As most everyone who knows me will know that the Amish hold a very special, almost stalker-ish place in my heart. (I would LOVE to be one if it were not for lack of technology, indoor plumbing, Air Conditioning and electricity, among other things) Alas, I must stalk from afar and use them for inspiration for my quilts.
Amish Inspiration:
Case and point, the Amish Hearts quilt I created for my mother-in-law, JoAnn. A year ago when I was still in the middle of creating Frank’s quilt I got the brilliant idea to create one for him mother. We have a rocky relationship to say the least, but I know the Lord is working on healing there.
So, in my quest to bless, I began looking for inspiration quilts for hers. That’s when I came this quilt: (Heart and Nine) immediately I knew this was the quilt I would fashion for JoAnn. So, I began to search for fabric until I found the perfect colors and line that matched my mother in law to a tee! How awesome. I was all coming together. I knew this would not be a mother’s day quilt, as I still had to work on franks and get it finished and had a baby quilt to do for my friend Elisabeth. So, I would make this a Christmas gift to her from the both of us. However, with frank leaving for Kuwait and my last year of undergrad, fall quilting fell by the wayside. So, I had to pull up my boots and get to sewing right after Christmas, if I wanted this to be completed and quilted before Frank came home on R&R. So that is what I did. As this quilt did not have a pattern, I was fortunate enough to know the basics of this quilt and could fashion one myself. The pattern was quite easy to layout and duplicate. Within the week the 45 nine patches were complete and I just had to appliqué the hearts one the individual squares. In all, this quilt took just over 2 weeks to accomplish.
After having this quilt quilted and binded I was able to pass on this gift from the heart to my mother in law, who I am proud to say, loved the quilted as much as I loved gifting her with it. I know that healing starts with forgiving, and daily, I pray that the Lord will work to heal my heart so that I can love others as He loves me. My ability and God given talent to quilt allows me to love those around me, while giving them a precious gift that will last for years to come. The bridge was not built with the giving of this gift, but I know that the foundation was laid and that the Lord prepares the way before me and our family.
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