Hotel rooms keep you focused

Another good thing about sewing AWAY from home is that you have fewer distractions. I know I am distractable. At times, this is good, as multitasking helps you get more done. However, when it comes to sewing, I find I'm lured away by a new stack of scraps, fabrics, a tantalizing new project....before I finish what I'm currently working on.

When you sew in the hotel room, you can only work on what you brought along. So I brought a project that I knew I'd be easily distracted from (binding), but one that I really want to get going on.

A friend heard about this quilt and I was asked to consider repairing it. When I heard the story, I couldn't turn it down. Turns out this quilt has been passed down from generation to generation within a family and that it has been handed over when comfort was needed. It comforted the present owner's aunt a few years ago, then it comforted her niece in a rocky time in her life. It's the opposite of so many homeless quilts that we find and feel a little bad about (who didn't want this great quilt?).

It's in delicate shape. It has been well-loved. It's very soft and worn, needs new binding and many patches replaced. I told the current owner that I could make the repairs but that the quilt could never be perfect. It would be fine if she just wanted to fold it up and keep it as an heirloom.

But she wanted the repairs made so the binding is now underway. We agreed that one thing it needs is a detailed label, telling who made it and who passed it on. We'll meet soon to record the quilt story. I can't wait.