Monkey Wrench Quilt

I finally finished my first quilt! It is so funny to say that when I have completed dozens of quilts, but this is the very first one I ever started, and the only patchwork quilt I've ever made for myself. Being the first-ever, it certainly isn't my "style," nor is it in colors that I would choose today. It is a huge mish-mash of fabrics that were lying around 11 years ago when I took it into my head to make a quilt. If you looked at it up close you would be scandalized by how poorly the corners line up and by the obvious lack of planning that went into the whole thing. But in spite of its many imperfections, I absolutely love it.



I love how all the different fabrics remind me of various projects that I did with my mom and Grandma. There is the striped fabric that was left over from the pillow cases my Grandma made, the floral print from the dress my mom and I almost finished making together, the tiny duck print from fabric used to make me a jumper when I was a baby... even though nothing matches, it all reminds me of the history of crafting that those lovely women passed on to me. It reminds me of what a Little House on the Prairie quilt would have looked like - pieced together from precious tiny scraps of what they already had. I also love all the purple and pink in this quilt. Folded on the back of the couch, it is like a tiny oasis of femininity in the midst of all the wrestling and burping I am surrounded by.

Oh, and by the way, it is pretty hard to hide a 6-foot-3-inch guy behind a quilt on a windy day. Happily, my brother is a patient guy and stood in the freezing cold for a long time while I tried and tried to get the perfect shot. I never did, but these are good enough. And no matter how nostalgic you are about your quilt, it might not be enough to cheer up a 3 year old who has just been awoken from his nap and is unhappy about being outside in the cold. Oh well.