This is his first quilt. I have not re-sized the picture because I want you to be able to view it up close.Like most of us, he started with a sampler. It's not perfect by any means, but it certainly provides me with a sense of his humanness. Let's face it, the man is quite a prolific and successful quilter and yet, this quilt is part of his travelling collection. Why? I feel that this says a lot about who he is as a person. Despite his fame, he is willing to show the world where he started as a quilter. That my friends speaks volume!
At the Vermont Quilt Festival, they have a category for first time quilters called Adult Beginner. I've always been puzzled by this category. I understand this to be the very first quilt you make. However, the quilts were phenomenal! I mean, it was nothing like Ricky's first quilt nor mine.
I would peruse the collection of "first quilts" and felt absolutely crushed that my quilting, after so many years did not even remotely compare to their first quilt. It was more like "Wow, this is their first quilts?" Oh my gosh, let me go home and cry. Obviously I do not have the talent to enter a quilt in a show. You know, while writing this entry I came to the realization why at shows I always shop first and quickly look at the quilts before going home! Interesting! Hum.....
Now back to Ricky's first quilt; that to me resembles more a "first quilt". It certainly leads me to believe that the ones I have seen at VQF were not necessarily first time quilts. Hum.... people cheat?!! lol
I look at Ricky's beginning and where he is now and I feel that I too can do it! This is a very different feeling from VQF where I thought I could never be a good enough quilter. Perhaps that is why he brings his first quilt, and by the way speaks about it also. He wants everyone to understand that they don't have to be a genius or born with a "special" talent to be a good quilter! There is a common beginning and it's up to the individual to aspire to be the best quilter they can be.Knowing this inspires me. It fills me with my own unique creative energy. Thank you Ricky Tims for sharing freely your creative process and for putting quilting into perspective. Perhaps it's time for me to think about entering a quilt in shows. ;o)
Thank you for allowing me to share my thoughts with you. I would enjoy reading your input on my reflections.
Have fun creating!
9 comments:
What a great quilt! Like you I always shop, shop, shop then quickly make my way through the quilts. While I can certainly appreciate the time, effort and skill that goes into their making - at the end of the day my favorites are usually the humble, sometimes a little crooked, every day, useful quilts that I can cuddle under *s*
Thank you so much for sharing a picture of Rick Tims's first quilt. So often we think of well-known and prolific quilters as just that -- and forgetting that they, too, had to had to start somewhere. He is proud of his beginnings and so should we be proud of ours. It is also exciting to see how far we, as quilters, have come, as time passes and we look at our work product today and compare it to our beginnings. Let us not forget, also, that no matter how great a quilter we may become -- no one is perfect and there is always room to learn more -- and that, too, is just fine. Quilty hugs! :o)
Of course people don´t show their first quilt, they cheat as you say. I agree with you that it is so special of Ricky to show his first and really his first quilt with mistakes and all that comes with the first quilt a person makes.
I gladly show my first quilt to people when they come to visit. I guess it's because it's made with New England Patriots and Boston Red Sox fabric. Everyone had to start sometime. We all get better with every project we work on.
I agree with you wholeheartedly on the showing of first quilts. QN had a great article several years ago about how far quilters have come from their first quilts. It was so interesting to see their progress over the years. It gives us all hope when we view their first samplers to their eventual masterpieces!!!!
I am just like you at quilt shows. I do the shopping first and then do a quick run through of the quilts. When I see one that really catches my eye, I stop and look more closely at it. The one's that I seem drawn too are usually not perfect. I like a few mistakes, it make the quilter more human/normal to me.
I'm glad you shared your thoughts with us. I saw Rick in Houston a few years ago and he put the group at ease quickly and was very down to earth.
Hi Carole,
Thanks for sharing your experiences at Rick Timms workshop. I love his quilts and have made a kaleidscope quilt( I still need to quilt it) as well as a series of the Convergence quilts. I have his Rhapsody Quilts book and would love to take a course from him. His DVD's are well done. When one sees the beautiful intricate work that he does, its hard to imagine that he hasn't always made complicated patterns. One of my favorite quilts is the Heart Beat Quilt he made after his heart attack. It must have been inspiring to see his work and to hear him speak about his process. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Regards,
Anna
That's so funny...I've wondered that same thing before(about if it's really a first quilt). Ricky's first quilt still way beats my first quilt! The quilt below it is amazing! Again thanks for sharing!
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