It's been a hot minute since I have posted on this blog. But today I wanted to share with you something really special that I have been working on.
You may or may not have already noticed that over the last couple of months, I was working on a quilting project. I finished this project at the end of February but I only now just completed all of my blog posts (journal entries!) from the whole experience.
A little back story as to why I decided to start this project. Being in my fourth year at Trent University in the Teacher Education Stream Program, I have had to take a class called Learning Styles. This class has been instrumental in helping me become a better future teacher; giving me lots of experience through my Grade 3 placement, opportunities to collaborate with my peers, administer my own self-directed learning project and gain knowledge of strategies and techniques for working with children.
The self-directed learning project was completely up to me. I was told to choose something I want to learn, go out and learn it - however I want and in whatever way I wanted - and then track my learning, so that in the end I can present this to a class of my peers. I was also instructed to create my own rubric / marking scheme for the project. When I was given this assignment, I was at a loss for what to do. There were so many things I wanted to learn!
At the time, I was working as an executive assistant for the student association at my school. While I was in the office one day, it dawned on me that I was working with a friend who owns her own business called Quilter's Workshop and even teaches sewing classes. I was so excited thinking about making a baby quilt for this project, so I asked her if she would be willing to work with me on this and she said yes!
I had such a fun time learning and documenting all the steps to making a baby quilt. I started on Pinterest, and ended up with a quilt that is so me. I got to choose the fabrics and the design and even the size. I used a visual chart I found on Pinterest to decide on the kind of quilt, and I ended up going with a 'baby crib' size one. It is 36 x 52" and perfectly imperfect.
If you would like to read about my journey, which is filled with pictures, you can find it over on the page called 'Quilting Adventure'!! I put my whole heart into this project, and it's a total reflection of me. I love the vintage look, the tiny imperfections, and the amount of effort and time spent on it that brought me closer to my sweet friend.
Today I did a little photoshoot with it though, as the lighting was just perfect in my parent's bedroom. That being said, I think I already know what colours and patterns I will be doing for my baby's nursery one day! hehe
So there you have it. If you want to learn something new, I want to encourage you to do whatever it takes. I knew that if I tried to teach myself something all on my own, whether I used YouTube or not, I wouldn't have been able to produce something as wonderful and beautiful as I did with a teacher. If you want to learn something specific, I suggest finding someone who is an expert in that area, and spending time with them. And document your journey like I did! Having to document, while also having a teacher, held me accountable and forced me to actually do the work. And I'm so glad for it.
In omnia paratus
