Quilting Class

My friend Cathy asked if I'd like to take a quilting class with her. I have always wanted to learn to make quilts, so I am there. She has been before but I had never been. This is our classroom. It's at the local high school. As you can see there are quite a few women who attend. Most of them have been going for quite some time and they are good friends and everyone has a lot of fun talking about each others quilts and lots of other things to do with everyday life. They are a great group and it's always a pleasure being there.

This is Cathy. She is working on a quilt she started years ago while attending these classes.

Here are the quilt pieces she is making. Isn't it pretty? She says people come in there with beautiful fabrics and some come in with what she thinks are ugly ones. But in the end when all the pieces are put together.. the quilts are always beautiful! I am really excited to be here.

Here is my first square for my quilt. It's just a sample. It's far from perfect. It's the first one I made.. but I didn't have a pattern. I just made it myself, so it's a really off in places. I have made a more perfect pattern now and have just begun my first square for the quilt. We actually had a quilt on our bed with baskets like this but we lost it in the fire. I always loved that quilt so I'm trying to make one like it. Hopefully, it will turn out as nice as the one we had.



This lady has been using the "Long Arm" quilting machine for a couple of weeks now. Her name is Kathy/Cathy. I'm not sure how she spells it. We actually have several Kathy/Cathy's in our class. That just makes it more interesting. When your quilt squares are all done and sewn together, you put the batting in and spray some adhesive onto it to hold the layers together, then use the "Long Arm" to sew it together. You can always sew it by hand but the "Long Arm is so much easier and faster. You just kind of make your own swirly design. I don't know if you can see hers or not on the close up further down. Our teacher, Nikki, is on the left.

I really like this quilt. I think I will make one like it for my next quilt! Of course the one I'm working on now will probably take me years to make.. since I am just learning. But there are so many quilts I have seen there that I would love to make. But this one is definitely my favorite. The quilt was finished last night and here is the finished product, with a few close ups.

The petals are not sewn down so when you wash it, they ravel a little and curl a bit and it looks more 3D and shabby chic. I just think it's adorable! She is going to give this to her mother-in-law. She says she is worth every precious moment she has taken to make it. Isn't that awesome!?