosshatch pattern.


I enjoyed it SO much that I took my test block and quilted it too, with rows even closer together.  This mini finishes at 9 inches square and makes me giddy with happiness.  I love the tiny quilting!


The larger mini I backed in a coordinating pink fabric and bound with my favorite navy Architextures text print.  The tiny one I backed in the same fabric I used to back the original quilt – a Maude Asbury for Blend fabrics alphabet print.


So there you have it:  two mini quilts I made almost a year and a half ago.  Ha!  I must add a little to the story.  It’s true that you can prosper even when hard things are happening, even when personal, health, family or financial struggles abound.  I’m sure I haven’t learned as much about this as I’ll someday understand, but I do feel like I’ve had kind of a prolonged tutorial in this, perhaps partly because I’ve thought about it so much.  I hung the larger of these quilts in my closet of all places, beneath a sign that says “rejoice” and I look at it every day.  It’s a reminder to me that we are rich in blessings that can’t be measured, and there is always something to be happy about.  Especially if I have the courage to look for it and truly see it.  There have been days – more than I care to admit – when I didn’t have the courage to rejoice, but seeing this quilt reminded me at least that it wouldn’t be permanent, and that somewhere up ahead there are good things in store.


So wherever you are, may you prosper today!

Jennifer

I finished my Modern Maples quilt in November and managed to snap a few photos before the sun went down and the weather changed.


I can’t say enough about how beautiful the Alison Glass handcrafted fabrics are, but I must say I really like them with the matchstick quilting I did.  Before I made the first test block, I knew I would quilt it this way.  It’s a large quilt, 72″ x 84″, and I did all the quilting on my little machine.  After many hours and 14 spools of thread in 14 different colors – including 6 neons – it’s done and I’m so, so glad I didn’t give up!


The quilting adds a beautiful texture to the quilt, makes the yarn dyed linen background fabric even more interesting, and draws you in to get a closer look.  For a few years now I’ve been a member of the Utah County Modern Quilt Group and it’s blessed my life in so many ways.  One of the things I learned there was the importance of making a quilt interesting from several viewing distances.  The block design and fabric are striking at a distance, but the quilting in so many colors makes it equally striking up close.  I feel like I made a good decision with the quilting.


I love the texture and drape of this quilt.  It’s a little heavy with the linen and all that thread – perfect for a fall quilt.  This one will be loved for many years at our house.  It’s also nice to have made an entire quilt from start to finish before 2015 ended.  There hasn’t been much sewing around here for a long time.  Completing this impulsive project was just the thing to unlock my creative juices.


Jennifer

Like millions of others around the world, I often check Instagram for creative inspiration and motivation, as well as updates on the lives of friends.  Several weeks ago there was a series of days when the majority of motivational quotes I saw in various feeds all seemed focused on the value of creativity.  Some of them I was familiar with; others I’d never read before.  There was one in particular that really got me thinking:

“Being creative will help you enjoy life.  It engenders a spirit of gratitude.  It develops latent talent, sharpens your capacity to reason, to act and to find purpose in life.  It dispels loneliness and heartache.  It gives a renewal, a spark of enthusiasm and zest for life.”  – Richard G. Scott I had known for months that the creative part of me was locked up, buried deep, and seemed utterly unreachable.  I also knew it was part of finding my way back to a pattern of cheerful daily living, but I couldn’t, no matter how I tried, seem to reach that place.  I would walk to my sewing table, admire the beauty of the fabrics and the merit of the project, and walk away, unable to sit and turn on the machine.

And then one day, with the above quote in my mind (oh, how I needed all those benefits!), the urge to make a modern maples quilt block struck.  Out of nowhere.  I’d never been tempted to make one, never put it on my list of quilts I’d like to make.  Still, it came.  With specifics:  Alison Glass’ Handcrafted I and II, with a black essex yarn dyed linen as the background.  Gratefully I had both on hand and immediately made one.  I kept cutting.  My sister let me use the rest of her linen while I waited for the additional yardage I’d ordered to come.  I kept sewing.

All of a sudden I had a finished quilt top:


It suits where I’m at right now.  It’s a bit moodier than most of my sewing, with the dark background and rich jewel toned prints.  But it was so much fun to make!  The blocks are fast and easy, and as I ironed each of the Handcrafted fat quarters prior to cutting them I marveled at their beauty, ran my hands across them, appreciated how the murkier colors made the bright, clear colors shine.  They reminded me that the murky parts of life I’ve wrestled with this year may someday make the beautiful ones all the better.


I wasn’t fussy about accuracy with this quilt.  No trimming, no pinning, just ironing and nesting seams, and sewing like crazy while the urge still lasted.  I’m happy with the outcome.


It’s basted and partly quilted, with the wildest use of colored thread I’ve tried to date.  Can’t wait to share more!

Jennifer