This is a really tough question! I find I reap rewards from every quilt I make in many ways. It's the feeling of completion when I put the final stitches on the binding and looked at the work of art I just designed, picked and cut fabric for, sewed together, sandwiched and quilted, knowing I did all the work myself. It's the look of amazement in my husbands eyes when he sees my completed projects. I think I could go on all day!

But the most rewarding quilt I ever made was for my niece, Erin. I had been wanting to make a quilt for Erin for several years but nothing caught my eye. Her mom fell in love with with quilt in a magazine that just screamed "Erin." I was so excited to finally find a quilt that fit her personality, I was all in not caring how big the challenge! I had never appliqued before....but every block on this quilt had one or two applique flowers. I did lots of reading, asked plenty of questions here on QCA, and began the process of cutting over 2000 tiny flower petals. It took me a year to complete the quilt from start to finish. When I presented the quilt to Erin, I had never seen her eyes sparkle so much. She was more than amazed that I had done this huge quilt just for her! That was almost 3 years ago. To this day, every time I go to her house to visit she drags me into her room and shows me how lovely her quilt looks on her bed, how well she takes care of it, and most importantly how much she loves it!

As I am so new to quilting I would say it was my first completed project.  It began with making a fullsize rag quilt for my toddler granddaughter, which is still a work in process but I took a side trip and with the scraps created for her a baby quilt to replace the one that she has almost worn out in the first year of her life.  I think it will be her birthday present the end of this month.  Up to this point I had only dabbled in quilting but since I now have a room set up as a "sewing room" I have jumped in all the way and am finding it is a real joy.

The most rewarding quilt is the one I'm making now.  My niece in her 30's and having her first baby, a girl.  I'm making her a quilt to replace the one I made when she was born, which her Mother never gave her and she has never seen.  Her Mother said to was too pretty to use and put it in a drawer.

First of all I am still fairly new to quilting.  I have two young boys, a husband, and a full-time job.  I do not get to quilt as much as I would like but I still make time to do it.  The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was a Christmas quilt I made this fall.  It was the first queen size and completely hand pieced quilt I have ever made.  It was a sampler quilt.  I had 35 completely different blocks that I pieced together.  Usually I use a sewing machine for everything, but I didn't on this one.  I gave it to my mother for Christmas and she loved it.  She still has it on her bed and it's March.  I can truly say there is LOVE in every stitch with that quilt.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was an appliqued quilt. I had so much trouble machine appliqueing with nylon thread that I bought a Bernina QE 153 that I had lusted after for a long time...and never looked back. What a difference a good sewing machine made...and continues to make!

The most rewarding quilt I ever made isn't just a quilt, it is many quilts. I am involved with a wonderful group that donate items to wounded veterans. I decided to go one step further and make quilts for the Wounded Warrior Project. I am currently working on my 12th quilt for wounded vets. I have made some with nine patch design and some with a pattern called Just One Star... These quilts make me feel warm and fuzzy inside because I am giving something personal that may make a solder go through their rehab with a little bit of ease and comfort... I am proud to be able to continue this and hope that we as americans continue the support to our militarty. Remember some give the ultimate sacrifice...

I am 62 years old and have worked outside my home all my life.  Recently retired, my first challenge was a lifelong dream to make a quilt.  So, after 50+ years of wanting to quilt, I have completed my very first ever 12 block quilt....my favorite.  

I currently am working on 2 others.  Having so much fun finally fulfilling my dream.

I would say my most rewarding quilt is the one I made with my first "brick" of fabric, purchased at the Chicago show with my sister.  I call it my sister's quilt:).  But then again, I just finished one for my brother, and he loved it so much he hung it on the wall behind his bed - I meant for him to use it, but he was afraid of cat hair...chuckle.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a Double Wedding Ring quilt for our 40th Wedding Anniversary.  It was the first quilt I had ever entered into local fairs. I arrived at the first fair and found a first prize ribbon and a reserve champion rosette on my quilt.  What a feeling to see it hanging up on the wall with all the other beautiful quilts.  The second fair a month later, much stiffer competion, it again had a first place ribbon.  This was certainly a wonderful way to celebrate our anniversary.

I have since entered quilts in both fairs and won ribbons but nothing like the thrill of that first rosette.

The first quilt I made was my most rewarding. I gave it to my husband for Valentine's Day, and to this day, he says it's his favorite gift.

I am a new quilter and have only been quilting for several months but I have to say that the most rewarding quilt I've made thus far is my first.  It was rewarding for me because I made it for my mother who has MS.  Even though I always say it is a quilt only a mother could love making it for her filled me with such love and warmth that I even named it "Love and Warmth.  No matter how good I get at quilting and no matter how many quilts I make in the future that one will always be the most rewarding for me.  It was my first quilt, I was able to share my newfound craft with a mother that lives far away and it filled me with such "love and warmth" that I don't think that could ever be felt again.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was one I gave my Mother-in-Law.  She is 94 years young and ALWAYS cold. The quilt was a flannel quilt, and it was the first quilt I made from start to finish, piecing to quilting. . .all by myself.  My Mother-in-Law LOVED it.  It's the first thing she shows anyone who stops to see her.  I've not seen her without the quilt since the day I gave it to her.  It warms my heart just knowing how happy it has made her.

Interlocking Stars from Fons and Porter.  It was challenging and fun.  Such a beautiful quilt.  I love it.

The most rewarding would have to be the 50th Anniversary Quilt that I made for my parents.  It was the first time I used photos in a quilt & at the time I made it that was something new.  Using the photos from my parents' life together was amazing for me & a surprise for my parents.  The memories are even more precious now; my Mom passed a few weeks before their 60th anniversary.  I have yet to finish the quilt for that anniversary celebration.  Someday I'll make it.

I just finished my very first quilt, so that one is my favorite.  It's just a lap quilt, but I learned a lot and am now ready to move on to a larger project!

Every quilt I've made so far has been a gift, but by far, the one that was the most rewarding was the one I made for my in-laws' 50th anniversary. It had lace, was embellished with ribbons and charms and had their wedding pictures incorporated as well. I think the one most impressed and taken by it was my father-in-law; he teared up at the party when we gave it to them, and made a point of telling me how nicely done it was.  We lost him suddenly not 6 months after that, and I'm glad I didn't second guess and just buy them something.  

A heart applique quilt was the most rewarding quilt I ever made.  It was for my granddaughter, and she absolutely loved it, and she carried it around the house everywhere she went.  That's something to say considering she was a teenager.  I made a label for it, telling what the name of the quilt was, and who it was for, when it was made, and the occasion for which it was made.

My most rewarding quilt that I ever made was the very first one which I made last March. It was a yellow brick road and my husband was so very proud of me that it became his quilt! The outpouring of supprt from him has been continuous and I have just finished my 19th quilt!

My most rewarding quilt was my first big project. I made an Amish quilt for my 19 year old daughter.  We chose the pattern, the fabric, and blocked out the colors on graph paper.  I learned so much from making it, and I've been quilting on and off ever since this first success.

My most rewarding quilt is the first one I designed and made for one of my grandsons.  He is always interested in what I am doing and wants to learn. He was my third grandchild I made a quilt for and to see the look on his face when he received it for Christmas brings tears to my eyes.  He is so proud of that quilt and uses it every night.

The most rewarding quilt I've ever made was a heart applique quilt.  I made it for my granddaughter, for her 13th birthday, and she carried it around the house where ever she went.  I made a label for the quilt, which stated the date it was made, who it was for, and the occasion for which it was made.  I really enjoyed the process of making that quilt.

The most rewarding quilt I made was one of seven quilts that I made to give as Christmas gifts to my family members on Thanksgiving day in 1999.   The one made for my only grandson was of plaids and stripes, not traditional holiday fabrics-- it had to be manly.  The entire family has enjoyed the quilt and it is kept on the back of a sofa in their family room.  It is a reminder of our beloved young man whom went home to our maker 5 years ago.  

The most rewarding quilt I made was one of seven quilts that I made to give as Christmas gifts to my family members on Thanksgiving day in 1999.   The one made for my only grandson was of plaids and stripes, not traditional holiday fabrics-- it had to be manly.  The entire family has enjoyed the quilt and it is kept on the back of a sofa in their family room.  It is a reminder of our beloved young man whom went home to our maker 5 years ago.  

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a Giant Dahlia quilt I made for my mother.  I had only a picture to work off of.  The border she wanted was a nine patch set on point.  It was a real challenge to figure out how to set the corners so the border would flow around the quilt.  My mother also loved it because the main focus fabric and the quilting had daffodills, which is her favorite flower.  

WOW!!! What a good question. One quilt I made came to mind instantly.

Recently, a friend of ours was diagnosed with a very rare and terminal cancer. As a cancer survivor myself, a group of my friends gave me a Hope Quilt during my illness. I carried this quilt with me to the hospital stays, the treatments, slept under it and loved it for all the love and prayers that went in to the making of it.

This friend of ours loves the color blue and is Irish. I do not like the color blue but decided that I could make a quilt for her using blue fabrics. I went to the quilt shop with the pattern for a Triple Irish Chain in hand. The staff helped me to pick put the fabrics. When I got home I had the hardest time with the cutting, due to that fact that there was so much blue. Then I started sewing.

We received a call that our friend was not doing well at all. But I kept on sewing and had the quilt done in two days. All the while praying and crying for her.

I made a label for the quilt and on it said that said this quilt was made with loving thoughts, gentle hugs and mighty prayers. She cried so hard when we gave her the quilt. Her DH later told us that she carried it with her to the treatments, Dr. visits, the hospital and slept under it all the time just like I did with my Hope Quilt.

We just found out last month that she is now cancer free. A quilt that is made with love, prayers and tears is a very powerful thing in deed. This is definitely my most rewarding quilt I have ever made.

That is a hard question.  Do you choose the one that was the most challenging or the one that the design was pleasing...or do you choose the quilt that got the most enthusiastic reaction?  I have to say "I have many fovorites", every one that I do I think "I just love this quilt", so to ask which one is the most rewarding....I will have to go with the key word "rewarding" and go with a Dresden Plate that I gave to a friend that is 83 years old (by the way she is also a quilter and a hand quilter)...She was beyond thrilled!  She called everyone in the family and had them come over to see this beautiful quilt, she has it hanging on the wall in her living room, I told her it was to use but she thought it was too beautiful to use so she wanted to hang it on the wall so she could enjoy it every day.  That was rewarding to me that she thought it was so special. When you give someone a quilt you want them to love it as much as you do, that is a reward in itself :)

WOW!!! What a good question. One quilt I made came to mind instantly.

Recently, a friend of ours was diagnosed with a very rare and terminal cancer. As a cancer survivor myself, a group of my friends gave me a Hope Quilt during my illness. I carried this quilt with me to the hospital stays, the treatments, slept under it and loved it for all the love and prayers that went in to the making of it.

This friend of ours loves the color blue and is Irish. I do not like the color blue but decided that I could make a quilt for her using blue fabrics. I went to the quilt shop with the pattern for a Triple Irish Chain in hand. The staff helped me to pick put the fabrics. When I got home I had the hardest time with the cutting, due to that fact that there was so much blue. Then I started sewing.

We received a call that our friend was not doing well at all. But I kept on sewing and had the quilt done in two days. All the while praying and crying for her.

I made a label for the quilt and on it said that said this quilt was made with loving thoughts, gentle hugs and mighty prayers. She cried so hard when we gave her the quilt. Her DH later told us that she carried it with her to the treatments, Dr. visits, the hospital and slept under it all the time just like I did with my Hope Quilt.

We just found out last month that she is now cancer free. A quilt that is made with love, prayers and tears is a very powerful thing in deed. This is definitely my most rewarding quilt I have ever made.

My most rewarding quilt was one I made for my Mother's 90th Christmas   rewarding, because she loved it and the sense of acomplishment I had when it was done.  It contained a tracing of the hand of each of her 51 decendents applicated.  Each of ther seven children were on a different colored background and all the decendents of that particular family were on the same background.  The prints of the hands were in the same color family.  It is the only thing my Mother has ever bragged about that I have made for her, and she shows it to or tells everyone she can about it

WOW!!! What a good question. One quilt I made came to mind instantly.

Recently, a friend of ours was diagnosed with a very rare and terminal cancer. As a cancer survivor myself, a group of my friends gave me a Hope Quilt during my illness. I carried this quilt with me to the hospital stays, the treatments, slept under it and loved it for all the love and prayers that went in to the making of it.

This friend of ours loves the color blue and is Irish. I do not like the color blue but decided that I could make a quilt for her using blue fabrics. I went to the quilt shop with the pattern for a Triple Irish Chain in hand. The staff helped me to pick put the fabrics. When I got home I had the hardest time with the cutting, due to that fact that there was so much blue. Then I started sewing.

We received a call that our friend was not doing well at all. But I kept on sewing and had the quilt done in two days. All the while praying and crying for her.

I made a label for the quilt and on it said that said this quilt was made with loving thoughts, gentle hugs and mighty prayers. She cried so hard when we gave her the quilt. Her DH later told us that she carried it with her to the treatments, Dr. visits, the hospital and slept under it all the time just like I did with my Hope Quilt.

We just found out last month that she is now cancer free. A quilt that is made with love, prayers and tears is a very powerful thing in deed. This is definitely my most rewarding quilt I have ever made.

I've been quilting since the late 70's and have taken great pleasure in giving many quilts to family members for various occasions.  My husband has always been supportive and I've come to expect and rely on his "Very nice, they'll love that" or "Very pretty, I like the colors".  But, I always got the feeling he was just humoring me.  That I didn't really need to go to all that trouble to make something, after all there was a prefectly good Walmart in town, go buy a present.  Recently, I finished a much more challenging quilt than I've ever tackled before. When I got it back from the longarm quilter I dutifully held it up for my husbands inspection.  It's a large quilt and I was standing behind it to hold it up so I couldn't see his face.  I didn't hear the expected praise so I lowered the quilt so I could see him (fully expecting him to be looking at the TV).  He was just staring at it.  Just looking.  Finally, he said "Wow, you made that?"  Kind of a backhanded compliment (who did he think made it?!) but one that I will remember forever.  He finally looked at my efforts as more than just cute little presents.  Now, after 42 years of marraige, I think he's finally starting to see the worth of what I do, of what I need to do.  I think he's finally starting to get me.

I've been quilting since the late 70's and have taken great pleasure in giving many quilts to family members for various occasions.  My husband has always been supportive and I've come to expect and rely on his "Very nice, they'll love that" or "Very pretty, I like the colors".  But, I always got the feeling he was just humoring me.  That I didn't really need to go to all that trouble to make something, after all there was a prefectly good Walmart in town, go buy a present.  Recently, I finished a much more challenging quilt than I've ever tackled before. When I got it back from the longarm quilter I dutifully held it up for my husbands inspection.  It's a large quilt and I was standing behind it to hold it up so I couldn't see his face.  I didn't hear the expected praise so I lowered the quilt so I could see him (fully expecting him to be looking at the TV).  He was just staring at it.  Just looking.  Finally, he said "Wow, you made that?"  Kind of a backhanded compliment (who did he think made it?!) but one that I will remember forever.  He finally looked at my efforts as more than just cute little presents.  Now, after 42 years of marraige, I think he's finally starting to see the worth of what I do, of what I need to do.  I think he's finally starting to get me.

My step son's high school graduation quilt.  I thought I was going to have a difficult time finding fabrics that were manly.  I found a stripe fabric that had teal, brown, caramel and green in it.  I took it to my favorite local quilt shop and had one of the pro's help me find fabrics that were manly and matched the stripe.  I used Eleanor Burns Quilt in a Day - Log Cabin pattern.  Cut and sewed all the blocks together.  I stood looking at the blocks and said to myself, what was I thinking.  They looked HORRIBLE!  My dear husband picked my chin up.  We referred back to the pattern book and laid the blocks out in all the examples shown.  My husband picked the one he thought looked best.  I sewed the blocks together.  After sewing the last seam, I laid it out and tears welled up in my eyes, IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL.  They way the strips ended up, it looked like Logs floating in a creek.  It was the first time a quilt of mine named itself.  Logs in the Creek.  My step son loves it.  He originally said he wasn't going to take it to college with him.  He came home for a weekend to visit.  After he returned, I noticed that he had taken the quilt back to college with him - he said on the phone - He missed it :)

I would have to say, my "Crazy Angel" wall hanging because I used many techniques, fabrics (including gold lame), and free motion quilting.

Wow, what a question!! Could it be the first quilt I ever made for my little girls dolls wtih matching jackets for Rachel & Allison? Or the first REAL quilt I ever made, pieced and quilted, all by hand for my excellent teacher, Ira Jacobs? Or one of the soft and cuddly quilts I've made for new babies, including my grandchildren and nieces and nephews? Or the color explosion of orange and blue for a homesick friend's baby when she was on overseas assignment? I guess I have to choose the beautiful quilt I made for my MOM which featured butterfly fabric (her fave) in blues, aquas, greens and yellows. The best quilts are the ones made with love for family and friends!

My most rewarding quilt that I made is an I Spy quilt I made for my grandson who has Autism.  That was five years ago.  It was so heartwarming to see his excitement with his quilt.  To this day he will not go to bed without that quilt.  

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was one I made after my father died. I took all the old flannel shirts that he loved so much and made a quilt for my mother. It was a 4 patch on point. I used the buttons from the shirts to tack it. I gave it to Mom at Christmas. I even used the ones that had a stain or a little hole from soldering. It was hard to cut those shirts up and I cryed alot of tears but it is cherished by my mother and by my siblings.

The most rewarding quilt or quilts I've made was at the Sun Valley Indian School in Holbrook, AZ.  Our church took a team down to the Navajo school to do work and witness. Three of us women, taught the 4th -8th graders how to make a quilt.  Due to time constraints, the girls chose a pre-cut quilt package, and were able to sew the squares together.  Then the 3 of us spent 3 days finishing the 22 quilts for them, thank goodness they were small lap quilts.  The evening of our third day we presented the girls with the quilts.  We placed them on the back of the pews, and each girl found theirs.  It was such a beautiful sight, those girls were so happy to see their quilt finished.  The look on their faces was so rewarding.  I think everyone of them slept with their quilt that night.  We felt bad that the smaller girls weren't able to make one, so we came home and made  lap quilts to the 1st - 3rd grade girls.   We are sending them out this week, I wish we could be there to see their faces.

I think that all of the quilts that I have made are rewarding, especially the ones that challange me.  But the most rewarding was one that I made with my sister-in-law for mom and dad's 50th anniversary. Many years ago, my dad saw a b&w double wedding ring on the front of a craft mag at my house and said that he wanted one like it, well at that time I was not a quilter, but when I did start quilting, I remembered what he said and with my sis-in-laws help (it was my 3rd quilt) we got it done in time for the big party.  This year they will be celebrating 61 years together and dad still talks about the quilt we made for them.

This was easy for me to answer.  The most rewarding quilt I've made is my first baby quilt that I cut, pieced, machine quilted and bound!  First time to freehand quilt on my machine...which I later realized had a broken feed dog so you can imagine how that contributed to the stitching!  My stitches were nothing to brag about, but I was so proud to have completed a quilt from start to finish.  

It is made with Hometown fabric by Moda and I still love it.  Maybe I will get brave one day and rip out the worst of the stitches and re-quilt....and then again, maybe not.

The most rewarding projects are the ones I give away. I forget about them after they're completed, but the recipients never forget them.  I'd have to choose the first photo quilt that I made for my daughter with pictures of her from infant to world traveler. It wasn't necessarily the best quilt ever made, but it was the most cherished.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was birthed from an idea over a glass of wine with a dear friend as she shared that her high school teacher, who had been her inspiration in her career decision to become a writer and work to protect our rivers and lakes in North Idaho, as her teacher was then undergoing cancer treatments and having a difficult time. I had just received a Quiltmaker's magazine in the mail, and was carrying it around with me, and its cover displayed a darling scrapy crib size quilt with a cheerful yellow sunrise across the top of it. We decided we could make it a signature quilt, so I cut up rectangles and she took them to the school, and all her teacher's present and past students and high school faculty members wrote on and signed the 2 and a half x 5 inches fabric blocks. Then I drove (3 hours) to the high school, and in one day, with about a dozen volunteers, some of whom had never sewn (but they were great with pressing seams), an art teacher (who did a wonderful job arranging the blocks as we starting putting them together), and half a dozen sewers with all kinds of sewing machines (only a few of whom had ever sewn a quilt before). In one day, we put together the quilt top. Then I took it home and quilted it. A month later, at the high school graduation, the teacher retired, and the principal presented her with the quilt. Imagine lots of tears and hugs and laughter. Then I sent the story to Quiltmaker's with a photo of our group effort, and they published our story and photo! The teacher is doing well, still, almost a dozen years later. It's amazing to me her courage, and it's even more amazing the power our prayers and encouragement plays in the fight against cancer and disease.

I think that there are several "Most Rewarding" quilts I have made. Some are rewarding because of the pattern, some because of they are so much more than what I imagined they would be, some because of the response of the recipient.

The sampler, based on the Jane Stickle quilt is one of my proudest accomplishments because it is mostly hand pieced and hand quilted.

The first quilt that I designed and made for the Hoffman Challenge, that won 2nd place, is very memorable.

The quilt I made for my nephews Bar Mitzpha is another.

There are so many, each rewarding in its own way.

I am a new quilter.  I have sewed for my whole life but not quilts.  My sister Theresa was the quilt maker in our family.  I decided I was ready for a new challenge so started my first quilt with Theresa.  We chose fabrics from her huge collection of Daisy Kingdom Fabrics.  Took me 4 months to sew and quilt that first quilt.  Now I am in the process of making my children each a quilt of their Choice.  Having lots of fun now!

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was the first one I made. It was a sampler quilt made all out of Mary Englebright material. I chose that material because it was my cousins favorite. When I finished the quilt I gave it to her for Christmas. She loved it. That was over 10 years ago, she still has the quilt on her daybed in the guest room and still loves it. It was the quilt that got me started and once I started I was hooked.

this is hard to answer.  The two quilts that I have a hard time choosing from would be double wedding ring and scrappy quilt from Fons & Porter magazine that had 266 small 9 square blocks with pink and blue blocks added.  It took a while to get the 266 blocks made and I love the quilt but the double wedding ring was a challenge because of the curves.

this is hard to answer.  The two quilts that I have a hard time choosing from would be double wedding ring and scrappy quilt from Fons & Porter magazine that had 266 small 9 square blocks with pink and blue blocks added.  It took a while to get the 266 blocks made and I love the quilt but the double wedding ring was a challenge because of the curves.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made.  Let me say that when my grandchildren graduate from high school or college they get a check from Gramma.  I was working on the Mystery Quilt Baubles and Beads when it came to me.  My granddaughter had already graduated from college but stayed on and in two years she was getting two Masters, an MBA and an MHA.  I didn't feel that just a check was going to be enough for this accomplishment so I started looking at quilt patterns, and decided to do another mystery quilt that had been done before I joined Quilters Club of America, called Sweet Dreams.  The problem was going to be keeping it a secret from my daughter, because she can't keep a secret.  So when we talked she would ask what I was doing and I would just say "working on this mystery quilt".  Of course, if I knew she was coming over I would hide the Sweet Dreams one.  

While the quilt was at the "long arm" shop I looked at all those little triangles I had cut off while making the quilt, I had tossed them in an ice cream bucket.  I ended up using them to make three pillows for on the bed along with two shams and two other pillow cases to make a complete set.

I took the "gift" to my granddaughter in a suitcase so no one could see it until she opened it.  After all the oohs and aahs were over my granddaughter was still holding the quilt on her lap and stroking it with such love that it brought tears to my eyes.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made.  Let me say that when my grandchildren graduate from high school or college they get a check from Gramma.  I was working on the Mystery Quilt Baubles and Beads when it came to me.  My granddaughter had already graduated from college but stayed on and in two years she was getting two Masters, an MBA and an MHA.  I didn't feel that just a check was going to be enough for this accomplishment so I started looking at quilt patterns, and decided to do another mystery quilt that had been done before I joined Quilters Club of America, called Sweet Dreams.  The problem was going to be keeping it a secret from my daughter, because she can't keep a secret.  So when we talked she would ask what I was doing and I would just say "working on this mystery quilt".  Of course, if I knew she was coming over I would hide the Sweet Dreams one.  

While the quilt was at the "long arm" shop I looked at all those little triangles I had cut off while making the quilt, I had tossed them in an ice cream bucket.  I ended up using them to make three pillows for on the bed along with two shams and two other pillow cases to make a complete set.

I took the "gift" to my granddaughter in a suitcase so no one could see it until she opened it.  After all the oohs and aahs were over my granddaughter was still holding the quilt on her lap and stroking it with such love that it brought tears to my eyes.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was for a friend who had terminal brain cancer. She had started her quilt when she was healthy and finished the top when she had already had a part of her brain removed and had already lived 5 months beyond the doctor's estimate. The top was a beautiful floral and, at first glance, looked like it had been very beautifully pieced. While pressing it before loading onto my frame, I found that she had sewn some very large seams after the quilt was pieced and some blocks were folded over, cutting them in half, but the pieces were still intact. The seams were stitched at approximately 30 Stitches per inch, so the frogging was quite stressful. Once the top was ready for quilting, I loaded it onto my Statler Stitcher and gave it the best custom quilting I could do. I also did the binding for her as she was now completely bedridden and slipping away.

When her husband came to pick up the quilt, I begged him to let it be my gift to her and did not accept any payment for the quilting or batting. He brought it home to her and she was over-joyed with my work. With her husband's help, she wrote me a fabulous thank you note, saying that she was so glad to see it done before she passed. Her husband added that she had planned to give it to her daughter but, he was going to keep it to wrap himself in it to help him through his lonely times without Pat. She passed away a week later. The quilt was a very large queen and I probably had 30 hours into it between prep and quilting. Even though I received no monetary payment, the reward in the good feeling I had, knowing how much it meant to both of them still makes me tear up when I think about that quilt.

My favorite quilt was my version of an "I Spy" quilt for a five year old boy for Christmas in 2007.  The pictures were colorful animals, kid prints, and some pictures to remind him of family members, such as guitars to remind him of his PaPa (grandpa) who plays in a band.  The shashing was bright red, the backing was flannel, and the label was a photo of the child with his name, my name and the date.  Soon after Christmas his family moved across country, so I hope it is still a reminder of the people that were left behind.

Last year I made a pink quilt for my friend, Jane.  She was diagnosed with breast cancer last year.  We have been friends since high school (35 years).  My heart was flowing with gratefulness for her friendship.

I just started quiling last August and have made 6 quilts for Christmas gift this last year.  The quilts are big, they are what I call "lap quilts" about 48"x60".  I think my favorite would be the one I made for my brother-in-law, he is in the Air Force and has been for over 23 years, so I made him an "Air Force" quilt with the colors of Blue/White/Gold, I found some "Air Force" material that I used for the backing and I embroidered the Air Force emblem and the Air Force seal on 6x6 blocks of white.

The most rewarding quite I ever made was the quilt commemorating my daughter's wedding.  At the reception I had attendants sign quilt blocks that I incorporated into the quilt.  One of the key sentiments expressed included the groom's family recognizing the hardships he had been through after taking care of his father who had died of cancer. I included pictures of the entire wedding from preparation to the reception.  The wedding was held at a winery and the wedding party stayed at the two Victorian houses on the site.  It was a beautiful wedding with the vows being recited on a deck overlooking a lake with the Victorian houses in the background on the hill.  I was able to find an embroiderer who duplicated the invitation which became the focal point of the quilt.   I felt very proud after I finally presented this gift to the bride and groom even though it took me two years to complete it.

my first quilt, which I gave to my Mom and Dad, 25 years ago, and they still use on their bed today

As a member of a very small group of quilters that gets together at our local fire hall, I was able to help a brand new quilter with her first quilt. She was a great friend, and had not sewn in years. During this saga of making her first quilt we all watched her grow as a quilter and friend. She took a class and faithfully executed a rather difficult pattern in reds, blacks and whites....each block was different and a triumph for her. When she had the top entirely finished but not sashed or backed etc., she discovered she had cancer and then surgery, chemo therapy and radiation treatments left her to ill to complete the quilt . She passed away nearly a year ago and we all still miss her dearly. Last Fall myself and 2 other quilt sisters finished her quilt with sashing and backing and gave it to her husband.  He was overcome with happiness....that was our reward and definitely the most rewarding sewing project we've ever done!

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made is the one I made and donated to be the Grand Prize at a Rely for Life benefit...lots of reasons.  Several years ago, I lost a friend, and even though it was not to cancer, it was a very unexpected and sudden loss. She had been very instrumental in starting the Relay for Life in our hometown, and was passionate about making it a great event.  She also loved her home. After living in so many different places, she had settled in to a beautiful home she had restored on a farm. She told me she would live there until she died, but little did we know- it would happen so soon. "The Farm" as she called it had become the place we all loved to spend time at- with family, friends, and her wonderful children and grandchildren. It was a warm, friendly place...all because of her. When I saw the fabric designed by Deb Strain for Moda called "Coming Home" I literally wept. The one barn on the fabric looked so much like the barn on Donna's beloved farm. I made a wonderful quilt, and decided to donate in memory of my friend. Shortly after that, I had the pleasure of meeting Deb Strain. I showed her pictures of the quilt, and she liked it so much she put the pictures on her blog. I had some of the blocks left, and was thrilled when she signed them for me. I will make another "Coming Home" quilt...I haven't decided if I will keep it, or give it to her son. No matter what the decision is- that donated quilt that I made in memory of my dear friend will always hold a special place in my heart.

My most rewarding quilt was a wall-hanging I designed, appliqued and machine quilted for my parents six months after I first pieced a quilt.  It was of our cabin the the woods that we had when I was a child.  It brought back memories of decades of summers spent exploring the mountains and streams around Markleeville, California.  My mom was so proud of my efforts that she hung it over the couch in the living room and everyone who came to the house was invited to look at the beauty her daughter made for her.  Now that my mom is gone, I am so very glad I gave her a few years of getting to enjoy something she was so proud of.

i find something rewarding about each new quilt i make.  but i think the most rewarding for me was the hourglass quilt that i made without a pattern.  It helped me gain confidence, and it's one of my favorite quilts to use!  

The most rewarding quilt I've made is the one I made for a very dear friend's husband.  He was bedridden with the last stages of cancer and it was a privilege to make it.  My friend now has it and will be able to cherish if for a long time to come.

The most rewarding quilt I made was the one that was a challenge quilt with several of my quilting friends.  When they presented it, I thought -- "I can't make that!!"  I took the challenge and made a beautiful New York Beauty quilt.  I will always cherish it as it made me "get out of my box" and try something new.  

It's great to read all the wonderful stories of quilts people have made...My most rewarding quilt (so far) has been a lap quilt I made for my husband for Christmas 2010.  He is a hunter and I had purchased some flannel with elks on it, thinking he would like it, but not having any sort of plan for it - no one else here has done that, have they? ;-)  After a couple of years I saw a pattern in Easy Quilts magazine that I felt would be perfect.  Large squares of focus fabric, and lap size for easy use on the sofa, etc.  It was hard sneaking around to get it sewn because we have an open concept layout at our house and my sewing area shares the room with the house PC.  I did manage to get it done by Christmas and without him finding out  He loved it and it is very well-used.  The cats enjoy it too!

THE Most rewarding Quilt I ever made was for my oldest friend. it was a story quilt about the time we had rescued a racoon from its cage at a farm near the farm her family owned. I paper peiced the racoon from an adoption of an other animal pattern and made a

paper pieced replica of her farm house, the tent we slept in,birds, trees and the pigs we encountered on the way, Although we have not seen each other for many years She still mentions it in her emails.

The quilt that I made that meant the most to me was the one I made for my husband when he underwent a bone marrow transplant.  I had all 4 of our kids draw pictures for him with fabric crayons and them drew around their hands and appliqued them on alternate blocks.  They all signed the quilt and he slept under it every night of the 9 weeks he ended up in the hospital.  When ever he missed our kids he just needed to look at his quilt and each of our children had a quilt I made for them to sleep under as they stayed with relatives during this time.  Each quilt was filled with love and they knew it.

The most rewarding quilt I have made is "Bundle of Joy" from Christol Carter's "A Child's Garden of Quilts".  I gained so much confidence in my quilt making abilities while making this quilt.  I felt that my skill level was beginner, so normally I would not have considered making this quilt.  Then I found out I was to become a Grandmother!  I had to make a special quilt for my first Grandbaby.  I learned to accuratly peice log cabin blocks with one inch strips, to applique, and to add embroidery embelishments.  I even made changes to the pattern:  chose different colors and added a pieced border.  All in all quite a learning experience and confidence booster.

The quilt I just finished for my granddaughters school. It took me a month to make but I got it done...lol.

I made squares of purple work of my Martha pullen bible stories redwork squares. I made the frames in all batiks and made a strip of batiks all the way around. Turned out just beautiful !

A grandmother came to me with a suitcase of her 6 year old grandson's clothing that had been packed in there for more than 15 years.  The boy had died in an abandoned refridgerator  during a hide and seek game with his friends.  The mother was grief stricken and after packing up her son's clothes she kept it locked in a closet and never opened it again.  

The grandmother asked me if I would make a quilt from the contents.  I agreed.   Upon opening the suitcase I saw the small plaid shirts, jeans, underwear, pjs, a jacket with his name on it and even an old dried deer leg.  

So I made a crazy quilt.  I cut the shirts to include the pockets with flaps, jeans with the zipper, jacket with his name and even his little white shorts.  All the pockets on things were useable and the shirt fronts could be unbuttoned.  As I worked on this quilt I felt as though I was in touch with this child and could feel his presence.  The little jeans still had some sand in the cuffs as I could see him playing in the garden.   When the quilt was finished I met with the mother and we hugged, kissed and and wept for this beloved child.  She told me that finally she could say goodbye to her baby and sit wrapped in his quilt as she thought of him.  It was very rewarding to see her reaction and know that this quilt brought much healing to a grieving mother.  As for the deer leg, I never did figure out how to incorporate that into the sewing and frankly thought it better not to.  *smile*

Since I am new to quilting I didn't have to think to hard.  I've only made a few small ones.  My most rewarding quilt is a wall hanging I made of my dog's bandanas she got when I had her groomed.  I saved them for 15 years not knowing what I would do with them.  I was so new to quilting when she passed away I knew I wanted to use them in a quilt.  A friend showed me how to do a scrappy quilt, so I plunged ahead and used them that way.  I also learned how to put photos on the fabric so I have photos of her in the wall hanging.  I now have her wall hanging quilt by my bed that I can look at it everyday and think of her. It was a labor of love and tears.

I am a new quilter and did my first quilt for a craft show.  I was completely surprised when it sold and the buyer was absolutely in love with it!

The most rewarding quilt I made was the first one I made for my first granddaughter, because it was a first and so was she.

My most rewarding quilt made.         I made a T-shirt quilt out of t-shirts collected from 1989 thru 2009 from our Exchange Club of Austin TX annual Kite Festival.  The Kite Festival is the first Sunday in March and this Sunday will be the 84th annaul festival.   I  added several blocks to this quilt making it 25 blocks (5x5) each being a 14 inch square. I donated it to the Exchange Club to be raffled off as part of a fundraiser. We made $500.00 on the quilt alone.   All proceeds go back into the community, primarily to youth projects.  The project of the National Exchange Club is The Prevention of Child Abuse.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a simple jean quilt that I backed with fleece fabric & tied with yarn.  I made it for my husband (when he was my boyfriend) to go in the sleeper of his Semi.  He used to haul loads of equipment all over the USA.  He loved that quilt so much.  It kept him warm on cool nights so he didn't have to waste fuel while he slept.  He still to this day snuggles in the blanket to watch TV since he now only does local hauling of farm machinery.

My most rewarding quilt was the Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt I made for my youngest daughter.  It was done by hand and was made from fabrics left from her clothes as well as fabrics I collected when she was little.  It took 3 years to finish and just last night she told me how much she loves that quilt.  When I look at it I remember all that happened when I made it.  I made it during one of the most challenging periods of my life.  She tells me that it makes her remember her childhood as well as all that she's been through since she got it.  I named it "Mother's Garden of Memories".  

My most rewarding quilt was the quilt I made for daughter who is a freshman in college.  It was a difficult quilt for me ( a newbie at quilting and an intermediate pattern) and worth every stitch knowing she has it on her bed in her dorm.

It was a potrait quilt of my grandma it took a lot of work and a class to do it from quilt university. Now only if I could find out what happened to it. I hope it didn't get left in the storage locker which I no longer have :(

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was one I gave my Mother.  It was a flannel rag quilt.  It was not my first quilt and not very fancy but I wanted to make something special to make her happy and keep her warm.   My mother loved this quilt.  Mom passed away a few years ago but each time we look at the quilt we smile and think of how much she used and loved it.

My most rewarding quilt was a photo memory quilt for my Aunt.  I went through all her old photo albums and took them to be copied onto fabric which I had treated for photos and marked out exactly where I wanted the photos placed. It was a very expensive and time consuming project at the time as I was still working full time. She loved it and used it for a cover on her bed.  Now that she has passed, it is still used as a cover in one of the rooms in my neices rooms and everyone still enjoys it.

The most rewarding Quilt i ever made was my first full size sampler quilt i made for my mother, because of her love of crafts and sewing, it's what inspired me to want to learn to sew quilts. She deserved my very first quilt i made and it came out very beautiful. I couldn't have been more honered then to give her that quilt as my gift to her for all she has shown me.

I have made many tied quilts for newlyweds and babies, but I am a new quilter as far as machine quilting goes.  I have set a goal to make a quilt for each of my grand-kids as they graduate.  Last year I made a 9 patch quilt in blues, greens, and purples with pictures in a diagonal stripe in the purples.  Purple and white are the school colors.  My grandson is a champion swimmer, loves hunting, and was an Eagle Scout, and a  leader in his class.  I chose the blues to represent his swimming, the greens for hunting, and had pictures of him with his medals, receiving his Eagle, with his school committee, his family, and his first hunting trip.  His other Grandma embroidered the school logo on a block for the quilt.  The nine patch proved to be a real challenge, and I am amazed that I actually finished it.  It was definitely the most rewarding quilt that I have done, and he loved it.  

I think my first quilt was my most rewarding. I was an all wool quilt top with flannel backing.  The wool was all recycled via a thrift store men's suit coats and women's skirts, and I gave it to my son.  He loved it!  A lot of time went into making it, but I love that I was able to recycle cast offs into something new.

It was a Yellow Brick Road pattern in Civil War colors for my husband who takes it with him on his Civil War Re-enactments.

It was a quilt I had started for my mother, the 8 pointed star.  I chose all her favorite colors.  By the time I had it all pieced, my mother took ill and passed away as I was hand quilting it.  I put it away for a time and could not look at it.  One day I got tired of moving it from one spot to the next and brought it out and continued to hand quilt.  I was able to get it finished in time to give to my oldest son and his wife as a wedding gift two years later.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was my very first one in 2003.  It kept me sane!  My husband and I had retired and just moved and were living in a motel room waiting for our home to be finished.  I made a yo-yo quilt, all with donated scraps of fabric except for the white muslin I purchased to use as setting pieces.  I made yo-yo's constantly, keeping myself busy.  There is only so much you can do in a motel room!  i ended up with enough yo-yo's to make a queen-sized quilt.  I set the yo-yos together with a yelllow center, floral around and white yo-yos to attach the blocks together in a flower garden pattern.  Did I say that we lived in the motel room from June until November?

The most rewarding quilt(s) I make are charity quilts made for missions through our church.  Most years our group of 5-8 dedicated quilters make 300-400 tied quilts.  They range from baby size to lap size to full size and are made from donated fabrics.  We like to think they are warming and/or sheltering those who are in need.  I also make my own quilts and am just finishing up the "Farmer's Wife Quilt" with a group of friends at church.  

My most rewarding quilt was my second quilt, started in 2010 and finished 2011. Contains 144  11" blocks and is a Fireworks quilt.  I entered it in a quilt challenge at our PGI  "Pyrotechnics Guild International convention In August 2011 and it won 1st Place and Best of Show.  It now hangs in with pride in my hallwall.

It has been promised to my daughter, and have already finished a quilt for may daughter-in-law for Christmas and hoping to have another quilt for my step-daughter for her Christmas this year.

I just finished laying out my next quilt for this year's convention.  Again with a Fireworks theme, that is a

requirement for the challenge.

the most rewarding quilt I ever made is usually the last one I made! Though the one I made for my husband when he was diagnosed with cancer has really given the biggest reward in that when we thought he was going to start chem (and would need the quilt) they said the tests were now reading in the normal range!! It was a miracle! Havent used the quilt for anything yet, and actually hope never to need it!

This question is a no brainer -- Ronald McDonald Quilt Ministry from our church. We make over 600 quilts yearly for the children & their family members who stay at our local Ronald McDonald House. The reward is knowing that every week we work on these quilts there is someone staying at the house who will get to enjoy the quilt. When delivering the quilts the children seem to come out of the woodwork to see what we have brought them and their faces tell the whole story.

Most rewarding quilt is tough.  I think the one I made for my youngest son.  It is one of my favourites as I was so pleased with the outcome and so is he.  When he moved out, he took it with him and is using it on his bed.  A piece of home is with him.

I made a sweet baby pink, soft blue and white combination twin size quilt with Beatrix Poter characters bordered in squares for my granddaughter who is 3.  I "practiced" my feathers in the borders!  The end result was passable! --but the look on her face  when she opened the box was the most rewarding!

I have a hard time deciding between the embroidered quilt I made my parents of different animals and flowers some representing pets we had, or the dog quilt I made my brother with eplipecy.  I found different dog fabric and then embroidered him some dogs in the squares.  He immediately took all the blankets off his bed and told me this was the only blanket from now on that would be there.  My mom plays with the different animals and flowers because they have different textures.  Dad looks for the different creatures in the quilt.

My most rewarding was my Rainbow Block Quilt. It was the first one I started, but the second one I finshed. It was such a feeling of accomplishment. I blogged about it here: amateurquilter.blogspot.com/.../my-second-quilt-is-finished.html

Before Alzheimer's overtook my mother-in-law, I had made her a Christmas wallhanging with angels on it.  She loved it so much, she kept it hanging up all year around.  When she moved to the nursing home, the wallhanging went with her, and it stayed on the wall until the day she died.  After her funeral, the wallhanging was given back to me, and it hangs in my sewing room, all year around.

The most rewarding quilt I have made was for the NAMES project honoring my son who had died of AIDS.  I used some his personal items and interests on it.  By doing this, it no only honored him, but also provided healing for me.

I have only been quilting about 2 years now, but I would have to say my most rewarding quilt was the PrimaVera quilt I did . It really turned out great.

I did this up for my mother (who has since passed) because she loved Irises (and actually all flowers).

For me it is a constant reminder of her passion for life.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was called "Janet's Turtles".  My dear friend lost her battle with cancer last year, we had both been gathering fabrics for her to hand piece a quilt she saw that was all turtles.  After her memorial service, I gathered up the unfinished project, brought it home with me and finished hand piecing it.  The hand quilting was next, my Dad, who passed away in August, kept asking me who I was making it for.  I'd tell him it was for a friend, over and over and over again.  This past Xmas I gave the quilt to Janet's husband, he broke into tears when he saw it.  He loves the quilt as much as he loved Janet, And so do I.  Pictures help me remember Janet and Helmut and the Turtle quilt.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made is the first full size quilt I ever made.  It has served me well in all seasons and is full of memories of its assembly and life.  Every time I see this quilt, its memories visualize and give me peaceful feelings.

My most rewarding quilt, though very simple, was the first one I made in honor of my father-in-law's passing this last Fall.  When the end was near, the hospice where he passed placed him in a nice colorful gown and with a quilt on his lap.  Though he was unaware of this by that time, it provided a peaceful setting for the family during those last few hours.  It was so touching.  I did however notice that the quilt used was a bit frayed around the edges.  I vowed then and there that I would provide them with a new quilt in his honor every couple of months during the first year after his passing.  I have just finished and delivered the second one.  No thanks is ever expected nor required but I received a personal note from the director because she appreciated the gift of my time to commemorate their service to him for years to come.

as i am new at quilting ,i will have to say my most rewarding quilt was the first one that i designed ,made my own pattern bought material and then cut out and started to work on the quilt. not realizing what a challenge i was taking on because i was wanting to enter it in a contest.i think i broke every rule ,if there is such in quilting. with no one to ask what to do i read books and bought quilting magazines and watched" how tos" till i got the wall hanging quilt together!!! of course i think it looks great ,so does my daughters.they couldnt believe i did it!i am real proud of it .my inspiration was a painting i did on a sweat shirt about 21 years ago. then after wearing the shirt for a couple of years ,i cut the painting off the shirt and framed it. it has been hanging in my sewing room ever since.the painting i called memories of yesteryear is of my  two daughters and son when they were young out walking with their red wagon.i was so proud of being able to say i can quilt now. i am on my next quilt. quilting is addicting in a good way.thanks

The most rewarding quilt I made was a tee shirt quilt I made for my best friend.  I made it using the tee-shirts of her son who had died in a car accident.  The tee shirts were a variety of colors and themes so I ended up putting different bright colored frames around each different sized block, then sashing the whole thing in solid black.  The longarmer quilted it with an angel wings pattern and it turned out beautiful.  She now has a daily memorial of her son and said it was the best gift she ever received.

Short and sweet answer: my granddaughter a baby quilt. My daughter-in-law was tickled with the quilt and now at age four Bailey wants to make a quilt like Nanny made her.

I just finished a quilt for a lady that lives in a nursing home.  She had quilt blocks that her cousin had painted with flowers of each of the 50 states.  She has had these blocks for over 40 years not knowing what to do with them because she doesn't sew or quilt and didn't know anyone that did.  A friend of mine told her that I quilt and so she gave them to me.  The names of all the states are painted in red, so I chose a red fabric with small white polka dots on it.  She still had the instructions on how to put the quilt together.  I got it all done and presented it to her just a few days ago.  The other resident's at the nursing home were all excited to see the quilt and she said her family loves it!  She was so appreciative that I was able to complete something that her cousin had given her so many years ago.  She tells me that somewhere she also has the state birds blocks whenever her daughter finds them, and she would like me to put that quilt together as well!  I put a label on the quilt with her name and her cousins name, so that future generations will know the family connection that this quilt has.

I usually base "rewarding" on the recipients of my quilts as I love to sew and craft for others. But I found out at a quilt show one year when I won an honorable mention for a quilt square I made that "rewarding" and "humbled" go hand in hand, as the judges that year were nationally known and had deemed my little square to be a "winner"!

MOST MEMORABLE QUILT I'VE EVER MADE:

My favorite quilt is called "Blocks of Illusion"....I saw a picture on the internet and decided to do a similar quilt, made my own pattern and designed it on my own....had these wonderful Nancy Crow .fabrics in my stash that worked wonderfully

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made is one I am currently finishing. It has the traced "hands" from my grand daughter's 2nd grade class and will be auctioned on 3/9/12 to raise money for her school. I felt so honored to be asked to design and contruct this quilt for her school.

My Goodness, these are such touching stories! Thank you for allowing us to share these very sentimental moments of our quilting with one another!

My Most rewarding Quilt I ever made was my Husband's Church Camp T-Shirt quilt. I sashed it with fabric that resembled water and on the quilting was made to look like mountains. The shirts used were his shirts he wore at Church Camp all through the years he taught there. Today, it hangs where everyone to see and he tells the story of Camp with them. It is so rewarding to see the joy I see in his eyes while he tells the story behind the quilt! I have enough shirts left over, each Son will receive one of their own with Dad's T-shirts from Camp as well. He says he wants to be buried with it.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made?  A work in progress --it is named 'A Day at the Beach' and is a wall hanging that will be on display at the seniors' long term facility at our hospital.  I started making it as my first assignment after I joined the local Bunchgrass Quilting Club.  

I've made a number of charity and donation quilts over the years, and I make comfort quilts for friends with serious illness.  The most rewarding would be one that I made over 10 years ago for the American Heart Association.  At auction, it brought $2,200.00 (to my amazement)  Other quilts sold for even more than that. It was a good feeling to know my work contributed to such a good cause for many.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was the simplest, just a large rectangle surrounded by a simple border.  Very, very little piecing, made in a hurry for a loved one diagnosed with a terminal illness.  I completed it in time for her to be comforted by it, and then buried with it.  

I would say my most rewarding quilt was one for my mother because she had made full size quilts for all of her grandchildren and then made one for each of her daughters (me included) and daughter-in-law.  That was quite a few quilts and took some years to do them all.  Later she got sick and it took a couple of years for her to get back to herself but she hasn't been able to quilt again.  I made a quilt for her and gave it to her during the time of her illness.  When we visit she makes sure to put it on her bed each day.  That means a lot, as she is one to save things back.  

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was also one of the most simple. My small group made Kaye Woods 6 hour quilt for Project Linus and I received a letter from the mother of the little boy who got my quilt while so sick along with a picture of him with the quilt fully recovered! I made my cry and so happy to know that he had been cheered up by my simple quilt.

Normally, that would be the one I just finished, but this time I will have to say it's one I made last year for a friend.  He's a SF Giant fan and I'm a STL Cardinal fan.  Whrn his team won the World Series I spent a good 6 months gathering fabric and ideas.  I then designed it on graph paper, trying many different designs.  Then came the poecing, which took much longer because my pieces had to be laid in a mosaic.  I hand quilted the queen size quilt and shpped it to him in California.   The quilt was a total surprise to them.  So why is it the most rewarding?  Because he and his wife dearly treasire the quilt and take every opportunity to show and tell.  I'm so happy that my work of art and comfort is treasured.

The most memorable quilt I ever made will never be seen by the rest fo the world.  About a month before Father's Day, I was at a quilt show and found a panel piece with a poem honoring fathers printed on it.  I thought what a wonderful gift it would be to my dad for his special day, so I bought the piece and made a wall hanging with it.  I was almost finished with it and my dad passed away unexpectedly two days before Father's Day.  I was devastated and was just going to put the quilt away until it didn't hurt so bad to look at it, but my stepmom asked me to please finish the quilt.  We then placed it in Daddy's casket with him.  So, even though this quilt will never be seen by anyone else, it is exactly where it should be.

My most rewarding quilt was the one I made after my parents died.  I used their clothing and made blocks with overlaping hearts.  One large heart made of Dad's shirts and one smaller heart made of Mom's dresses and blouses.  Then I combined those squares with blocks of nine that my sister made .  Our mom use to make blankets for the grandkids with hearts and blocks of nine, so that was the reason for choosing this cobination. My sister and I made a total of three of these quilts, one for each of us siblings in our favorite colors.  It was a very healing project for me, and I'd do it again in a heart beat.  

I think my most rewarding quilt was one of the first, I was so surprized that I could do anything so special.  It was a table runner and turned out so pretty!  My dear husband helped me pick out the fabrics and everyone in my quilt club were so envious in that he would be involved at all!  I've made many since then, but, I can't say they have been all that rewarding.  I'm waiting for that very special one!

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was the first quilt I ever made.  My mom and dad were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary so I made a queen sized quilt of blocks, alternating a pattern block with an ivory block.  Then we had a permanent marking pen at the open house for guests to sign the quilt.  For those who lived a distance away and couldn't attend I had them send me signatures which I traced onto blocks. Having never made a quilt before some of the corners didn't exactly match up but I am so proud of this quilt and my parents loved it.  My mom passed away 12/20/2011 and my dad still has the quilt on his bed.  They would have celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary on March 9, 2012.

My first quilt was the most rewarding.  It was made for my granddaughter.  I hand quilted this quilt and that became the open door to the wonderful world of quilting.

My sister's Cal King "surprise" quilt was my most rewarding quilt I have ever made. I used a variety of patterns and applique on her quilt. It was definitely a stretch for me and, through the process, I have increased my quilting skills to a level where I no longer feel intimidated by any pattern that comes my way. It looks stunning on her bed!

For me, it is a quilt I made for my mother who was a artist.  She picked the colors and I used a combination of machine embroidery and piecing.   I quilted it on a Handi Quilter with a Juki 98TLE and tried lots of new things on it.  Mom loved it.   What I loved the most about it is that we worked together to design it and when it was finished it actually fit her bed and her style and it made her happy.  

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a quilt I made from neckties. It was made from neckties that friends gave to me and I think is the best looking quilt I ever made.

The members of my quilting club (St. Zachary Parish in DesPlaines, IL) decided to make mystery quilts. I began this project with a lot of enthusiasm but no idea of what to do with it. My daughter's friends were having a fundraising event for their friend whose husband is dealing with terminal cancer. I donated the quilt for a raffle for the event and have not been so thrilled with any other project.

my sister in law is very elegant and "picky", so when i make her "homemade" gifts she tends to discard or say interesting things about nice to have time or "creative juices".  she never says wow, you made this for me or it's lovely, or it fits right in with me, etc.   so one time i made a simple quilt with 2 colors (not even her "colors"), she raved and raved and said it was perfect for her car quilt.   I smiled and thought wow..  at least i think she likes it!!   well, the rest of the story is that she had car trouble, had to sit for over 2 hours in a cold car and she pulled my car quilt over her and she indicated she felt loved and warmth both literally and figuratively from her family because she was scared, cold and upset and how much time and effort i put into making her something she could use and that maybe her view of "homemade" gifts was different because these gifts meant she mattered in life and family and encompassed something she always felt she was lacking in her "elegant" life.   she has ventured out so much to try a small craft now and then.   Mission accomplished!

I think the most rewarding quilt I have made wasn't the most difficult one, but it meant a lot to my husband. We usually do a family project after Thanksgiving dinner. Many times it is a Christmas craft that kind of starts our Christmas season. A year ago my husband asked me if we could make a quilt that he could use to cover up with in cold weather and he would like it if it could have everyones hand prints on it. So, for our project after Thanksgiving dinner we cleared the table and we made hand prints on blocks that I had prepared. It was fun! There are 15 of us from 2 years old to 15 for the Grandkids (7) and then us big kids. Then that winter we picked out material for the sashing strips and borders. I put it together and machine quilted it. It turn out really cute and he loves it. He named it the laying on of the hands.

I think the most rewarding quilt I have made wasn't the most difficult one, but it meant a lot to my husband. We usually do a family project after Thanksgiving dinner. Many times it is a Christmas craft that kind of starts our Christmas season. A year ago my husband asked me if we could make a quilt that he could use to cover up with in cold weather and he would like it if it could have everyones hand prints on it. So, for our project after Thanksgiving dinner we cleared the table and we made hand prints on blocks that I had prepared. It was fun! There are 15 of us from 2 years old to 15 for the Grandkids (7) and then us big kids. Then that winter we picked out material for the sashing strips and borders. I put it together and machine quilted it. It turn out really cute and he loves it. He named it the laying on of the hands.

The most rewarding quilt I made was a block of the month quilt.  It was also the

most challenging and the first quilt quilted on my short arm machine and frame

set-up.  I learned a lot making this quilt.  

My most important quilt is one of the reasons I am learning to quilt now, and the one quilt I never wanted to make. My only child, a son, has 4th Stage cancer. I am gathering a few of his shirts, a few of his two young boys shirts (the special ones, Halloween etc) and some pictures to print fabric photos of Disneyland, backyard cookout, etc and Will make them both quilts. Hopefully they will not be memorial quilts to his death, but rather loving reminders of their father. When he cannot wrap his arms around his boys, his quilt will.

I made a mystery quilt to give to my father, who was living at a nursing home.  When I brought him the quilt , he took it to his room and spread it on his bed.  He thanked me with tears in his eyes.  I had the best thanks ever when I found out it was his prized possession.

I think the biggest thrill I have had in making a quilt was when I completed the very first one.   Not that I haven't enjoyed  each and every project, but that first one was a winner.  It was the flying geese pattern and I elected to use Amish colors.  It  was a lap quilt for my grandson, so was made with love in every stitch.  I took an evening class with a very experienced and exceptional quilter who was able to instruct, encourage, and PRAISE all our efforts....so the experience was a big plus all the way through to our finished products.  I am still quite proud of that quilt, and it may be some of the best work I have done yet!  But I will keep trying.  At a ripe old age of 87 I have much more time at home to work on varying quilting projects!  

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made (thus far) is the one I just finished...it was a memory quilt made up of favorite t-shirts (that had belonged to her mother-in-law) for a friends 11 year old daughter to remember her Nana that had lost her battle with Breast Cancer - it turned out to be a whopping 8 ft by 10 ft quilt by the time it was finished because she kept finding more t-shirts for me to add...(lol).

There was even a t-shirt with my own mothers name on it because they had walked in a 3 day event and she had had breast cancer survivors' names printed on it. (my mom is a two time survivor, 9 years apart).

It was a real honor to be able to give her something of lasting quality she could keep and hold on to as she grows up.

My mother-in-law had inspired me to make a quilt but I had never completed the task. Sadly she passed away and she had 5 quilts started for her grandchildren. I took all the fabric home and completed all 5 quilts.  I know she was watching over me.  PS, she had several other quilts in all states of completion and I am slowly working on them also.

I find the most rewarding quilt is the one I am working on at that moment.  I really get involved with each one.  I also find, when I give a quilt away and I give a lot away, I always feel like I have given away a child so then I have to replace it for me.  I am a big fan of thimbleberry patterns and also get a lot of patterns from Quilters Club of America.  I am so lucky to have a husband who tolerates all of my whimes.  Thanks for  making this such a wonderful club.

The most rewarding quilt that I ever made was my first quilt made in 2007 after I retired.  It came out just perfect; thanks to a good teacher.  I have become more critical of my work now that I have more experience but have never reached the "High" of completing that first quilt.  

I just completed my second American Valor quilt for the Quilts of Valor Foundation.  I saw an ad in a magazine for the Red Rooster fabrics, downloaded the pattern, searched online for the fabrics, and I was hooked on donating to the military personnel that give so much to our country.  This really was a labor of love since it took me two months to complete the two quilts that were sent out to a longarmer that I did not know.  When I got them back I had to completely dismantle them and replace pieces that had holes and grease on them, wash to get rid of the cat hair and fleas, resquare, and longarm them again, before sending them off since I would not forward them to a soldier as they were.  The upside to this lesson, it forced me to learn how to longarm my own quilts so now I have a new skill, wow, at 69 I can still learn new things!  We are so grateful that we live in a free country and can never give enough to our service personnel.  The second quilt has just been shipped and I can't wait to start on the five that I am designing myself - they may become my most rewarding quilts in the future.  Thankfully, my husband agrees and supports my quilting obsession as long as I take time for the vegetable garden too.

My most rewarding/memorable quilt was one I made for my dad, who had become extremely ill and bedridden during the last yr. of his life.  My mom kept him at home and I went over 6 days out of 7 to help her care for him.  My guild's retreat was coming up and I was desperate for a break, since I had been a care-giver for my brother for 5 yr. who had died the previous year.  I had picked out a flannel quilt to make using old-fashioned toille scenes of youngsters in the winter sledding, making snowmen with the farm behind them, etc.  I made 9-patches interspersed with solid block fussy-cut scenes.  When I told my dad I wouldn't see him for three days, he became agitated.  To calm him down my mom (obviously a non-quilter) told him I was going away to make a quilt for him and have it done for his birthday in 2 wk!  WHAT??!!  Talk about pressure!  I feverishly worked into the wee hours that weekend, miraculously piecing it all together except for the outer borders.  My good friend, Janice Petre, a professional long-armer, was so moved by what I was doing and upset by my hectic pace she agreed to quilt it for me and get it to me in time.  The morning of my dad's birthday I was still hand sewing the binding and the label.  The quilt was perfect for him because he had been raised on a small farm, which brought back pleasant memories of his childhood when he looked at it.  He used that quilt every single day and night of his life for the next 8 mo., getting agitated unless it was covering him, even in the summer.  After he passed, my mom wanted me to enter it in a local quilt show, where it won a ribbon.  When I took her to see it hanging and she saw the ribbon, she burst into tears, bringing even the strangers around her to tears when she told the story.  By the way....the label included these words:  Made for my dad to give him comfort during his twilight years.  And it did!      

I was challenged to make a quilt for a friend who had adopted a baby from Korea. This lucky little girl came from very questionable circumstances into a home filled with loads of love. During the long and complicated adoption process friends were asked to send small pieces of fabrics to later be made into a tribute quilt for the new baby. I was asked to pull all of these pieces together. As there was no rhyme or reason to the many diverse pieces of cloth donated, the challenge to make a cohesive quilt seemed daunting at first. However, as the room for the wee baby was painted a charming pink, I used that color as the background and focus for the quilt. I was able to incorporate blocks depicting her native land, her new home and some of the dreams her new family had planned for the child. This quilt is visually appealing, tactile and lots of fun. I found out later that the backing had a "glow in the dark" additive in the cloth. This little addition presented yet another fun element to the quilt! What a delight to watch this baby grow with her new family, surrounded by a quilt filled with love.

My quilting buddy and I were commissioned for a quilt for a co-worker.  I work for the Air Force and my client was active duty.  She had already purchased some AF themed fabric and wanted that fabric in the quilt.  I found a pattern, not too difficult, but not real easy, either.  It had flying geese pieces, but we used the no waste method, which was a new technique for me.  We even pieced the backing in a nice pattern, using up most of the rest of the fabrics.  The quilt turned out so beautiful with red, white, blue and gold colors, and the AF planes flying through the quilt!  Our client was so thrilled, and my partner and I were very proud!

We moved 8 years ago.  We moved across the state and took it as an opportunity to downsize our home since our daughters had just left home for marriage and college.  The home we found was much different in style than our previous home of 18 years.  I had a Country Decorating theme but our new home was not going to work with this style.  I had a wall that was huge and with a high ceiling.  In the past all the quilts I made were very traditional with plaids and darker country colors.  For this home and this wall I found a quilt pattern that used batik fabrics, modern in style and had a funky curved piecing method.  This was a huge undertaking for me!  With each step of making this quilt I had much trepidation.  But with each completed step I also had excitement and joy with how it was all coming along so beautifully.  I am looking at this quilt hanging on that huge wall as I write this.  It is the most rewarding quilt I have ever made.  It started a whole new adventure in quilting for me.  I very seldom do traditional quilting anymore and I constantly challenge myself to try new techniques now!  Thank you for letting me share my story and take this wonderful journy down memory lane.

I made a quilt for St Jude with fabrics from Hancock Fabrics.  It was designed by Michelle Crawford and I enjoyed making the quilt very much.  In fact I made another one for my grandson

The last one I completed, will always be the answer.  I like most quilters am always challenging myself to be a better quilter so that everytime I make a quilt I try to do the very best I can.  Easy or hard it does not matter if when it is done I see growth in the results of my work.  

Its hard to decide, but when I found out I was going to be a great grandmother for the first time, I knew I had to make a special quilt.  I embroidered Sues Zoo baby ducks on pale yellow background.  they are so cute and then got fabric to match.  I guess I just felt so much family love when making this quilt.  We were starting a new generation.  I was so happy with that quilt when I got finished and Connor , who is almost 8, loved it too.  

I made a twin quilt with "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" embroidered in the center of the quilt for my best friend's 4 yo granddaughter. When she opened the box, she took out the quilt & she was told what it said on the quilt. Her favorite song! She pulled it into the kitchen, spread it all out on the floor, lay down on it and rolled herself up. Then she sang the song. Her dad taped her so I could watch. It was very touching. The quilting wasn't my best work, but who cared. The quilt is still her favorite and has to come with her when she visits her grandmother.

I think the current most rewarding quilt is the one I've just finished--there haven't been many that are fininshed!! Quite a few have been started and the tops done, but getting it all put together may come years later and when it happens, it is quite a joy!

The very first quilt that I ever made was a 120 X 120 quilt.  It was a combination of three different  quilt patterns.  I had never pieced a quilt in my life.  I never dreamed that this quilt would end up being this big.  It started out with a snowflake pattern that consisted of 50 different snowflakes appliqued on blocks, then with a twisting garden pattern.  Then we used some kind of mountain pattern for the border.  Anyway, it turned out really pretty.  Several people helped hand quilt this extremely large quilt.  But most of the credit needs to go to my husband who did most of the hand quilting.  But for someone who had never done anything of this magnitude, I think it turned out very well, and I have continued to piece quilts ever since then.  

The very first quilt that I ever made was a 120 X 120 quilt.  It was a combination of three different  quilt patterns.  I had never pieced a quilt in my life.  I never dreamed that this quilt would end up being this big.  It started out with a snowflake pattern that consisted of 50 different snowflakes appliqued on blocks, then with a twisting garden pattern.  Then we used some kind of mountain pattern for the border.  Anyway, it turned out really pretty.  Several people helped hand quilt this extremely large quilt.  But most of the credit needs to go to my husband who did most of the hand quilting.  But for someone who had never done anything of this magnitude, I think it turned out very well, and I have continued to piece quilts ever since then.  

While I'm still pretty much a beginner (having only made 8), I'd have to say that the most rewarding to date has been the Log Cabin I made for my daughter for Christmas. Done in black & white fabrics with red centers, binding, & back, the label is what told me how much she liked it. Why? She cried when she read what I wrote, "When you wrap up in this quilt, you're wrapped up in my arms."

Quilt made for my sister-in-law last Christmas.  She has been fighting numerous health issues all her life plus cancer for the last two decades.  Rarely do I hear a word about how terrible and painful her daily life is.  As it stands she will not be with us for next Christmas.  Used deep purple, tarnished gold and chocolate brown to make a double irish chain, her favorite colors.  It turned out wonderful and she loves it.

My most rewarding quilt was one made for a child with multiple physical problems, one of which is the inability to speak clearly.  I cried when his father told me that the boy very plainly tells everyone who walks in the house to come see his quilt!  Quilts are wonderful expressions of love and beauty.

One of my most rewarding quilts that I made was the one for my small nephew when he was born. It turned out to be his favorite quilt to pack around and snuggle up with when he was growing up. It is so rewarding to me to make something that is so liked that it is used consistently by the person receiving it

The three quilts I have made and donated to the local volunteer fire department to raffle off.  The department made many trips to my parents home before they both passed, and this was a way that I could say thank you.

The most rewarding quilt that I have made was my daughter's wedding quilt.

Originally, I was going to make hand-embroidered and quilted table toppers for the wedding, but a friend suggested that I just finish the toppers on the serger and use them to make a wedding quilt.

My daughter did not want a wedding guest book, so I prepared fabric for signatures and the guests signed the blocks with indelible fabric pens. These were incorporated into the back of the finished quilt.

There were 14 toppers. After the wedding, 12 of the toppers were used to make the quilt top and the two extra were made into throw pillows for her bed.

The entire project took a  year from start-to-finish, including coming up with a topper design and fabrics that pleased the fussy bride-to-be. When I handed her the finished quilt, her appreciation and excitement made the entire experience one to remember.

I have made two quilts that were the most rewarding quilts I ever made. The first was the quilt I made for my son when he was in the service and went to Iraq.  At the time, the war was going on we were so worried about him every day.  Each morning we would turn on the television and listen to the news.  I decided I needed to do something more constructive rather than listen to the awful news, so I purchased red, white and blue fabrics and started working on a quilt for him.  I would sew on it every morning before I went to work.  I made a twinkling star quilt that turned out very nice.  When I was finished with that quilt, I started working on another one.  The second one was a Yankee chain.   When my son came home, I presented him with his quilt.  When we went to visit the quilt was hanging on a quilt wrack.  While I was watching TV I became chilly so, I grabbed the quilt up and covered up with it.  Later on I went up stairs, when I came back down the quilt was hanging back up, so I know he treasures that quilt.  The other quilt I worked on wasn't quite finished when he came home but I finished it and gave it to him to give to his friend who had told me before they left for the war that he would watch his back.  My son gave it to him and he said he took it home with him and slept under the quilt and the next morning folded it up and put it up on the shelf to keep.  I am so proud of my "two" soldiers and know they will treasure those quilts.  

The most rewarding quilt I've ever made was actually my second quilt completed about 15 years ago.  My husband's parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, and I decided to make a quilt for them that showed how their life evolved since I married their son.  It was an applique quilt that started with their first year of marriage, and continued through today.  I had so much fun making this quilt.  I would go days without any creative juices, then all of a sudden, I would be working long into the night, creating the appliques that would depict a part of their 50 years together.  My sister and I hand quilted the entire quilt, and were finished by their party.  It was on display, and everyone loved it.  It now hangs behind their bed, and everytime I see it, I remember why I love to quilt so much!  

My rewards are the looks on the faces of loved ones and friends that receive a quilt from me and knowing that my quilt will be loved.  I get such pleasure seeing their reactions and the looks on their faces when watching them hug the quilt.  I started quilting, approximately 12 years ago, because I was told by my doctor that I needed to find a hobby to relieve stress and to help bring down my blood pressure.  I had always wanted to learn to quilt and here was my chance.  I love seeing a quilt come together and it brings such joys that only quilters can explain!

The first I thought about was the t-shirt quilt I made for our son--finished before he got here Christmas. He gave me t-shirts about 6 years ago, I cut out blocks 3 years ago and finally finished one--have 3 or four more to go seeing all the t-shirts he have me. I used the ads for the back. The next one was one I designed from a picture for my grandson 5 years ago. He loved. And now I'm just finishing one for youngest granddaughter. It is actually two as the back is a I-Spy quilt! I enjoy all of them or I wouldn't do them.

I had made a streak of lightning quilt in austrailian-type colors and then my brother married a sweet lady and they were going to Austrailia for a couple years. So of course that quilt had to go to them as a wedding quilt. It was my first large quilt that I had ever machine quilted, so it wasn't exactly perfect, but my sister-in-law was so impressed with it, she took it to a local quilt store (blush!!) to show off....It proudly hangs in their house in Alice Spring, Austrailia, and will soon be home to California later this year...

I made a quilt for an eight year old boy that was dying from cancer; also a Quilt Of Valor quilt.

The Most Rewarding Quilt for me would be the Most Special Quilt.  My Husband had kidney failure unexpectantly.  We had no idea that anything was wrong with him.  We found ourselves in The Medical Center in Downtown Houston St Luke's Hospital for a transplant.  While he was in surgery, I started a Sunebonnet Sue/OverAll Sam Quilt.  I managed to find patterns for embroidery work doing everything that He and I both loved to do.....His was fishing, and mine is sewing....I managed to have all the blocks done while we were there for the next 2 weeks.  It is truly the most special most rewarding quilt that I have ever made.  I didn't think that he would live, as they gave little hope.   I am blessed because not only did I make a quilt top,  my  sweet husband survived...........It was definately a learning experience in more ways than one!

Oh boy, I have made many quilts, but one really is most rewarding to me, It was one that I made for my Mom and Dad, for their anniversary.  I had just finish taking a class,  quilt as you go, and I wanted to make them a quilt, I went to my sisters house for two weeks, and I sewed and quilted every day and late into the night, just to get the quilt done.  I got it done, as we was driving back to Kansas, about 30 minutes from their house, I finish the binding on it.  We had a great celebration with the family, and really surprise my Mom with a beautiful quilt, and since they have passed away, I have the quilt to cherish for ever!...

The most rewarding (and most difficult designwise) quilt is one I am making now. It is a memory quilt using dress, T-shirt, sweater, silk, jeans and other materials. I have added pictures of the woman's life and divided the blocks into different aspects of her life. It's been difficult to work with so many different materials and different colors (some of which clash). I am making 2 quilts pretty much alike that will be given to her 2 grandchildren.

The most rewarding quilit I made was for my boyfriend , Christmas 2012.  It was a snowball quilt in civil war browns, burgunday and beiges.  There was a motif of owls in the snowball.  The quilting on it turned out well.  At least the best I have ever done.  I was so proud of that.  It has given me confidence that I could do even better.  I'm proud of it.

The most rewarding quilt that I ever made was a group quilt I coordinated.  More than 20 years ago, as a junior in high school, I received a Congressional scholarship to live abroad as an exchange student.  Prior to departing, I underwent an intensive language and cultural training with 49 other recipients and we all bonded so firmly that we are still very much in touch today.  A couple of years ago, one of the group - actually a successful OB/GYN - was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.  Despite aggressive treatment, she knew the end was near and invited us all to come together for one reunion weekend.  Although many members are living around the world I was able to get in touch with most of them and have them sign blocks for her, and I put them together in a quilt that I gave her at the reunion.  It was so emotional for everyone and I was so proud to have been able to coordinate the effort.  She passed away in January, 2011, leaving a husband and very young son behind, but with the love of her friends literally keeping her warm in her last days.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was the one I made for my Grammy--she taught me to quilt.

There are several that have been truly rewarding, but the last quilt I made was a Quilt of Valor and I must say that one is by far the most rewarding.

Without a doubt my most rewarding quilt, so far has been a quilt from Debbie Mumm's "Greenwood Gardens". It was a log cabin quilt and I had the machine embroidery designs for the fruit that went in the middle of each block. That was the quilt that really got me started quilting. I loved playing with all the different greens that went into it. When I finished it I gave it to my best friend who has been allowing me to room on her and her husband's farm while I get my life put back together. She loves the green colors too.

My most rewarding quilt is the one I made for my neighbor across the street. She turned 95 on January 23, 2012. I used the tumbler charm pack cutting tool to cut the blocks and a Riley Blake charm pack for the fabric. When I did the quilting on it I did a heart in each of the tumblers. My neighbor is so thankful, everytime I go over to visit her she thanks me again for her beautiful quilt and says that it is the first thing anyone has ever made for her. It was really worth the effort to see the smile it brings on her face.

The one I made for my 18 year old niece who has many health issues.  I wrote her a letter to go with the quilt explaining that the fabric was purchased before she was born and that this particular fabric was MADE in the USA, along with other details.  She wrote me an email telling me how much she appreciated the quilt and that it was one of the best things anyone had ever done for her.

I do so love to make quilts and give them away, especially baby quilts. Yet, the most rewarding quilt I've made was designed by me for me, hand quilted, and turned out suprisingly good. As a naive new quilter I did not realize that someone at my beginner's skill level shouldn't be making such a difficult quilt. I persevered, made every stitch, and met the challenge. Now, I'm not afraid to tackle new techniques.

Of course, I love each and every quilt that have made for my baby grandnieces and enjoy seeing them with those blankies.

I make quilts for others, mostly. And each one has a special meaning. Each one, at the time I make it is the most rewarding quilt I have ever done. I don't think I can choose an extra-special one. I do have several wips ...they do not qualify as most rewarding because they are not for anyone in particular yet.

The most rewarding quilt I have made was a "Back to Basics" quilt at our local club.  I decided that this was to be MY quilt. I chose some beautiful red roses on a black background as my main fabric.  Our tutor challenged us to design our own quilts and there were stipulations of types of blocks and sizes, then we had to design "joiners" to get it all together. OUr borders were not to be strips of fabric!  I then challenged myself to complete some patterned free machine quilting.  I was very pleased with the outcome.  However that was not the most rewarding aspect of this quilt.  It was on display at our Biennennial Show and Tell and a friend of mine wanted to buy it.  I explained it wasn't for sale as it was my own quilt.  A few months later she was diagnosed with a tumour and experienced ill health for quite a while.  The most pleasing part for me was that I was rewarded greatly when I made a choice to give it to her.  She says even now, the quilt inspired her to take a bigger interest in doing some of her own quilting and she attributes some of her recovery to my quilt and the fact that I gave it to her.

About 15 years ago, my granddaughter Raina, age 4, died of brain cancer.  My guild gave me angel blocks. I put them together for a charity quilt for "Make A Wish" as they had provided the family with a trip to Disney World.  I had it all together but needed a backing for the quilt.  I was looking for something with little angels on it.  I went to my local quilt shop in Minocqua WI and searched for a backing.  In the "sale" fabric I found the perfect fabric and brought it to the counter for measuring.  I mentioned my plans to the clerk and she looked at me strangely.  What was the matter, I asked her?  She pointed to the name of the fabric along the selvage edge. It was named "Make A Wish".  To this day, I think Raina picked out that fabric.

My sister who makes quilts for everyone, but not so many for herself, so I made a Hawaiian quilt for her.

The most rewarding quilt was seeing the comfort it gave the recipient.     I joined the mystery quilt here and made the quilt which although I loved the design was not so sure about the colors.    My friend loved it and when her husband passed away very suddenly shortly after I parceled  it up and gave it to her.     That was 18 months ago and she tells me that there has not been a night since that she has not snuggled into it.     Where words sometimes fail to express ones feelings the gift of a quilt can.

A local family lost their father and, a year later, their son. A friend of the family came to me with some photos and commissioned me to make a photo memory quilt for the family. As hard as it was to do this quilt, I made it through. I think that's the most rewarding quilt I've ever made.

A few years ago I made a flannel rag quilt for my aunt who was then about 92.  It was deliciously warm and soft and she loved it as much as I loved making it for her.  Last fall she died, just before her 97th birthday and I am blessed to know that it was there to warm her in those last days of her life.  Her bedroom in my cousin's house is a den/guestroom now, but the quilt still marks her presence in the room and in our lives.

Some amazing stories here... My most rewarding quilt is one I made out of half-square triangles.  It is queen sized and I thought I would never finish it.  I was determined however, to complete it no mater how long it took.  I finished it just prior to my husband being diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.  They didn't give him much hope for recovery and I took this quilt to the hospital to cover him up with so that he felt a little bit of home there.  Everyone was so impressed with it they tried to purchase it.  We still have it though and my husband is now cancer free thanks to all the prayers family, friends, and those that didn't even know him prayed.  Miracles really do happen - me finishing my quilt is one of them!

The most rewarding quilt I've ever made was a scrap quilt I made the year my dad passed away.  I spent long days hand-quilting while my dad was going through his Cancer treatments.  It was really hard to concentrate on a lot of things during his illness but I found I was able to quilt.  The rhythmic action of the hand-quilting felt a lot like meditation and helped give me the strength I needed at this time.

My most rewarding quilt is the one I'm working on at the moment!

This is an easy one for me.  The most rewarding quilt I have made so far was one I made last year for the Relay For Life.  It was called What Cancer Can Not Do and featured 19 ribbons of different colors representing 19 different forms of cancer.  It was raffled off with all proceeds going to the American Cancer Society.  We raised over $350 on the quilt and I was delighted that the lady who won it was herself a cancer survivor and had personally raised $1500 for the event.  Although I hated to part with the quilt (I had become attached to it while making it) I was proud and happy to hand it over to a woman who so richly deserved it.

My most rewarding quilt was a queen-sized "Jitterbug" quilt. I find it so, because it made me think out of my box. First, it was in scrappy, and that was really difficult for me to let go of control. Secondly, I used batik fabrics, and that is not my ususal go-to fabric, since I prefer muted colors. Thirdly, it was with many triangles, and that challenged me for acuracy. I am now a better quilter for taking on the challenge. I have no fear anymore of different kinds of fabrics, and can let go of control. I piecing has also become more precise, since I learned that I don't need to rush through a quilt, but rather enjoy the process, even if it seems to consist of an insane amount of Half-Square Triangles.

The most rewarding quilt(s) I ever made were the ones I rescued from my sister's sewing room shortly after her death (Late November) and finished in time to present to her son, her daughter and two nieces for Christmas. Her son and daughter's quilt tops were nearly done, but since my sister's eyesight was failing her near the end of her life, I had to rip out many seams and restitch them with care.  But the challenge was for the nieces--there were some partially finished blocks, but no real design to work from.  I had to put myself in her shoes, rummage through her stash, and design quilt(s) (with no sleep and a ticking time clock).  I added some stuff from my own stash, including a large medallion appliqued block I had decided was too much trouble to repeat multiple times for the quilt top it was originally planned for.  All four quilts were tied and bound, labelled with love, and presented Christmas morning  by my grieving brother-in-law.   I haven't seen them since (17 years ago) and doubt I would even recognize them, but they were rewarding and therapeutic for me--and hopefully meaningful for the teenagers who received them (who are all parents now).

The most rewarding quilt(s) I ever made were the ones I rescued from my sister's sewing room shortly after her death (Late November) and finished in time to present to her son, her daughter and two nieces for Christmas. Her son and daughter's quilt tops were nearly done, but since my sister's eyesight was failing her near the end of her life, I had to rip out many seams and restitch them with care.  But the challenge was for the nieces--there were some partially finished blocks, but no real design to work from.  I had to put myself in her shoes, rummage through her stash, and design quilt(s) (with no sleep and a ticking time clock).  I added some stuff from my own stash, including a large medallion appliqued block I had decided was too much trouble to repeat multiple times for the quilt top it was originally planned for.  All four quilts were tied and bound, labelled with love, and presented Christmas morning  by my grieving brother-in-law.   I haven't seen them since (17 years ago) and doubt I would even recognize them, but they were rewarding and therapeutic for me--and hopefully meaningful for the teenagers who received them (who are all parents now).

The most rewarding quilt(s) I ever made were the ones I rescued from my sister's sewing room shortly after her death (Late November) and finished in time to present to her son, her daughter and two nieces for Christmas. Her son and daughter's quilt tops were nearly done, but since my sister's eyesight was failing her near the end of her life, I had to rip out many seams and restitch them with care.  But the challenge was for the nieces--there were some partially finished blocks, but no real design to work from.  I had to put myself in her shoes, rummage through her stash, and design quilt(s) (with no sleep and a ticking time clock).  I added some stuff from my own stash, including a large medallion appliqued block I had decided was too much trouble to repeat multiple times for the quilt top it was originally planned for.  All four quilts were tied and bound, labelled with love, and presented Christmas morning  by my grieving brother-in-law.   I haven't seen them since (17 years ago) and doubt I would even recognize them, but they were rewarding and therapeutic for me--and hopefully meaningful for the teenagers who received them (who are all parents now).

I was a Teachers Aid at a school in that a Wonderful kindergarden Teacher was about to retire, I asked the students that were in her class, all I could find and had them draw there hand with a picture of some sort and there name. I had them do this with crayons and Iron them to retain all color. I placed the squares on primary colors, that she taught, and We presented it to her on the Last day. The look on her face and the smile on the students face who participated, will be a forever rewarding memory ever!!!!!!

I was a Teachers Aid at a school in that a Wonderful kindergarden Teacher was about to retire, I asked the students that were in her class, all I could find and had them draw there hand with a picture of some sort and there name. I had them do this with crayons and Iron them to retain all color. I placed the squares on primary colors, that she taught, and We presented it to her on the Last day. The look on her face and the smile on the students face who participated, will be a forever rewarding memory ever!!!!!!

I was a Teachers Aid at a school in that a Wonderful kindergarden Teacher was about to retire, I asked the students that were in her class, all I could find and had them draw there hand with a picture of some sort and there name. I had them do this with crayons and Iron them to retain all color. I placed the squares on primary colors, that she taught, and We presented it to her on the Last day. The look on her face and the smile on the students face who participated, will be a forever rewarding memory ever!!!!!!

Soon after I began quilting a friend @ work's teen-age daughter got pregnant and made the very grown-up decision to put the baby up for adoption @ birth.  I knew she wasn't going to buy any baby things, but for some reason I felt compelled to make a baby quilt for her baby.  I wanted the baby to have something to take with him into his new life as a token of love from his birth family.  I spent extra time picking out the fabrics and embroidery designs of bunnies.  The quilt turned out so beautiful I was surprised as I was fairly new @ quilting.  Sadly when the baby was born he was too small and had severe breathing problems.  When he passed away my friend called me and thanked me for the quilt.  I attended the small service and was saddened to see the little perfect looking boy wrapped in that quilt I had made for him...I will never forget that baby or that little quilt I made for him.

I have to say my most rewarding quilt was my first.  I was going through a really stressful time at work and working on that quilt helped me keep my sanity.  Finishing that top gave me such a feeling of accomplishment I forgot about all my troubles.

My most rewarding quilt is the one I am working on now. We live in a small town in East TN and you read about hometown heroes but we truly have one. He was a 20 year old Marine who lost his life in Iraq. Frankie was very outgoing and friends to everyone. He excelled at anything he did from being a great football player, valedictorian upon graduation, deputy in the city he grew up with the desire to join the USMC. I was a teacher's assistant years ago and both his parents were mentally challenged and I think why Frankie wanted to do his best. When Frankie turned 13 he was raised by a guardian, State Trooper Lowell Russell. When Frankie came home he was escorted home by 150+ Patriot Guard Riders, 100* Police, Fire trucks, local government cars, 2 big Boom trucks holding Large American Flags over the highway plus the thousands of people that lined the 60 mile trip home. In his honor I am making a

t-shirt quilt with photos on fabric and special autographs of his platoon and the special patches of his unit. I will present it to Lowell in memory of this fine young man he helped to become the best he could be. I then plan to do a Quilt of Valor quilt for his mom. This is my goal for this year and will be the most rewarding quilts I have ever worked on and so proud to do. Spending life as a military wife and my hubby retiring from the USAF I know the sacrifices we might face. Frankie Watson May Be Gone but Will Never Be Forgotten and Will Always Be our Hometown Hero! His Sacrifice was the Greatest! Thank you, Frankie.

What is the most rewarding quilt I ever made?  That is a difficult question because I find every quilt rewarding but I quess I would have to say the wallhanging I made for my daughter after her son was born.  I had made several crib quilts for my new grandson and while making receiving blankets and burp cloths I was thinking how when I child is born we always give the new mother things for the baby but she never receives anything for herself.  Grant she will need all the items she receives at a baby shower but still they are for the baby not for her.  My daughter favorite motifs are roses and hearts so I made her a pieced log cabin type heart wall hanging which consisted of five heart on a white background and quilted it with heart motifs and feathers.  She was just thrilled that the gift was for her.  It all worked out so well because my grandson was born February 10, so she also got hearts for Valentine's Day.

I have made some very special quilts over the years but the most significant onw was a lap quilt that I made for my niece (tragically she had a diving accident that left her completely paralyzed this summer). This quilt was presented for her birthday this past November... you should have seen her face light up!! The quilt was made with very funky and bright coloured fabric background blocks with applique dogs in black and white in more funky fabric designs. The dogs' tongues were made from a woolen blanket that was my mom's (she is not living anymore), so it is as if my mom is part of this quilt too! The dogs appear to be panting because I only stitched the top part of the tongue to each dog!! Each dog was given a short name to easily identify one from the other and I stitched the names on their collars. Quite honestly, it is a creation that I am so pleased to have awakened a spark in my nieces eyes!

I've completed only a handful of quilts in my short time quiltmaking.

While all of these quilts are special, the best memory I have is a small quilt I made with my best friend just over a year ago. Her daughter came up with the idea, I designed the quilt using Quilt-Pro, we shopped for the fabrics together, and I taught her to paper-piece and we shared in the piecing. It was a simple grid of several blocks of different hearts. I put it together and quilted it, then we shared in the binding and label. This quilt was for a really good friend and church auxiliary leader, who had found out she had a form of quick-moving cancer. She was going downhill fast, but we wanted to have something tangible, and give something tangible, to her and her family to remind them of her and our love for her. She had one of the most giving, loving hearts I have ever known, hence the heart design. We completed it and presented it to her and her large family of children...she clutched it to her with tears in her eyes and it warmed her very weakened and quickly-wasting-away body. She passed away just two weeks after we gave it to her. It was a very special quilt for a very special lady.

It seems like all my quilts are special to me, but I think my most rewarding quilt is the one I donated to the church to be raffled. It was a great joy to see the happiness of the person who won it. & the plans they had to make use of it. I love to gift my quilts with the knowledge they will be used.

The most rewarding quilt I made was probably the first wall hanging I completed several years ago.   It was a challenge to use certain fabrics and then others of your choice.   I designed my own with a center star surrounded with different pieced borders, all of which I pieced and quilted by hand.   The fact that I was able to put something from paper to fabric was very rewarding, especially since it took me outside of the comfort box.   I could look at the finished result and say "I'm a quilter".

Since I am just a beginner, I would say my first one. A simple nine patch for my youngest grandson. My sister taught me how to hand piece and this was my first project. I entered it in the county fair and it won a blue ribbon (I think everyone did, but I was still thrilled!)

The first quilt I made was queen sized and hand quilted and I was very proud of it.  It had a lot of red in it so I gave it to my son for his red room (walls were red). Later I saw it tossed into the top of a closet. No that was not the most rewarding.  I later made a quilt for my SIL. My DD picked the fabrics and I altered the pattern to make it fit their king sized bed.  I had it machined quilted at a LQS.  My SIL was so thrilled with it. It immediately went on the bed and DD said he was taking people into the bedroom to show off his quilt.  That one was my most rewarding!!!!!

I have been making flannel baby quilts for the service committee of my local quilters guild. In the past two months I've turned in 3 and I have 4 more ready to quilt. I think I find these most rewarding of any quilts I've made. But if you want a single quilt then I'd have to say the one I made for my son-in-law's brother was the most rewarding as he had no idea that I was making it and he was just floored when I gave it to him. He had been helping his brother do some major work on our place and our son's cabin and that's why I made it for him, as a "Thank you soooo much!".

Usually the most rewarding quilt is the one I am currently working on.  One big reason is that quilting is so therapeutic and soothing and releases my creativity and makes me so happy while I'm in the process.  It is also so satisfying to give quilts to loved ones and charities close to my heart.  I have kept a few, but tend to give many away.  The last quilt I made was very rewarding to make because I'm going to be sending it very soon to my step daughter and I know she will appreciate it very much.  I'm already hard at work (and loving it too) on another quilt (twin size) and at the same time will be completing the quilting on 2 Preemie quilts that I will donate (through my Guild) to our Children's Hospital in Vancouver.

I love to quilt and I love to give them away!  This is what makes my heart sing!

My most rewarding quilt I have ever made are - and I say "are" because I love every quilt I make.  Some I feel weren't perfect, but all in all - I made them, they were fun, they were a challenge, and they were my own designs.  I love to paint and I love to quilt so.....I painted purple irises and then made a quilted wall hanging, I painted calla lillies and then beaded them and made a wall hanging, painted pink tulips and quilted a wall hanging. Then I painted hibiscus - and that was the most challenging because I didn't like the way it turned out so I used colored pencils on the flowers, still didn't like it, so I then painted it and again didn't like it and believe it or not was finally satisfied after I shaded the flowers and leaves with seed beads and was finally satisfied.  

By far my most rewarding quilt is one I made for a breast cancer survivor which turned out to be my sister! I started the quilt before me sister was diagnosed and she asked me who I was making the quilt for and I said that I did not have anyone in mind but I would know who to give it to when the time was right. Several months later she got the news and I had the quilt waiting for her when she returned from the hospital.

The next one...of course.

My first quilt - because so far, it is my only one!  But that feeling of finishing it was fantastic.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was for a lady that works at our local Wal-Mart. Her health is not good, but she has always been very helpful when I needed an extra pair of eyes for an added piece of material for a quilt. She has been my Angel in Disguise.

To show her how much I appreciated her help, I made her a lap quilt that I quilted myself (1st one ever). When I took it to her, she thought it was just my latest project until she saw her name on it. The colors she said where her favorite (I didn't know), so that was great. She broke down and cryed and told me no-one had ever made her a quilt before. She has since told me every noght when she goes home and watches TV, she has her quilt in her lap. This was my MOST rewarding quilt because it was just between her and I.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made is the one I am working on for my grandbaby who is 11 months old.  It will go on her bed when she is out of the crib.  I have embroideried on the blocks on the back of the quilt her initial with things such as her mom and dads wedding date, her birthday, her favorite first toy, things along this line.  I am hoping it is one that will be kept through the ages as a treasure to her as she is such a treasure to me.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a double wedding ring pattern for our 40th anniversary.  My husband saw it in bits and pieces but I finished it while he was away on business.  The look on his face of love, pride and of course surprise.

I entered the quilt in our local fair, my first quilt to enter, won a first prize and best in show.  That was my surprise and delight.  What a reward to receive from fellow quilters.

The most memorable quilt I made was the first one. I used a jelly roll and selected a pattern from a book. I hand-stitched (queen size quilt) and hand-tied the quilt. At first I was not sure if I liked the vivid colors and questioned whether they coordinated well.   I continued and finished the quilt in memory of my mother.

While quilting memories of my mother came to the surface. My Mom used to make quilts nearly every winter. She saved many bits of fabric, some of my Dad's worn out shirts, my old dresses (one quilt has  pieces from a dress that I wore in my senior play in high school). Once the top was made, she would invite a couple of friends to help tie it off.

My first quilt is now on my bed. I have grown to love the vivid colors and it brightens my room. Each time I look at it, it brings back warm memories of my Mom. I am now working on quilt # 2 and have cut out #3 and I am building my stash. The quilting bug has bitten!

Flo

I like to think that every quilt I finish is the most rewarding one since I'm always learning new skills and techniques with each one that is finished.  I've only been quilting for a few years and realize how much I still have to learn so I'm enjoying the journey.  Each quilt offers new and different rewards.  But the one I think offers the status "most rewarding" is the first paper pieced quilt I made.  I have shied away from paper piecing thinking it was a lot more work and complicated than I was willing to attempt.  But,  I spotted a beautiful picnic quilt with watermelon fabric that just screamed "make me".   The gauntlet had been thrown and I was on a mission to create it.  First came the challenge of finding the right fabric.  I live in the Southern California desert and it took a trip to Olympia, Washington to discover just what I was looking for, all quite by accident.  I had the quilt cut out before I made it back home (yes, I brought my cutting mat and rotary cutter with me).  I couldn't wait to finish it.   I had visions of having a wonderful picnic under the shade of a big tree using the quilt as a backdrop.  I was amazed at how easy it was to piece difficult shapes and have them turn out perfect.  I was hooked.  The quilt is now finished and was displayed at our guild's bi-annual quilt show and now I'm waiting for warmer weather to try it out.  Now to find the picnic basket somewhere in the garage!

I personally think that every quilt I make is rewarding when it is finally finished.

If I have to choose it would be a Baltimore Album like quilt that I have appliqued and hand quilted for my oldest grandson to be presented to him on his wedding day, whenever that may be. Now I only have to make 5 more for the rest of the grandchildren for their wedding presents, whether I am still here or not, they will have a memento of their grandmother.

the most rewarding quilt i have ever made has to be the very first quilt i ever made.  22 years ago i got married and i wanted aquilt for our bed, so i decided to make it myself.  i had never even thought of quilting before!  I decided it would be a king size double wedding ring quilt.  i got the pattern, went shopping for the fabric and jumped right in.  i read the directions and got started.  i did not take a quilt class, i did not even know they had them!  i did not have friends or anyone who quilted around me.  i had cut out kazillions of little pieces of fabric for the quilt and just started sewing.  it took me a long time to sew it all together.  and it was huge!!!!!   then i hand quilted it...i did not know that you could quilt it on a sewing machine!!!!!  it is the only quilt that i have ever hand quilted!!  after the few years it took me to finish the quilt (which is still on our bed!)  i discovered that there were quilt classes and how to quilt on my sewing machine.   i have since made many many more quilts.....

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was one that I made for my son for Christmas in 2002.  My mother had made hand embroidered 'Days of the Week' towels for all of us kids and the grandchildren too (which was approximately 37 sets), except for my son who was only 11 at the time.  For him she embroidered sports type quilt squares.  My mother fell the day after Thanksgiving that year and ended  up in the hospital, she was there for several days and when we would talk on the phone every day, she would ask me if I had the quilt done, and I would say "no, but I promise he'll have it for Christmas, Mom, don't worry, you'll see."  Well if you haven't guessed it yet, she didn't get to see, my mother passed away on December 3, 2002.  We came home after being gone for 5 days to the only presents under the tree at that time being from my mother, all but the present for my son.  I had 11 days to finish that quilt and have it under the tree and no matter what I was going to get it done.  I would go to work and come home and lock my sewing room door and sew on the quilt until 2 or 3 in the morning and then sleep for a little bit.  I was also working about 60 hours a week at the time so it was very hard to get a night to get into the sewing room. I finally finished the top, and I'm not really sure how I did it, but I quilted it too, and it turned out pretty nice.  IT WAS DONE!!!  And the quilt was under the tree TWO days before Christmas, all wrapped up and with a label to my son, signed by my mother that she had sent with the squares.   I still remember how hard it was to sew while crying and tears running down on the the fabric as I was stitching, I have no idea how many boxes of tissue I went through while making that quilt, but I kept my promise to my mother, because I new she was watching down on me, cheering me on every night, saying "you can do this, I know you can"!  My son cherishes that quilt and keeps it in safekeeping for one day to hang in a home that he hopes to have.

I think most all of my quilts have been very rewarding. Why would we invest so much time and effort into something such as a quilt if it was not a rewarding experience, regardless of who we made it for or why.  I suppose one of my most rewarding quilts was titled Equestrian Beauty.  I made it for a friend of mine who owns a not-for-profit horse rescue, P.E.R.N. (Performance Equine Rescue Network). I found a silhouette of horse heads machine embroidery that I embroidered onto to several squares. I then chose embroidery floss matching the embroidery thread of the horse heads and couched it on in a random winding pattern from top to bottom in several squares. I then put the quilt together with framing for the horse head squares but not the couching squares. Added a couple of borders and finally the binding.  I made up the quilt as I went along and it evolved into one of my favorites. My friend is such a selfless person, struggling to make ends meet to take care of these abused and neglected horses.  I guess that is why the quilt was rewarding to make - giving back to one who gives constantly.

Boy, this is not an easy choice. Two quilts come to mind, and I can't decide between them. One is a map quilt I made to commemorate the 5 week driving trip my husband and I took to celebrate our retirement. The trip only took 3 weeks, but the quilt took much, much longer. I thought about it for months before I knew what I wanted to do with all the fabric we collected along Route 66, up the Coastal Hiway and back across Canada to Ontario where we started out.  I printed a map of North America onto four sheets of gridded paper, taped them together and made each 1/4 inch grid into a 3" square of fabric. Some squares had more than one color, I pieced bits to make the curves of lakes and coastlines. I based my fabric color choices on a satellite map, greens for the northeast, beige for the desert of the southwest, etc.  The water is turquoise in the south east, and darker on the west coast. I marked our route with ribbon, then printed some photos we had taken along the way onto fabric and incorporated them into the quilt.  I also machine embroidered an image of our car and a few other strategic items right onto the quilt top.  It took longer to plan than to actually make the quilt, and it is the first time I ever designed my own patterns.  DH is very pleased with the result, and so am I.

The other quilt I am most proud of is one made for my 22 year old niece, Nadine. She is severely handicapped, and a big Elvis fan. My sister pieced the top of a quilt that includes Elvis fabric, then turned it over to me for machine quilting. I designed sheet music to go around the 6 inch inside border, complete with treble clef (machine embroidered) and notes that are the sheet music for "Love Me Tender". The notes are appliqué.  We are presenting the finished quilt next month. We are really looking forward to Nadine's reaction.

To answer this question was easy. I made a Quilt  of Valor for our guild this year form a pattern that was in  Fons and Porters magazine. I was very happy to hear it was given to a veterans family.  

My first quilt was my most rewarding quilt, but not because it was my first. It was a wall quilt with a teapot and tea cups. The reason it is my most rewarding to date is that it was made by hand together with my mother. It is the only quilt I worked on actively with her and since she died in 2000, it will be the only one. I treasure it and no matter where I go and how my home and decor changes, it will always have a special spot in my home and in my heart.

This is a tough question.  I guess it is a toss-up between a healing quilt I made for a dear friend who was battling liver cancer.  She spent much of her time napping during those last few months and used the quilt every day to keep herself toasty warm.  It was a relatively random pattern that included the words "calm"  "peace"  "heal" and "love" and fabric outlines of her husband's, daughter's and her own hands.  She lost her battle just last week - March 5th and I am so happy to have had a chance to contribute a little happiness to the final days of her short life (42 yrs.).

The other would be a necktie quilt I made for my mother-in-law after her husband passed away.  She had given me his old neckties and included was the one he had worn on their very first date in 1948 - in remarkably good condition.  I pieced all the neckties in a random pattern and had a pre-marriage photo of them transfered to white fabric along with a typed info and dedication piece of fabric, showing their date & location of marriage, children and dates of birth, etc.  

The most rewarding was one where I had all the pieces that had been cut out by my sister-in-law who dies from cancer.  I put them together and gave them to my mother, who has it on the bed where my father passed away.

When my oldest daughter was around 13 years old, I decided to make her a memory quilt (I had never made a quilt before).  I cut up all of her old jeans into square blocked and made colorfull apliques of all the major events of her life.  There were snow capped mountains to remind her of a Lake Tahoe ski trip, sea shells to remind her of Hawaii, (we bought a big one on our driving trip around the big island during a layover on the way to Australia.)  I also put musical notes around it because she played the flute in the marching band.  I worked long hours in the spare room and wouldn't let my daughter see what I was doing.  The quilt was a surprise although I had her help me pick out the backing.  I told her I was making a picnic table cloth and needed her help.  A lot of good memories went into that quilt.  I think it meant more to me than my daughter.

A good friend lost their three day old baby to a untreatable birth defect. I made a small quilt embroidered with little one's name, a picture of a lamb and the phrase "Safe in the Arms of Jesus."

I think it would be the baby quilt I made for a college friend because the fabric really jumped out at me to be perfect for her and I think it turned out better than my quilts usually do.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was my first one, which I'm sure a lot of people will agree.  But, this was a special one, also.  A wedding present for my daughter.  It was a queen sized log cabin in shades of purple, her favorite color.  I quilted it on my little straight stitch machine.  I had no idea what I was getting myself into.  With much determination, I finished it two days before the wedding.  It certainly wasn't perfect, but she loves it.

The most rewarding quilt I have made is the one I made for my oldest daughter to commemorate her college graduation.  It was my first formal quilt although I had made smaller ones before this. While my children were going to school and I was working, I didn't have time to sew as much as I would have liked so I took a class to formally help me learn the basics.  I was able to incorporate the colors of her elementary school, middle school, high school and college into the quilt.  it was a sampler quilt with a soccer theme because she played soccer from elementary school through college.

I just finished my first hand pieced , hand quilted quilt ever. It's a small building blocks in pastels that is going to a coworkers first little girl born 2 weeks ago. I hope she enjoys it.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was the one that I designed and made. It was a patch work heart with different color and styles of red/pink fabric. I placed it on a white background and used white sashing. I then quilted it on the sashing using red thread with a vine design that had little hearts hanging off the vines. It turned out beautiful and my quilt guild just raved about it.

I love giving quilts to friends and relatives.  A dear cousin has been undergoing kidney dialysis and she mentioned how cold she is during the treatment.  I made her a lap quilt in crisp yellows and blues (the colors she has in her bedroom) to snuggle under at the clinic or when she was feeling chilly at home.  She was so delighted and said she is now toasty warm during the treatments.  Her comfort and delight has made the quilt the most rewarding project for me.

One of the most rewarding quilting experiences I've had was finishing someone else s' quilt.  A co-worker gave me some of her mom's left-over partially completed blocks.  I had fun putting it together with some additions of my own.  When I was done, I took it to my co-worker.  I tole her she could have it or I'd donate it to charity.  It so happened it was perfect for a niece who had never received any of her grandmother's quilts.  I hope that I helped pass on her grandmother's love of quilting.

Last year I started a scrappy pink and white quilt from my box of scraps because I had so many pinks I thought it was time to do something with them.  It ended up being a fairly large 96x96. While showing off the top to my mom a friend of hers was there.  She survived breast cancer twice in the last 15 years.  during her first round of chemo I'd shaved her head.  Her attitude was always upbeat and inspirational, you would have never known she was as sick as she was.  She loved the top and was asking what I planned to do with it when finished.  I had no plans for it I was just making it to make room in my scrap box.  When I finished the quilt I took it to her at her work surprising her.  She thought I was just showing it off again.  When  I told her it was hers to do as she wished the tears came flowing.  I told her how I admired her strength during her treatments and that I couldnt think of another person more deserving of this quilt.  I was offered $400 for the quilt but instead I gave it to the bravest woman I know.  Rewarding?  I think the biggest reward was just in knowing her.

The most rewarding quilt I've ever made and given is a wallhanging of a heart that I made this past Feb 14th, 2012. I made it for him because the heart symbolizes my love for him and it also symbolized that we have been in our home we bought for 5 yrs. When he unwrapped it and opened it up he just started crying. I asked him what was wrong and he said nothing, "Just I've never had someone make me something so beautiful!" Well when he said that my daughter and I started crying too. He has it hanging over his night stand. He said he wanted to be able to see it every night and to remember what a wonderful family he has.

I finished a quilt for my niece for Christmas 2011.  It was the second quilt I have made.  It started with a block of the month at my local quilting store.  They had a second pattern for a more difficult square.  The blocks were challenging and I made it more challenging by doing a pieced border and sashing with a star pattern that was made from nine separate pieces that had to be cut after each seam.  I made 52 of the stars.  I hand quilted it with a silver metallic.  The quilting process itself was extremely difficult.  The entire quilt challenged me every step of the way and I was extremley proud of the end result, even with all of the mistakes I know are there.

Four years ago, I started to make two memory quilts, one for my mom and one for my mother-in-law.  These were the first quilts that I ever made, and by far the most rewarding.  I went to a quilt shop, where they had the block of the month club.  They were making 2 different quilts, one material was a rose color theme, and the other was a green, blueish theme.  I decided to make them, using pictures of our families, starting with the grandparents, the parents, children and grandchildren.  

It was a challenge, first, because I had never quilted before, and then trying to get all the pictures together, matching the background colors in the pictures to match the colors in the blocks.  Then to fit the whole family in 12 blocks was fun too! It's a blessing to see how it all came together.  God is Sooo Good!!!  

To make an heirloom for the family that you love was so rewarding to me.  It took me 4 years to make, due to a disability, it's hard for me to use my arm for long periods of time.  But with the Lord's help, I finished it.  I gave it to my mother and my mother-in-law for Christmas this year.  To see their faces and the joy it brought them was so wonderful.  I told them it was really from the whole family, because without their help getting the pictures together I couldn't have done it!  

I have some very precious cousins who lost their mother in 1993.  I really would like to make one for them!  Then I'll have made 3 rewarding quilts!!!

My husband had just been diagnosed with bone cancer and was going to have to go through chemo for an extended period.  Wanting to be with him as much as I could, I began a crazy quilt that was a patchwork story of our time together.  I was singing in the community chorale and there is a patch with the Carnegie Hall trip on it - embroidered and embellished.  He and I often went to Louisiana to visit his brother and other family down there in the motor home.  There is a patch with a little motor home, his red pickup truck, a rendition of the dog, our house, and curving lines for the roads between the two.  There is a patch with my children's names and birthdates on it, with many beautiful flowers, again embroidered.  The grand twins who absolutely adored him were on it, little tiny cute little people with the right color hair and colors they would enjoy wearing.  There is a tiny Christening dress like the three that I made for each of them of silk and lace to go with the hand embroidery.  While he was sitting in the chair having the drip, we would talk and I would sew and embroider.  It wasn't a fun activity for him, but by staying with him and being there when he would 'wake-up' and be ready to leave, it was a bit easier, and the time for me involved a delightful activity that helped me tell the story of our memories together.  It was not a terribly professional quilt when finished, but I put it an one of our guild's quilt shows, and I love to look at it and remember my wonderful husband and our time together.

My most rewarding quilt so far is a mini quilt I recently made.  I did it from start to finish including quilting it with my newly acquired skill of free motion quilting.  It is so cute. I love it and I can take it with me to show everyone that I actually did finish a quilt.

My most rewarding quilt is the one I have on my queen size bed, which I made the summer of 2009.  When the fabric store where I work got in a collection of coordinating Maywood Studio fabrics, I knew I HAD to make something with them!  I scouted out patterns and pattern books, and settled on a Sweet 16s  book with a pattern called Ramblin Rose.  This pattern looked like one I could make using all of the dozen or so fabrics in the collection.  I made a few adjustments to make a queen size quilt from a 57" x 61" bed topper pattern.  I hadn't made anything larger than a lap quilt (and table runners) prior to this quilt. I thoroughly  enjoyed piecing the top and watching it take shape.  I had it machine quilted by someone else.  Then I entered it in our local county fair.  It only received a white ribbon, BUT also a certificate for Judges Choice, which included a $10.00 reward!!!   I love how it turned out, and enjoy looking at it every day!

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was a small quilt I made for my Mom when she was is the nursing home.  I found that a crib size quilt worked well for use in her wheelchair.  It was a beautiful pink floral and she looked so pretty when she was covered with it.  I live out-of-town so it meant the world to me to know that she used and enjoyed this quilt.  I always told her, "Each tiny stitch was stitched with love.  When you use this quilt, considered yourself hugged."  My Mom passed away in December and I feel her love returned to me, in this quilt.  I hope someday to have a granddaughter to wrap with the love of her great-grandmother in her quilt.  

The most rewarding quilt(s) I ever made were for my Nephew's triplets.  Two days after they were born their mother (his wife) passed away unexplainably and he is raising them by himself.  I made 3 matching quilts with the center block of each containing the first initial of their name.  The teddy bear fabric I used was so adorable and my nephew later wrote that his dear wife loved quilts and they were a perfect gift for the boys.  

Whenever I make a quilt, I want it to have a special meaning to the recipient. A few years ago I noticed that one of my grandchildren was very interested in our solar system. To make the quilt a learning experience, I let my grandson help in the content of the quilt. I asked him to give me a report of the rotation time, the orbit time and one other fact of each planet. With this information, I appliqued the planets, embroidered surface characteristics ( I also had to do research), and embroidered his findings under each planet. I also appliqued/embroidered the planets to scale for size and distance from the sun. Surrounding the quilt are 12 constellations and the four phases of the moon. My grandson's face was well worth the effort  and time involved in this quilt.    

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was the Summer Porch pattern with appliques all down each side for my Grandmas 90th birthday present, I made it out of all the leftover fabrics and pieces from all the quilts I made for my Mom and Dad, brothers and sister and my kids. I couldn't make the trip but my parents took it with them and they were a total suprise to my Grandma because she didn't know they were coming. She loved her present and Thanked me several times a day on the phone and told me how much she loved it! My mom and Dad took a bunch of pictures with her and her quilt; while opening it, on her bed and with it on her on her bed :o) She even called me after and said she was sleeping with her beautiful quilt I made her and that was her best present that she ever got, wether it was or wasn't my Grandma made me feel so special and appreciated for all the love and hard work I put into it.

I guess the most rewarding quilt I ever made was the one and only one that I have ever finished.  My first quilt was a Double Wedding Ring that I made as a gift for our oldest daughter who was married in 2007.  A lot of people thought I was "biting off more than I could chew", but I finished it.  It was not perfect, every point was not exactly matched, but everyone thought it looked awesome.  I am still working on a second Double Wedding Ring that should have been done 1 1/2 years ago for my other daughter, but it is taking longer than I hoped.  When finished, both of the quilts will be my most rewarding quilt because they were done with much love.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made - Well, it was a simple one that I made for my best friend.  Lori Ciciotti taught me how to be a woman - mother - sister - friend.  She showed me what you were truly supposed to be like - and how simple it was.  I made a quilt for her and actually had to get it done so that she had it before it was sprung on QNNtv that I had made it.  

I had been selected to be the Quilter of the Month by QNNtv and had told my quilting story on there and the last part was about the quilt I was making for Lori.  I was in the stage of quilting it when it was going to come out.  So I quickly got the quilt in the mail to her so she could be surprised before she saw pictures of it on the internet.  

It was the first quilt that I quilted my thoughts about a person into the quilting.  I used my sewing machine to write names and things that I thought of when I thought of my friend.  Her DH displays it on the back of a couch today and her daughters point to it that I made it for her.  

Lori has left us but she was one of the most influential women in my life and a lot of other people's lives.  The quilt was a simple Garden Twist by Marti Michell and was done in Lori's favorite color of green.  Before Lori left us, she used to wrap herself up in this quilt to feel the love that I was sending her from afar.  

Yes, that would be the quilt that I was most rewarded for.  I think because so much love went into it!

My most rewarding quilt isn't even finished yet, because I'm trying to get my machine quilting up to par for it.  Butterfly garden has crayon & hand embroidery blocks.  I learned how to make my flowers look real by shading & figuring out how the light would be striking them.  This quilt probably grew me more in my artistic skills than anything else did.

If it must be one that is finished, then it would be tied between 2 quilts I just finished for my daughters.  One, Experiment in Applique was a pattern I disliked so much I tried to talk the rest of the ladies in my applique out of it.  However, it turned out to be one of the most beautiful quilts I've done so far.  Every block is unique in either sewing or applique technique (as well as color).  I had to make it larger for my daughters queen size bed and this was the 1st quilt I went beyond the traditional just adding a straight line of material for the border.  The 2nd one is Nautical Winds, which I designed myself (only my 2nd one done on my own).  I designed it around the bonus blocks of the month patterns provided by Patchwork Penguin.  It's my first quilt on point, but it's not traditional point; it has good movement.

So these are the quilts that grew me the most and, thus, were the most rewarding.

My most rewarding quilt isn't even finished yet, because I'm trying to get my machine quilting up to par for it.  Butterfly garden has crayon & hand embroidery blocks.  I learned how to make my flowers look real by shading & figuring out how the light would be striking them.  This quilt probably grew me more in my artistic skills than anything else did.

If it must be one that is finished, then it would be tied between 2 quilts I just finished for my daughters.  One, Experiment in Applique was a pattern I disliked so much I tried to talk the rest of the ladies in my applique out of it.  However, it turned out to be one of the most beautiful quilts I've done so far.  Every block is unique in either sewing or applique technique (as well as color).  I had to make it larger for my daughters queen size bed and this was the 1st quilt I went beyond the traditional just adding a straight line of material for the border.  The 2nd one is Nautical Winds, which I designed myself (only my 2nd one done on my own).  I designed it around the bonus blocks of the month patterns provided by Patchwork Penguin.  It's my first quilt on point, but it's not traditional point; it has good movement.

So these are the quilts that grew me the most and, thus, were the most rewarding.

Our son is Autistic, with all that entails...He was about 16 when one of the two cats he grew up with was not doing well....and so I started making him a buggy barn cat quilt....I used black buttons for all the eyes except the middle one that had green eyes like his Bella.  I finished the quilt the day before she died.  Our son loved the quilt so much....I made his bed with it the first day and then noticed that he had turned the quilt around....the cats heads were toward the foot of the bed....so unusual....  I asked him why he changed it and he said, "so I can see the cats when I am in bed".  It really seemed to help him through a tough time...

I think it is the first quilt I ever made.  It was a sampler quilt that is now hanging over my bed.  It's most rewarding because it got me started with a fun new hobby  -- quilting!  Who knew I could make such pretty things, and meet so many talented, fun people!

The most rewarding quilt? I've loved nearly all of them for one reason or another. I really enjoyed the quilt I made for our local cancer infusion ward. It is my hope that the person who received it had successful treatments and is on his/her way to complete recovery. I think about that every now and then.

I think the most rewarding quilt I have ever made was the one I made for my mother. We would talk on the phone (pre-cellphone) with the phone cradled on my shoulder, and the quilt being made while we talked. She thought I was working on a quilt for my step-daughter, which I had told her I was having trouble with. She heard the machine whirring away, and could hardly believe it when she opened the package (okay, it was a laundry basket) and found her quilt. She just sobbed at the thought that I cared that much to make her a quilt for her bed.

As time progressed, that quilt remained on her bed. It was there for several years, and when the time came for her to go into a nursing home, the quilt went with her. She was there only a few months, and passed on... covered with her quilt. I was there when she died, and, of course, did not think of any of the quilts she had there with her. They all had become part of her life. Her 'nap' quilt, which was long enough for her... The ones that hung on the wall... all were with her at the time she passed.

A few days after she died I went back with my brother to the nursing home to collect some of her things. The nun that acted as 'chaplain' came in to talk while we worked packing stuff up. She commented that Mom had loved her quilts. She said that she thought they were some of the nicest ways of telling somebody they cared. As she had come in before Mom died, and talked to her about letting go, I gave her the quilt. She cried. She told me that she never expected that, which I know she didn't. It seemed like the thing to do... she had been so kind to Mom before she died. I could be no less. I hope that Sister Rosalyn has enjoyed the quilt. I know that I still enjoy the ones I brought home.

While visiting Amish country in rural Ohio I saw an Amish made quilt that combined a center star with around the world. I snapped a photo And headed to an Amish quilt store.  They worked with me to find both patterns and select the materials.  I was able to return home in Florida And make the quilt all by myself.  It turned out just as good as the one I saw and it was only my third quilt. It was so rewarding to take the book patterns and follow them to create this rewarding quilt.

My most rewarding quilt to date remains the only quilt not baby sized - it was a queen size quilt.  I have been very busy making baby quilts and lap sized quilts for my grandchildren.  It was very rewarding to know that I could make and quilt a bed sized quilt.

I would have to say the One Block Wonder quilt is my most rewarding.  I had to personally chose which of three sides (triangles) would be the center of the blocks.  Then, after the blocks were sewn, it took time, patience, and trial and error on my design wall to map out how the blocks would go together.  It made me feel like an artist.  I love the quilt.  The material makes me feel like I am in the woods.  The quilt makes me feel like I designed it as an artist.  I had many friends help evaluate the center of the quilt before I sewed the blocks together.  

Several years ago our small community was not very happy when they wanted to put a landfill in our backyard.  We all pulled together and had many fundraisers to raise money to bring in speakers and companies to show the town other alternatives for the landfill.  I had a quilt almost done and donated it for a raffle to help raise money.  With hard work from our community they we able to get the land on the historical register because it was the site Grant Wood used for one of his painting.  "Fall Plowing".  Needless to say we were very happy with the outcom.  The quilt was won by  one of my co-workers.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made (finished) was almost 70 years in the making.  I finished a quilt top that my great grandmother started back in the 30's.  It was made with old shirts, aprons, curtains, dresses and flower sacks.  I presented it to my mother when she was 80.  When she saw the quilt come out of the package she cried, then she wrapped it around herself and said she was surrounded with love from all the family that had been long since gone from this earth.   She felt they were near and that she would cherrish it forever.  Well, mom was 80 then and in eight short years the Lord called her home.  That quilt is now living with my brother, who will pass it on to the oldest of his children when the time comes.  My eyes well up with tears just remembering that day.  

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a very simple quilt-as-you-go baby quilt.  It was simple and reversible, and finished very quickly.  It was reversible, green on one side and yellow on the other.  As I was a very "new" quilter, it was so rewarding to finish something I could throw in the diaper bag and take everywhere.  Some days it was a cover for the baby in the car seat and others a little mat to lay the baby on the floor.  It still resides in my "hope chest" waiting for my first grandchild.  

The most rewarding quilt for me was putting together a 50th wedding anniversary quilt for our parents with blocks from all our family members (appliqued butterfly & a signature on each block). I was fairly new to quilting at the time, but it turned out fine.

The most rewarding quilt I have completed was one that a family friend started for her 5 year old grandson but due to illness (brain cancer) was unable to complete.  I have heard from her son and family  with many thanks for doing this in her memory.  

My most rewarding quilt was the first one I made with my two granddaughters for their little cousin (and my first grandson.)  It was the first time they had really sewn anything, and they were excited and delighted with the whole project, from design to finish.  My daughter-in-law made a scrapbook of photos for me of the entire experience with them.  Although it was a simple pattern, sharing it with those two pre-teens (who are now high school and college seniors) was a warm and wonderful experience which brings back fond memories.  Later we made a second quilt for the second cousin/grandson.

My most rewarding quilt was made three years ago and was made for my friend's surprise 50th birthday party. I decided to make the quilt about two weeks before the event--crazy! I used Camille Roskelley's pattern Wallflower and a jelly roll. Simple but elegant. I had such fun making it because it was a spur of the moment decision, my friend would never guess that I was traveling to her party or that I would give her a quilt, and because I also made an exact duplicate quilt at the same time for another friend who had turned 50 the month before and would be at the same party. Her surprise was greater than I imagined, too! What a wonderful day, and I hope they treasure them as much as I enjoyed making them!

Upon retiring from being a kindergarten teacher two years ago, I decided to dust off my old sewing machine and give quilting a try.  So many members of my family are quilters and I figured I could do it too.  Ha!  I enrolled in a beginners' class at the local quilting shop, a frustrating, agonizing journey of 5 weeks.  My only comment at the end of the class was, "Never again!"  The instructor didn't like anything about my sewing, especially those 1/4" seams.  But 2 years later I moved across the country and was invited by a new friend to a meeting of her quilting guild.  I was inspired (or should I say re-inspired?) by the beautiful quilts everyone showed that night.  I figured if they could do it, so could I!  The very next morning I headed to the local quilt store, bought a simple pattern, lots of fabric, and set up shop in my spare bedroom.  Without the frustration of a "drill sergeant" belittling my every move, I worked my way through the project with a clearer understanding of what quilting was all about.  What a great reward to finish that second quilt and receive so many ooh's and aah's from friends!  I am on my 4th quilt, have joined another group that quilts once a week, and quilt with the guild once a month on a group project.  Quilting has given me so many new, supportive friends!  I'll never give it up again!

Upon retiring from being a kindergarten teacher two years ago, I decided to dust off my old sewing machine and give quilting a try.  So many members of my family are quilters and I figured I could do it too.  Ha!  I enrolled in a beginners' class at the local quilting shop, a frustrating, agonizing journey of 5 weeks.  My only comment at the end of the class was, "Never again!"  The instructor didn't like anything about my sewing, especially those 1/4" seams.  But 2 years later I moved across the country and was invited by a new friend to a meeting of her quilting guild.  I was inspired (or should I say re-inspired?) by the beautiful quilts everyone showed that night.  I figured if they could do it, so could I!  The very next morning I headed to the local quilt store, bought a simple pattern, lots of fabric, and set up shop in my spare bedroom.  Without the frustration of a "drill sergeant" belittling my every move, I worked my way through the project with a clearer understanding of what quilting was all about.  What a great reward to finish that second quilt and receive so many ooh's and aah's from friends!  I am on my 4th quilt, have joined another group that quilts once a week, and quilt with the guild once a month on a group project.  Quilting has given me so many new, supportive friends!  I'll never give it up again!

A friend of mine's husband passed away unexpectedly at a relatively young age.  To honor him I got some of the t-shirts that meant the very most to him and made them into a t-shirt quilt for his wife so that she could wrap it around her and "feel like he had his arms around her."  It made me feel very good that I could do something that would ease her pain a little.

I read some of the stories that have been posted and feel honored to be counted as a quilter. The motives/reasons that inspired many of you to make that special quilt brings tears to my eyes. I'm fairly new to quilting, having taught school for over 20 years made it almost impossible for me to be creative except for cross-stitching, a hobby I still refuse to say I've given up...but...quilting is addictive too, isn't it? But in August 2010 my teaching career came to a grinding halt when I was diagnosed with having a severe reaction to a medication that began my trek to several hospitals, including Cleveland Clinic. I was told I would never work again, and with the seizures I'd had, I had ruptured a couple of disks in my lower back and I also lost quite a few memories and the ability to do much of what I'd done before. For about a year I functioned as best I could, relearning some things and asking my very patient husband over and over questions like, "How long have we been married?" or "How old is our son?" But my neighbor, a wonderful friend, kept saying all along to me, "Why don't you join our quilt guild?" I resisted and resisted until finally I thought, "I don't HAVE to do the projects they are teaching." (I was afraid I couldn't.) So I went.

THAT changed so much of my life! Now my "girlie" room in the house is filling up with fabrics, my sewing machine has never been put away, and I have completed four quilts, along with working on about four more. My husband has been great, never complaining if a quilt project has made me forget dinner or if the wash has not been done. (I'm working at multi-tasking but sometimes forget.)

I'd have to say my favorite quilt is the first one I made. I call it "The Yellow Brick Road" but I saw it in a magazine called "The Virginia Reel" and someone called it "Coins". I bought the fabric and sewed and sewed, putting a beautiful yellow stripe down between each of the rows. It's on our bed now...and we sleep in a king-size bed, so believe me, I thought I'd NEVER get that quilt done. It's machine quilted and I wish now I'd tried to put the binding on, but that's something I'm trying to do now.

I guess the funniest thing about being a quilter is when my husband and I go out somewhere and I look over at him, and trying not to be noticed, pick a small piece of thread from his shirt. It's a true mark you live with a quilter when you can't go anywhere without having thread strings on your clothes!  

The most rewarding quilts were my first attempt at quilting -- a good friend's daughter was having twins and I decided to make baby quilts for them.  These two little girls loved their quilts so much that they took them everywhere and even gave them names!  After years of love, the quilts became just shreds of fabric but they still held on to the shreds.  They gave me a photo of both girls holding the shreds of what were once quilts.  The love that these little girls had for these two beginner quilts makes them the most rewarding quilts that I've made to date.

I just finished a quilt that was very special for me. I found a young lady on-line that had inherited a huge amount of fabric and after a few months of corresponding and becoming friends, I purchased the entire supply.  She gave me a great price and in return I said I would make her some quilts. I made her 2 sons each a quilt which I delivered when I picked up the material. This wonderful young lady asked if I could make a quilt for her husband. She said that he was one of the first responders to 911 as a fireman and he was a changed man when he returned, for the better.  He was amazed at all the outpouring of support from around the world. She asked if I could make a patriotic quilt for him. I finished the quilt just the other night and I'm really excited to get it to her so she can present him with it.  It was an emotional quilt for me, I actually was watching TV when the second plane hit the towers and it is something I will never forget. I have many friends and family that are from the US.  To me the US feels like close cousins, if you know what I mean. So I'm sure this quilt will be at the top of my list of rewarding quilts.  I'm a new quilter and know I will have many to come, but I don't think any will top this one, I feel privileged to have been asked to make it.

My  most rewarding quilt was one which I invented all by myself.  It is called a 3D Sailboat Quilt and not only did I figure out how to make the sails and the flag three-dimensional, but I made it into a beautiful quilt and also a tote which I carry to all quilt shops and shows and get sooo many compliments on.  I was worried about adding unequal triangles together as the pieced pattern that inspired it, so I spent 3 days inventing a paper-pieced 3D quilt.  It turned out exactly the way I wanted it to.  

My  most rewarding quilt was one which I invented all by myself.  It is called a 3D Sailboat Quilt and not only did I figure out how to make the sails and the flag three-dimensional, but I made it into a beautiful quilt and also a tote which I carry to all quilt shops and shows and get sooo many compliments on.  I was worried about adding unequal triangles together as the pieced pattern that inspired it, so I spent 3 days inventing a paper-pieced 3D quilt.  It turned out exactly the way I wanted it to.  

QUILTING, period, is rewarding, but my first BIG project was for my Daughter.  She was so involved with suduko at the time when a quilt magazine came of with the project.  I had to do it no matter what.  What an adventure, with colors, embroidering numbers, the name on 2 corners and so many squares. Took a while as she got it a year and a half later.  This turned out very good for me and my Daughter was overwhelmed.  I know they are not perfect, be it is my gift to a special person and that make it perfect.  She still has the quilt that has be used. I believe all my quilts should be used, as it makes the quilt even better.  

quilting period is rewarding, but my first big project was for my Daughter.  She was so involved with Suduko as the time when a magazine posted a pattern for one. I just had to do it, no matter what.  This was a great adventure, colors, embroidering and so many squares.  I finally finished it a 1/2 year later then I wished, but it turned out great for me and she was so surpirsed.  I am not a perfect quilter, but as it is a special gift for someone I love, makes it perfect.  I learned so much from making it and the moment will always be there.  Several loved one have now received my gifts and this make quilting so rewarding.  

Upon retiring from being a kindergarten teacher two years ago, I decided to dust off my old sewing machine and give quilting a try.  So many members of my family are quilters and I figured I could do it too.  Ha!  I enrolled in a beginners' class at the local quilting shop, a frustrating, agonizing journey of 5 weeks.  My only comment at the end of the class was, "Never again!"  The instructor didn't like anything about my sewing, especially those 1/4" seams.  But 2 years later I moved across the country and was invited by a new friend to a meeting of her quilting guild.  I was inspired (or should I say re-inspired?) by the beautiful quilts everyone showed that night.  I figured if they could do it, so could I!  The very next morning I headed to the local quilt store, bought a simple pattern, lots of fabric, and set up shop in my spare bedroom.  Without the frustration of a "drill sergeant" belittling my every move, I worked my way through the project with a clearer understanding of what quilting was all about.  What a great reward to finish that second quilt and receive so many ooh's and aah's from friends!  I am on my 4th quilt, have joined another group that quilts once a week, and quilt with the guild once a month on a group project.  Quilting has given me so many new, supportive friends!  I'll never give it up again!

Upon retiring from being a kindergarten teacher two years ago, I decided to dust off my old sewing machine and give quilting a try.  So many members of my family are quilters and I figured I could do it too.  Ha!  I enrolled in a beginners' class at the local quilting shop, a frustrating, agonizing journey of 5 weeks.  My only comment at the end of the class was, "Never again!"  The instructor didn't like anything about my sewing, especially those 1/4" seams.  But 2 years later I moved across the country and was invited by a new friend to a meeting of her quilting guild.  I was inspired (or should I say re-inspired?) by the beautiful quilts everyone showed that night.  I figured if they could do it, so could I!  The very next morning I headed to the local quilt store, bought a simple pattern, lots of fabric, and set up shop in my spare bedroom.  Without the frustration of a "drill sergeant" belittling my every move, I worked my way through the project with a clearer understanding of what quilting was all about.  What a great reward to finish that second quilt and receive so many ooh's and aah's from friends!  I am on my 4th quilt, have joined another group that quilts once a week, and quilt with the guild once a month on a group project.  Quilting has given me so many new, supportive friends!  I'll never give it up again!

When my father was alive, he had Parkinsons Disease.  My mother would take her quilting with her to work on while my father was in with the doctor.  She had enough blocks completed to make a double bed sized quilt.  It is the most rewarding quilt I worked on. When Mom's eyesight diminished so that she could not work on it any more, I told her I would finish it. I put the blocks together and quilted it.  Mom is 93 and almost totally blind. She loves the quilt that we worked on.  It was a real priviledge to help Mom make her quilt.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made is a family crossword quilt, on which I count stitched the names of all my family members in a crossword design, and then incorporated it into a wall quilt.

My most rewarding quilt is really a pair of quilts.  I made one for my granddaughter and one for a stuffed toy I made.  She turned 2 this past December and I wanted to make something extra special for the special little girl in my life for her birthday and for Christmas.  I have crocheted all my life so last spring I made her a stuffed bunny.  I decided that I needed to make her something to go with this bunny and, would you believe it, I found an Aunt Martha's bunny and flower child's quilt top to embroidery at an auction.  So, needless to say I hand embroidered it for her and made a smaller top and embroidered it for the bunny.  Then I did something I never dreamed I'd do in a million years . . . I hand quilted each one.  My granddaughter absolutely loves her quilt, the bunny and it's quilt.  Her favorite thing to do now is climb onto her bed with her quilt and her bunny.  She makes sure her bunny is covered with it's quilt then she covers herself and settles down for the night.

My father is an avid miniature train hobbiest and has an amazing set-up in his basement.  I don't mean a little 10'x10' area, I mean more like the entire end of the whole basement, like 20'x40' area!  This place has the mountains, tunnels, little town scapes, and people throughout, with as many as 3 to 5 tracks wide in some places.  I was thrilled when I found the pattern book and a kit for Hobo Quilts.  This kit is for a wall hanging/quilt that has a train engine, 10 to 12 cars and a caboose.  All the cars had symbols on them that hobos/rail riders used as their language to let others know what to expect in the town ahead.  I started the wall hanging last year in june '11 to give it to my Father for Christmas.  Because I'm disabled with chronic pain, I wasn't able to finish it by that time, it was a late Christmas present around my birthday in February, instead.   Although it was late, my Father was very happy to get his quilt, and I was very proud to have given it to him.

Making the farm yard quilt for my newest great grand son, Colton.

My most rewarding quilt that I ever made is The Underground Railroad Quilt." It is the first quilt that I ever made so there is the joy in that, along with the story that these types of quilts told in our history. I have been involved in other historical quilts but haven't been touched as much as with this one.

So far, I'd say I haven't made it yet. I've just started sewing and quilting again, after a medical hiatis. In the past I made quilts out of need (by others) and my stash, or a portion of someone elses. At the time I didn't take the time to enjoy the art, or ever feel rewarded, just thankful I had the ability and the time to do it. I guess a reward, to me, is something tangible, like a prize or award or something.I don't quilt for that, I quilt for me. So, I'll tell you when I find a quilt that makes me feel a reward other than what I have now.

Undoubtedly, the most rewarding quilt I ever made was a variation on the classic "Moon over the Mountains" block baby quilt for my first Great Grandson Joey.  I completed and delivered it to his mother Beth in person 3 days after his birth having driven from central California to northern Idaho to visit with her and her first child.  What makes this my most rewarding quilt was that just three years and one more Great Grandson later, Beth was murdered by her former husband, the children's father.

I can still see the glow in her eyes when she received it and I cherish the photos I took of Beth and Joey before I left town to drive home again.  She was so proud and joyous at the birth of her boys and the best Mother ever.  Rest well with the angels, Beth.  We love and miss you every day.

Like many others, I began quilting by making rag quilts and my first one is my favorite.  My sister-in-law had a very difficult first year with her newborn daughter and literally lived in her PJ's rocking and soothing the infant.  Those PJ's came to have special meaning for her and she couldn't bring herself to dispose of them even after more than a decade.  You guessed it - in reds and blues with horses on them, those PJ's  became the foundation for my first quilt.  I even made a matching flannel bear and used the buttons for eyes.  This Christmas gift resulted in copious tears as she reflected on that trying year and her repurposed PJ's.  Now one further decade later, that quilt and bear remain in the family room and still snuggled under by both mother and daughter.  Since then I have always tried to incorporate a memory (receiving blankets, wedding fabrics, sports items) into quilts for my family.

The most rewarding quilt I've ever made is a photo mosaic quilt of the principal of my old High School. At that time (33 years ago), he was my mentor. A man I'll never forget. In December 2009 I heard on the same day that he was very ill and that he passed away. I was shocked. I decided to do something for the school, but I didn't know what. And when I was on the commemoration ceremony, I decided to make a photo mosaic quilt. How? I didn't know, but after months of searching, I've founded what I needed.

The quilt hung in the silence room, where pupils could go to and pray for him. A couple of months later the quilt, is given to his wife. Now the quilt hangs in her living room.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made is a Photo quilt also.  I was making a Single Irish Chain in red & white for my Mom in Law, who was recovering from a stroke.  We knew she was ill, but didn't know how critical she was.  It was the Tuesday before Mother's Day...and I was showing my hubby how every single block was perfectly matched up...every seam was right on...and he said..."Do you think you could put pics of each of Mom's 12 kids on there?"  I said I could, but since the quilt was assembled, I had to use the Iron on transfers & they would be a little stiff.   Hubby says (and mind you, this is the Tuesday before Mother's day, and the quilt will have to go from TX to Cailf)..."Do you think we can have it to her by Mother's Day?"  ...Well, if I can get it in the Mail by Thrusday, Priority Mail, 2 day tracking...yes...I think so.  I worked all evening until the wee hours of Wednesday morning putting the pictures of all 12 siblings, and then Mom in the middle block..surrounded her with red roses, made a label for the front....quilted it in red thread..it was no longer perfect...but it got to Calif Saturday before Mother's day...I'm told my Mom in Law would not leave that quilt out of her sight.  She was losing ground fast, memory was fading,  but she would fondle all the pics.  Yep, that simple Irish Chain quilt has been the most rewarding one so far.  My Mom in Law was more like a mother to me, than an inlaw.  We miss her dearly.  

The most rewarding quilt that I ever made was done about 5 years ago and is my second quilt that I made and it is used as a wall hanging for my newly completed master bathroom.  I enjoy it daily as I shower or take a soak bath and find that it is helpful to relaxation and meditation.  

I have to say my first quilt. Oddly enough, I've just started it. Let me explain. About 5 yrs. ago I found out that I had a debilitating and somewhat rare form of arthritis in my spine that put me in a wheelchair. Since then I've struggled to find something to not only do during my empty days, but something that allowed me to forget the pain I was in. Until now, I've never really found that 'special' hobby. Then I started watching 'Fons and Porter' and fell in love with quilting. Well...now that I've got everything I need to begin (it took me awhile to save the money on soc. security), I've gotten started and love it! My days are spent learning, failing, trying again and then succeeding! The true miracle is that I can escape the pain for awhile too! Thank God! That's my most gratifying quilting experience and I hope it makes sense, even though I haven't finished my quilt yet. I'll let you know how it comes out!

I find rewards in all the quilts I make but the best reward is when it is finished and ready to be given to someone special.      

Lisa

I've quilted a long time making quilts for the three girls to take to college, making a special quilt for them when they graduated from college and another when they got married.  Then there were grandchildren who needed their own quilt.  But my favorite quilts are the redrafted Kansas City Star quilts and in particular a basket sampler that was paper pieced in both the original size and a minature as cornerstones.  I like old patterns in new colors, so the background was a light yellow rose floral and the sashing was burgandy wih a texture to it.  It is by far my favorite quilt and one I will treasure forever.

In 2008 I was dianosed with advanced Ovarian Cancer, I always wanted to make my husband a memory quilt with pictures and fabric so I thought I better get with it, not knowing the outcome of my cancer journey so I completed it and gave it to him for Christmas and he loved it. I made it Queen size and it held photo blocks that included his family and our children and grandchildren. He calls me his Christmas Carol as I love Christmas, so I did a block of our first Christmas together so that is very special to him. We have now shared 43 Christmas years together and have 3 children who are now adults with their own families. Special times as when our son who had cancer at the age of 19 became a cancer survivor and he went  hunting right after treatment and shot a large deer, so that is a very special time in our life, captured in a picture, I backed the quilt with a beautiful flannel so it would be nice and cosy. My husband has it on our pool table over the cover so everyone can see his treasured quilt from me made in love. I am happy to share with you that I am on third cancer journey but am once again am beating this cancer with the help of a very good doctor, my faith in God and the love of family and friends.  My 16 year old grandson wants a memory quilt so I pray I have lots of years left as we have seven grandchildren and I need to make each one a memory quilt so they will always have that as their memory of me. Thank you for allowing me to share. Each cancer journey finds me in my sewing room making gifts of love.  It is very good therpy for me!  God Bless, Carol Neufeld

my most recent quilt obsession mastered is my most rewarding because not only did i make it for myself but i mastered this crazy vision of a shape that i had in my head.  

I learned to quilt but put it away for several years due to work, family, moving and the busy stuff. As I began going through cancer surgery and chemotherapy for a second time, I was blessed with the news that I would be a grandmother for the first time.  I made a flannel Around the World quilt in baby blues and hand-quilted it for our special little boy.  It was especially rewarding to see that I could be creative even with chemo-brain.  :-)

My most rewarding quilt is a red, white and blue nautical themed Seven Sisters quilt that I tackled as a fairly new quilter.  It is entirely HAND PIECED and HAND QUILTED (I had help quilting it from 2 very experienced quilters).  One block somehow turned out a little larger than the rest and when we put it in the frames it became evident it needed fixed.  I was working 2 jobs then and when I got home my mother-in-law said she had bad news and I needed to sit down...her best friend Edith (the most expericed quilter in the group) was afraid to tell me, was worried I might be mad, that this larger block must be removed and trimmed down before they could proceed.  I was not mad in the least and was so glad they told me because I am a "do it right the first time" type person anyway.  

I will never forget working with Edith on many types of quilts and would never have progressed as far as I have if not for her words of wisdom.  Edith was also a great cook and raised her own garden with her son Sam who was a Vietnam Veteran pilot who was shot down and MIA for 2 years.  Edith managed to outlive a daughter and her only son only to leave us a year and a half ago.  Her love will never be forgotten.  

Only wish I could embed a photo of this quilt here.  

I did manage to make 3 shams to match this quilt on my own and it remains on my quest bed still today.  

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was "Dear Jane".  It was a wonderful experience to use the pattern in the book and figure out how to make the block.  I used many forms of piecing and applique.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was a preemie quilt I made and donated to charity through my quilt guild.  A few months after I donated the quilt, my niece had her baby 4 months prematurely.  When I went to the hospital to visit my niece and the baby, the quilt in the incubator was the one I had donated a few months before!  You never know who will be the recipient of a quilt you make for charity - it might just be someone you know and love.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was for my daughter.  I hand embroidered the label.  It read, " To wrap you in my love". We both cried when I gave it to her.

The most rewarding quilt I have made?  WEll, I haven't made very many quilts yet, but my first one was the Wedding Bliss quilt from an issue of Quiltmaker and Embroidery.  When my niece Carmen announced that she was getting married in a few short months, I thought I would try my hand at this quilt.  Her wedding colours were brown and yellow.  That was all I had to go by and yet, the finished quilt fitted in perfectly with her chosen colours.  After a days drive, we arrived the afternoon before to help decorate the hall.  There was some discussion as to what to do behind the head table and I pulled my quilt out of the bag.  It looked gorgeous and my niece got many compliments on "her quilt."  It was as if it had all been planned!!

Wow, interesting question.  It makes me think back to the many quilts I've completed, which in turn brings back memories of all the people in my life (past and present) who were the recipients of these lovingly created pieces.  I'd have to say the most rewarding for me was also the simplest .. a soft flannel four-patch made for the birth of my first grandchild. She was wrapped up in it when she came home from the hospital, and even now, at nearly five years old that quilt is what she wants when she goes to bed each night.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made is the one I just finished.  It is called "The Third Weekend in October" and is foundation paper pieced.  The quilt finishes 110" x 90" Mine is a scrap quilt so there are many different reds, oranges and greens, etc.  Beautiful!!

I think there are two quilts that have been the most rewarding for me.  The first was a family pictoral quilt that I managed to finish for my Mother-in-law just a few weeks before she passed away last year.  She did manage to sleep with it on her for just two nights before she was hospitalized for the final time.  My Father-in-law even displayed the quilt at the funeral, he told me she loved it so much. The quilt will be an heirloom for my little girl so she can always remember her MeMaw.

The second quilt also involved my Mother-in-law.  She bought a package of premade dresden plates and gifted them to me.  It has been a work of love to complete the quilt and it will shortly be quilted by one of our local quilt shops.  It was the last personal gift she gave me before we found out about her illness.  The Dresden Plate quilt will be dedicated to my Mother-in-law on the quilt label and be a special quilt in our family.

So you could say that my Mother-in-law had encouraged me to continue quilting even when I didn't realize it.  Thanks, Mom.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was for my mother in law.  I have been quilting for 20 or so years, but this one is one I will always remember.  After my father in law passed away, I wanted to create a memory that would last.  I "borrowed" their wedding photo and had it printed onto a piece of fabric.  I then asked all the kids for photos of their families, which i also had copied onto white fabric.  I then created family sections to go all around the wedding photo.  I used a colorful fabric as filler in the spaces between each section.  The reward though, was when my mother in law opened up her gift.   She was surprised, as well as a little teary.  Whenever anyone visits her, she brings it ot and shows them.  She keeps it on her chair in her bedroom and it's the first thing she sees in the morning.  I have told her many times that it can be used and washed, but she chooses to keep it perfect condition.

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was for my mother in law.  I have been quilting for 20 or so years, but this one is one I will always remember.  After my father in law passed away, I wanted to create a memory that would last.  I "borrowed" their wedding photo and had it printed onto a piece of fabric.  I then asked all the kids for photos of their families, which i also had copied onto white fabric.  I then created family sections to go all around the wedding photo.  I used a colorful fabric as filler in the spaces between each section.  The reward though, was when my mother in law opened up her gift.   She was surprised, as well as a little teary.  Whenever anyone visits her, she brings it ot and shows them.  She keeps it on her chair in her bedroom and it's the first thing she sees in the morning.  I have told her many times that it can be used and washed, but she chooses to keep it perfect condition.

I was asked to make a quilt for an Airman who was new to the base (hadn't even signed into her unit).

She was diagnosed with a brain tumor. The outlook was not good. Her Grandmother was on her way, but since she didn't know anybody on base my friends and I made her a quilt in a week and had it delivered to her. It was made with all of her favorite colors, one of them being orange. I want to tell you it was one of the most beautiful quilts I have ever made. Sorry to say she never got to see the quilt finished but her Grandmother did. Her Grandmother raised her and I hope that her Grandmother got to keep the quilt to remind her of the bright and beautiful soul of her grand daughter.

My very first quilt I ever made.  I made to be given to a member of an all women's AF band active in the 50's know as The USAF WAF Band.  I placed a publicity picture of the band in the middle of the quilt and surrounded it with all the instruments the women made.  I was a member of that group and it brought back a lot of great memories to us all.  It was given away at one of our reunions by drawing a name out of the hat.  The gal that got it was brougth to tears.   I have saved enough fabric to make another one and hopefully will make myself one in the very near future.  Since it was my very first quilt I was very proud of it and go give to one of our deserving ladies who served our country as we all did in a day when it was frowned upon for women to serve our country.

Probably my most rewarding quilt was made for an Eagle Scout with all his badges, sashes,scarves, etc and using the shirts for sashing plus the buttons for tying the quilt.  All his scouting items from Cub Scouts through  Eagle Scout were on it.  This is very closely followed by a moose on skis for an ill friend who owns a resort and also used to love to ski.

Probably my most rewarding quilt was made for an Eagle Scout with all his badges, sashes,scarves, etc and using the shirts for sashing plus the buttons for tying the quilt.  All his scouting items from Cub Scouts through  Eagle Scout were on it.  This is very closely followed by a moose on skis for an ill friend who owns a resort and also used to love to ski.

The most rewarding quilt I have ever made was the very first one -- I wasn't sure I was ever going to get it finished!! It wasn't perfect but it was mine and I had made it!!

The most rewarding quilt I've ever made is the one I just finished and it's going to  an injured soldier.  It's a QOV.  I bought the kit a few years ago but it was a bit complicated, or so I thought.  I finally decided to make it and it was easier than I thought, or maybe because it was for a soldier I didn't mind it was more difficult.  I've learned a new block technique and loved it and plan to make more of the same and will give them to QOV as well.  My new goal in life is to get as many made as I can.  Or even one a year for a special soldier to love and now we thank them for all their service.  My good feeling is my reward and the making someone else feel good is a bigger reward.

Reading a lot of the comments made I couldn't help but think of the joy so many had and that in it's is rewarding. My last one I did made my day. Was making it for my oldest daughter she hadn't been very enthusiastic in any part of it but when I gave it to her and her husband for Christmas she seemed overjoyed and telling everyone about it - even putting it on her bed and taking pictures of it- even the label I did.

I salvaged some old cloth handkerchiefs that my 78 year old mother was throwing away.  Many belonged to her and some to her mother.  She thought I was crazy for wanting them and shook her head as I tucked the large bundle in my suitcase.  I took them home and proceeded to fold them into butterfly shapes and applique them onto quilt blocks.  I gave them back to her on a quilt for her 80th birthday.  I used a quilt-as-you-go method so that at the time of her choosing, the large quilt can be separated into 4 equal sections and each section given to each of her 4 granddaughters.  Matching throw pillows were made with appliqued butterflies for the grandsons.  All are used on her bed and the grand kids hear stories of where some of the handkerchiefs came from or what occasion they represented. Memories and stories for all and an heirloom keepsake hopefully for generations to come.  

I have made hundreds of quilts and almost all of them have been given away.  The quilt that I will never forget and perhaps may be called my most rewarding is a quilt that I made for Project Linus.  I used to put a note attached to each quilt explaining my love and hope for things to get better for the child and my name and address.  I received many wonderful thank you notes.  For this special quilt, I received a lovely card with a picture of a beautiful little girl wrapped in the quilt and also a picture of the quilt framed and hanging in their family room.  Their little daughter would not let the quilt our of her sight after she received it and she passed away wrapped in the quilt.  Multiple members of the family wrote their memories and thank you's in the enclosed note.  I cried for weeks and shed tears whenever I think about it.  But, it did encourage me to make more quilts to donate.  After receiving that thank you note and losing a young grandson, I no longer include my name and address with the quilts.  My heart still feels broken by the loss of such young, beautiful children.

The most rewarding quilt was made for the NAMES project.  My son had died of AIDS shortly before the national NAMES quilt came to our area.  I made a quilt to honor him with his favorite colors, pictures, and  awards.  Also met other parents who had also lost their sons, was very healing.

I'm a member of a local women's fitness center.  The manager approached me and asked me to make a T-shirt quilt as an 80th birthday gift for another member.  The birthday gal happened to be a retired school teacher who had taught each of my own children in kindergarten.  She was so pleased with the quilt.....and she is such an inspiration.  I hope I am able and motivated to exercise daily when I am 80!

The most rewarding quilt I ever made was the baby quilt I made for my first grandchild.  Trevor's mom was upset when she had to go back to work and Trevor had to go to day-care.  Trevor took his quilt to daycare with him every single day.  He had a little bit of home and grandma with him when it was nap time.  It also made his mom feel a little better when he was so happy each day when she picked him up.

The most rewarding quilt I made was the first one for my son.  It was not perfect but he loved it!

The most rewarding quilt I ever made so far has to be "Mother's Motto" - a combination hand and machine embroidered quilt done for a quilt quild challenge that was entered by a group of us from our local guild. The theme was "Teach Your Children Well."  My mother, who passed on in 1999, always said The Lord gives you a week.... you can give him an hour, and I based the theme of my quilt, including that embroidered saying on the wall quilt I created. It was posted on Embroidery Library's projects site since I used some of their designs. It was an original composition and the first time I ever tried anything like it. It also included photo transferred fabric with pictures from a trip to Ireland we made in 2007, a floor tile from St. Patricks Cathedral in Dublin, a nave of a church with a pipe organ in Galway. This is an all around memory quilt and had a wonder time making it. -- Good luck everyone. Your stories are all wonderful.

My most rewarding quilt I ever made was for my family and now hangs in our family room!  I am the mother of 5 children and was diagnosed with a 2 brain tumors (quite large) 4 years ago.  All I wanted was to survive surgery and still have all my capabilities. I responded well to two lengthy surgeries 10 hours and 4 hours respectively.  Can't keep a die hard quilter down for long!  My quilt is the Bali Wedding Star foundation pieced pattern by Judy Niemeyer.  I made it entirely with Batiks and then longarm quilted it free-motion myself on my Gammill.  I am very proud of the great accomplishments of my family and I smile BIG every time I look at it.  Life is Good! :)

I would have to settle on two quilts:  one would be a purple and gold quilt that I combined a lot of different techniques, in addition to a more complicated block (compared to previous attempts!), and the beautiful colors.  It also was the first quilt that I put together using the 'cotton theory' method, and it was the first time I used my embroidery machine to do some quiltng in the blocks.

My second choice would be a completely origtinal bargello type pattern made to be ocean waves, with a beach along the top, with appliqued starfish and shells, and yoyo's for bubbles on the beach.  It had several batik fabrics with teals, greens, beige and white, and prints with polka dots in the same color scheme to add the foaming effect of ocean waves. I added a 'wave' machine stitch across the bargello waves to also accentuate the wave effect.  the side panels had teals, browns and gold swirls and bubbles.  It was made for a friend who requested a beach theme quilt for her house.

I am a nurse in a Labor and Delivery Unit.  A few years ago i took a class and made a baby quilt,don't know why.  I knew no one who had a baby.

One afternoon a woman and her husband came in and delivered a baby 3 months early.  They had no family in the area, It was just the 2 of them.  The baby had multiple deformities of of the arms, legs and heart.  Needless to the baby died after 3 days.  No one brought a gift for the baby.  The mother was surrounded for 3 days with babies getting gifts.  I wrapped up the quilt I had made and gave it to her.  She took pictures of the baby in the quilt,   the baby looked so normal and sweet.  She  wrapped the baby in it for the funeral.  It was all she had to remember the baby by.  Don't know why I made a baby quilt for that class, but seeing her hold that baby wrapped up tight was I knowthe most rewarding quilt I ever made.

The first one I helped my mom make when I was 8. It was a double wedding ring we made for my aunt's wedding. It was beautiful & she loved. That's what got me started quilting.