By Hand

I am making a quilt by hand. This means I am sitting outside in the sun, with the poodles and the If Walls Could Talk album by Justin Johnson playing.

There is something incredibly soothing and therapeutic about hand stitching. My breathing and my heart rate slow down, I am feeling useful, productive and relaxed. I don’t need electricity or the internet, and if either/or both of those go down, I’ll still be sewing.

I do have a sewing machine, but it freaks the dogs out, interferes with listening to music and although I COULD conceivably take it outside, I’d rather not. My neck tenses up and my shoulders ache after using the machine.

Not so with hand stitching.

A square or two a day, and I’ll have a quilt when I need it most, next winter…