Life lessons I learned from a quilt

Me again, with another Life Lesson I Learned From A Quilt.​​​​​​​​

This is a type of quilting called Cathedral Windows. You start with a piece of fabric (in this case, about 10" square) then basically do some fancy fabric origami, iron it a bunch, and it ends up being a quarter of the size. You take two of those and stitch them together, then get a 2" square of another color fabric to sew in, creating these windows. It's intense, beautiful, and incredibly time consuming. This one is growing pretty quickly and I'm really happy with it! Mostly because....​​​​​​​​

it's the fifth time I've tried to make one of these.​​​​​​​​

If you go through my Graveyard of Buried Projects (aka my office closet) you'll find the evidence of four other cathedral windows quilts. They're wonky. There's a reason I gave up on those ​​​​​​​​

But here I am again. "This time it will be different!" I whispered to myself in the fabric aisle of Joann's.​​​​​​​​

And you know what? It is!​​​​​​​​

Here's what has been different so far: ​​​​​​​​

I've learned a LOT from those other four attempts. I know I need the right tools (like a THIMBLE. Sewing through like five layers of fabric at a time is owch). I know I need to be in the frame of mind to be precise, because the folds lining up matters. I know it's worth it to take out mistakes and try again, even if it takes more time right now. I'm older. I'm more patient. I have gone through my own personal development so that I'm ready to take on this project again.​​​​​​​​

So....it's never just about quilting. ​​​​​​​​

Y'all. When your kids aren't developmentally ready for something, let it go. And let them try again. And again. Those attempts before weren't wasted. They were part of THIS successful process.​​​​​​​​

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