How does quilting make me feel?

Yesterday Kristyne of Pretty by Hand posted about how quilting makes her feel,  And today while commenting, I was inspired to write up my own blog post about the emotions quilting, and sewing in general, evoke in me.

Sewing, in any form brings me such joy and contentment. Be it quilting, making a new bag, to doing needlework, I love it all.

I come from a large, but very non tight knit family. We aren't even scattered all over, but since my Dad left us when I was in the 4th grade, the get togethers on his side of the family stopped (for my brother, sister and I anyhow), and when my Maternal Grandma passed away when I was 16, the get togethers on Mom's side of the family stopped as well, She was the glue that held that side of our family together..and I miss her more than I could ever put into words, but I digress. The point is that since I didn't have it, I've always wanted that large, tight knit, everyone looks out for each other, you can depend on them kind of family..and have many more "old fashioned" values than most of my generation is comfortable with.

Sewing and quilting allows me to feel that connection to other women in the generations that have gone before, that sense of history that I've struggled to find for so long. For hundreds of years women have been sewing, stitching and quilting, sharing their gift of time and skill with their friends and family, and passing those skills and that love on from one generation to the next.

I do my sewing on old school machines, that were used and loved by women before me, my beloved Janome that was made when I was a newborn, and the Kenmore that was loved by 2 generations before coming to my hands. I look forward to the time when my 1 owner Necchi is brought back to life, and plan to make a vintage fabric quilt using my treadle machine in the coming year. Knowing that the women who owned and loved these machines before me probably felt the same way I do when working on or completing a project.

So, yes, I would say that my sewing brings me joy, although more importantly it makes me feel a connection, and feeling of family history that I've missed out on since I was a child, And one day, I hope to pass my knowledge and skills on to my Daughter's in law, or grandchildren (the sewing bug has skipped my boys) to do my part in preserving the history and continuing the passing of the needle to the next generation.

In stitches,