Wedding Quilt

Well, it’s finally done, the quilt I started back in May. It is the “bamboo” version of the “bamboo and pinwheels” quilt that I blogged about last spring. I did most of the work back in May and June, then life got a little crazy and I had to put it aside for a bit while I put other parts of my patchwork life in order. This past week, however, found me happily sandwiching the quilt top to the batting & backing, topstitching along those dark green sashing lines, and attempting my first mitered-corner binding.

It’s definitely homemade. It’s not “square;” each of the mitered corners looks a little different, and there are puckers in some places. I am hoping the recipients will look beyond its imperfections and know that it was made with love.

While I was working on this piece, I was thinking about some of the similarities between relationships and quilts. A good relationship is a blending of two people, just like a quilt is a blending of different fabrics. If the fabrics are too much alike, there isn’t enough contrast. Things can get boring. It’s nice to have someone who can kick your butt if need be, or someone who can be up when you’re feeling down, and vice versa. But if the fabrics are too different, they can clash. The aim is for the parts of the whole to complement each other, play off each other. With a quilt, you start with a couple yards of fabric, you cut them up and put them back together in some creative arrangement that allows each to shine while at the same time making the whole add up to more than just the sum of its parts. A good relationship is like that. (I mean, that's what I've heard. Take all relationship advice from me with a grain of salt, or salt shaker...). Anyhow, that’s what I wish for you, Aaron and Nicole. That you always complement each other and that your differences will only be enough to keep life interesting. But most of all, may your marriage always be like a soft place in which you can find comfort and warmth.

Congratulations on your marriage, Aaron & Nicole.

Love, Auntie Annie

(and my quilt inspector, Dakota.)

"yeah. this one'll do. can I lay on it now?"