Confessions of a Fabric Junkie

They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. Well, I don't know that I want to recover! And maybe my problem isn't all THAT big of a deal. I mean, I don't buy fabric everytime I am in the store. Sometimes I just look at it, feel it, imagine what it's potential may be. My kids thought I was really out of my mind when I bid on fabric on Ebay; but I had too! A friend of mine was looking for special fabric for her granddaughter's quilt. And I am sure buying fabric on Ebay is no big deal. I've seen post's where women have described their stash as "more than what I could use in a lifetime". I'm not there yet, so maybe I'm ok!
Funny thing is, I have had a little fabric stash ever since I could remember; long before I actually sewed. I think it was seeds mom and grandma were planting hoping the desire to sew would grow. They were right. I tried making clothes when the kids were small. I even took a class. I tried making Marie overalls. I don't know if I had set my sights to high or if I just can't make clothes, but they were a disaster! I tucked my stash away for a few more years. I think it was slowly growing, though, waiting patiently for me to discover it's worth. The spring of 2005 was the first year in our new home. I was feeling quite domestic and joined the crafting book club. I bought a fat quarter quilt book. I had no idea what a fat quarter was, but somehow I owned a bundle! Armed with my book, my bundle and a little extra I started on a lap size quilt. I did this with a measuring tape and scissors; I didn't even know what a rotary cutter and mat were! As I cut and sewed and created something new and I had to admit, beautiful, I was falling in love. The seeds were taking root. I finished the project over the summer and it had actually turned out to be something I could show others.
I didn't dive right in to another project though, still quite unsure of myself. The winter of 05-06 prooved to be at times unbearable, but also proof that God never lets go. The first seemingly unremarkable event was that our school district started offering "community education classes". I received the flyer in the mail, saw that they offered a beginners quilting class, and briefly thought "oh wouldn't that be nice?", and set the flyer down. I have to say, that would have been the end of it, the excuses of " I don't have the time, money, ect, ect " were already killing the idea. My mother-in-law, Gladys, ressurected it. She called and said that she too, received the flyer(she only lives a block away) and had always wanted to try to quilt. She crochets constantly, and sews quite a bit, but had never learned to quilt. She knew I had made that one little quilt, so how about taking the class together. That motivated me, and my flyer was filled out and put back in the mail. The class would be a couple months away.
The second event was the death of my husband's nephew, Gladys's grandson, in early January. He was only 21. The only son of my husband's brother. It was one of those late night dreaded phone calls, "Eric was in an accident...get here fast". He was gone, and we were devistated. It was five long days between the accident and the funeral, but then when it was over our closeknit family was all in shock. But God had healing planned for Gladys, and me too.
Maybe a week, not more than two, that class we had signed up for months ago was coming up. We weren't really in the mood, but I told Gladys I would pick her up. When I arrived at her house, I was saddened to see how worn out she still looked. This had been so hard on her, losing her grandson, watching her son go through the unthinkable. This woman, who I love dearly, had been so full of life and laughter. She looked tired and worn down. She put on a good face and we headed to the Home Ec room in the school. Our teacher would be the quilt shop owner in the next town. She is one of the sweetest ladies you would want to meet. We had a nice sized class of 8, and she wanted to remember all of our names. When she got to my MIL she said, "Oh, I'm so sorry I can't remember..." My mother in law smiles and says "just remember Happy Bottom... (Gladys ...Glad as*) ", I felt like I was back in highschool trying not to laugh as our teacher tried to figure out her little joke. We all got it, eventually. It was silly, but Gladys was LAUGHING.
One night a week for the next four we looked forward to this class. Gladys baked cookies for the class, flew through the quilting and looked better each week. We finished the class with beautiful table runners and a love for quilting. It hasn't even been a year yet, and we have both made numerous projects, and taken a few more classes. The quilting has connected us on a beautiful level, given me an outlet for smothered creativity and given Gladys something new and exciting to look forward too. It is amazing to me how God timed that class perfectly.
So, I guess that is not where I planned to go with my fabric story, but it is the heart of my quilting story. I want to share a few of my favorite pieces of fabric with you. I love looking at peoples fabric as much as I do their projects. Enjoy!