What makes a quilter? What exactly is a quilt? How do you define quilting? Well hold yer bloomers on darlin’. If I could answer that easily then I would probably be able to solve the other major mysteries of the universe. I may own a quilt shop and am a quilter but could not tell by looking at someone on the street if they were a quilter at first glance… I said at first glance. There ARE signs though. Follow me here and I will explain a bit of the underground world of quilters.
We have a fairly universal language among ourselves. We use terms like “fat quarter”, “perfecting our points” and “strip quilting”. We like to “add a quarter” on occasion. I think the only thing that we ALL agree upon is that a “quilt” is an item resembling a blanket that has three layers, attached in some fashion. “Quilting” is the intricate sewing that binds the three layers and “piecing” is the art of taking fabrics, cutting them into shapes and sewing them BACK together in either simple or intricate designs that upon seeing, can alter your life in some way with their stunning beauty. After that things get messy.
There are quilters that follow patterns in books exactly. There are quilters that have never used a pattern in their life and create their own, and still there are quilters that don’t piece any tops, making what is a “whole cloth” quilt. Did I lose you yet? Stay with me darlin’ there’s more… Some quilters use only Pre-civil war reproduction fabrics some that only use specific types of fabrics. IE: Batiks or those made/designed by specific companies. Picky? Well you like certain foods and not others don’t you? Don’t quibble on their preferences because I would bet you have at least one quilt that was fought over at least once every generation as it was passed down… Try and deny it. Of all the hand made crafts, quilting is the one that has truly evolved into an art. That’s right, an ART.
To a quilter fabric is both the canvas and the paint. We create works of art that can leave you breathless. It can keep you warm and evoke memories of your youth with the slightest glance. A mere touch can take you back to your fondest memories. Believe me, quilts are one thing even the most burly man will hug at night and don’t even ask him to give you so much as an inch. (Gave you a visual huh?)
So how do you know if you are a quilter, or at least desire to be one? Does hearing about a new quilt shop make your heart flutter and your pulse race? Have you ever come screeching to a halt in the middle of traffic double-checking that you INDEED saw a quilt shop sign?
I know for me the sight of rows of fabric can take my mind on a voyage of creation. A visual journey that taps into my thoughts, emotions and very soul. I can look at fabric and see in my mind a completed project. The feel of the fabric flowing through my fingers sends sparks through my spine. It talks, no SINGS to my inner mind. The creating of quilts is hard to explain. It is something that is at my very core. When I quilt, I enter a zone where all time looses meaning and I am floating in my thoughts. I think Lisa; my store manager put it best. “To give someone a quilt is to wrap them in Love”.
Quilting is not about competition; it’s not about being better than Suzy quilter down the road or being the best on the planet. It’s the act of assembling those pieces and layers and finding the peace within yourself.
In the end if you want to know if you are a quilter, ask yourself this: That quilt you just made, does it look like a quilt? Does it feel like a quilt? Does it smell like a quilt? Well then sweetie, it’s a quilt. And you are a quilter.
Diana
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