For the past two years my Sew along events - Pieces of the Garden and Pieces of My Life - have been centered around the story of the "Bride's Quilt... (Patterns for both of these sew alongs are still available. Simply follow the links provided to find out where.)
The story came from a crafting magazine (in about 1985) that featured a needle-point pattern and the story. This is the needlepoint I made for my Grandparents' 50th Anniversary. (I'm certain that Kelvin & Loressa - brother & SIL - had been gifted one, which inspired her idea of an actual quilt.)
In olden days, it was traditional for young girls to make a “Baker’s Dozen” (13) quilts by their wedding day. The patterns, often handed down from generation to generation, were usually planned when the girl was very young; and, as soon as she could hold a needle, she would start sewing her first quilt. The last (or 13th) quilt was the fanciest of all. After a girl became engaged, she would invite her friends to a party to quilt the top of this “Bride’s Quilt”… and in this way she would announce her engagement.
The twelve patterns were chosen to tell the following story…
Once upon a time, there was a little girl, who wore a bow in her hair. When she grew up, she began a friendship with a young bachelor. As the hours and days passed, they began to look at each other with stars in their eyes, and as their love grew, they thought about taking steps to the altar. So, the young girl got out her spools of thread and made clothes to get ready for their wedding ring day.
After they are married, some of their times together will be bright as noon and others will be dark as night. But they will try to share their happiness, their miseries and their chores – she grabbing a wrench to help with household repairs and he grabbing a towel to help with the dishes. Sometimes they will have broken dishes but they will try to remember that “things” can be replaced, whereas harsh words, possibly spoken about the broken dishes, could chip away love. They will try to follow the Golden Rule as they are learning to communicate openly with each other.
They will also try to keep in mind the symbolism of Jacob’s ladder – “steps of communication” between themselves on earth and God in heaven.
My brother's wife passed away in July following a very short battle with cancer. She was a crafter for much of their married life and she enjoyed a variety of activities... cross-stitch, scrapbooking, home decor and much more.
As my brother has been slowly sorting through her items, he found this quilt. Loressa had made the blocks and used a quilt-as-you-go method and had them all joined together. Kelvin thought this might be a nice sized throw quilt for the back of his couch.
As I examined it, I saw that it was imperfect, with points missing, but it doesn't matter... I am not the quilt police! She made it with love, and that is all that matters and it deserved to be finished.
Since there was no fabric in the bin that it resided, I skipped any kind of border. I used some large sashing strips to cover the raw seams on the back of the quilt. I went with pink... I had it, and it matched pretty well.
I enjoyed a few days of slow-stitching and watching a new (to me) show "Wind At My Back." The arrangement of the sashing strips on the back reflect the quilting she used on the blocks.
I thought the timing of this quilt finding its way to me was interesting...
When a particular word, topic or subject appears to me repeatedly, I stop to consider just what it means to me... more specifically, "what does the Lord want me to see in this?"
For this quilt and in this particular situation, I believe it is the message and idea that Loressa did love Kelvin, despite the fact that they had been separated for a bunch of years... Who am I to judge their marriage/relationship? I need be only concerned with my own... a stay in your own lane message. LOL
It's time to get the TGIFF party started.
Keep Piecing,
Melva
Linking with:
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