Little Orphans

The Swiss people celebrate the feast of Artio today, a Bear Goddess who awakens to frolic in the Winter months and heralds the Spring where there will be such abundance everywhere. Sometimes recognizing that we have abundance, especially as fabric artists, is a way to come up with new ideas for using what is found, even in a closet.

So many years ago, one of the local quilters & I started following a BOM Sampler online and got together to make our blocks each month. Mine was made from estate fabric given to me that was in pastels. When I was finished, it had no designation so went into the orphan bin.

One of my FB14 friends is wheelchair bound now from a car accident she had over a decade ago. They are remodeling their home to help her move around better. As I looked for quilting project ideas, I found a group of quilters making wheelchair quilts. They had the measurements, and in one set of directions, used 10 blocks, plus one cut on the diagonal for the bottom so that the wheels didn't get caught. It was also suggested to back it with flannel so it stayed put as the person moved around. 

Sometimes the bear leaves the cave, or the woman leaves her home. Sometimes having that cozy-comfort of something over your legs is nice. Its a very small over-the-lap quilt and in MN where it gets mighty cold, this little bit of a quilt may just be the trick.