I really love a kitchen table quilt. To me it says, “Sit a spell, sip some coffee, share your news with me.” I don’t think we do enough of that these days, but we used to. Some of my best memories of my Grandma Arlene include sitting at her kitchen table, where we would all gather and eat cookies and talk. We would beg Grandpa Ed to take out his dentures and talk funny to us. Grandma would make tea on the stove top and stir in a teaspoon of Orange Tang to give it some zest. And I remember her hands, always lotion-soft.
So I wanted to share with you my newest make, a kitchen table quilt featuring lovely fabric by Vanessa Goertzen of Lella Boutique. I’ve combined two of my favorite collections by Vanessa: Farmer’s Daughter and Olive’s Flower Market. These fabrics speak right to my heart, reminding me of days long ago when life seemed simpler.
For this project I followed a wonderful free “Lone Star” tutorial by Amy Smart of Diary of a Quilter. The quilt finishes at 39” square, making it great size for a table topper. This project is an easy make and lends itself to using 10” layer cake squares. Thank you, Amy!
I chose to work from yardage instead of a layer cake, as I wanted to use the same background fabric throughout. In this close up picture you can see why. Vanessa’s text print from the Farmer’s Daughter collection includes snippets of lessons and phrases she remembers from her own childhood: Keep your ears wide open and be kind; Tell the truth; Give thanks for all your blessings; Take care of each other; Listen and always do your best; and Love, love and above all else, love. What wonderful reminders to have on the kitchen table!
I felt like the quilting on this piece needed to be simple and carefree, so my longarm quilter friend Barb (Quilts on Broadway) and I chose this sweet loop-de-loop pattern. It adds nice dimension but doesn’t take away from the fabrics or oversized, graphic design of this pattern.
While my Grandma Arlene wasn’t a quilter, I’m pretty sure she would appreciate my love of quilting and the things I make. I wish she were still here. She struggled with illness most of her life, but when she was feeling well, she was so fun to visit with. I would love to have her at my kitchen table so we could sit a spell and drink some coffee or tea. I would ask her to yodel and tell me about her days as a South Dakota farm girl.
 |
| Arlene Bleeker Wollmuth, 1943 |
Thanks for letting me share this make with you, along with my ramblings. Very often it’s these simple projects that, for one reason or another, speak to my heart and bring me the most quilting joy. I’m wishing that same quilting joy for you!
~Taunja
