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Look inside the latest issue of Today’s Quilter magazine!
We first got the idea to create a series of quilting wisdom posts to share with our readers last Autumn after watching Alias Grace. The dramatised version of Margaret Atwood’s novel was released on Netflix in 2018, and it was our Deputy Editor Laura Pritchard who was the first to tip the rest of us off about the abundance of quilting themes and quotes that the series contained.
- How to knife-edge finish quilts
- Best rotary cutters for fabric, quilting and dressmaking
- How to make a puff quilt: step by step
There really are too many beautiful quilting quotes in Alias Grace to include them all in this post, but we recommend it for anyone who enjoys reading books with a sewing theme. Inspired by the book, we’re sharing a collection of some of our favourite quilting memes and sayings, selected by the Today’s Quilter team.
1. May your bobbin always be full
Ah the pain of quilting your best pattern, only to discover the bobbin thread ran out 10 minutes ago…
2. Measure twice, cut once
So so true, and yet we still sometimes forget and are filled with regret!
3. Quilt ’til you wilt
This pretty much sums up our life mantra
4. Love me, love my stash
Not that our stash is out of control of course, oh no…
5. A quilt will warm your body and comfort your soul
Possibly the truest of all the sayings on this page… quilts bring us comfort in more ways than one.
6. My soul is fed by needle and thread
This explains why we haven’t put down a needle since we learnt to sew at school.
7. Finished is better than perfect
Because imperfections just mean something was made with love (so we tell ourselves when our mitred corners are off-kilter).
8. A good day is a day spent quilting
That feeling when we have a whole weekend day stretching ahead and nowhere else to be… bliss!
In case you’re wondering…
The initial quote Laura found, from Margaret Atwood’s novel, was:
“The other quilt was called Attic Windows; it had a great many pieces, and if you looked at it one way it was closed boxes, and when you looked at it another way the boxes were open, and I suppose the closed boxes were the attics and the open ones were the windows; and that is the same with all quilts, you can see them two different ways, by looking at the dark pieces, or else the light.”
What’s in a word?
Do you know your batting from your bias? Know which is your warp and which is your weft? Make sure you’re never lost for words with our Quilter’s Glossary.
Read more
- How to make a quilt by hand – your guide to quilting without a sewing machine
- Upcycle vibrant textiles and fill your home with colour with our Kantha quilt
- How to appliqué: an introduction for beginners
- Free hexagon templates: hexagon printables for crafts and patchwork
