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Thursday, November 11, 2010

My Mamma Taught Me...

My Mamma Taught Me... {with a side of Flea Market Fancy}

{My Mom, the best quilter I know}

In the old days, we learned how to quilt from our mothers and grandmothers. They taught us how to make a knot, find the straight of grain and how to pick a properly fitting thimble. However as “crafts” fell out of favor during the era of mass production, many of our mothers lost the knowledge.

{a quilt made by my mamma}

More recently, a woman (or man for that matter) looking to reclaim the lost art of quilting turned to classes at the local shop or large tradeshows. But we are at the edge of a revolution. Today we empower ourselves and learn to create whenever and wherever we want…on-line.

There are plenty of tutorials out there that talk about the basics of quilt making: the quilt sandwich, paper-piecing and machine stitching bindings. From A to Z we can learn to quilt online. But can we truly learn as well on line as from another experienced quilter in person? Pictures are wonderful, but can they show you just how to pile the quilt on the table to minimize the tug when you are machine quilting? Can a tutorial remind you to keep your wrist relaxed when hand stitching so that you don’t get carpel tunnel? Maybe a good tutorial can.

My point is this: there are many fine elements to quilting and I’d like to start a discussion on a few of the things my mamma taught me. I am fortunate to have a mom that’s quilted for decades and she has passed many of her tips and tricks to me through lots of hours of joint sewing. So we are going to push ourselves to share on-line, the wisdom we have learned in-person from quilting experts.


{Thanks to Victoria at Silly BooDilly for the great picture from a vintage needle book}

So begins a series of posts by me and by you on what “My Mamma Taught Me” about quilting. If you have a pointer that you learned from your mother or grandmother about quilting, I invite you to share it with us.

To participate in “My Mamma Taught Me"

  1. Write a post with what your "Mamma Taught" you between Nov 11-18th
  2. Link back to this blog using the button on the right (just copy the code into your post)
  3. Leave me a comment and then send an email to me KatiesModernNest@hotmail.com with your tip and pictures
  4. You can also post pictures and tips in our flickr group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/MyMammaTaughtMe 
  5. If your tip is included in the "My Mamma" series I’ll include a brief bio of you, link to your website and share your story.
The best part, if your tip is featured as part of this series, you will win one Fat Quarter of Flea Market Fancy!


“My Mamma Taught Me” kicks off on Monday, so Stay Tuned!

7 comments:

  1. Cute idea! I'll try to put a post together. :)

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  2. My mother doesn't quilt or sew. Both grandmothers quilted, but I didn't start to quilt until long after they were both gone. So one of my friends taught me. I'll try to think of some tips. *sigh* FMF....

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  3. Very nice idea! However, my mother doesn't even sew on a button...I too will need to think of a tip from a friend.

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  4. What a lovely idea! My mother doesn't quilt, but she sewed many of our clothes while we grew up.. and she in fact did teach me how to find the straight of grain!

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  5. My mom taught me to sew, knit and crochet. Also cooking, gardening and how to keep a clean house. As you can imagine she is amazing, plus still works too.

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  6. This is a wonderful idea. I'll definitely follow for the tips since I've been learning to sew on my own. Unfortunantly my family and friends don't sew at all so I've got nothing to contribute.

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  7. My mom taught me to sew. I was nine and she put me in The 4-H club and she was my sewing leader. We mostly did garments but I have loved sewing ever since and branched out to include quilting. She loves that I still sew and I got her interested in quilting too! It is so fun to share this with her. She was also my cooking leader and taught me to cook. She is quite a woman!! I love her!!

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