Needles and a Pen » Knitting, Sewing, and Nursing School

I have been in love with fabric since I first stepped into Aunt Jemimah’s fabric shop in Lancashire as a 13 year old American living in England.  While other kids were out doing immeasurably cool teenage things, my sister and I were stealing my mom’s quilting class book and using our allowances to build our own fabric stashes.

Kelly’s claim to fame was her improvisational applique and pattern skills.  She created a Star Trek quilt (easily the most nerdy thing I’d ever seen in my life before marrying Nic and learning about TRUE geekdom) and Klingon outfits for her dolls.  It still ticks me off that she’s got a masters in education, a BS in chemistry and is working toward her nuclear reactor operator’s license instead of being a contestant on Project Runway.

As for me, I was into the anal type of quilting.  The perfectly lined points, the even handquilted stitches, the Baltimore Album blocks with precise hand applique.  The kind of quilts that take 5 million man hours to complete and are WIPs for eternity.

After I went to college, the sewing machine came out less often.  In the last ten years it’s really just made its appearance to sew the occasional Halloween costume or trim down the saddlebag hips that Banana Republic is so fond on including on their trousers.  Instead of quilting, I was scrapbooking, knitting, and working on growing my business.

But then, on a routine trip to Barnes and Noble, I saw Quilts, Baby! The relaxed approach seemed like something I could actually do as a business owner and pregnant momma of a 3 year old boy.  I was hooked.

I’ve only recently discovered the thriving community of quilting, sewing, and fabric blogs populating the interwebs, though.  Looking through other people’s quilts and fabric stacks occupies plenty of the hours I spend nursing Baby Ellie, and so I now throw my own projects into the mist.