Well 2019 was taken from us by circumstances beyond our control. We decided to reschedule the big stuff in January for 2020. A few weeks later our plans were put on hold again due to Covid19.
We are lucky that we live in a coastal village with plenty space to walk. We also have a large garden, so plenty to occupy us there. What was going to replace the weekly craft group though. There were also no makes needed for the gift shops as they were non essential.
I had been a member of the UKQU group on facebook for some years. My activity was resticted to likes and the odd comment. A post about a mini quilt swap caught my eye. My patchwork and quilting was rusty but something about this appealed to me. I joined, and wondered what I had done. We were put in groups and encouraged to ‘stalk’ each other on social media to discover our likes and dislikes. It was a bit intense the first couple of weeks as we had no idea who we were to make for.
Then we were told who we were making for. The pressure of stalking was off but it was replaced by doubt about the choices we had made. Luckily each team had an experienced mamma. They checked over our ideas, gave advice and agreed the idea was good. The process kept us occupied. I chose to do the quilt at the top of the page. I had never done this before. My husband loved the design and I did another for us. Everyone worked at different rates depending on commitments. While we waited on the deadline everyone posted teaser pictures of what they were creating. I learned lots through the group about editing my photos.
Then we were given our recipients address. We still didn’t know who was sending to us. Everyone posted at different times. Some, like me had their local shop/postoffice fully open. Others were on reduced opening. Add to that the backlog in sorting centres and it was an anxious time. One quilt appeared to be missing after 2 weeks. As plans to make a substitute were happening, it turned up a few days later.
When mine arrived I was apprehensive about openning. What had my swappee made of me? On opening I was silent with a huge grin on my face. She got it so well. Loved everything about it. This experience renewed my faith in human beings. The small group I was in and the wider group of the swap were so friendly and supportive. I had previously come across the quilt police types who are intollerent to imperfections. This experience in the mini quilt swap has renewed my mojo for needlework. Thank you everyone involved.
