Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

Two years ago, when I was the program chair for our Little Balkan's Quilt Guild I was excited to discover a quilter named Carlene Buck who made such intriguing and imaginative quilts.  I booked her for a trunk show in August 2009. Unfortunately Carlene got sick and had to cancel.  And since programs are pretty much booked a year in advance it wasn't until this month that we were able to reschedule Carlene.

But, WOW!  I knew I'd love her quilts and the stories behind them, but they surpassed my expectations.  What a wonderful night we had. You can visit Carlene on her website, Quiltbabble to learn more of the stories behind some of her quilts. 

Two quilts in paricular were the reason I first became interested in meeting Carlene.

Armistice..Mom I'm Home


The back..mom with open arms


This is Carlene's quilt representing the soldiers returning from the Vietnam war.  Some returned whole..others were missing pieces of themselves...and some didn't return at all.  Mothers welcomed their sons home with prayers that this would never happen again  (and unfortunately of course it has).

Another of Carlene's quilts is truly a masterpiece.
Holocaust: A Hate Movement

This is the explanation sheet Carlene passed out as she talked about her quilt

Holocaust:  A Hate Movement 

Carlene Buck visited Israel in 1992 with her church group from the Des Plaines First United Methodist Church,

Des Plaines, Illinois.    

At the encouragement of a Jewish friend,

she requested the guide take them to Yad Vashem,

Israel’s Holocaust Museum located near Jerusalem.

Carlene was very touched by the sculptures,

photos, documents and exhibits. 

She knew God wanted her to make a quilt about the Holocaust and later visited the National Holocaust Museum in Washington, D. C.

All details (blocks titles, layout, colors, fabrics, quilting design, wording on blocks, etc.) were inspired by God.

She chose the block names from Barbara Brachman’s

Encyclopedia of Pieced Blocks.   

The top border fabric represents ashes blowing in the sky. 

The bottom border represents ashes in the furnaces. 

The right border represents small tendrils of life growing from the ashes.

The hand quilting reflects the barbed wire fences in the camps. 

The bright pastel print fabrics of the 1920’s and 1930’s

(on the left side of the quilt)

 suggest life before the Nazi Party took control. 

The solid colored fabrics depict the loss of joy

and the struggle to survive. 

Black represents hate, red represents loss of life, orange fear, and brown the Nazi uniforms. 

 

Blocks which have been pieced backwards

(with seam allowances on the surface of the quilt)

have the opposite meaning of the historical block name. 

[Like Peaceful Hours and  Peace and Plenty]

You can view a slideshow of the photos I took that night on my photobucket site
click here

Please don't miss the opportunity to see Carlene's quilts in person if you get the chance!