I started out a novice when I decided I wanted to learn to quilt,I did know how to sew as my mother and grand mother taught me when I was young ,and made several of my own clothes,for School. But I always had that little nagging feeling in the back of my mind that I wanted to be a  quilter. So one day while looking at a quilting magazine I saw this add from Marianne Fons and her Daughter On making a quilt .I ordered the little book and CD and was thrilled when it came in the mail . I got all the items they recommended and began my first quilt. It was terrible , not their teaching, just my doing . And then I saw the add for Quilters Club  of America. So I joined , best thing I ever did .I met so many wonderful people of this site and If not for the teaching of four amazing women on this site I would never have made it ..The worked me threw my cutting ,seams Triangles and those pesky stars.,Helped my with hand stitching and finally I got brave a and tried Applique. I will never be able to thank them enough , Thea,Nana,Gini and Kris. You are all my heroes and you kept me on the correct path..I will always be thankful I finally found quilting ..BArbara

I'm thankful for QCA and all of the wonderful members who are so friendly and helpful.  I knew the basics of sewing from a Home Ec class about 50 years ago.  I did some sewing of clothes for my daughters, but I didn't really get into it until I retired.  I took one basic quilting class at the local LQS, but since I babysit my grandsons 6 days a week, I have been unable to attend any more classes or become active in a guild.  QCA has been my God send, I've learned more from the members of this site and the videos than I dreamed was possible.  God Bless QCA and all of its members.  Now if everything goes right, I'll be able to meet them in the Smoky Mountains next summer.  I'm psyched!

The quilters.  I have never met such a great group of people.  

I am thankful for the "piece makers", and for the authors who continue to inspire us with new ideas. I am thankful for the older quilters who entrigue us with their beautiful quilts and encouraged us to learn this fabric art and pass our knowledge on to the next generation. I am thankful for the many quilters who are willing to share their ideas and thoughts, the ones who are quick to offer advice when needed and to embrace our differences. I am thankful for the quilt shoppe owners who devote their time and energy to having the products, classes and know how ready for us before we even know that we need them. I am thankful for the many people who design new rulers and techniques to make our quilting projects easier and more interesting. I am thankful for a supportive husband who goes out of his way to help me find just the right fabric or the new quilting book or tool I "need". I am thankful for the new friends I have met thru quilting. Being Thankful for everything, is an added trait quilter's have, because they know that "pieces" go together to accomplish great things.  

I'm thankful for Grandma Koller who first put a needle in my hand when I was 5 years old and for all the relatives and Mom after that who encouraged me to sew, embroider, and those who tried to teach me to crochet. Eventually I learned basic knitting. When I taught myself quilting and historical costume, I'm so very thankful to all the experts at Kent State and University of Akron fashion museums who took my interest to heart and showed me their collections and how fashion and quilts were made in the 1860's. Being a Civil War re-enactor this knowledge was invaluable. I was able to write a small booklet for the beginner woman re-enactor as part of my course work in college. I'm so thankful for all the opportunities I've had over the years and the experience I've gained as a result of the opportunities. I'm very thankful that I've found QCA and for all the wonderful, friendly, helpful people on this site. Being disabled and a shut-in, it has helped having someone to open up to and to share experiences and my work with. It has been wonderful to see what other folks are doing too. I'm always looking for new ideas to incorporate into my work. It has also shown me patterns I want to avoid like the plaque! Most of all, I'm very thankful for God's grace that I'm still here on this side of the grass and can still enjoy life, quilting, and my granchildren. God's blessings to everyone! Give thanks.

The multiple websites and books that include forums such as qca, and the many books on techniques.  Why? It's simple I can find out anything I want to know by typing a question or looking into a book to find out how to do a pattern, technique, or design question I have. The answers are there and they are easy to find.

My grandmother for teaching me to sew a straight seam on her old treadle Singer machine. And for teaching me to pick out my mistakes and try again and again until it was right. We never quilted together - she wasn't a quilter because being a poor woman in the Depression, she made all her clothes and kept making clothes, but I learned my skills from her with a lot of love and patience on her part.

I'm grateful for all the books, videos and tutorials available.  

I would definitely NOT be a quilter if I had to use templates and cut out each individual piece with scissors.  I am grateful for rotary cutters and mats!

I am most grateful for my friends who are fellow quilters.  Quilters are kind and true blue!

The one thing in the quilting world I am most thankful for is the people.  Everyone who knows how to quilt on knows a certain technique is so willing to share and help you learn.  Quilters are such generous people--I don't think you could find any better.

QCA.  The members literally got me through the toughest year of my life.  They were there for me with their support, prayers,humor and friendship when I needed it the most.

Electric sewing machines! I can't imagine piecing and trhen quilting a queen size quilt by hand. Programmable/embroidery machines have created endless possibilities in the quilting world. I would be lost without mine.

The one thing I am most thankful for is not a thing. It is self esteem, that comes with the knowledge that I have the ablilty to make this beautiful heirloom, time and again. It is a God given talent that I thought I did not posess until I tried. I have a very low self esteem and when I go into that Quilting Studio, I come out a proud, stronger, happier person. And, it does not hurt, that I have the best mentor in the quilting world, Ira Jane Johnson. She is a quilt teacher, a wonderful person, and a dear, dear friend. Ira is such a gift to me, yet, we have never met or spoken on the phone.  That is the way of quilters.

I am thankful for all the inspiration that I get from quilters everywhere.  I am fairly new to quilting and I have always wanted to make a quilt .  I have made 3 small ones and I am hooked. Thanks everyone for inspiring me !

My answer to the question would be rotary cutters, rulers & mats!  I would never have cut out all the pieces of the quilts I have made.  Of course, the people are wonderful on this site, but even then I would not go to the trouble without the great tools!

My answer to the question would be rotary cutters, rulers & mats!  I would never have cut out all the pieces of the quilts I have made.  Of course, the people are wonderful on this site, but even then I would not go to the trouble without the great tools!

I have to agree on rotary cutters and mats!  Since becoming a quilter, I have a new admiration for our ancestors who cut out all those little pieces - with scissors using cardboard templates, pieced them all by hand, and hand quilted them.  They did this, not just for enjoyment, but to keep their families warm.  

While I totally agree that rotary cutters and mats are indispensable, I have to say I am MOST grateful for all the fabulous fabrics we have to choose from and be inspired by. I remember when there were NO quilters' cottons in the fabric stores.

I am thankful this year for my daughter learning that she is going to be having a baby.  What a wonderful blessing.  It also gives me the chance to design and make lots of baby stuff.  I feel like a kid again, in the store, shopping for fabric.  Pink for a girl... Thank you my lord....I feel so blessed...

I am so thankful for my quilting friends.  They are always there to help in whatever way possible.  They are willing to to give suggestions, fabric and just a cup of tea if that is what you need. Thanks all my quilting friends.

I would say of all the tools available to quilters today, I am most thankful for the rotary cutter.  When I started quilting it was templates and/or measuring and cutting out using regular scissors.  Rotary cutters are quicker and are an aid to accuracy.  I especially like my ergonomically designed cutter by Martelli.  

I am thankful for the wonderful new friends I made through our quilt ministry when I moved from my home of 45 years to a new state!

Friends and shared knowledge.  It connects us to our roots and bonds us together with a passion for life mixed in with a passion for quilts.

I am thankful that they came out with a rottery cutter that you could flip the blade to the other side  as I am left handed and  I never could cut good with a right handed blade.

I am thankful for the fact that we have such a large variety of fabric available to us over the internet.  It really expands our horizons and inspires us to create.

I am thankful for my local quilt shops, and all the help and knowledge I can acquire there! Not to mention all the lovely fabric and handy tools.

I am most thankful for the Plainville Senior Quilting group of ladies. We meet every Wenesday morning. We have a wonderfull teacher friend and helper Karen.  The mixture of talent and knowledge is so great. If you need help it is there. If you don't know how to do something or want to try a new technique someone is always willing and able to help. When you are ill or your circumstances does not allow you to attend you will always get a friendly phone call or a card to share their concerns and well wishes. We make a quilt that we all take part in and raffel it off at the Holiday Craft Fair.

Donna

I have to admit, though I love the blogs, the info from all the other quilters, the mat/ruler and rotary cutter, I am most thankful for my quarter inch foot on my sewing machine. Keeping me accurate, so that when it comes to piecing together, it will come together so much easier.

I am grateful for the quilting world as a whole.  Back in 2000, my mother passed away and I wanted to make my brother and sister and I quilts from my her blouses.  I found a woman who taught quilting in her home.  From there....    I found a passion.   I now have a room that I can hardly walk through because my fabric stash, 5 sewing machines and an embroidery machine!

I am so thankful for the internet which puts the tutorials and helpful instructions on quilting at my fingertips - literally. I don't personally know anyone else who has a passion for quilting so just being part of a larger community of quilters on sites such as QCA is such an inspiration and comfort. I have been quilting on and off for years, but have recently been able to direct more time and effort into this wonderful  pastime (or obsession as my husband calls it LOL)....

1.The Quilting blogs and websites :D

2.The Quilting tools and their manufactures :D

3.Awesome fabrics, Patterns and their designers :D

I was inspired by my mother-In-law who really got me interested in making quilts & My Grandson who incouraged me by ordering quilts for his bed. They are both gone now but I have seen such an improvement in the tools we now use, as the rotary cutter & cutting mats. Thank goodness there is affordable fabric to be gotten out there, to make all those quilts,  from those patterns I just have to try. I can't afford $10.00 plus that alot of people pay. I also appreciate haveing someone who wants & appreciates my quilts, & gives them a good loving home.   Thanks you all

In addition to the many things mentioned by others, i.e., rotary cutters, mats, patterns, etc., I am also thankful for the wonderful array of fabrics available to quilters today.  I am especially thankful that I was "bitten" by the quilt bug so that I can enjoy and participate in so many wonderful things.

Since I am new to quilting, I am most thankful for Detailed instructions, with pictures.

When I am alone in my sewing room, the detailed instructions with the pictures help me get through with what is difficult to me, but may not be to an Intermediate or Advanced quilter.

I am thankful for my sister-in-law instilling my appreciation of quilting; the teachers of the classes I have taken and the beauty of the finished products.  I just love being able to create projects that are appreciated by others.

The one thing I'm most grateful for in my quilting world is my online group. I found them quite by accident several years ago and in the years since I've met many at the biennial Jamborees (CT, WA, Canada last spring, Florida in 2013) and have had so much support from them in both my quilting and everyday life. We share laughs and accomplishments every day and some have come to be very close friends. We have running Incentive Games to keep us moving on Christmas projects, stash-busting projects and UFO completions. We swap ideas and suggestions...and fend off the Quilt Police at every opportunity! I wouldn't trade them for the world.

I am most thankful for the huge choice of fabrics we have today. When we compare the variety, availability, and yes, even the pricing, of what is available to us compared to some other countries, we see that we are rich, indeed. Our quilt shops work hard to offer us every possible color, style, and latest designs from many markets. We just know that each new season will offer more exciting new designs and designers to tempt us. (And we all know the thrill when we walk into a quilt shop and find a CLEARANCE SALE of today's fabrics so they can make room for new arrivals!) I don't think there is anything more inspiring to a quilter than seeing (OK--feeling!) a fabric that just pulls you in like a magnet. Doesn't you head just swim with ideas of ways you could use those beautiful colors and textures!?! A visit to a quilt shop is like a mini-vacation. The clock and the outside world stand still when you walk through the door.

When my 20 year old stepdaughter moved out, I took over the space as my sewing room.  It has a wonderful south facing window for light and a walk in closet for storage.  Gone are the days I had to use the dining room table and then clean it off when I made supper.  Now I have everything I need for the project in progress at the ready when I need it.  I have shelf storage for my stash so I can take advantage of sales, I have my two machines out at the ready to keep the projects going at all times and also when a mending need arises.  My two ironing spaces are always available if I need to press a clothing item before church, and of course for pressing fabrics and pieces as I go along or begin a new project.  My cutting table is at the perfect height for tireless strip cutting or the occasional clothing project.  I also have a TV, vcr and dvd corner for watching the game while I sew, or a movie that my husband would deem a "chick flick" and not have to listen to his complaints.  Photos of my family line the walls, and my sewing room is truly my haven.

I am also thankful for rotary cutters, mats, and all the notions available today for quilters.  I would have never tried, or even started to sew a quilt without these quilter tools!  I am also thankful for the quilt shop I go to, Quiltin Country, and the wonderful and helpful ladies that work there!  They are the best!

I think the friends I've made at Quilting events is what I am most thankful for. They keep you motivated, help when you get stuck on something, and are there to support you when you have a bad quilting experience. It's fun to go with friends to a quilt show and talk about the new products to discuss how they might use them. Get ideas for quilting projects and discuss which fabrics would be good with what quilt patterns. I really enjoy quilting but nothing connected with quilting would mean as much if it wasn't for the quilting friends I've made over the years.

I am very thankful for the skills to be able to create quilts that can be used for may years to come. My love and care adds to the legacy of generations of family quilters. I am thankful for the climate of quilts that has always been a part of my life and for the fabric, templates, quilting hoops, and sewing machine that I have inherited along the way.  

FABRIC!!!!!!! We have a never ending choice of wonderful fabrics. Without those fabrics there wouldn't be quilts.

The quilting world gave me a passion to enjoy in my retirement!

One word....Denise! She is my best friend and for years she would drag me to quilt stores or spread fabric all over my table or floor and plead, "Help me! I am sooooo color challenged."  And so it began, my quilting adventure.  I helped make color choices and ohed and ahed when her quilt was finished and was content with my limited participation.  Then one day in a quilt store I saw this pattern for a small Easter wall hanging quilt that had embroidery pieces with bunnies, perfect for my granddaughter.  I asked if she would quilt the squares when I was done with them.  She agreed knowing she was about to make a quilter out of me!  It was my first quilt but not my last!

I am thankful that my Mother taught me to sew at a young age. Making quilts was one of our learning tools. I have six sisters. Learning to sew was something we all did. I am thankful for rotary cutters and better templates than cardboard. My cardboard square was at least 1/4 inch different from the beginning to the end. Hard to match corners that way. So much time saved by using a rotary cutter, than tracing around a cardboard square and cutting with scissors! I still have my quilt that I made (nine patch) from learning to sew starting at age eight.

I used to make alot of clothes when my children were young and then had an apholstery shop.  Quilting is nothing like that.  Sure the basics are there, but the joy of seeing what you create is wonderful.  Taking a few pieces of material and making a picture is awesome.  My daughter got me started when I retired so I wouldn't get bored.  Boy, was she wrong!  I am so thankful for her and all the wonderful people I have met.  We have a wonderful quilt shop in the next town.  They are so helpful.  I lose all track of time when I get started. I am loving it!!

I am most thankful for the beautiful fabric available to us and for my husband who created my workspace by building me a cutting table. I am also thankful that I am retired and able to sew whenever I want to.

I am thankful for all the beautiful fabric available to us (have you ever stroked your fabric?). To my husband who helped me create a functional sewing room by building me a cutting table just like the one at the sewing class and to being retired so I can sew to my hearts content :)

I am most thankful for the beautiful fabric available to us today (have you ever stroked your fabric?) To my husband who helped me create a functional sewing room by building me a cutting table, just like the one at quilting class. I am also thankful that I am retired and able to sew to my hearts content :)

I am most thankful for the internet.  It makes quilt shops (supplies, fabric, patterns), teachers, and "quilty" friends available around the clock, no matter where home happens to be.  If I've had a long day at work, or just need a break on my lunch hour, everyone and everything is just a "click" away!

I am really greatful for the learning process.  I had made lots of mistakes as a beginning quilter, but have learned lots from them.  I appreciate my computer and the world that it brings to me.  All of the information is great out there.   LOVE IT !!!

Quilts are the anchor in my life I hold onto when life  throws storms, trials, and tribulations in this day and time.  I am so thankful for my precious grandmother Isabel who first introduced me to the wonders of quilt making when I was 5 years old. Ladies from the church would meet once a week at my grandmothers farm house to sew on quilts, basted to a quilt frame, that was attached to my grandmothers ceiling.  I would hide underneath the frame, playing with my dolls, waiting for my signal, watching as the beautiful quilt tops were stitched by work worn hands. My grandmother would push the needle down and when her fingers became tired, I would get the signal to push the needle up.  She would always tell me that I helped stitch these quilts for those of God's children who needed warmth and hugs.  What wonderful and loving memories that I am so thankful for.  

I had been a garment designer/seamstress for years and as much as I loved it  - a jacket is a jacket is a jacket, etc...and I could go straight on down the line as far as garments are concerned. They're all basically the same construction with slight variations. And then my BFF talked me into trying quilting - oh, the joy of it! Every time I think - "well, I've learned all I can", someone comes up with a new design; a new block; or a new way of doing things. It's wonderful and best of all, NEVER NEVER BORING!

I am thankful for the online inspiration that I can get on a daily basis.

I'll be forever thankful for the expert advice and help from the members of the Chambersburg ( Pa. )Quilt Guild for their seemingly tireless efforts to help others AND I must add my dear mother (deceased ) who insisted I use a thimble ! ( I'm a hand quilter )

I am thankful for learning to quilt.  It is the most rewarding and relaxing pastime that I do.  Also the wonderful information I receive from the internet and all of the wonderful teachers at the quilt shops.  They all take all the time I need to learn to do everything the right and easiest way.  I wish I would have started many years ago.  I am now 71 and am afraid I won't have enough time to do everything that I want to try.

Because there are not as many quilting bees now days where women gather to exchange ideas, techniques, experiences, patterns and gossip, I am most thankful for the Local Quilt Shops.  Not only do these shops have fantastic fabrics, they offer patterns, tools, ideas, kits, classes and friendship.  I KNOW my local quilt shop (Cotton Cupboard) is great but I have also discovered through shop hops that there are many shops with knowledgeable and friendly owners and employees.

I'm thankful that quilters are so eager to share - patterns, fabric, ideas, charity, and inspiration.  I have never met a quilter that didn't have something to share, and was eager to do so.  Life is good.

I'm thankful that there's always space in the sewing room for one more fat quarter! Gotta luv 'em!

i am thankful for my friend m davis who convinced me i can quilt.

I love my rotary cutter.  I can't imagine life without it.

I am most thankful for rotary cutters- I just can't cut a straight line with sizzors to save my soul!!

I am so thankful for the inventor of the walking foot.  I adore quilting with flannels, and this foot enables me to work with these fabrics as if they were cotton - no stretching, no uneven edges.  Now I've ordered a new walking foot with interchangeable quilting feet for piecing, stitching in the ditch and finishing appliques.  I'm in heaven!

I'm so thankful for the friendships I've made at our Monday sewing group.  These ladies are the best, and I can't imagine sewing without them.

I can't imagine trying to make a quilt without rotory cutters and rulers, so I'm deeply grateful for those great minds that thought up those two ideas.

I am most grateful for the color!!! Just think how bland tv was when only in black and white. I give thanks every day for the color in my life, and quilting just a great way to express that.

I am very grateful for the TOOLS we have now.  Rotary cutter/mat is somehow essential and can't think of going back to the old tools.  My Dad made things to help Mom with her quilting like a block of wood with sandpaper on the bottom to hold the fabric while cutting with a case knife.  So much better now!

If I had to pick one, it would be the rotary cutter/mat set (OK, I know it's really 2 things, so how about 'tools').    It's been chosen before, but as I get older, I could never cut by hand like I did when I first began this journey.  If I get a second choice, it would be the friends I"ve made - the greatest group of people ever.

The one thing I am most grateful for is my mother who patiently taught / teaches me to make quilts. She has recounted stories about the long line of quilters in my family, and the personal touch that each brought to their quilts. It makes quilting "real" for me.

The International Quilt Show in Houston, TX - time spent in beautiful surroundings (quilts, vendors and people from all over the world).   And never 'was heard a discouraging word' truly an inspiring, informative, and enjoyable time.

The International Quilt Show in Houston, TX - time spent in beautiful surroundings (quilts, vendors and people from all over the world).   And never 'was heard a discouraging word' truly an inspiring, informative, and enjoyable time.

I am most grateful for the rotary cutters, ruler and mats.  Having sewed for 40+ years and having to cut everything with a scissors they are truly  a blessing

I am very thankful for my husband!  He is very supportive of my quilting and sewing.  When he goes to auctions, he is always looking for quilts for me.  One time he bought 3 antique quilt tops that were in the bottom of a box for $12!  They were beautiful!  He has also helped me purchase a long arm quilting machine.  For Christmas last year he got me an embroidery machine.  He's a great guy!

I truly enjoy the Quilt Expo's. They offer so much inspiration, give me a chance to meet and be instructed by very talented and often funny teachers, plus give me opportunites to see and try new tools or techniquesallowing me to see if I really want to invest time and resources in the product.

Also the visual impact of seeing so many fabrics in one place is exciting.

I am most thankful for quilting magazines, because without them i may have never gotten bitten by the quilting bug. I would see these magazines with these beautiful quilts on them and so i bought a couple of them and found some wonderful quilts i just had to try, problem was i wasn't much into sewing. I tried as a young girl to sew dresses and clothing items, but the machine my mom had when i was a teenager didn't work very well. The tension was always messing up and she had it fixed numerous times but it wasn't much use. We didn't have much money for a new sewing machine back then and i just got frustrated and never tried to sew again.

With the yearning to make such beautiful quilts i decided i would borrow a machine from someone and take a couple quilting classes and a regular sewing class to get reaquainted with the machine. I took a basic quilting class and with the use of the magazines i purchased i taught myself the rest. I have been quilting for about 10 yrs now, with my own machine i purchased. I am now 51, and wished i would have learned quilting yrs ago. I am now a fabriholic and quilt magazine addicted. LOL! Love all the wonderful things the quilting community is doing. Thank everyone for my addiction to quilting.

Betty

I am most grateful for fellow quilters. it's fun to compare stories and and great to have a different perspective on the same project. Thanks so much.

I am most thankful for all the camaraderie that goes on with my fellow quilters and seamstresses.  I belong to four groups, and each is unique in it's own way.  We help each other over rough spots, we share the talents God has given us, we laugh, we cry, we commiserate with each other, and we really enjoy each other's company.  This gives me more inspiration than  I have time to create.  

I am most thankful for all the camaraderie that goes on with my fellow quilters and seamstresses.  I belong to four groups, and each is unique in it's own way.  We help each other over rough spots, we share the talents God has given us, we laugh, we cry, we commiserate with each other, and we really enjoy each other's company.  This gives me more inspiration than  I have time to create.  

I am most thankful for all the comaraderie that goes on within the four groups of which I am a member.  We share ideas, problems, successes, failures, fabric, ideas, patterns.  Each of the groups is uni

I am thankful for every moment that I am able to quilt.  Because of MS and other cronic heath issues, there are times when ordinary tasks are a challenge.  That is why I treasure every moment I am symptom free and can engage in activities I love, like quilting.  I am also thankful for all of you out there comtributing to internet quilting sites, blogs, videos, etc. because you all help keep me connected to the quilting world when I am unable to leave my home.  But most of all, I am thankful for my husband who does everything he can to make my life easier, from doing the housework so I can spend my good moments quilting, to pushing me around quilt shops trying to find the perfect fabric.  I know I have listed more than one thing to be thankful for; but this contest has made me realize how many wonderful people, tools, resourses, etc. there are in the world of quilting.  I am one very lucky quilter!

I am thankful for meeting sooo many gifted people who are willing to teach and share their knowledge and themselves with other quilters.  I am thankful that companies are always innovating new tools and ideas to keep the spirit of quilting alive and encourage quilters to try new things (and maybe go back to old things with a new perspective.)  I am also thankful for the many contests provided to us by various companies so one of us will win something they may not be able to afford.  Keep quilting alive and never let it be a dying art!

I am thankful to God for the ability to create works of usable art and for the time to relax as I create.  I'm also very thankful for my husband who encourages me and takes interest in quilting, too.  I'm thankful that I can share the quilts I make with others by giving them as gifts.

I'm thankful for the quilting community that invites the novice and/or stranger into the world of friendship and creative energy. Add the 1/4" foot and that huge smile is mine!!

I am thankful for the friends I have made and who asked me to join their quilting group. I have learned so much and been so encouraged to spread my wings. Ginny sold me a Singer machine and helps me keep it going and Leslie is the first person to get me going and tell me I could do a I spy quilt and the story started there. Thousands of blocks later I am still trying to finish all the quilts I want to make.

I am so grateful for the Olfa quilt mats.  Without the lines to tell me how to cut things straight by making sure my ruler is where it should be I would not be able to do anything.  The mats also help save my furniture & I don't have to worry about damaging anything when using my rotary cutter.

I guess I'd have to say my mom. I was always afraid to try quilting. But, with the encouragement and support  from mom I gave it a try. I am so thankful for mom's loving nudges. I now have been quilting since March 2011 and love everything about it.

ACCUQUILT GO CUTTER IS A AWESOME TOOL, IT REALLY SPEEDS UP THE CUTTING PROCESS & IS PRECISE SO QUILT TOP COME OUT REALLY BEAUTIFUL.

I'm thankful for my great-grandmothers who were wonderful quilters and have inspired me to give quilting a try and my Mom who let me try out her sewing machine when I was small.  I'm also thankful for the wonderful friends I've made through quilting and QCA for the resources it makes available.

I'm so thankful for all the wonderful close friends I've made after my entry into the quilting world.  I don't know what I'd do without these women in my life.  We have laughed together, cried together, and formed a strong bond that has carried us together through the different stages of life.  

I am thankful for Leslie, my muse, who encouraged me to start quilting with making an I spy quilt and to Ginny that sold me my little singer and helps me to keep it running and the crazy eights group that has helped me grow so much and learn more about color. They have saved my mental health.

I am thankful for all the beautiful fabric, quilting tools, and all the advancements in sewing machines.

I have been sewing for about 60 years, but for years it was clothes for my daughters or me.  I started quilting about 20 years ago and it is something I really enjoy.  This past couple of weeks I found out how much, my little Maltese that I have had for almost 16 years died and the void is hard to fill but quilting definitely helps.  

I am thankful for my husband who just got me a new sewing machine even though I know he doesn't really get why I needed another one.

I'm thankful for all the considerate people who spend time and resources doing sewing projects for the less fortunate and good charitable causes.

I'm most thankful for the rotary cutter and the mat and rules that go along with it.  I remenber learning quilting from my Grandma Zander and we would spend hours tracing around cardboard temples make from ceral boxes. And then trying to cut every piece out by hand with a scissors.  Boy, try cutting a straight line was something else!  But surpriseingly it all fit together when we sewed.

Quilting is what I am most thankful for. It is a great way to relax and in this fast paced world who doesn't need this.  It brings out artistic ability in everyone when you choose the colors and fabrics to match the pattern.  Days go really fast when quilting, all of a sudden your husband is home and you don't have supper made. Oops!  Give something quilted as a gift, watch their face and you will know that it was a good gift.  And the friendships you make are priceless.

I am thankful for all the free online tools (patterns, how to videos, tips and techniques). If it were not for these I would not have had an opportunity to learn how to quilt at my own pace and learning ability.

Thanks.

I took care of my sister when she was dieing from Lou Gerhrig's disease.  At one point she was unable to lift her hand to brush the hair from her face.  But she taught me how to live and die with grace. The thing that I am most grateful for is the fact that I can quilt. I can pick up my scissors, I can thread a needle, and I can sew a seam.  Quilting brings me peace and comfort and I am grateful to have the physical and mental capacity to do it. Sometimes it takes a loss to figure out just how blessed we really are.

I am thankful for glorious yards of fabric and those that have created colors and designs on yardage from the beginning of time, thus enabling generations of quilters to hone their craft of cutting and piecing the dyed fabric bits back together, and creating masterpieces as well as durable art for everyday use.  

Where to begin?? I am thankful first of all for the connection I have with my quilting daughter who really got me into quilting...I am thankful for all the friends I have made since getting into this fantastic world of fiber..I am thankful for the chance to express my creativity...I have gone more into the art world of quilting...and last but not least, I am thankful for my husband who is just about my biggest fan and encourager (is that a word?!?).

Where to begin?? I am thankful first of all for the connection I have with my quilting daughter who really got me into quilting...I am thankful for all the friends I have made since getting into this fantastic world of fiber..I am thankful for the chance to express my creativity...I have gone more into the art world of quilting...and last but not least, I am thankful for my husband who is just about my biggest fan and encourager (is that a word?!?).

It's hard to limit it to one, but since I love my sewing machines, I guess it would have to be the sewing machine.

I'm more grateful for my hands because with all the helps we can buy , we can't use them without our hands.

I thank God for His patience with me as I try to do His work - making quilts that shine, working the thread through each moment of my life, bringing joy to others through the quilts I make.

I'm most thankful for my special friend Gail.  We've moved more than 1,000 miles from each other and we still share our love of quilting and our special friendship by making quilts for each other.  On my birthday I received a package with a friendship quilt.  It was the most amazing gift I've ever received.  Her special holiday is Halloween so I wanted to surpise her with a special quilt on Halloween.

Gail has been a friend for more than 20 years and is always there, no matter the distance that separates us.  Our children grew up together, we survived Scouts together and crafted for years.  Know that this special person is always there, no matter the distance, and the quilts are just gentle reminders that we are with each other and there for each other daily.  GOD BLESS QUILTING for that.

Although I love my 60mm rotary cutter and all the selection of rulers as well as the wonderful fabrics I have that make my quilting journey easier, I think the most important thing I am thankful for are the quilters I have met.  Whether here on QCA, or formerly on Quilts Your Way, or my former local quilt group before I moved to the Valley, the ladies have been a huge part of the journey.  They are always helpful, and go out of their way to do what they can to encourage one to do their best. Whether it is a quilting problem or a twist in the road of life, they are always there to help me out.  So quilting friends are the best.

I'm thankful for the many members of out quilt guild who have helped me get into quilting.

Wow, to choose just one "thing" is awesome. I think that the Quilt shows that various guilds sponsor give so much inspiration - that is actually how I got started quilting. I walked into a show, saw landscape and portrait quilts and said "I want to do that." Thanks for all the work and dedication, folks!

Also, the amazing ladies that I have met on the quilting path have really given me a sacred gift of love, knowledge, and friendship, so that intangible "thing" called fellowship. Quilters are the nicest,most generous folks in the world!

I am most thankful for my wonderful mother who taught me to sew.  She left this world a couple years ago after a courageous battle with ovarian cancer but her love of beauty and creativity will always be a legacy.

I am very thankful for my quilt guild.  I have been a member of PALS (Patchers at the Lakeshore) in Muskegon, MI. for the past 8 or so years.  I have met wonderful quilting people.  Our group has grown to 235 members over the last 25 years.  We have had many national and inter-national quilters come and teach classes and share their quilts with us.  ( THank you, Kaye England, for showing me the small parts of blocks are just squares and triangles. I look at patterns totally different now) Our retreats are an absolute blast.  I love being on the board as a marketing specialist with my buddy, Jan.  We've also gone on quilting hunts and bus trips.  This group has changed my life!!!

I am very thankful for my quilt guild.  I have been a member of PALS (Patchers at the Lakeshore) in Muskegon, MI. for the past 8 or so years.  I have met wonderful quilting people.  Our group has grown to 235 members over the last 25 years.  We have had many national and inter-national quilters come and teach classes and share their quilts with us.  ( THank you, Kaye England, for showing me the small parts of blocks are just squares and triangles. I look at patterns totally different now) Our retreats are an absolute blast.  I love being on the board as a marketing specialist with my buddy, Jan.  We've also gone on quilting hunts and bus trips.  This group has changed my life!!!

I am most thankful for my quilting buddies.  They have taught me many things and have encouraged me to experiment with colors, materials, design and technique.

In the quilting world, I find myself thankful for the internet.  No matter what time of day or night, if I have a question about how to do something that I'm struggling with, I can get on-line and find the answer.  It's also great to be able to find that perfect, good quality fabric on-line when the local fabric shops don't have what you want.  And how great is it to see the creativity, beauty, and purpose with which quilts are made by people posting pics of their creations?!!

The internet - and it's profound, positive affect on quilting.  For the teachers ("pros, intermediates, newbies, and long-timers), makers of fabric, and anyone else that is willing to post videos, patterns and anything else that makes it so easy for a novice like me to jump in, get started..... and find someone or something, ie: instruction video to get me headed in the right directed when I get stuck.  

There are many things to be thankful for.  The first thing I am thankful for are my quilting friends.  We are able to bounce ideas off of each other.  Everyone is willing to show and demonstrate new techniques.  There is never a silly question.

 I am also thankful for the different types of fabrics-colors, designs and textures.  There is always a way to use the fabrics.

Rotary cuatters.  Definitely!   I started quilting in the early 1970's and we were using scissors and cardboard templates back in "them thar days."  Rotary cutters---oooooh yeah!  Make it so much easier.

I'm thankful for the wide variety of patterns available on the internet.  I love to surf and find free or cheaper costs for downloadable patterns. I'm more likely to revisit blogs and websites if they offer freebies or tutorials, or downloadables.  Its a must for those of us that live in rural areas and can't just hop down to the nearest quilt shop.

I am thankful for all of the "ties that bind". I have always been familiar with a needle and thread, started on on old floor model sewing machine. Quilting has become one of my new loves.  I treasure the fact that I have my Grandmothers and my Great grandmothers hand made quilts (stuffed with cotton from their fields).  These hold such wonderful memories for me and I would be honored if the ones I make today will be just as special to someone else so that all of those knots I tie will continue to bind us all together.

I am thankful for many things...friends, fabric, my studio....but one thing on my machine I dearly love and am thankful for is the knee lift for the needle...it is like having three hands!!  

I am thankful for my good friend Wendy.  During my divorce six years ago, she invited me over to sew.  We would sew crafts and odds and ends. She helped me get through a difficult time in my life. This past summer, she came to visit me from Virginia for the summer.  She taught me to make my first quilt. She had me pick out six fat quarters and showed me how to make the most beautiful quilt for my new granddaughter. I have been hooked every since.  I have always been a fabric hoarder (thanks to my two grandmothers), but now I have something to use them on.  Thank you to my grandmothers who taught me to sew and to my friend Wendy for teaching me the love of quilting.

Holly

My sewing machine.

I'm most thankful for the internet - for those of us who don't live near quilt shops, we need online quilt shops to feed our habit! LOL!

My Mom, Elaine Battenfield.  She taught me to quilt and to enjoy life.  I lost her to leukemia 5 years ago but I think of her every time I pick up my sewing.  I want to make the same positive impact on other young quilters as she made on me.

Just one thing?!!  It would have to be the quilting community, be it online, local quilting guilds, local quilt shops or quilting friends.  If I could name something else, it would be all the wonderful tools to make cutting out pieces for a quilt easier.

What one thing in the quilting world am I most thankful for? I am most thankful for a loving wonderful grandmother who taught me how to work her treadle sewing machine, and how to stretch a quilt on cherrywood quilting frames. I still have those frames. She would be amazed at all the gadgets and gizmos now that make quilting easier and fun. My grandmother and her treadle machine are my most joyous memories and, without her, I wouldn't have the love of quilting that I do.

When I was a young mother there was a store near by that sold fabric samples from a clothes factory.  They often had permenant markings on part of them.  They were cheap and all I could afford to make clothing for my kids.  Over the years they have evolved into a store that sells discontinued fabrics, at a fair price.  They go by the name of FM store, which originally meant Farmers Market.  I have been so thankful for them for over 30 years for providing me, and the area, an outlet for making our sewing dreams come true.

I am so thankful for wonderfully patient instructors. I don't know how many times I have cut or sewn my fabric wrong and had an instructor catch the error and spend extra time making sure I understood what she was teaching me. Without them I wouldn't be quilting today.

The one think I'm most grateful for is being a part of a wonderfully giving community who share ideas, help each other and are always ready to offer aid to beginners.  Thanks to all of you!

I began quilting before I knew less than nothing.  But, my husband's youngest daughter was pregnant. Living so far from a fabric shop in the 1980's, I had to search very hard to find bright and joyous colors I wanted to use in that thing I called a quilt.  It was truly difficult to find the bright greens and swatches of yellow that I needed.  Today I must say that the brights are available when I go searching and now I fear that they are so available I'm surrounded with an overload of plastic boxes of brilliant color.  

I began quilting before I knew less than nothing.  But, my husband's youngest daughter was pregnant. Living so far from a fabric shop in the 1980's, I had to search very hard to find bright and joyous colors I wanted to use in that thing I called a quilt.  It was truly difficult to find the bright greens and swatches of yellow that I needed.  Today I must say that the brights are available when I go searching and now I fear that they are so available I'm surrounded with an overload of plastic boxes of brilliant color.  

I am very thankful for all the wonderful people I have met over the years, each has been a teacher in their own way.  The skills one builds over the years is great and each seems to lead to another.  These make quilting easier as you gain more confidence.  Thank you all for what you give us each time we receive your emails.  Thank you.

I'm thankful for the wonderful staff at Country Sewing Center in Elk Grove, CA. They were not "pushy" when I went to buy a new machine. I was still using the 1970's Singer I got when I first started teaching. The instructors and classes are wonderful. I've made so many wonderful friends in the Strip Club classes

P.S. On Mon. we adopted a Doberman Rescue pup and I took him down to meet everyone this afternoon.

I do not have the time or the patience to hand quilt my quilts...therefore, I am most thankful for my Baby Lock sewing machine!!!

In the quilting world I am most thankful for my mom.

Even though she is no longer with me, the things she taught me and the quilts she made me are.

I miss you mom

I am thankful for the little bit of snippets of time that I can sit down, relax, put the music on and quilt and sew.  Without my sewing machine and wonderful fabrics although none of this could happen.  

I am most thankful for the invention of the rotary cutter.  It sure has made life and quilting so much easier.

In the quilting world I am most thankful for all the great friends I have met while attending quilting classes.  Having moved to a new area, sewing and quilting have been my connection to acquire new friends.  We have such a great time sharing a love of the same craft.  Most of the nicest people I know are sewers and quilters and I believe it is because these are  activities that bring us all a sense of accomplishment, good friends and happiness in the performance.  In addition I have begun to share quilting and sewing with my granddaughter and am therefore thankful I have a craft we can do together.  I believe this creates a bond of love from generation to generation.

It is so very hard to say there is just one thing that I am so thankful for.  So many tools make quilting easier. But being fairly new at it, the most helpful item has been the amazing resource of the internet and great people that have shared their knowledge through tutorials on the web. It is so very helpful to be able to see those over and over if needed!

I was pretty apprehensive about starting quilting again, but a dear friend encouraged me.

I'm so greatful for a wonderful quilt shop owner that gave me the confidence to quilt again.  Going to her shop gave me such a feeling of peace and achievement.  I'll have a skill for the rest of my life.

thanks, Marie

I am grateful for Glenda, the leader over our Christian book club, who got several of us started with quilting in the spring of 2011. Quilting was always something I wanted to try but never had the opportunity. I am also grateful to Youtube.com. Because of the many how to videos that pertained to quilting, I was made aware of ,and given the courage to do more than piece quilt tops. Tonight, 5 months after beginning my quilt journey, I just finished free motion quilting my friendship quilt. Once I bind it will be my 5th quilt (4 of them throw size) that I've pieced, quilted, and added binding.

Quilt has become a way of reducing stress and I love it.

Most definitely, the rotary cutter. It has completely changed quilting. If I had to cut everything with scissors, there's no way I would be a quilter!!

This is a trick question.  There are so many things to be thankful for in the quilting world.  I love the whole process of learning new techniques at my local quilt shop, here on QCA and other websites that provide a mulitude of information.  I can't pick out just one quilting notion because all of them are all special to me.  I am grateful that my grandmother quilted and have those memories of watching and even allowed to help stitch at her quilting frame.  I didn't start quilting until I found out I was a "Granny-to-Be".  I have already started sharing my quilting passion with my grand-baby girl.  She is now 5 years old and I have made her several quilts.  We look through the Fons & Porter Love of Quilting and Easy Quilts and she will oooohhh and aaaahhhhh at a lot of the quilts and I have to promise to make her each one she likes.  Looks like that little rascal is going to have a ton of quilts!!!!  I am so glad I caught the quilting bug and we all know there is now cure in sight!!!  

I am most thanful for the wonderful people;people I know and quilt with; people I have never met and most likely never will but who are so wonderful about sharing their love of quilting and knowledge and tips.  The quilt designs, history and fabric are all things that are wonderful and I am thankful for them bu without the people who love them and share so willinglly they would be empty tools. We in the quilting sisterhood are a rare special breed who love each other and want to teach this wonderful hobby with everyone we meet. God Bless each and every one of you. These people are the charity quilters who see a need a make a quilt be it for a veteran, a homeless child or a burned out family they are always giving and I am so thankfull to know them and belong to them.

I am thankful for my mother-in-law who is now gone, I never knew how to quilt so she took the time and patience to teach me. I am originally from California and now live here in Oklahoma for over 27 years. She was the best mother in law anyone could have and she was a awesome quilter. I have won 1st and 2nd place at the county fair for my quilts and what better thing to hand down to someone to teach them how to quilt.

I am most thankful for rotary cutters which allow precision when cutting and so for much better quilts.  The very first quilt I made was so very bad, in part because it was done without a rotary cutter, and the blocks were not of a consistent size!

I am most grateful for the sisterhood of quilters who are always so open to sharing their support and knowledge of quilting and ideas. Quilters everywhere have such a love of humanity and such loving spirits. We stitch such love into every quilt that I am sure it is felt by the person who wraps it around them. Quilts made with hugs and stitches.

My Sister; While spending 3weeks in hospital with a nervous break down, my Sister told me to take up quilting and I have not looked back. I now belong to 2 groups of ladies and could not be happier.

I would have to say the rotary cutter and mat.  I can not imagine trying to do quiltmaking without them!

I'm most thankful for my mom who taught me to embroider and crochet when I was five.  She let me use her treadle sewing machine when I was six with the proviso that I would never tell Nana if I sewed my finger.  I'm also thankful for Nana who gave me my first bag of scraps to sew  clothes for my dolls when I was five.  Forty-five years ago, I watched Nana who was mostly blind from macular degeneration sew a quilt for my newborn son.  Nana is gone, but the quilt is still here and in excellent condition.  Mom is 93 and almost totally blind, however she takes interest in anything I make.

The rotary cutter is what I'm most grateful for. It makes cutting fabric so much easier. Of course, all of the convenient rulers go along with it. I can't imagine cutting without my rotary cutter now. I can remember the first time I used it, though. I was terrified to make that first cut. It's amazing how things change with time and experience. Thanks for asking this question and bringing back some good memories.

i would have to say the automatic threader on my new sewing machine. my eyesight is not what it use to be. i would get frustrated trying to thread the needle and sometimes just give up and something else. now i have no problem threading the needle, and sew almost daily. love it.

As a new quilter I am most thankful for the internet.  Most of the items that you need or desire can be purchased, but the knowledge shared by quilters willing to help others cannot be bought.  The internet has made it possible for people like me to share in this knowledge and to be thankful to those thousands of quilters willing to share their knowledge.

When I started I thought I would be most grateful for having an opportunity to be creative.  It's turned out that what I am most grateful for are the friends I've made.  They are now my biggest support group and I find I'm not much interested in spending time with non-quilters.

I am most thankful for all of the wonderful friends I have made through quilting.  I just began quilting a few years ago and I have been sewing for 50 years.  I also love the way I can be proud of my work.  I was never particularly creative, but now I feel I can truly create something beautiful.  I am also thankful for my local quilt shop and all of the wonderful help they offer and the beautiful fabric and notions.  ( I am a notions junky! - LOL )

As a new retiree, I am now able to do the sewing and quilting I have always loved and I am thankful for all the ways I can use this to be a blessing through organizations like Linus, Quilts for Kids, etc.  It is great to know that quilters are a caring bunch of people.  

There are so many things to be thankful for when it comes to quilting however I have to say the gifts I received from both sides of my family - creativity from my father's side and the treddle machine from my mother's side - were the combination which made it all possible for me.  

I am thankful for our founding Mothers and Sisters that took every scrap they had to make a quilt to keep their families warm.  Their dedication to passing on patterns and taking one stitch at a time.  I love the history behind our quilts.  

I am thankful that my daughter Mary enjoys quilting! She has been quilting since she was 11( now 24). Mary has a wonderful eye for color, just like her Dad. I use her advice when doing my work. It gave us a common ground during those 'teen' years and now we enjoy getaway weekends with other friends and guild groups.

I am thankful that my daughter Mary enjoys quilting! She has been quilting since she was 11( now 24). Mary has a wonderful eye for color, just like her Dad. I use her advice when doing my work. It gave us a common ground during those 'teen' years and now we enjoy getaway weekends with other friends and guild groups.

I am most thankful for God, who gives me life and all the wonderful family and friends He has put into my life.

I am most thankful for all the new friends I have made because I am a quilter and a person who has sewn most of her life thanks to her mother.  I feel so fortunate to be able to make something that so many people can enjoy and my quilting group is always making quilts that we can donate to people you are going through cancer treatments.  They are always so grateful and it really touches them that someone cares enough to give something that is made by so many people.

I am grateful for all quilters. Those who have gone before me who have left a legacy of quilts, patterns and tools. Those who are here now for companionship and learning. But most importantly, those who are of the future who when encountering their first quilt rise to the occasion and exclaim " I want to make one of those".  After all, someone is going to inherit all our stashes.  Amen!

Hmmm, Let's See...

1) The inventor of the sewing machine because I'd be darned if I could sit & do it all by hand!

2) My grandmother for inspiring a love of quilts.

3) Rotary cutters & mats!

and

4) Eleanor Burns & her beautifully simple teaching methods - This more than anything else inspired me to actually begin and gave me the confidence to continue.

Thankful I have the opportunity to make quilts for my family, including my husband and me.  With such a wide variety and access to wonderful product, there is not a style I can't make to match each person.  No quilts are alike and makes for lifetime memories for the recipient and future holders of the quilts.

While there are so many things to be thankful for (I mean all those tools we have available) and especially quilting friends who challenge us to move on and be a better quilter, what/who I'm MOST thankful for is my husband.  He takes an active interest, is always willing to give an opinion on fabric and make suggestions.  He KNOWS how much difference quilting makes in my life and was the first to notice that it calms my spirit more than anything else I have enjoyed.  When I'm down & stressed with the stresses of life that overtake my time, he's the one who says drop everything else & make time for your quilting.  When our finances prohibit spending, he's right there to help me change quilt plans so that we can make the "stash"/scraps work and/or find a way to eek quilt money out of the budget.  If it were not for him, all the other quilt blessings would be useless, because I would not really be able to get to the quilting.

I am thankful that I live in a world where the most talented designers and fabric manufactures can give us the most beautiful fabrics so we can rotary cut and reassemble these fabrics into comforting quilts to share with our families and friends.

I'm thankful for my native american Grandmother for her patience and loving teaching. She told many stories as she taught me to do handwork and quilting. I was presented her last quilt blocks just after her passing and they have given me many wonderful memories and have kept me inspired in my quilting.

I am thankful for all those who paved the way for us. Our mothers and grandmothers whose nible fingers stitched by hand and prayed for us. I am thankful for everyone in the quilting community who is willing to share and teach so that we can become better at our craft. I am very thankful for rotary cutters, rulers and mats. I have hand cut a double size quilt, and swore that I would never quilt again.

I'm thankful for my husband. He never complains no matter how many hours I spend in my sewing room creating.

I am truly blessed to have the talent of quilting and to be able to share that talent with cancer patients.  With the talent of my two best friends, Pepper and Margaret, we started making quilts for cancer patients for St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, CA.  Our meager website: www.apatoflovequilts.org has launched us into making quilts for people around the world.  We are all so thankful for being able to make a difference in the life of someone ill and comfort them with love and prayers through one of our quilts.  I am thankful for being able to put a smile on a cancer patient or fill their heart with warmth.

I am so thankful for my darling husband. We were traveling through the beautiful Amish country in 1998 when I became interested in buying a quilt for the first time. He looked at me and said that I came with a do-it-yourself kit. He told me right then and there that I was able to learn and to make my own quilt that would be much more precious to both of us. I took lessons, bought fabric, bought tools, bought better machine over the following years and have completed over 100 quilts of all different sizes. I have entered quilt shows and won ribbons for my work. I am also a quilting teacher now. All of this is possible due to my darling husband whom I am so thankful for in my quilting world.

I am so thankful for my darling husband. We were traveling through the beautiful Amish country in 1998 when I became interested in buying a quilt for the first time. He looked at me and said that I came with a do-it-yourself kit. He told me right then and there that I was able to learn and to make my own quilt that would be much more precious to both of us. I took lessons, bought fabric, bought tools, bought better machine over the following years and have completed over 100 quilts of all different sizes. I have entered quilt shows and won ribbons for my work. I am also a quilting teacher now. All of this is possible due to my darling husband whom I am so thankful for in my quilting world.

I am most Thankful for my God given abilities to be creative, thrifty, and willing to share/teach from my vast array of interests!

My Great-Grandma Miller was a wonderful lady and great quilter. I am thankful for her gift if sharing.

I am so very thankful to my family members who have been avid quilters for as long as I can remember, especially my Mom and Grandmother who have gifted me with a lot of their patterns and templates from long ago.

I am so very thankful to my family members who have been avid quilters for as long as I can remember, especially my Mom and Grandmother who have gifted me with a lot of their patterns and templates from long ago.

The wonderful lady, now a friend, who gave me all her scrap material to enable me to begin my adventure with quilting.  Had it not been for her, I would not have had the resources to start out on my quilting journey.  She also held my hand in the beginning to show me exactly how to finish a quilt.  Thank you Pat.

I am thankful to God, and my generations of relatives who gave me a special give.   What talent I was given to be creative and love the ups and downs of creating a project is a blessing.  When you see the end results of the challenge you over came, your world is renewed and on to the next project.  Hours in the sewing room are like minutes of love.  This love that I have, I spread around to all my family and friends and hope they enjoy the give of creativity as much as I love the gift I was given.

Thanks Cathy

I am most thankful to the person who invented the rotary cutter and mat.  I would not be as prolific a quilter if I had to hand mark and cut all those pieces.  The rotary cutter also brought us strip-quilting - wow!  I think that is why I am a quilter!

I am most thankful for my quilting friends.  We laugh together, sometimes cry together, and support each other in life as well as in quilting.

I am very grateful for the internet.  Tips, Classes,  Shopping, Patterns and all the wonderful people I have met would not be possible without the internet.

Rotary cutters.

I'm thankful for being able to create things from all the beautiful fabrics.  

I started sewing when I was Nine years old.  I have used many tools and patterns ever since.  There is always new tools and patterns every year.  The one thing I am thankful for is Rotary Cutters available to improve the accurate cutting of material.  Actually I could mention many things such as the rulers and templates available.  

My answer would be books and magazines. They not only teach me how to quilt but show me so many different kinds and color combinations that I would never think of on my own.

I would have to say it is the Quilters themselves. I moved from the Puget Sound area where I was born and raised to Portland,Oregon a few years ago and knew noone. I looked up quilting online and found a few sites where other quilters blogged and before I knew it I was "Part of the Gang". We have gone on a few "retreats" and I have met people that I will now know for years to come.They are the most generous and helpful people. They made me feel like I had known them for years. Now It is not so lonely here in Portland. =-D

I am thankful for discovery. Fifteen years ago I was injured at work, and I now have  permanent spine damage. I am able to sit but have to be careful of how long and what kind of chair. In the early years of my injury i started making my clothes again, one day I discovered that I was buy beautiful fabrics that just were just not for clothes. they were meant to be cut up and pieced back together with other fabrics. I had watched my foremothers quilt but had not made one myself. SO, I bought a few[?] books with patterns, looked at the patterns and started in. I still DISCOVER many things in my sewing room, beautiful fabrics that can work together, a different way to sew the fabrics together, easier ways to make mistakes look like they were meant to be that way, and I DISCOVERED PEACE OF MIND AND SOUL. I get to forget that I am disabled, because of this wonderful thing called DISCOVERY, I am making new friends when I can't get out and this old dog is discovering new tricks from a great group of new sisters.  

I am most thankful for my quilt guild members. Each and every one is so willing to share their expertise with me and help me when I need advice. I just started quilting a few years ago and would not have finished that first project without their help. They gave me the little push I needed to continue to quilt. I'm beginning to believe "I, too, can quilt"

I learned to sew by following a dress pattern when I was in College and have always done sewing to the point of making my own patterns. when my grandmother came to live with me in 1967 I knew she was a quilter as she had made my siblings and myself several over the years. The first thing I did when she moved in with me was to have her to teach me how to quilt.She did it completely by hand--yes even cutting the fabric by tearing it when possible !! I did severeal by hand ,tacking and quilting them. after a while freinds talked me into selling them-as we were in a tourist area and had plenty of outlets for it. I did just that but I couldn't make them fast enough . I was using the old frame my grandmother had made for me with strapping from the lumber yard and 4 "C" clamps on each corner. I started doing my tops by machine but still did the hand tying/tacking. My daughter and son who were in grammer school at the time, used to help me. Instead of rewinding the quilt as I tied I would have them go underneath --I would put the needle down thru and they would send it back up !!! One day my daughter was helping me with one and she said"Mom, " I said yes/ and she said " you sell these quilts and get money for them--how come we don't get paid for helping you ?" wel you know what happened ,I had to start paying them !!!!! When I lived in N Conway Nh I used to put my quilts in the Keepsake shop in Ctr Harbor ,NH. Since I have retired I don't do so many--I just take orders--mostly from people who bring me many bags of old clothes and fabris scraps and want a quilt out of it !! I really enjoy doing this and making up my own patterns. My Mother in law would see me buy materials and I would get so excited with them and she could never "see" the quilt in the fabric until I had it finished.I really am thankful for the rotary cutter--It makes things go so much faster and more accurate. I don't like to see a crooked quilt !!! Right now I have 5 garbage bags full of clothing to make a quees quilt for a lady and then make as many pillows from her fathers clothing. The pillows are for her children and the many foster children she has had and does have.

Keep quilting--my grandmother was 92 years old when she helped me with her last quilt.

I am most thankful for my dear husband who waits somewhat patiently while I look at miles of fabric and notions, doesn't complain about what I spend, (my own money).  He fixes sewing machines, sharpens rotary cutters, makes templates and tolerates the enormous mess that comes complete with ravelings, bags, tubs and tables dripping with work in progress.  He tolerates late meals, my absences due to quilting meetings and picking up donations for wounder soldier quilts.  He is a good sport about the quilting in general, when most men would not be so nice about it.  He takes messages about donations and goes with me to haul the heavy boxes of fabric.  He is a quilters best friend indeed.  I really appreciate all he does to enable me to quilt.

I am thankful for that first lady in history who decided to take her scraps and pieces and stitch them together to keep someone in her family warm.  I am thankful that I had parents, yes my Dad too, who taught me to enjoy not only sewing but the creative process.  And I am thankful for a husband and family who not only indugle my passions for any fiber but truely appreciate my work.

Quilting has brought renewed life into my life. I have not quilted before however started approx 2001. My Mom and I both knew nothing about quilting and we shared some wonderful times doing our first quilt together. I hope that baby turned out to be fivr feet long and only needed the quilt to be 44 inches wide because that was the measurements we made it. Now that she has passed away, those memories are treasured and kept close to my heart. In memory of her, I would like to some day make "her" quilt and donate it to Alberta Cross Cancer Center, for them to pass out to someone who needs it. Hoping that they feel the strength from my Mom, who never once complained about the pain or treatments that she endured.  

I am thankful for the magazines, TV programs, and books available on quilting. Also I appreciate the variety of projects that cam be madel

There are two things I am grateful for:  The tools, of course; and other quilters.  The tools make it so much easier and faster to cut the materials, especially rotary cutters, mats, and the ever abundant rulers.  I would be lost without them.  Then there are my quilting buddies.  I quilt at the convent three days a week (as a way to raise money for the local catholic school).  The things I have learned from these women are priceless.  The friendship, feedback, and help these women provide...I am so grateful for.  In addition, the Quilter's Club of America has also been an inspiration to me.  I am thankful for all of these things, but especially for the friends I have made since I began quilting.

I'm most thankful for my friend, Carol.  We met when I joined my quilt guild.  I started helping her with her committee and we began our friendship.  She and I have completed 3 commissioned quilts together, and both of us have learned from each other.  I taught her how to free motion quilt and she has taught me how to block a quilt and binding techniques.  She is the one thing in my quilting world that I am most thankful for.    

I'm grateful of the memories of my mother sitting at the sewing machine or bending over a quilting frame.  Even though I did not start sewing until I was 65 and she had been gone for 5 years, It is the memories of her skill that have served me best.  I know that she is up there smiling because she never thought I would follow in her sewing footsteps.

I'm thankful for the rotary cutter and time to use it to prepare fabric for quilting.

I made my first quilt in the early 1960's, using cereal box templates and scissors to cut out all the little diamonds needed to make a king sized Broken Star quilt. The invention of the rotary cutter has made the task of cutting little pieces SO MUCH EASIER. I'm sure it's the best invention ever made to help quilters become more accurate. Kudos to the person who gave us this tool!

The thing I am most thankful for is my Westalee rulers. With arthritis is my shoulder competing for notice with the arthritis in my hands, being able to set the width of each cut and just go ahead with the ruler and fabric set in place is such a relief.

I am thankful for the Internet and how the Quilters on line are so generous with their time, knowledge, patterns , ideas and support to a new quilter. Also the companies that research and develop ideas that have been passed down from relative  to relative ,friends, and even complete strangers. (Family putting up with meals being delayed whilst I am in quilting mode , I am equally grateful for.

I am thankful for my husband who kindly looks the other way when I come home from the quilt shop with a bag in tow.  He never says a word about my stash or questions my "need" for more material.

I am most thankful for the community of quilters in the Florida Quilters Guild (Florida, NY).  After my husband died, I was looking for a way to get back out into society.  I had taken a couple of quilting classes twenty years ago, and decided to go to the guild meeting when I saw an article in the local paper.  The ladies in the guild welcomed me with open arms, and gifted me with their friendship and their knowledge.

I'm most thankful for all those faithful quilting teachers out there and the patience they display. Everyday is a new learning experience shared by all willing to learn. Quilting is a pleasant,quite break from the everyday mayhem. Those hooked on video games ought to give it a try!!

Living the past 3 years in Belize, I am Thankful for all the wonderful quilt shops in the US! The designers and producers of all those wonderful cotton fabrics. In this 3de world country there is 2 fabric stores in the whole country, and they do not have very many nice cottons to choose from. So from the bottom of my heart Thank-You to each and everyone involved in cotton and quilting industry! Sincerely. Sherry Brown

I am impressed with the technology that enables ALL of us to get together as one on something we all like to do.  How we can share information with each other and not have to wait for "snail-mail" to recieve a reply.  Also how we can show each other our progress on a project.  If it were not for technology we would have to travel great distances to see and hear what the other people are doing.  I am a '60s girl, meaning I graduated from high school in the late 1960, so I am not sa spring chicken buy no means but I can make my way around a computer very well.  I was afraide of them for a while, then though of all that I would miss out on and gave it a shot.  This is exactly the way I am hitting quilting.  I was afraid of it but now I am hitting it.

Really love hearing about, and seeing all of the projects.  I am anxious to start my first ever quilt on my own.  I have "helped" others with quilts, but now I want to do one of my own.

Karon Wurst

I am most thankful for other quilters.  They have inspired me to take up quilting, encouraged me to try new things, and taught me how to make something beautiful.  I took up quilting to put to use the sewing machine my father gave me and it has become my stress relief and connection to a multitude of wonderful, caring, considerate, and generous people who all go by the title Quilter.

Rotary cutters and rulers!!! I made my first quilt in the mid 70's. All triangles and all individually cut and sewn. That was the first and last quilt I made until the late 90's. Now I'm making up for lost time...

I uust love my Husqvana Sapphire machine

I'm thankful for my mother that sparked my interest in quilting as I watched her make quilt tops at a young age. Then when she would go out and feed the chickens or hang wash on the line I would get to the machine and try my hand at sewing. I may have been 9 or 10 at the time.

I'm thankful for my mother that sparked my interest in quilting as I watched her make quilt tops at a young age. Then when she would go out and feed the chickens or hang wash on the line I would get to the machine and try my hand at sewing. I may have been 9 or 10 at the time.

The one thing I am most grateful in the quilting world is my husband.  He supports me in all my endevors, helps when I need an opinion (not that I always take them), helped me do my cutting when I injured my shoulder, never gripes (too much) when I hit a really good fabric sale.  When I read everyone else's comments, I could see how they would be something I would be grateful for, but it still comes back back to the one thing that makes me able to quilt...the support and help of my husband.  Oh, and rotary cutters, too.

I am most thankful for other quilters.  I have learned so many secret tricks for making quilts as close to purfect as they can get.  All the other quilters have been where I am, just starting and they have all been exceptionally helpful.  I don't know if it is the dye in the fabric or the starch fumes, but I think that quilt people are the most special people I could meet.

I am thankful for the internet-it allows me to look up websites, such as QCA, for answers to any kind of problem no matter the time or day of the week. It allows me to reach out to the quilting world, such as Fons and Porter or Nancy Zieman, etc., and learn or be inspired by all the beauty being made. It allows me to search on websites, such as Keepsake Quilting or even the local Joann's, for just the right pattern, fabric or notion I need. I can order things from the comfort of my home. I can show off the projects I have completed. Where would I be today without the internet? Sitting in my sewing room looking at a pile of fabric (didn't know it was called stash) with no idea what to do with it.  Thank you for all I get.

I am most thankful for rotary cutters!!! There is NO doubt in my mind - I would NEVER have started quilting if I had to cut out everything with templates and scissors!!

My one thing I am Thankful for is ,    My Husband.   He has been my biggist quilting supporter. He wants to take me to any quilt shop I want to go, he encuraged me to purchase all my sewing machines( yes, even my Longarm), he helps pick out fabrics, he has a great eye to spot my quilting mistakes, I can't see.  And he gives me prase for the quilts I make. And we have this challenge, he buys the most fishing lures or I buy the most fabric. He is my greatest quilting Fan. He brags to people I don't even know about my quilting. He is a keeper...

I'm most inspired by other quilters finished work.  I have a bad habit of starting too many projects without getting anything finished.  When I see a beautiful quilt on a bed or on display I really want to get back to an unfinished quilt top and turn it into something useful.  This website has helped my do just that.  Thank you.

Seam rippers.  As ye sew, so shall ye rip!  Seam rippers and I spend many happy hours together :)

I am the thankful for my friends that got me interested in quilting.  They introduced me to a world where I have grown in confidence, learned new skills, developed a new quilting world view, and made lots of new friends.  Without my friends introducing me to the world of quilting I would be leading a much different life than I am today!

My biggest cheerleader, my partner in life, my husband, but then right after that I would have to say my rotary cutter, mat, and ruler. I can't imagine trying to piece and square a quilt without them. Congrats to those in the past that did because I don't know if I would be quilting today without those two little gadgets (and the big gadget named Jim) :-)

I am thankful for show and tell throughout the Quilting Kingdom. Such inspiration and encouragement within the community! Yeah!

I am most thankful for the "men" in my life who have inspired most of my quilting projects.  First, my former husband, who asked, begged, cajoled, and inspired me to try quilting for the first time.  From then, my four sons, my brother-in-law, my grandson, my brand-new hubby (who truly believes I can do ANYthing!), my brothers, and so on who have all inspired (or downright requested) quilts made by my hand.  Of course, I'm thankful for all the girls who've inspired me as well, but it's really been the boys!

My husband, Mike.  He is my biggest quilting supporter.  What ever I do, he thinks it's grand.

My husband, Mike.  He is my biggest quilting supporter.  What ever I do, he thinks it's grand.

From being a novice quilter some years ago I found St. Joseph's Quilt Shop in Orleans, Canada which is now Quilty Pleasures.  The owners and staff in this shop have always time for you, no matter now idiotic your questions may sound, they are there for you.  Also, to have the owners giving quilting classes as well as some staff you know they are experienced quilters and speak always from experience.  Many of them use the term I use when teaching others "this is the way that works for me", and no it is perhaps not the "correct" or "only way", it is what works for me.  I will be dealing there until I no longer am able to quit.

In quilting I'm most thankful for is my sewing machine.  If I didn't have it to make quilts, I probably wouldn't make a quilt.

The items I am most thankful for development used for quilting would be the rotary cutters and rotary rulers.  They have made making quilt blocks super easy.  Much better than using templates to make blocks.  Cutting each of the parts for the completed blocks.  When I used templates, the shape was drawn on the fabric and each shape was cut individually using scissors.  Very slow and time consuming.  Because the sewing line is also drawn on the pieces, the block was acurate.  When using the rotarty  cutter and ruler the entire quilt can be cut out in several hours.  Using templates it would take a week to cut the shapes.  Templates again would be used to make one shape at a time where you can cut up to 6 layers of fabric at one time.  

I am most thankful for my rotary cutters, rulers & mats.  My first quilt which I attempted to

make some 40 years ago, and still not finished, would have benefitted Greatly from any one

of these 3 items.  I am Most greatful for my Mother who took the time to teach me to sew.

My most favorite thing in the quilting world is my sewing machine.  There's no way I'd still be able to sew--ANYTHING- without my sewing machine.

I have many things to be thankful for but none are more important than my sewing machine.  My foster mother argued with my birth sister to give me my birth mother's sewing machine who died when I was 12.  The machine is now 75 years old, registered and certified by the Singer Sewing Company.   My foster mom has now passed away in August 2011 and I'll always be thankful for all she did for me.  God Bless her forever!

I have two. My sewing machine because I do not have the patience to hand quilt and the internet. Without it it would have took me alot longer to learn how to quilt!! If I get stuck I just hope on you tube and type in what I need and have found info every time. That's how I found this place!! Surfing the net looking for info on quilting.

I am so thankful for my husband who gets me all of the things that I "mention" when we visit quilting shops.  He is a great guy.  I am also very thankful for the friends in my quilting group.  We encourage each other and are so helpful when we have a problem with our quilting.  Best of all we have fun and laugh a lot.  I'm thankful to be retired and have the time to quilt and share ideas with my sister who also loves to quilt.  

I am most grateful for the quilters that have gone before me and made quilts without the modern day tools we have and the good lighting and the great sewing machines that we have . They created beauty without all of the helps we have from a desire to make something useful and beautiful. The quilts were often made from recycled fabrics. Those quilters showed us the WAY. For this I am thankful.     Janice

I had never even thought about quilting. I was all in to crocheting, knitting and painting. Then I met  this wonderful lady at my church who had a beautiful quilted bag. Of course I asked her where she got it and she said she had made it.Well, that peaked my curiosity. She told me about this church that had a beautiful group of ladies that quilted every Thursday and anyone could join. I decided to venture over to that church and test the waters. The ladies were so welcoming and enthusiatic that I caught the fever. I went out and bought every tool and color of fabric I could afford. I kept on buying fabric until I now have 13 containers of fabric. I LOVE Quilting!!!! I am so very thankful to the amazing ladies who showed the all of the beautiful quilts and throws and bags and taught me very patiently how to measure and cut fabric accurately to make these wonderful quilts. Our mission is to make these lovely lap quilts and throws for the seniors in the nursing homes and in hospitals. It is so very rewarding.

I'm grateful for being able to sew a pink quilt for my friend who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.  I may not be the best quilter or the perfect quilter but I know I quilt from the heart.

Aloha.

I am grateful for my quilt guild, the Portneuf Valley Quilt Guild, and the friends I have made there.

I am most thankful for the many friends I have gained from quilting.  Quilting is a wonderful hobby that connects people who are all nurturing individuals.  Quilting gave me a purpose in life, to create beautiful quilts to warm people I love.

The one thing in the quilting world I'm most thankful for are the wonderful women in my quilt guilds who have become my dear friends.  Quilting connects people in a wonderful hobby to create quilts to wrap our dearest friends and family in quilts we have created with love and skill.

I am thankful that many years ago while browsing through a magazine there was a craft section that contained a quilt that said - make in a day.  I thought - I can do this as I had experience sewing because I used to make my children's clothes.  So I made the quilt and was hooked for ever after.  I am so thankful for all the quilting magazines and online sites that gave me the directions I needed when I was stuck and things just didn't turn out right.  Now many years later I have gained enough confidence that I have joined a small quilting group and take classes.  In the beginning I was too embarrassed to take my projects in public where experienced people would see my mistakes.  Quilting has connected me to a whole new wonderful world.  And made me a fabric hoarder!

Iam thankfor for everyone in my life and the ability to have the time and money to quilt!

I'm a long time sewer / crafter but fairly new to quilting.  The Internet has been a great help for me in locating fabrics that exactly match what was used in quilt patterns.   Also the internet allows me access to the great QCA site and all that it has to offer.

I am most thankful for my generous quilting friends who share all their "treasures" with me. Some of these friends are local and some are here on QCA.   Whatever the local friends can't use comes to my stash for crazy quilting.  Many a time I have "needed" a certain novelty fabric or color and when I reach out to these friends, most generally, one of them will have what I need.  The beautiful  people here at QCA fuel my passion and encourage me in times of uncertainty.  I am blessed to have these many friends and say thank you to all.

I'm most thankful for the wonderful group of hand-quilters I meet with weekly.  I'm also grateful that my grandmother taught me to quilt as a teen, but many years went by before I took it up again.  With the passing of my mother & grandmother within 2 years of each other, these quilters have become my extended family.  It sems every week one of them is showing off their creations, sharing some block variation, tip/ idea & their enthusiasm for this medium they've helped me to love.  I'm especially grateful when my husband is working for long periods overseas.  I like to say my well-stocked sewing room & a never-ending supply of patterns keeps me out of trouble!  Thanks, too, to QCA for the added resources!  

My  best friend was a quilter, making textile art.  We considered ourselves "twins, born 15 years apart."  When she lost her fight with breast cancer, I was totally overwhelmed.  Somehow I got up the courage to begin quilting, in her memory and her honor.  I already knew embroidery, knitting, needlepoint and crochet, so it wasn't too big of a leap.  I'm still a beginner, but I've met some very sweet people through quilting and it's wonderful to remember her.  

I am thankful for the love of sewing my gramma encouraged in me. She gave me fabric scraps and a needle and helped me make my first quilt for my dolls when I was probably 8 or 9 years old. For my mom who made lots of clothes for me and my sisters and helped me when I was just learning garment construction. For my neighbor who took me to her quilt group and planted that quilting bug in me. And for my friend Linda who the very first time she met me and found out I loved to sew, sent me home with a brown paper grocery bag full of fabric. That friendship is still strong after 25+ years. They have all made an impression on my life and for them I am truly thankful.

I'm most thankful for the quilts that I have that my grandmother made. I am the only grandchild that quilts and possibly the only one tha sews! I will treasure her quilts knowing the love of quilting that she inspired, although she was not the one to teach me. *She raised 5 boys and I think she saw it as something to put away when kids were around!

I am thankful for other quilters. They are the most generous people in the world. They never hesitate to share their knowledge or their stuff if you need it.

I am most grateful for the rotary cutter, ruler and mat.  I started my first quilt some thirty years ago, and put it, unfinished, in a box several weeks later.  Those cardboard squares and scissors were a pain, both mentally and physically.  I have since found that quilt, and am now ready to finish it.  I really want to - it's a real "scrap" quilt, made with remnants of clothing I made for my son, daughter, husband, and myself.  It will be filled with happy memories.

I just Love Thanksgiving and the day after Thanksgiving, I make it tradition to quilt Christmas projects  with a few friends.  I am thankful for my quilting friends, for their valued friendship and the inspiration they give me to get working on my projects and enjoy their company at the same time.

I am thankful for QCA and the tereffic support system from books, veteran quilters, tutorials.  There is a sewing machine shop close to where I live & also where I bought my Pfaff Quilting Expressions.  If Ihave a quilting question, or a sewing question, I pop in or give them a call and they are so couterous with their help.

One of the things I was most proud to give was a king sized quilt as a wedding gift and another was a wall hanging to our village for their Christmas program.

I am most thankful for the Quilting friends that I have made. Moving to a new state can be pretty lonely when you don't know anyone and quilters have no borders or state lines. They make you feel welcome online, in their homes as well as the shops that they frequent. I could not ask for a better circle of women to know than a bunch of laughing quilters eating chocolate, sewing blocks and searching out new places to get fabric or patterns. They are my Sistas, my lifelines, my friends...

When I first became interested in learning how to quilt we still lived in Michigan (we now live in Arizona).  So I went to the local quilt shop - Country Stitches - and they were fantastic.  They offered, and I took, so many classes.  Everything from basic quilting skills to learning how to do a crazy quilt.  The instructors were knowledgable and so friendly.  The material selections where large and varied.  All of the material was of good quality which is hard to find without ordering it on-line from other sources.  I don't know about anyone else, but I just cannot buy material on-line.  I have to see it and feel it!  I truly miss the shop.  I have not found anything here that is anything like Country Stitches.  They helped develop my interest and gave me the confidence to try things I never would have tried without some guidance.