Lane Johnson – 2nd quarter 2010
My first sewing experience was stitching appliqués on ditty bags in Girl Scouts. My mother taught me to sew simple clothes for my dolls. In junior high school I had to take a sewing class for home ec and then began to sew clothes for school.
I became interested in quilts in the late ‘70s. I didn’t know anyone who quilted so I looked at books and magazines. Finally, in 1980 I signed up for a class to make a quilted pillow. I learned the importance of the quarter inch seam the hard way, but my daughter loved the pillow I made for her anyway! I am not sure rotary cutters existed for the home sewer then, so I used scissors to cut the pieces.
I discovered “strip quilting” when I was living on the east coast. A friend from work and I found a pattern for a trip around the world in a ladies magazine. We got together to study the article and then spent an entire day in one quilt shop putting the fabric together. The strips were torn into strips, sewn together, then cut with scissors and sewn into the top. We spent one night a week for months getting together and sewing the quilt top.
I always have a project or two (maybe 10) going, and some take years to finish. But it’s something I can pick up at any time, wherever I am, and get right back into it. For me, quilting is a place you can go to wherever you are and find a friend.
After 44 years as a military wife (38 years of military active duty) and eighteen cross-country moves, I have found that quilting or the interest in learning to quilt is everywhere, and the awkwardness of feeling like the stranger in the room disappears with the phrase “What are you working on?” or “Where did you find that great fabric?” Quilting is truly a sisterhood for me. It has always brought me comfort, good friends, lots of laughs, challenges and has certainly kept me out of trouble!
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