Teaching my DIL to Sew

My husband and I went back to MD over Thanksgiving and Christmas to take a mental break and to be with our kids and grandkids. Several years ago, I'd bought my daughter-in-law a sewing machine. I knew she wanted one. After giving it to her I linked her up with an old friend who lives about a mile away from her and is a sewing Queen. She even has a home business doing fabric-based decor and other crafty type items. But my DIL is soft-spoken, busy with a young son and work and never followed up. She later confessed that she'd hoped I would teach her. It took a few years since we lived an hour or more away and I was working and commuting, but now since I'd quit my job and live in an RV, and am on a break from taking care of my sister in Iowa, I have time. I got it set up, and got her started sewing straight lines.  First, she made a big, fat pillow.

Afterwards, I thought we would go down to the local fabric shop where I would walk her through picking out a pattern, the fabric and all the accessories. Instead, she brought out a rag quilt she had bought on Etsy.com and asked if there was any way we could make something like it. I looked at it, deconstructing it in my mind, and yes. We did it.

Or she did it, I should say.

Love the eyes of my grandson peering over the top, making a face.

Is that not pretty? My DIL finished the quilt the next day! That is my grandson holding it up and making faces. He was so excited about his mom sewing that he kept urging her on so she finished it before I returned. I had gotten her started on just sewing the front to back (the individual squares are sewed first, with a large "X" right through the square that joins the front fabric with the backing. There is no batting in the middle. Then the squares are sewed together into a row, then the rows sewed together. Then you sew all the way around the edge. Once finished sewing, you patiently go around each square's frayed edges, carefully clipping into the fabric edges to encourage them to fray evenly with repeated washings.

Beautiful colors!!!