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.

Time to get the Word out there

I have been quilting for about 14 years. It all started when I wanted  my husband to get me a sewing machine for Christmas in 1996. I wanted to be able to hem my toddler's pants or add darts to their waistbands.

A good friend called and wanted to take a craft class in February of 1997. I told her, "only if it has to do with sewing, so I can use my new machine." We signed up for two quilt classes offered through Community Ed.

We were giddy with excitement. We bought fabric, got supplies and waited for the first day of class. We learned things like cutting fabric with a rotary cutter. It is like a pizza cutter for fabric!!! We learned how to strip-piece. We were floating on cloud nine.

I kept saying, "We are making a quilt. Can you believe it?"

Well after 6 weeks the class ended and the quilt was not finished. I went home and finished piecing it to the best of my ability. My abilities were really lacking. I basted the quilt and then quilted it. I was so proud. Looking at the quilt now I see the abundance of love, but lack of skill.

Here is a picture of the design. It was not a good choice for "a first quilt"!

Here is a close-up of the piecing and quilting. It is awful!

Another close-up. Thank goodness I did not know how bad it was or I probably would have given up and never made another quilt!!!!

After I finished quilting it, I remember laying the quilt on the floor and then laying down on top of it and wrapping up in it. I did not care that it was 2am and I had to go to work in the morning. I had made my first quilt!!!

Well that started my journey. God gave me this incredible love of quilts. Then He blessed this career woman who had never sewn with the ability to make quilts. My life would never be the same.

Proverbs 31:22
She makes coverings for her bed