Beginner Quilting Class: Recap and Class Show and Tell

It feels good to have accomplished a goal I set for myself for 2009. I finished my quilt top, and have started two other projects in the meantime. I did learn a lot in this class in regards to the basic construction of a quilt top and all that is involved in making something wonderful out of fabric. I also learned that a happy quilting teacher is one who is loaded up on sweets and desserts....LOL.

Mostly, I learned that if I stick to my guns, and not let myself be influenced to make rash decisions the outcome is very much the same. I had a lot of insecurities going into this class to say the least. I had not sewn a stitch in nearly 20 years, I had a new to me machine that was about 30 years old and I was not familiar with it at all. I was intimidated from the start by the quilt top itself, and was sure this was way to advanced for a beginner. Top that off with the constant hammering of me needing a high dollar machine to be able to sew quilts...well, it was a tough go.

I kept the memories in the back of my head that during my teenage years, I did sew a lot, and was pretty good at it too. I kept in mind the memory of my grandmother who was a fabulous seamstress and she never "out sewed" her machine. In fact, the thought of spending $3000.000 on a machine I am sure would have never crossed her mind. I was surprised at how much and how often my grandmother came to mind during this process, in fact when I would be discouraged the most, I found her there, in my mind sewing on her machine in her dining room just as I was. It was almost like she was nudging me along. I have never missed her more than in these past seven weeks, but also never have I felt her so close at the same time. For that, I am most thankful and would not have missed this experience for the world.

By now, I am sure you are sick of my quilt...but one last time, here is the finished top....just so you can see just how different all the quilts were that were made during this class by the ladies who struggled along with me. It is amazing to me to see how they are all different.

This is the quilt made by the little lady on the right, the one who did purchase the Bernina 440 and if you have been following along, remember that story of frustration. She had never sewn a stitch in her life. Wow..what an accomplishment.

This one is very pretty too. The lady who made this one has two dachshunds herself, much like mine and we had a great time in class. Of all the ladies, I felt a deeper connection to her....maybe because of the dogs.....

Here is the quilt made by the lady who lived in another state. Bless her heart, she changed her fabrics so many times it was really sad. I love how it turned out, but she did not. I did learn that some people are really hard to please...no matter what. I think her quilt turned out very pretty.

This one is so warm and pretty. The lady who made this one wanted a warm, fall theme. She used pinewood fabrics and dark warm colors. I sorta wish I would have gone this route so I could have put a quilt like this at our cabin, I may have to make one like this one, I really think it turned out great.

Our great teacher, insist we can quilt these quilts. He is going to teach stitch in the ditch technique for the quilting. I am still not going to do it. That is not what I want for my quilt, even though I would love to learn the way to do that, the use of a walking foot, and how to do the binding. I started a baby quilt, photo below, and if he will let me quilt this top instead of my large quilt, than I think I will to that, if he will not let me, well...I'll just have to learn it on my own. We will see next week. I am really not going to stress out over quilting that top, it is too big and I know it is too big for me to tackle.

These are my disappearing nine patch blocks. I used the tutorial Roslyn posted on her blog...Thanks for this great tutorial, I hope I did this correctly. I made large blocks out of the smaller blocks, I am going to use blue for sashing around the blocks, then add a border. I will post a picture when I get the top put together and ready to try quilting it. At least, it is a more do-able size project to start with.

I am so thankful to all who have followed my journey in making my first quilt top. Thank you for all of your valuable input and advice and suggestions. Your thoughts meant a lot and was a wealth of wonderful information. I am hooked now....really. I will post off and on about projects I am working on, if you are inclined to want to read about them.