Last spring, I went with several HMQG-ers on a day trip to La Grange, Texas. If you are ever anywhere in SE Texas, you really should make this trip. La Grange is a charming, old-timey Texas town. It is also home to the Texas Quilt Museum. The museum, begun by the organizers of the International Quilt Festival, is housed in what was once 19th century retail space & has been beautifully restored to a new purpose -- that is displaying quilts.
When we were there, the special exhibit was butterfly quilts -- beautiful quilts in a beautiful space! I was standing in front of a quilt with another Guild member, um, a 'mature' woman like myself. This quilt had a large variety of fabrics, not just cottons, but satins, brocades, velvets. I don't remember who said it first, maybe we said it together, but we each had the same thing on our minds -- cutting up our wedding dresses! Both of us in happy marriages, for years we've lugged around our dresses & allowed them to take up space. Neither us see much likelihood of anyone ever wanting to wear our dresses. We told the rest of the group what we had been thinking; the more recent brides looked horrified, the ones with more candles on their anniversary cakes looked intrigued.
I loved my wedding dress! I remember like it was yesterday shopping with my Mom, putting on mine & immediately knowing, "this is MY dress." But now what? No daughters, my nieces either have different bodies or are already married. I'll never again be able to zip the tiny thing, so I can't even wear it as a Halloween costume! Yes, I could sell or donate it, it may be getting old enough to be considered vintage. :-} Or I could incorporate the fabric in patchwork -- kind of a have-my-cake-and-eat-it-too approach.
A few years ago I stumbled upon Cassandra Ellis. I liked this quilt & I really loved her attitude & approach to quilts & quilt-making. She has transformed my thinking about fabric & combining fabric in quilts! Chunky hunks & precious slivers of treasured fabrics make beautiful, meaningful &nurturing quilts. The old & the new; silk, cotton, velvet, wool -- all together in one quilt. I have dear bits of very old family clothing, many of them rayon, with which I have long wanted to make something. Ms. Ellis may be my Muse.
I'm not there yet, but if I go, I may bring scissors.
