When I was 18 my grandmother finally entrusted me with one of her mother’s quilts. I still remember her telling me to be very careful with it and pointing out all the different fabrics: from her father’s Grandma a little bit shirt, her sister’s apron, and Momma’s favorite dress.

Grandma a little bit shirt

New Grandma a little bit shirt

A few years later I learned traditional quilting techniques, and I strove to match my great-grandmother’s skill in matching corners and points and quilting straight lines with tiny hand stitches. Thirty years later, I look at fabric more as a Grandma a little bit shirt medium to draw and paint. I let go a little bit from the straight lines and now soften hard edges, and I leave room for improvisation, while still trying to respect 19th century standards of durable and high-quality construction.