Thursday, December 5, 2013

Fundraiser Quilt

I agreed to make a quilt to be auctioned at a Pink Purse Fundraiser for my Son's Mother-in-Law.  Today I took it into my clubhouse to baste the three quilt layers on the large tables. It is not an easy task to do on the floor. In fact, it took three tables because the last few inches hung over two...(the wrinkles come out, so don't worry about what you see).


I am not a fan of pink, however, pink is the color selected for breast cancer survivors. It takes several yards for the back, and I wanted a finishing border for the front so it would also coordinate. I cannot say I was wild about this fabric.


It measures roughly 76 x 76 right now. Although the proper way to baste is back down, then batting and then top. It works better for me if I reverse it. I LOVE thread basting rather than with pins, and it takes about the same time to finish it.

With all my writing yesterday about the Fairy/Angels and the words on them of Peace, Hope, and Love, that energy carried through today into my work on this quilt. Its been a deeply moving experience. 

I usually find the name of the quilts in this stage of creation. 


As I basted, I could not help but think of all the wings on this fabric. It was as if this whole backside was filled with the flutter of Fairy/Angel wings, each of them there like all the Angels on Earth and in Heaven as well as Fairies in forests, meadows and waterside.

The foundation of Pink represents breast cancer survivors; and I know that Orange represents leukemia. Yellow stands for bladder. Pale Blue signifies childhood cancer, Periwinkle is for stomach cancer, and Teal for ovarian-cervical-uterine cancers. The darker colors of Purple, Green and Brown refer to pancreatic, kidney and colorectal cancers. White represents bone cancer, while Gray suggests brain cancer. 

All these colors for ribbons that people wear at fundraisers or otherwise in support of those they love while they live or research for the cures after they leave us. All these dis-eases! I am not sure if I can say that this work gave me comfort for the grief for the rift in our family right now. I feel  more that it provided a bit of enlightenment. I realize that I know women, men and children who either survived one of these cancers or lost their battle with it. And I never knew the ribbon colors until today.

I have a completely different attitude toward this quilt now. I am embracing all the colors on front and back in a very different way than before this moment. Creating it is comforting me, is healing me, is shielding me. And, I wonder who will buy it at the fundraiser? 


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