Why Do You (We) Quilt?
We start our local modern quilt guild meeting with a go-around-the-room answer to a question. In February, the month of hearts and love, we asked, “What is one thing you love about making a quilt?” When it was my turn… “Hi! I’m Melinda. I live in East Asheville and I love that making a quilt quiets my busy mind.”
It was so interesting to hear each quilter’s answer. There were common themes of course, but also, each person worded their “why” differently, from their own personal perspective. Which got me thinking, what are all my “why’s”?
Indulge me here while I go deep. Quilting is therapy for me so the benefits I get from this amazing art form aren’t easily captured in words. But I’ll give it a go! I am so curious if you share any of my “why’s” or if yours are totally different! The comment section is open and I would love to know why you quilt!
Quilting is my peaceful, happy, soothing place. Why? Read on …
The Comfort of a System
Quilting follows a rhythm. Measure, cut, sew, press, repeat. There’s an order to the methodical process. In a busy life and a world full of chaos and uncertainty, at least when I’m quilting I am in total control - it’s me, myself, and I making every decision and following each step.
Gosh I love a grid, symmetry, graph paper, and order. I love math because there is only one right answer and that’s so satisfying to my brain.
I really love playing with color and I spend considerable time pondering fabric choices for my quilts. But, if you read my blog post on color, you probably caught on that I play with color inside a fairly specific comfort zone. Monochromatic fabric pulls are so pleasing to me. And when I’m feeling a little wild and colorful, that’s admittedly inside a clearly defined “box” of muted, warm, earthy, autumnal hues and values.
I am also just a teeny bit obsessed (lol) with precision, workflow efficiency, and assembly line approaches to sewing. So yep, you guessed it— I’m a chain-piecer, my Stripology XL Ruler is my best friend, and my fabric pieces are always neatly organized and labelled. My need for order runs deep friends as you can see below. :) Thank goodness I found quilting.
Structured Creativity
I love being creative, but I thrive when it’s within a framework. For me, making quilts is a perfect balance of order and artistry, where I can express myself but never feel overwhelmed by staring at a completely blank canvas.
I love picking fabric, settling on the placement of colors, choosing a quilting method and crafting a vision for the quilting design. I almost always hand-bind and while I’ve only done big-stitch sewing so far, I’m currently practicing other kinds of embroidery stitches. Endless possibilities but literally in the confines of quilt binding. :)
All these same reasons drew me to designing and writing modern quilt patterns. The perfect match of right and left brain activities for “whole me” happiness.
When I Quilt, the World Quiets (a.k.a. Why I Have “Be” Tattooed on My Finger)
There’s a kind of magic in hand-making. When I start to cut or sew fabric, my stress level plummets immediately. The same has always been true for picking up my knitting as well. My breathing deepens and my heartbeat slows. My mind settles into a peaceful rhythm and my focus becomes very, very narrow – the thing I’m doing with my hands.
As personality styles go, I am a proud Introvert. Everything about quilting feeds my Introvert needs. Short tangent on this one. Often people conflate the term Introvert with being shy. That’s not it at all! It’s really about where you get your energy from and when you feel most like your truest self. I’ve gone deep on the subject over the years as I navigated my career in advertising, marketing, and the TV industry. These sectors are dominated by Extroverts and tend to reward Extrovert behavior. Good thing my chameleon skills are top notch LOL. All of us, in all our unique wonders, make the world go ‘round so this is not at all a knock on Extroverts (I marvel at them!), but it’s easy to connect my love of quilting with who I truly am.
If you identify as an Introvert or are just curious, I highly recommend Susan Cain’s book, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking or check out her TED talk on the subject. She also has an easy Quiet Quiz if you’re wondering about your personality type. Clearly I could be the President of her fan club. :) OK, I’ll get off my “Introverts are Awesome” soapbox and get back to quilting.
While I enjoy the alone-ness of quilting I also find joy and inspiration as part of the quilting community. I feel so among “my people” at a guild meeting, talking to fellow quilters, and even amidst tens of thousands of fired up quilters at QuiltCon (though admittedly, it takes Introvert-me a solid week to recover and re-energize after that!).
So about that tattoo. I needed an actual permanent reminder to quiet my thoughts and focus on the moment. Did it work in the midst of an exciting, beautiful, full life of raising 3 humans and navigating a crazy career? Not super well (haha) but at least it was something to strive for, right?! I’m happy to report that now it is actually the way I live most of the time and never more so than when I’m making a quilt.
The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of Its Stitches
When I step back to admire a finished quilt, I know it’s so much more than just the sum of all the steps, choices, and handiwork. It’s a reflection of my time, precision, patience, intentions, happiness, and creativity, woven together into something tangible. The end result fills my heart, soul, and mind with joy … and my machine with lint. We don’t need a reason to quilt, that’s for sure, but we all have our own why’s.
As always, I’ll leave you with 3 quotes.
