A Finish - Quilts for Pulse

Stardate 2016.236.1

I finally finished my contribution for the Pulse victims.  It’s an unexpected journey for me.  It started with Spoonflower– the “print your own designs on fabric” website and a challenge by our local quilt museum about political quilts which I was going to try to make a quilt to enter.  The creative mind is an odd thing, though.  I stewed on an idea for the politically-themed quilt.  I even had some fabric printed to go into that politically-themed quilt.  Here it is – words of peace and harmony.  

 

The fabric I designed, originally for a politically-themed quilt...

While my brain came up with an idea, my creative mind just didn’t feel energized enough to actually start the quilt.  So, my idea lay dormant, and the fabric I’d printed up specifically for the politically-themed quilt went into the “stash”, to hang out with the other misfit toys. 

Maybe it’s my disdain for the political system these days that drove me to not want to make a quilt that reflected my political ideas, or maybe, I feel like showing support for those folks who lost loved ones in the Pulse shootings might have a bigger impact in someone’s life than a politically-themed quilt would. 

So, when the Orlando Modern Quilt Guild put out a call for quilts, I felt compelled to respond.  In part, I guess you could say making this quilt is a bit of a political quilt as it expresses my thoughts for the tragic and senseless violence which some folks in our country think is acceptable.  It’s not.  And, I think that kindness, love, and peace can prevail.  And it seems the outpouring of quilts from quilters (I heard there’s about 400+ quilts already) shows that others might think the same.  

 

Some of the words I quilted into the quilt...peace, love, & hope...

And, a lot of this quilt just came so easily – as if I was meant to make it – and someone was meant to receive it.  The pattern for the heart just came to me so quickly that I drafted the pattern in an evening. I quilted them all with modified feathers.

Seven hearts – one for each day of the week to let the recipient know he/she is surrounded by love and caring every day.  And the idea to surround the hearts with a string quilt pattern just seemed to make sense.  And the quilt squared so easily and quickly.  It’s the fastest I’ve ever made a quilt, too. The fact that this quilt came together so quickly leads me to believe there’s something else driving the process.  But, I digress…

 

So, the fabric I created to make a political quilt, still kind of did, but I think the quilt that came out of this will hopefully let one of the victims – or victims' family – know that love can prevail, and that there are good, caring people out there, and that we won’t forget what happened.

Some of the quilting I did in the border.  One side had these flourishes; the other side has words of encouragement.

So, off it goes to Orlando.  I wish it well, and hope the recipient will enjoy it and know that people do care.

 

Linking up with Lorna @ SewFreshQuilts...