Long Overdue

 

I finally sat down yesterday and worked on quilting Ashlyn's graduation quilt. It is really beautiful. It is a patchwork chevron. I downloaded the pattern from Moda and then altered it. The original pattern had 15 inch blocks. So huge!!!! So I changed it to have 9 inch blocks. I was sorta worried that the corners would not match up, but God took care of it for me! Praise God!!

 

 

I finished stitching all of the ditches last night after a late night Starbucks run!! Today I will work on squiggles for the blue sections and flowers in the patchwork sections. Stay tuned for more pictures later!!

My Journey with Memory Quilts - What Started it All

I have a friend Taby Durr and she lost her sister,Taronna Sewalt, several years ago. She asked me if I would make a memory quilt for her. I had never done that before, but I said yes. Well, several months later she showed up at my house with two, yes, two 30 gallon trash bags full of clothes that had belonged to her sister.

She actually needed six memory quilts so the several family members would each have a quilt to memorialize Taronna's life.

The first quilt was for their mother, Maw. I used Taronna's clothes to make the quilt blocks. We printed pictures of her from throughout her life. We added pictures to every quilt.

The second quilt was for her sister's best friend, Jane. They had been friends since childhood. Taby and I are holding the quilt for the photo.

The third quilt was for her sister's husband, Jeff. This quilt even had a block made from a rabbit fur sweater. Jeff had given Taronna the rabbit fur sweater for a gift while they were dating. I had no idea how to use that, but God helped me work it out!

The third and fourth quilts were for her children. This is a picture of the son, Judd's quilt before the pictures were added. The quilt was designed with black empty spaces to accommodate the pictures.

You can see a few of the pictures added at the top of the quilt.

 

This is the daughter, JeTonna's finished quilt.

Taby and I are on the left and Jetonna is on the right.

 

 

The last quilt was for Taby. I cannot seem to find a picture of the completed quilt with the pictures, but here are the blocks that were made from her clothes.

 

This was a long process that sent me on a journey I never expected. Taby was the person who God used to send me on this journey. I had no idea how to make this kind of quilt. I prayed, A LOT. God guided me through the process one quilt at a time. It took two or three years to finally get all of the quilts completed.

 

I have tried to follow the path God sets before me. It is not always easy, but I have found that God always provides just what I need, just when I need it. For example, as I was writing this post, my husband came out with a pile of my junk to go through. Well, lo and behold, my journal notes about these quilts were in that pile of junk.  

 

So, even though I had no experience with making memory quilts, God provided me the knowledge and tenacity to get it done. All the praise and glory goes to God.

 

Kyara's Quilt

Kyara Galindo is a sweet young girl that lives in our town. She has been having some serious medical issues. I made a quilt for her. It is to comfort her when she is worried or sad. It has cuddly Minkee fabric on the back, so it will keep her warm.

 A picture of the quilt.

 Close-up of the quilting.

 The label on the back of the quilt.

The picture is of Kyara and my daughter, Ashlyn.

 The night I gave Kyara her quilt.

Kyara and I.

Christmas is Coming...

I embroidered these two bath towels for a friend. She will be giving them as Christmas presents. I think they turned out rather nicely.

Christmas is coming and I am frantically trying to complete a few more projects. I am almost done with the quilt top for a friend of my dad. She tragically lost her son last fall in a motorcycle accident. The quilt will showcase his photographs. I am also using his clothes to make blocks to surround the pictures. I will post a picture later. Maybe I can get the top completed and get it basted this week??

Also, I am working on a quilt for a young girl who has cancer. It is a project that is close to my heart. I have a good friend who lost her son last year to cancer. It was heartbreaking to see such a young child suffer with this awful disease. Will God be able to use the quilt to help this family? I hope so. 

The need for quilts in our community and elsewhere never ceases to amaze. God gave me this amazing gift and by sharing it with others, I hope to show his love.

God bless and Merry Christmas!
Beth 

Katie Cakes

This is a memory quilt I made for Missy Stevens. Her mother-in-law makes t-shirts for all of the grand kids every summer. The kids wear the t-shirts when the family goes on their summer vacation. Missy wanted a quilt made with the old t-shirts and pictures of Katie with the family.

Katie's grandma called her Katie Cakes, so I cut out those words and put them around Katie's picture.

Katie drinking Starbucks, of course!

A picture of the three sisters together.

A family shot in Colorado (I think).

When the kids were little.

Katie with a can of coffee.

A booty shot of the kids.

The shirts were made from t-shirts and even denim one year.

Each child was numbered based on their birth order.

I framed a few of the pictures and then superimposed them on top of the quilt. 

I added the purple polka dot hearts as a reminder of Katie's love of purple.

Katie Stevens, a smart young girl with a beautiful smile taken away too soon.

Sweet girl, you are missed.

A Young Man Sits

A young man sits in the church foyer with me.

We talk about how he got to this place.

He came from Los Angeles to our small country town.

He has a twin brother.

He loves music. He likes to read.

A young man sits in the quilt room at church.

We talk about school and his challenges.

He talks about losing his mom two years ago.

She was young.

He misses her.

A young man sits with me in the sanctuary.

He hears the word of God and is curious.

He goes to Young Life.

He parties with a wild crowd.

He wonders about God.

He asks me to make him a quilt.

I don't normally do this type of thing.

I make quilts for a reason, a gift, a baptism, a confirmation.

What about love?

What about showing this young man he is loved?

I decide to make the quilt.

It has bright colors.

It is big, so he can lay underneath it and feel God's love.

I ask for a piece of his mothers clothing.

I cut the pajama shirt apart and place it inside the quilt.

He goes to Young Life camp.

He accepts Christ into his life.

He parties less.
He prays to God.

He misses his mom, especially in January.

Where will he end up?
Will he let God really work in his life?
Will the quilt help him as he goes through life?
I pray for him to make good decisions and be smart.
A young sits by me. One of God's blessings.

Remembrance Service

Last night I attended a Remembrance Service at the local hospital. The purpose was to celebrate babies and children who have been lost too soon. The chairs were set up outside, complete with programs and Kleenex. Glowing luminaries surrounded the seating area. Candles were ready to be lit in honor of a loved one. A young man and woman checked the microphones and warmed up their singing voices. Refreshments were organized inside for after the service.

The service was lovely. A celebration of a terribly difficult situation. Prayers. Scripture. A young woman shared her struggle and the eventual joy that she found in her life. Encouragement. Each family was invited to light a candle for their lost child. Would you like to say a word? Oh, the sadness as they went up and lit their candles. I prayed for them. Please provide peace Lord. The young man and woman sang a song about being homesick. How appropriate, homesick for my lost baby. They sang Amazing Grace. A reminder of how great God is.

What was my role? I brought a quilt for decoration. I brought Bibles and a quotation book. I brought prepared blocks in pink, blue, and yellow. I brought fabric pens. After the service while enjoying refreshments, I was going to help the families write a memory block. I was so nervous. I prayed for courage and wisdom to help these families. God please give me the right words at the right moment. They came a few at a time. They cried. We shared. They wrote beautiful words on the fabric.

Afterward, I collected my things. I would take the blocks and make a quilt for the hospital to display. I am so thankful God gave me this gift of quilting. I am so thankful that Pam Travers asked me to create quilts for these families to have during their time of need. I am so thankful that God blessed me with two daughters after two miscarriages. God I pray for these families to have peace, comfort, encouragement.