Inspiration with Friendships and Quilting!
During this crazy time, we find ourselves missing our friends and family….just simple social time physically together with those we love means the world. Y’all know we need it. Sew, when Vicki asked if I would do the BF QAL with her, it was an easy YES! I didn’t even care what it was about or what was included. You see, Vicki is one of my friends that I hold dear to my heart and has her own special place inside one of those 4 chambers. You all know how this works. You have your special friends that when they ask to do something together, you jump at the opportunity without any questions attached. Yep, Vicki, is one of my friends that is exactly like that. Y’all have witnessed us working together in the past and have watched our friendship grow online. But, the pandemic hit, and we have yet to meet personally! I know we are not alone in this journey. I have personally read and seen many people have the same experience.
However, Kimberly Jolly of Fat Quarter Shop and Lori Holt of Bee in my Bonnet, have come together through their friendship to bring a project that can be worked on from a distance. This pandemic may keep us physically a part, but with our quilting BFs, we can create this work of art together. Brilliant!!! We all need our quilty friends, and we all need to quilt! In the same spirit that Kimberly Jolly had and with the BF QAL, I believed it would be a great idea to share the story of how Vicki and I met and became friends.
Back in 2018, I was binge listening to one of my favorite quilters, Leah Day, on her podcast. And low and behold, Vicki Holloway was a guest on 2 of the shows. Instantly, I found myself a total fangirl! I immediately found her website, her own podcast, and her community on Facebook. Yep, I did all the things. Then during a Facebook live by a mutual acquaintance at QuiltCon 2019, I saw her in the video! I commented how excited I was, said hello, and expressed what a fan I was. I felt like I had won the lottery. I look back at it today and feel totally silly about the whole thing. I wasn’t there in person, but I truly felt I had struck gold that day!
Fast forward a few months, and HALO Inspirations had been working with a local Alpaca Farm to make Alpaca mats. We had decided to give a few of them to some people to try out and get some feed back from. Vicki was totally on my list. A relationship had begun, and I personally have never been more grateful for the relationship we have created.
Vicki, not only as one of my best quilty friends, but as a friend in general, adds “sew” much value to my life. She is one of the most caring, giving, supportive, and intelligent friends I have. When I tell the world that everyone needs a Vicki in their life, I truly mean it. She adds joy, happiness, and inspiration to not only the quilting industry, but to everyone that gets the opportunity to be a part of her world. Although our quilting journey together is only a couple years old, I truly feel that it will last the test of time. Vicki, I thank you for sharing you and your friendship, and look forward to building a BF Quilt with you and Fat Quarter Shop!
If you haven’t had a chance to see the upcoming BF Quilt-A-Long, check out the link below. Grab yourself a quilty friend, and let’s do this project together. In Vicki’s words, “One stitch. One block. One row at a time” together we can all spread more beauty and joy in the world through our quilting journey and celebrate our friendships.