1000 Posts!

It’s hard to believe, but this is my 1000th post on Romany Quilting, with it all starting way back on October 2009.  That’s a lot of blog posts, and many thanks to the everyone who keeps reading, and making comments.  Writing a blog is sometimes like writing in a vacuum, tapping away while writing about your thoughts, and things which are important to your life.  And hoping that you are perhaps making a difference, that someone, somewhere is reading and interested in your words, brightening up someone’s life, and making a connection all the way from little old New Zealand.

I was a latecomer to quilting and patchwork, although I have always sewn.  There are memories of saving up my pocket money as a young teen, buying yards and yards of fabric, and whipping up a full skirted dress to wear over my stiff petticoats.  Then of course there was the fun of attending the Sunday afternoon youth club, and rock’n’rolling the afternoon away.

Once I started work there was a little more discretionary spending available, and I kept sewing myself new dresses, and buying my first pair of high heels!  Marriage and babies soon followed, and my sewing changed to making sets of pyjamas, shirts, shorts and corduroy trousers for Michael, and pretty dresses and nighties for Nicky.

The years flew by, the children grew up, and I met and married Robin in 1983.  A few years later I took my first quilting class, and made a pinwheel quilt for our caravan. 

My first quilt

And as they say – the rest is history!  From that first quilt, I have made plenty more, plus accumulated quite a collections of UFOs, but I’m trying hard to get these in order.

On reflection, I’d like to finish this 1000th post with my thoughts of:

I Love Quilting Because……

• The fabric – looking, folding, fondling, buying, collecting, it’s all about the fabric.
• The patterns – whether a commercial pattern, from a book or magazine, or maybe from an idea that has been percolating in my mind.
• The excitement – of starting a new quilt, choosing the pattern and the fabrics.
• The process – cutting, pinning, measuring, stitching, pressing, watching it all come together.
• The joy – of finishing a project.
• To give gifts – to family and friends.
• To make quilts – for us, so that I can ring the changes on bed quilts and wall hangings.
• For Christmas – I love Christmas quilts and decorations.
• To stitch household items – table runners, place mats, cushions, oven cloths, aprons, they are all a joy to make and use.
• Individual artistic expression – making the design your very own.
• Social interaction – my local quilt club, and the Sew Wots friendship group.
• Relaxation – it makes me feel good, so it’s got to be good for me!

So thank you once again to readers and followers, and thanks also to all the other quilt bloggers out there who I avidly follow.  My life is richer with knowing you all.