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A Tiny Rant

"The most spectacular thing about the quilt though, is that it is ENTIRELY HANDMADE!"

This was a line from a daily quilting newsletter I receive, regarding an award-winning quilt that was quite interesting (I subscribe to the newsletter just so I can look at quilts, as I can't attend quilt shows at present.) The colors of the winning quilt were unusual, the applique was impressive, and I thought it was quite an achievement for the maker. Yet the thing about it that the writer thought was most spectacular was something that sounded like snobbery to me, so I need to rant a little.

I get it, you know. Hand stitching is both time-consuming and labor intensive, so I've always understood why most quilters choose to use machine stitching. I envy them, honestly, as I could probably make many more quilts if I would learn machine quilting. Also, I regard many machine-made quilts as spectacular; one of my quilting friends on Twitter just blows me away with her work, which is nearly 100% by machine. Finally -- and this may sound a little crazy, but there you go -- I regard machine-stitched quilts as handmade because you still need hands on them to guide them through the machine.

I have always chosen to quilt and embroider my textile art and quilts by hand because that makes me happy. It slows me down, too, and helps me to appreciate the journey rather than the destination. The clatter of a sewing machine frankly makes me nervous, and I'm always anxious when I use it as well. There is practically no noise when you hand stitch; just the very faint whisper of thread through fabric.

This choice doesn't make me or my quilts special, or different, or superior in any way to makers who use machines to do the same work, or vice-versa. We all do what we love. So why do some constantly have to compare our efforts like this, even passive-aggressively as this newsletter did? Being happy with what you choose to do, and respecting the choices of others is such an easy thing. Let's strive to do that, okay?

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