Quilt Scrapbook
The real artist in my scrapbook project is my mother who sewed dozens of quilts in a span of 35 years. Last Christmas was a quilt bonanza when mom decided to give them all away. I had no idea she had so many of them tucked away. Daughters, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren were the happy recipients of her stash of beautiful quilts. Mom told me once that each time she looked at one of her quilts that memories would come flooding in about the things she had experienced in the weeks or months she was working on it.
Her quilts are like snapshots in time for her.
On Christmas Day when mom's stack of quilts were being distributed among her clan members I overheard my husband ask her if she had ever taken photos of all her quilts. Her quick answer was "Oh, heavens no." Her lofty response planted a seed in my brain. I later recruited my three sisters to email me digital photos of their quilts. Not only the quilts that we were given on Christmas, but also photos of any quilts she had gifted them and their children with in past years. I asked for an assortment of quilt poses. In the photos some of the quilts were hung as wall displays, others were laid across beds or sofas. I cropped, printed, and got busy with my scrapbooking project. I had asked family members to include themselves in some of the photos so the quilt scrapbook would be a mix of quilt and family photos. Some did, but others were a bit shy, but that didn't stop me from placing cutouts of people from some of my collection of old family photos and pasting them into the scrapbook pages.
My plan was to get this project underway as a gift for mom from all of her four daughters for Mother's Day. Mission Accomplished!
Her quilts are like snapshots in time for her.
My "Inner Artist" Process
On Christmas Day when mom's stack of quilts were being distributed among her clan members I overheard my husband ask her if she had ever taken photos of all her quilts. Her quick answer was "Oh, heavens no." Her lofty response planted a seed in my brain. I later recruited my three sisters to email me digital photos of their quilts. Not only the quilts that we were given on Christmas, but also photos of any quilts she had gifted them and their children with in past years. I asked for an assortment of quilt poses. In the photos some of the quilts were hung as wall displays, others were laid across beds or sofas. I cropped, printed, and got busy with my scrapbooking project. I had asked family members to include themselves in some of the photos so the quilt scrapbook would be a mix of quilt and family photos. Some did, but others were a bit shy, but that didn't stop me from placing cutouts of people from some of my collection of old family photos and pasting them into the scrapbook pages.
My plan was to get this project underway as a gift for mom from all of her four daughters for Mother's Day. Mission Accomplished!
Lessons Learned
- Viewing the scrapbook afterwards gave me a strong sense of pride, not for myself, but for my mother. She is an amazing woman, so creative.
- Planning out the individual pages was sort of like designing a quilt except with paper and photos rather than cloth.
- I imagined my mother's muse was helping me choose colors schemes and design for each of the pages.
- I love my mom!!!
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