The Penny Quilt Project

When I had first shared my Scrappy Windmill quilt finish it was perhaps not expected that it would be such an emotional post. The story behind it, if you have not read it, is a beautiful one of a long time desire coming to pass. Even though I was only the giver of the quilt, it was still totally emotionally satisfying to touch others lives with something that I had made.

For a long time, I have been asking myself, why am I sewing?... what is my purpose? While the idea of growing my blog to generate income is a nice thought, the reality of it is that I'm not sure that I can keep up with the constant posting, emailing, and all the social media that is demanded of a full time blogger. Of course I get fulfillment in creating, but how does that make a difference in others lives?

And when I took a closer look at things, I realized that I've gotten more fulfilment in knowing how one small quilt deeply touched others in a way that moved them to tears than anything that I could make for myself. So with that feeling in mind, I started what I am calling the Penny Quilt Project.

Penelope, or Penny for short, is the name of the sweet recipient of my Scrappy Windmill quilt, and I thought that it was totally fitting to name this quilt, and my concept of giving quilts in her honor. Isn't if fun to know that her name means weaver (worker of a loom), or also "pene" - thread (on a bobbin) and the Greek verb "lepo" - to unroll.

Since I have several quilts in the works, I wanted to work on something that I could quickly finish. Heather Ross, Lizzy House, and favorite colored low volumes with dashes of soft color have been my fabrics of choice... much softer than usual. I was inspired by V and Co's Super Star quilt, and used the Simple Star block from Lori Holt's Farm Girl Vintage book in 6 and 12 inch blocks, and added a few V's like in my inpiration quilt. It might perhaps seem that this just popped up out of no where, but I've been sharing a good bit of my progress on Instagram.

Currently I don't have a specific recipient for this quilt, but I really would like to perhaps find a family with a sweet little girl that has been struggling with health issues, and such a quilt might bring life and light into the situation. I have found that often when I have such inspirations, that if I start on it, it's not long before I stumble on the need.

Have you done any charity sewing? Did you work with a charitable organization or with a local quilting group? Do you know of any charitable organizations in Europe?

Linking up this week to Let's Bee Social and Sew Cute Tuesday.