How To Make A Quilt
By brenda | November 29, 2008
Learning how to make a quilt can be a lot of frustration without the proper instruction. I remember the first time I saw a quilt in a store, I made a rough sketch of it’s pattern and brought it home for my husband to trace and straighten up. That was the easy part.
I then proceded to do everything incorrectly trying to make that quilt. I was so frustrated at times while making it that I eventually gave up and stashed it away for another day. It didn’t take me more then a couple of months to dig it back up and try again. Upon looking at the mess that I made of the fabric I had originally purchased, I quickly realized why I stashed it away initially.
The blocks I had made were terribly crooked. They were all slight different sizes and already in some of my seams, the cloth had pulled apart. Not a pretty site. I figured it was time to get serious and find out how to make a quilt the right way. I enrolled with a local quilting shop on a course to make quilts.
This course definitely helped me get started, but the more I learnt, the more it seemed that I had to learn. Several more courses and a bunch of quilts later, I’ve become much more proficient at it. I’ve now been quilting for about 14 years, but I’m getting a little ahead of myself.
About a year and a half ago, I was approached by a charity to make quilts for orphans in Tanzania. These children had very little in the way of possessions and I was thrilled to contribute to their lives with some beautiful quilts. But I then discovered that they wanted me to make sixty in total! Knowing how long it still took me to make a quilt, I knew that I was going to need some help.
I did get a couple of ladies that were experienced quilters to help, but most of the ladies who volunteered barely knew how to sew, but had a desire to learn and just wanted to help! Seeing myself in those ladies way back when, I decided to get them going.
I never realized how little I knew when it came to quilting, until I had to teach it to others. I had to find ways to simplify and speed up the procedures that I had learnt over the years, before I could even consider teaching these ambition ladies. I had to be totally clear in my own mind when it comes to the right tools and procedures.
I ended up teaching close to twenty ladies how to quilt but I learnt more then all those ladies combined. I’ve learnt how to make quilts quickly and easily that are beautiful and very professionally made. I’ve also learnt how to teach these same skills to others.
Take a peek at my site www.makebeautifulquilts.com and see what I’m putting together to teach you how to make a quilt!
Brenda.
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