Sunday, November 18, 2012

Special delivery!!

I'm back!  What a wonderful trip to NJ and NY.  Part of the joy was not having to drive - the boys and I rode on the sleeper bus with my husband's basketball team, so during the ride I napped, watched movies, got some work done, and worked on the binding for the disappearing 4-patch quilt.

On Friday, I got a ride to Keyport, NJ to deliver quilts to Hillary, the President of the Blankie Depot, which is right in one of the affected communities.  (on the drive there, we saw boats upside down in people's yards - very surreal!) I dropped off 5 quilts there (I still wasn't done with the binding on the 6th).
There were 180 other quilts in her dining room, too, all scheduled to be distributed on Monday. 
Hillary is not a quilter, but is a fan and friend of quilters, so she had some treasures in her house that she allowed me to photograph.
Hand quilted and hanging on her living room wall - I love the pattern and the colors 
Close up of a hand quilted tablerunner in her living room
Then, on Saturday, the boys and I went to NY to visit Victoria.  (visit her site, she has a more complete photo of the quilt) I did some binding in my hotel room,

and on the train to New York, but I finished the binding on the quilt while sitting in her awesome loft in the garment district.  She joked that part of how she can get so much done is living and working in what used to be a sweatshop and having the spirits of all those garment workers from days gone by helping her out.  I love it!

And you know what else I loved?  Getting an in-person peek at her quilts in her newly released book, 15 Minutes of Play.  I'll definitely be buying this one!  It is technique, not patterns, and her quilts are so creative and inspirational!  I'll be honest, I was pretty star struck while I was there - I've been reading her blog for years and have so much respect for her.

After leaving her place, the kids and I walked to Bryant Park to ice skate on Citi Pond.  Apparently, my boys have never gone ice skating before, but they took to it like ducks to water.



The purpose of the trip wasn't just for quilt delivery, of course, but also for basketball.  My husband's team won their season opener against Tufts on Friday, then lost a heart-breaker to Rutgers Newark on Saturday.  Since my husband is from New Jersey, much of his family came out to support him, which was wonderful!
His mom, his brother, his sister, his niece, two cousins, his aunt and his aunt. Even more people came out Friday night, but of course I forgot my camera!
Then, when I arrived home, look what was waiting!
35 packages in the mail!
It took me an hour and a half to open it all and record all the addresses in my spreadsheet. (Please know that if you've sent me anything, you'll be receiving an official THANK YOU in a couple of weeks.  For now, I'm just trying to keep up with the mail - and my job, and my kids, and my afterschool program quilting class, and karate, and cub scouts - so I'm not emailing anyone directly, just listing names on here under MY HEROES and adding them to my spreadsheet for later.  I hope you understand.)

All those packages yielded this - 312 blocks, one pieced backing and 3 other solid backings, lots of yardage, $100 for batting, 65 assorted other quilt blocks, lots of yardage, some flannel squares
Thanks, Julie, The Quilter's Group, Cheryl, Hetty, Ruth, Pam, Charlene, Judith, Kate, Betty, Candy, Diane, Nicki, Selina, Maureen, Erin, Megan, Sarah, Ellen, Linda F, Gain, Patricia W, Linda B, Karen, Suzanne, Patricia C, Valierie, Patty, Doreen, Alice, Sharon, Barb, Becki, P Thomsen and the Sew Blessed Quilters!
AND
A Jelly Roll quilt top that I may try to add borders to in order to make it twin sized - thanks, Alice! 
A fun, completed baby quilt - thanks, Barb!
And a completed snuggly flannel baby quilt - thanks, Barb!
The notes of encouragement that you guys include are so sweet, but I gotta tell you, this wouldn't happen without ALL OF YOU!!!  You guys deserve the thanks!  Without you, I may have gotten two quilts done and up there, but more than likely just one.  Instead, we are going to keep dozens of people warm this winter.  THANKS!

Erin

14 comments:

Ms. C said...

What an inspiration you are! I know people will be comforted in the warmth you are providing.

KaHolly said...

How inspiring!! I so appreciate the updates.

Shay said...

I love seeing people pull together like this in times that are hard for others. There is still so much good in the world!

Anonymous said...

I am up for binding a quilt if you need one done.
Welcome home!

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

Do you need some baby quilts? I have 2-3 in the basement. Just prequilted panels, nothing fancy.

regan said...

I'm so glad you got to meet Victoria.....I'm in awe of her talent, too! And I don't know how you are doing all that you are.....you're amazing!

Michelle said...

I havent been able to find my fabric in this unpacking mess. I would love to help you piece the tops though if you don't mind mailing me the blocks. I can send money for the postage.

Julie Fukuda said...

Gosh, I thought I was busy with family here but compared to your weekend, I've been taking it easy ... and not one stitch done either!

Michelle said...

Erin, that's just awesome!! I'm so glad you had such a successful visit, those quilts are gorgeous, all of them! I'll bet the recipients will feel the love that went into them, and it will help get them through this.

And, ice-skating, hooray!! It's one of our favorite things, we'll have to go over winter vaction:-)

Anonymous said...

I, also, have been a follower of Victoria for a while now.....such a sweet photo of the two of you!!! So thankful for the generous quilter hearts!!!! Many prayers for those affected and those loving hands that have had a part in the assembly!! Hugs and blessings to you....Doreen

Victoria Findlay Wolfe said...

WAHOO! Look at all those blocks! Go girlie! Erin, it was so nice to finally meet you in person! We've been blog friends for ages! So great that you could come by! Your boys are beautiful and charming... just like you!

Janet said...

How wonderful of you to help gather quilts for Sandy survivors. And a great chance to hang out with Victoria :) I bet your boys skate better than I do and I've been doing it all my life. I just am a dud at skating.

Nicki said...

Beautiful quilts, blocks, & donations for such a wonderful thing you are doing. Most of all...beautiful YOU with a loving heart for taking on this project. THANK YOU!

sewfunquilts said...

Thanks sew much for your time, effort, devotion to coordinating this project and sharing the progress on your blog. YOU are the star in Friendship STAR blocks! Enjoyed all your pictures in this post.