A Collaborative Quilt...

This completed quilt represents the work of lots of quilters and fiber artists, which makes it very special. When I shared with fellow blogger and quilt artist Robbie of Robbie's Paw Prints that I was volunteering in a women's prison crafting program, she wanted to support the women. She and her friends in the Fiber Arts Group in Michigan sent a huge box of donated supplies, among them pieces of unique hand-painted and dyed fabrics. I knew they needed to be used together in a quilt, so I cut and packaged pieces which were delivered to the prison. The women pieced the quilt top, and I then brought it out to another quilting friend, Claudia at Quiltworks of Orange Springs. She donated the longarm quilting, I added binding, and the quilt is ready to be donated to a local foster-care agency for teens. All of the women's work is done for charitable organizations, so they contribute to the community while they develop crafting and workplace skills. I could see a teenager really loving this quilt... it's one-of-a-kind, trendy, colorful.

Here's a close-up of Claudia's chosen quilting motif and some of the hand-painted fabrics. I showed the quilt to a woman who was herself incarcerated at one time. She summed up the project by saying the lesson to her in the quilt is that so many people were involved in completing it, and not one of them was looking for anything in return... just a true spirit of collaboration and generosity. Well said. With all those good vibes in it, I'm sure this quilt will be cherished by its new owner!

And look who wanted to say hello. Scooter has become healthy and is growing quickly. He doubled his weight from when he arrived in October, very young and thin and lost. You can see the changes in him in just those few weeks here. He's attending puppy school and is just a delightful pet. It's tough to get a photo of him as he's on the move so much.. I usually just capture a paw or the tip of a tail. But he sat nicely for this one.