Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Just for you, Alison

The quilt-making gene, both in terms of desire and ability, passed me by. My mother makes amazing artisan quilts of which I own two and they are beautiful works of art that are also usable. (I think it was William Morris who said keep nothing in your house you don't believe to be both beautiful and usable, or words to that effect. Mom's quilts are both.)

I also have the attention span of a gnat and need the instant, or at least a lot faster, gratification of garment sewing. Making quilts is time-consuming and you don't see what you've got til you are nearly through. I like that when I sew in a sleeve, it looks like a sleeve right away. I don't want to wait weeks to get that gratification.

However Alison has a new doll, one she likes a great deal. Her doll needs a jacket (which is next up in the sewing queue) and a quilt for sleeping. So here's the finished doll quilt:


I'm especially pleased because the two lighter pink materials are scraps left over from a shirt and a dress I made for her already. If those things still fit, she might notice the resemblance herself; she's pretty astute that way. The border and the darker pink in the middle of the quilt are left overs from material my mother got me (I finished a bag she'd started for me). The back of the quilt is a new piece of material, and I'm also using some of it to line her doll's jacket.

No, I still don't like making quilts. But I was really happy to make this one for Alison.

2 comments:

Jen Shear said...

dear Nana,
I love you. please give me another American Girl doll soon.

love,
Alison

I can't stop laughing. Alison asked if she could post a comment and I told her I would type what she said. and that was her letter. Don't worry, we talked about being thankful and she now says THANK YOU for the quilt and we're excited to play with it.

edj3 said...

Aw! Here's my letter back:

Dear Alison,

Tomorrow I need to pick up some trim and then I can sew your doll's coat. THEN I need to sew your mom's top and then I will mail everything to you in a box.

Love,

Your Nana