Using what you have. Making do.

I love receiving fabric scraps from friends.I love little bits of leftovers and do-overs that my friends save for me. They save leftovers from their own projects and give them to me. Sometimes they are just tiny bits, sometimes larger scraps. Most of the time they are fabrics that I would not purchase myself. Someone else's taste. But that really is the special challenge of receiving them. Doing something meaningful--at least for myself-- with something that would otherwise be tossed into the landfill.


Recently a friend gifted me with this lovely kit.

It's a collection of hand dyed cottons and a pattern to make a quilt inspired by the quilt of Gees Bend. All contained in a lovey little screen printed bag.

The quilters of Gees Bend have come into notoriety because of their unique style of quiltmaking. Their quilts were made in isolation from the larger world. Their quilts were made of castoff fabric and worn out clothing. They were made in a very poor community in Alabama. The women are descendants of slaves.

And their work is strikingly beautiful. Graphic. Bold. Original. Unique.

The women didn't buy kits. They didn't buy patterns. They took what they had and made it fit. And in doing so they created their own beauty.

So what am i going to do with this kit?

I have decided to make a quilt with what I have. Make do. I won't follow the pattern. I will make my own pattern.

Many years ago my husband and I bought two quilts at auction. They were new, hand quilted. I loved them. I remember the day we bought them as if it was yesterday. A bold crisp autumn day. A little chilly but I wore my new jean jacket. I think it might have been 1989 or 90.

This is one of them. Its a bit bedraggled. Its been well used. Its been dragged about. Its comforted us. Its seen better days.

This is going to be the backing for my new Gees Bend inspired quilt. Making do.

I am going to put this on the longarm machine because i am going to use what i have. I am going to give this old friend a new coat. i am going to flip and fold strips of new hand dyed fabrics over the old quilt log cabin style and cover it completely. No machine stitching to show.

Now if you think well that"s easy--she has a long arm --how hard can that be? There are some logistical problems that i will have to solve as i go along. The beauty of the longarm is that the quilt will be supported on a frame. This also can be a bit problematic. The seams that run parallel to the frame will be easy to stitch. The seams that run right angle will be harder. there will only be about 18 inches to work on at a time. i will have to roll the quilt a few times to finish these seams--especially as the strips get longer and longer.

I pieced this center strip on my sewing The gold is from my stash.  I laid it onto the quilt following

the lines of the hand
quilting. I didn't measure.or center it. I just picked a spot. and then i started adding strips. Its a little harder to sew straight lines on the longarm. I have tried the channel locks which are just rings that attach to the wheels but don't find them convenient. you have to walk around the machine to adjust them every time and i find it annoying. Some longarms come with a button on the controls--something to investigate when purchasing a machine.

I am almost finished. I am going to make a few strips on my sewing machine before i go any further. I want the strips to be pieced and i can't do this without some machine stitching showing if i just flip and fold.

and them maybe I will do a little bit of hand stitching--maybe--

I will post more pics as the work progresses.
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