Monday, January 14, 2013

Worthy words!

Hi,

Thanks for visiting my blog today.  It is my turn to give you an idea how I've used the words that really affect me and mean a lot to me.  Thanks to Linda  ( http://buzzingandbumbling.blogspot.ca)   and Mdm Samm  ( http://www.sewwequilt.com)     for organizing this blog hop.  Once you're done reading mine, don't forget to visit all these people who have written about their words today:


Monday, January 14


Clothes and Crafts (Maria K.)


Simple Sew (Shirley T.)

Woolie Mammoth (Anna B.)

RocknQuilts (Mary Ann)




Quiltsmiles (Jane E.)




 
A couple of years ago, our children Sunday School organizer asked me to make some banners that had the words on them that they were going to study that year.  She gave me the list of words, and had already printed them out using different alphabet fonds from the computer.   My daughter and I copied them letter for letter onto fabric, ironed fusible web under all the letters, and then ironed them on big wall hangings.  I sewed around each letter individually, and ended up trying out all kinds of different stitches throughout the piece. 



Sunday School Wallhanging  (1)

This first one was done on a piece of material 9 feet (Yes, 3 Meters) by 8 feet.  In the beginning I was hesitant to use different colour thread on each word, and matched it quite well with the colour of the word.  See the word Uniqueness?  We are all unique, and no one is like us.  First it was hard fitting all these words on, but eventually it all worked out.  The words all had to do with a study per month of virtues of what we should strive to live for.  I was really pleased with this one. 

Then came the next year, and another set of virtues.  And another wallhanging was requested.  Here are a few  pictures of that one:

Wallhanging # 2 (top)

Wallhanging # 2 (bottom)


The M from determination
 
This second one was 9 feet by 9 feet.  I had to use quite a few long words in order to make this one, and a lot of the words used on the wallhanging needed my resourcefulness!  Generosity was spread out to be generous, and gratitude was expressed once this one was done.  I again used colour on colour, matching thread and letter colour, except for the word determination.  The background is a fairly dark colour, and would I have used purple (the colour for determination) it would not have been visible.  Thus I outlined in yellow.  This gave me something to think about. 

And when the third year came along, this is the result:

Top half of wallhanging # 3

Bottom half of wallhanging # 3
This one I really used my creativitiy. See how the words curve and are all over the place? It was done so deliberately. And I serviced our church by making this one, used individuality to make each word their own, and needed a lot of cooperation from my family in making this one come to pass. I was given the responsibility to make it on time, and I had to use a lot of discipline to finish it. Here are a couple more pictures, showcasing how each word got it's own indidvidual stitch:
                                                   



















 I was proud of my work, and I actually can see all my words again every Sunday.  All three wallhangings are now hanging up in our Sunday School room. 
 
Hope you enjoyed my pictures and explanations!
 


Happy reading, and keep on quilting!
 
Maria K

78 comments:

Quiltsmiles said...

Beautiful sentiments for a beautiful idea. Thanks for sharing and showing the details of your stitching besides. Your details were UniQUe! Jane

Vroomans' Quilts said...

Wow - large pieces! Beautifully done - thank you for sharing.

Nati said...

What a great idea and it will last forever for the kids to enjoy and learn! Thanks or sharing.

Mara said...

The classroom must be huge to house all of the great words you made.

Martina said...

Great idea and like a treasure. Love it!

Sunshine Girl said...

They are all really great - bet they look really good hanging up on the wall too.

Judy B said...

Wonderful banners and beautiful words!Thank you for sharing,

Brenda said...

very nice! I'm sure your church is very happy with them!
hulseybg at gmail dot com

Britt-Inger said...

Such a great job you have done and the different projects are stunning
Thanks for sharing your work and you story

Jeanie said...

Wow! You should be proud! What a wonderful work of art to inspire the kids for years to come! Great job!

charlotte said...

Very nice idea and your execution was beautiful.

Just Quilt It said...

Your church is lucky to have someone as talented and willing as you! Great projects. I love that you used different stitches on the letters.

Amy, a redeemed sheep said...

What a blessing the work of your hands are to your church body!

Quiltin Jenny said...

Very nice! It must be very gratifying to know that your work touches so many lives and will be appreciated for so long.

Quilt Doodle Designs said...

Lovely banner :) Such a beautiful addition for your church.

Patty said...

nice project - thanks for sharing.

Gill said...

Wow! What fabulous projects!
Thank you for sharing!

Sowing Stitches said...

How nice to have such colorful and encouraging reminders hanging in your Sunday School Room!

Julie said...

Great work! A perfect way to share your talents!

Sparky said...

I loved the transition over the years how your words have even more meaning and maturity....great project...

Marjorie's Busy Corner said...

Nice way to show us how things changed over the years....

Anna said...

love the words and you have given me the encouragement to try out all those stitches I notice my machine has, lol

Thearica said...

I like your project... Love the stitches on our machine. Should use them more!

krislovesfabric said...

Neat idea, love your word choices!

gpc said...

Wow, great projects, and wonderful reminders!

Linda said...

What a great example of using our talents to serve! That must have been a tremendous amount of work! Great job!

In stitches and seams said...

a beautiful way to share words with others ... and leran at the same time
in stitches

Kate said...

Wonderful banners!

Martha said...

Wonderful and a fabulous way to help children learn. Thank you for sharing with us.

pinsandneedles said...

wow! Those a big banners! Great words and virtues to live and learn. Thanks for sharing.

Calicojoan said...

Wow, now that is quite an accomplishment. Love how you used all the different stitches on your applique. It sure changes up the look of things!

Agnes B. Bullock said...

You should be proud of your work-these are wonderful!

Diane Swett said...

Wow I love the banners. great words to live by.

Anonymous said...

Maria-That's a lot of words and very inspirational. From CA, thanks for sharing.

JudyCinNC said...

Beautiful words for a beautiful project quilt. Thank you for sharing with us. Judy C

carla said...

Hi!!! Great projects!! Great words and perfect for children to get to see at Sunday School!!! Thank You

Nancy M. said...

great visual for the children to see every sunday.

Dee said...

Awesome idea, and what fun for your Sunday School - very creative.

Carol Swift said...

Such a great reminder to have hanging on the wall...love all the words!

Hooked on Quilting said...

Great wall hangings, love how you did a different stitch like that. Makes me want to try machine applique.

sew.darn.quilt said...

Great project for Sunday School class, thank you for sharing :)

Judith said...

Sew Beautiful words for children! Thanks for sharing! Judith, Texas

Kathy H said...

Great inspirational banners for the kids. I love all the different stitches you used.

Anonymous said...

A LOT of words to learn by. Nice.

Catherine said...

Splendid wall hangings! So glad you shared.

Katie said...

great way to inspire others

Darlington Delights said...

What a great message to share with others in your Sunday School Room. Thanks for sharing.

Wendy said...

what great projects, I love the way you tried out different stitches for each one

Gmama Jane said...

I love the different stitiches!! A great way to decorate your SS walls!
May God Bless you in teaching God's Word each week.
Blessings
Gmama Jane

sandra said...

Very lovely project and beautifully sewn, thanks for sharing.

Amy's Crafty Shenanigans said...

Terrific project - great words!! Thanks for sharing.

Kathy said...

I love it. Thanks for sharing and especially, I like the different stitches you used for the applique -- wonderful inspiration.

evelyn said...

Those are HUGE, but then they need to be to hold all of life's virtues. Lovely work, thank you for sharing.

Lyn said...

Wow that was quite an undertaking Thanks for sharing it with us!

Jane's Quilting said...

It is just gorgeous, thank you for sharing your words.

Farm Quilter said...

Absolutely perfect for a Sunday school room! You did a great job on all the embroidery!!!

Tammy said...

Great project. Thanks for shareing it with us. conn_and_vans_mom(at)yahoo(dot)com

SIMPLESEW said...

Fantastic, its like your own art show.. congrats

Jenny said...

these are lovely banners----what fun to have hanging up in a sunday school room! Good job!

Rosemary B❤️ said...

Rosemary B here:
REally great colors and terrific idea.
Thank you for sharing. I love the stitching around each letter!

StitchinByTheLake said...

Maria I really enjoyed reading about each banner. These would work perfectly at school as well as at church. Blessings, marlene

Robin said...

Fantastic job!!

Barb Neiwert said...

What a great place for your wallhangings!

tink's mom said...

You took this event to a whole new level. Great job.

CeLynn said...

What a wonderful way to share your sewing talent with others! Thanks for sharing it with us also.

LJ said...

Whoa! Now those are some HUGE projects. What a way to serve others. Now...are they asking you to make them into quilts? They could go up for a raffle to make $$ for the youth group, etc. :)

Mary Ann said...

Your work is admired every Sunday and teaches. What an honor!

Michelle said...

A wonderful project and words to have in your class room.

Jodi - usairdoll said...

What a beautiful banner with wonderful and inspiring words. You are so clever and talented, love all the different stitching. Amazing job! Thank you for sharing all your banners with us.

usairdoll(at)gmail(dot)com

lefuntz said...

And I thought a king size quilt was a big project! How wonderful to have your work on display!

Scrapbook-ChickADoodle said...

Wonderful wallhangings. Terrific color choices. Thanks for sharing.

the girlfriend gap said...

Bless you my dear... because you are a blessing. Thanks for sharing your talents with those children and with us. janita

✄ Erin @ Sew at Home Mummy ✄ said...

Oh.My.Goodness.
Those are MASSIVE! They must have taken forever - but they are beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing :)

Sheila said...

Congratulations on completing such a lot of work for your Sunday school,wonderful inspiring words !!

Karrie said...

How neat! I love that the letters are all different. What a cool project to work on with your daughter!

PatSloan said...

what fun you had!! Thank you for sharing... this has been such a fun hop.

I hope you'll check out my daily blog.. my day is the last day, tomorrow!

Pat Sloan
Radio show Host... The Voice of Quilting
http://blog.patsloan.com

Pamela said...

Wow...this is awesome. All that work...well worth it I am sure. Thanks for sharing.

Mrs.Pickles said...

wow lovely work thanks for sharing!