Longarm Quilting Services

 

I have been at a sewing machine since the age of junior high school.  In those days,  you had the first half of the year of home economics in sewing and the second half of the year in cooking.  Needless to say, sewing and I began a love affair and Diane Selman Quilter Enthusiast began her journey.  In my personal opinion, Cooking is for survival only.  I give credit to those who can cook, as it is a great talent.  My sister, on the other hand, has the cooking and baking genes in the family.  That’s another story.

Back in those early years, I was very tall and thin.  Hence my clothes were always too short on the legs and on the sleeves.  McCalls and Simplicity became my best friends.  To this day when I look at photographs, I am amazed at the number of pieces of clothing I have made, not only for myself, but also for my children.

Today I focus on making quilts (when life does not get in the way) and longarm quilting services for you all. I make quilts as gifts for my family (2 daughters and 4 grandchildren, parents, and siblings – all 11 of them), as well as for charity.  I have been working on my very own Baltimore album quilt for over 15 years.  I JUST LOVE QUILTING.

Two of my granddaughters (ages 8 and 11) and my daughter decided to make a “Block of the Month” through our local quilt shop, B&B Quilting and Gifts located in Buda, Texas.  Of course, I joined in on the fun.  Six months later, all of the blocks were finished. 

During the six months, I never thought that I would be able to envision my daughter and her two daughters at my conference table with me….SEWING!  All I could think was that “all the stars must be in perfect alignment” for me to experience this wonderful time.  We finished the blocks and then the process of building the quilt top began.  Now we have 6 blocks measuring 8 inches square for each person.  The girls wanted bed quilts made out of theirs.  To help with the expansion of the quilt top, I added 6 solid black blocks.  Still, not enough blocks for the top.  I came up with an idea of taking 3 blocks from each granddaughter and 3 blocks of mine and combine them all together; then we would have two bed size quilts. 

I posed the question to the girls, “How about we combine your blocks with mine and some from your sister’s blocks”?  We would then have enough for the quilt top.  After a pause of silence to absorb the idea, the little one said, “No Way.  These are My Blocks!”.  She totally took me by surprise, but I know why she had that reaction. I noticed her passion as I sat with her showing her how to run the sewing machine, and how to sew a straight line.  At 8 years old, I saw myself in her.  In response to the little one, I gave them the idea that their quilt could be a “Family” quilt.  I said, “some blocks would be yours, some from me, and some from your sister”.  After another pause, the little one said, “OK”.  She was happy.  These are their quilts.