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 Quilt Adventures

Taking the Quilt to Alabama

5/21/2013

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I love the history of folks gathering around quilts long ago.
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I wonder what kinds of stories they told, what songs they sang and I even wonder what they might have argued about.

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"Stichin' and Pullin"

This illustration from Patricia McKissack's book shows the women of Gee's Bend (in Boykin, Alabama)  gathering around a design made of colorful material scraps.  Women who live in this area today, still gather daily to quilt, just as their great-great...grandmothers did before the civil war.

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Visiting Gee's Bend

Tomorrow I will be visiting the quilters who live in Gee's Bend.  I can't wait to see some of their quilts and hear their stories.

From the Texas Quilt Groups to the Gee's Bend Quilters!
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For 2 weeks I've talked about Gee's Bend with my different Quilt groups.  Each group wanted to make something for these wonderful women who have  created these amazing works of art.
My Silverado group created a paper quilt.  We took squares of colorful paper and wrote down words that came to mind when we thought about quilts and the folks who make them.  We came up with 48 words...like patience and warmth.

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On the back of the squares we glued squares of printed paper and then worked together to arrange all the squares.

Patchwork Butterflies
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Another group decorated butterflies for the Gee's Bend Quilters.
We talked about the designs on the wings and how they reminded us of pieces of material pieced together on a quilt. 

Questions
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The seniors at the assisted living center, had so many questions for the quilters. They filled folded cards with questions they hope will be answered.  "When did you first learn how to quilt?"  "What do you think about when you're quilting?"

Stitchin' and Pullin'
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It was interesting to see the reactions of both young and old to Patricia McKissack's book.   The adults were touched by the stories of the amazing strength and creativity of the Gee's Bend women.

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Quilt Kids

The children were mesmerized by the illustrations. The favorite illustration of the group was a picture of the little girl and her grandmother, wrapped up cozy in the quilt.

Quilt Cards
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The kids at the shelter made "quilt cards" for me to deliver to the quilters.  They were very excited to know if the ladies would like their cards.  "Can you take pictures of them?"  They asked.

I can't wait to learn about the Gee's Bend Quilters...but I'm also excited to share with them what our
non-quilting Quilt Groups do!  I hope they let me take photos tomorrow!

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    The Quilt

    For 20+ years children have called it the Magic Quilt.  They've danced and pretended all over these colorful squares.  I've dragged it to schools, shelters and studios where children have climbed on top to hear Magic Quilt  Stories and to act them out.

    I still regularly use the story telling quilt with children at a nearby  Shelter, but 7 years ago I started using the quilt on a table with a group of Alzheimer's  folks.   I was blown away by what these incredible people could share and enjoy, so I started up "Quilt Groups" at other centers.  

    In 2013, motivated by the warmth and generosity of the friends I've made through this quilt, I decided to start taking the quilt with me, when I vacation. So far I have met some wonderful adults and children while traveling and sharing the quilt in Mexico, N. Carolina, Utah, California, Mississippi, Chile, Mexico, Guatemala New Mexico, Bermuda and Honduras.  

    In this blog I will share about some of the adventures I've had near and far with the help of the quilt.  Mostly, I'd like to share some of the things I've learned along the way.

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  • Homepage
  • Little Bear's Adventures
  • Diverse Dining List
  • 90 Notable Nights
  • Happy List
  • Quilt Adventure Blog
  • Not So Happy List
  • The Texas Twenty List
  • Mom's Picnic List
  • 18+ Dance Adventures
  • 55 Strangers
  • The Barbie Bucket List
  • 60 Celebrations
  • 57 Celebrations of the Fifties!