Decorating with quilts presents many possibilities.  The quilts may be old or new, pieces salvaged and framed, quilts repaired and reconstructed and many other quilted items that add interest and color to the room’s decor.
An interesting article at STLtoday.com’s lifestyle section, Family Heirlooms Make This House a Home, by Susan Fadem with photos by Laurie Skrivan, describes decorating with old quilts. 
 There’s a framed yo-yo quilt, made from flour sacks, by a great-grandmother.  This quilt originally was cut into three pieces so that each child could have a piece.  Then it was cut into thirds again before being framed.
Another inherited quilt is …read more

 I find it most enjoyable to share my quilts and quilting with groups in our community and further afield.  (This comes from someone who was petrified to give oral book reports in school.)  However, when you have something you enjoy, it’s much easier to display and share.One of my fond memories involves being guest speaker for our local historical society.  They wanted me to speak about quilts, quilt history and my involvement with this.   (My daughter and I had recently been named in Who’s Who in American Quilting and a press release appeared in the local paper.)
So I gathered together …read more

Writers say they have “muses” that inspire them with their work.  Once at a writers’ workshop I attended, the teacher instructed us to describe our muse, either in words or a sketch. 
 Until then I didn’t even know I had a muse or was supposed to!  However, as I put pencil to paper, a whimsical lady appeared, who seemed to be floating in air above a desk with my work.  Now when I’m asked if I have a muse she comes to mind. 
         Does this apply to my quilting, too.? Could you say that someone or something inspires you…one person or …read more

In addition to, or instead of old quilts, some quilters collect antique or vintage fabrics.  These can be very interesting to accumulate, whether you use them to make quilts, repair old quilts, or incorporate into fiber art.  I’ve had two readers write me about their fasconation in collecting old fabrics.  This got me thinking about the few I’ve accumulated.
I found my vintage fabrics stored among old quilt blocks in my childhood home, fabric scraps from sewing projects of my childhood (I may not consider myself vintage but perhaps my grandchildren and their friends do!), and some fabrics my daughter and I have …read more

I browse through old magazines and find pictures of quilts, look at more in books of collectibles, and see some in family photos.  I find myself fascinated by these older quilts and the stories they tell.  Or the stories I imagine they tell.
So, I’ve begun another collection in my life…that of collecting pictures that remind me of quilts I’ve known or that stimulate memories.
For instance, when I see pictures of quilts made from flour or feed sacks, I recall my aunt “oohing” and “ahing” over bags she brought into the kitchen that once contained food for the chickens.  She washed them well, …read more