YAHOOO!!!

I am SOOO thrilled with what I have to share with you today: I've finished my quilt!

This project has been such a lesson in patience and perseverance for me. My nature prefers to sit down and sew for 5 hours......once every two weeks....rather than give a consistent 30 minutes every day. But I don't get much done by sporadic spurts of sewing. So I am learning to do slow, careful, consistent work. That lesson carries over into other areas of my life.

(So much quilt to fit under one little sewing machine!)

As I sit at my machine, I have lots of time for thought. A few weeks ago, my ponderings were on the subject of being a wise steward.

I was feeding my quilt under the needle. My hands were brushing the different textures of each fabric, and I was remembering what I spent to buy this fabric. I started with brand new cloth for this quilt - no old shirts or skirts. I wondered what the pioneer women would have thought of such a quilt. "Impossible! What a waste - to use good cloth for a quilt! Use your scraps for such work!"

Then I thought of my mother, and how she would love to sew some things, but how she does not have the hours to devote to quilt-making. "What a waste of a mother's time - do the dishes, clean the living room, feed your child - don't quilt! Get your priorities straight!"

Then I thought of my friends who shake their heads over the thought of quilting. "Why make a quilt? I can get one at Wal Mart for $20, and spare myself a lot of time and money!"

"Am I being wasteful and extravagant?" I wondered. "With both my time and money?"

It's an important question. I've only got so much of both time and money, and both things belong to God.

The act of making a quilt is thrilling to me. In a way, I'd be willing to pay a reasonable amount to be allowed to quilt - like some folks would pay to go to an amusement park or other entertainment.

My time is also very valuable to me. ...But I think of it this way: right now I am in a flexible season of my life. I can afford to devote some hours to quilt making right now, because it will pay interest in the future. My quilts go into my hope chest; I am preparing to make my own home beautiful some day. Not because it's vital for "my" house to look like a show room, but because I want to have a home environment that is peaceful and happy, in order to have a family that is peaceful and happy.

I have a small amount of money that I have set aside for my quilt making, so, I guess I can "afford" to quilt. It can be a fairly expensive hobby.

This quilt, for instance, cost me $15.63 on fabric alone. Add to that two spools of good thread at $2.00 a piece. My backing fabric was given to me, and the batting I already had, but if I had to buy them the price for just them could have reached $20 easily.

All that being thought of, the Lord began to convict my heart over my wasteful spirit. When I began this quilt, I had known that I had some money to spend, and purposely didn't worry about the cost. I chose to forget that ALL my money - even what I have "set aside" - belongs to Him.

So now I am looking into "frugal" ways to quilt. I'm going to learn patience, to wait for fabric sales. I'm going to "recycle" fabric when I can. I'll use old sheets for quilt backing, instead of buying new ones.

Do you have any suggestions? Please share them.

With all that said, let me share a few more pictures. I really am pleased with the finished project!!!

I've chosen to show my mistakes first. This happened a couple of times on the back. The puckers formed, and I didn't notice it until I was too far along to backtrack. (Despite being called a perfectionist at times, I don't have the disease bad enough to make me take out an entire quilt!)

Now, here is the back of the quilt. And....

...My favorite picture, which I've saved for last. Isn't it beautiful?