Carrie over at La Vie en Rosie and Camille at Simplify have challenged us to share our first quilts.
I still remember buying the pattern and fabric and floss for my first quilt about 24 years ago, I was expecting Sarah and I wanted to make a blanket 🙂 I didn’t realize what I was making. I was so excited, I was 23 and I was going to be a mom! I bought the supplies from Zellers (Canadian Readers might remember when they used to have a fabric department) The fabric was all poly cotton and I bought enough to make bumper pads as well.
I couldn’t figure out how to sew the corners down on the binding and I always meant to finish the binding but Sarah came along and then I thought I’d finish it but before I knew it I had all 4 girls. They all used and loved my unbound quilt.
When I was a teenager I wanted to make “blankets” like the ones on Little House on the Prairie. When I told my mom that she replied oh you don’t want to make those they are called quilts and only poor people make quilts. But she was wrong (she’s now a quilter too by the way), I wanted to make them and eventually I found Eleanor Burns on PBS and watched her show and took notes. After watching her show the first time and taking notes I quickly went to work and my first deliberate quilt project was made.
I was so proud of my little quilt, its hand quilted and I still love it. Money was very tight when I was a young mom and I treasured every little piece of quilt fabric I could find.
My first bigger quilt was made before I really knew what I was doing you can read it’s story here
and my most recent quilt
this little schnibble its quilted and bound.
and my latest top
Wendy’s Quilting and Life 
Thanks for sharing your early quilts. Quilting is a bit like that when you finally get to your first real quilt you have gone through quite a journey to reach there.
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I love it that your girls used the quilt without it being finished. It just goes to show that quilts are not just the finished product…they are full of love. Your new work is soooo nice as well.
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Your quilts are so fun! Your early quilts have so many memories that come with them now…And the ones you made recently are beautiful! Keep going, I can’t wait to see what they look like in another 24 yrs….
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wow, I love your first quilt.
All your quilts look super.
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I love your first quilts! And your latest ones are terrific too! I have been meaning to make that Schnibble but haven’t gotten to it yet. Your quilting looks really nice.
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Hi Wendy ~ I love them all, especially the stories behind the quilts. (You had to know that would be my favorite part.) I also enjoyed seeing the Guild presentation and all your quilts on that post ~ including Elizabeth. (By the way, Erik’s Mom’s quilt is wonderful, and the quilting is WOW!)
Bound or not, I love the quilt you made for your daughters. Can I tell you that a little part of me hopes that you don’t ever get it bound? That’s part of it’s story ~ the best part, I think.
It is amazing to think that pieced quilts really did used to be a necessity, only rich folks had real blankets or whole-cloth quilts. I think it is safe to say that most of us regard the quilts we’ve made as “treasures”.
Thank you for sharing your quilts and for joining in the fun!
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Thanks for joining in- it was so fun to read the stories behind your quilts. That first one looks so loved! If it makes you feel better, I stitched the binding on my little guy’s baby quilt and he chewed the whole binding loose. So even if you had sewn it down, it may have still ended up that way.
Great stories, great quilts. Thanks again!
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Those are all so pretty. I like the quilt with the x’s.
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your latest quilt is so pretty…i love the colors and the simplicity of the pattern…gorgeous
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Oh how I love to see first quilts, so much love goes into them despite the imperfections that we see as we look back at our first attempts. It’s also funny how often they have been loved over and over by our parents and/or children :o) I absolutely LOVE that schnibble! It is just beautiful.
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I can tell the yellow quilt is well loved! And your latest are just gorgeous. Very inspirational!
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Your latest quilt is stunning!
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I love your first quilt. I didn’t know about quilts either and never appreciated them till I started making them only a year ago January.
It is a passion I have now and have even restored one of my grandmother’s quilts.
Thanks for visiting my blog and by the way I do absolutely love your last quilt. I like bright colours and this one sure speaks out!
Canadian too heh?
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