I was a new Volunteer Deputy Registrar in 2018. My job was to give people voter registration cards, help them understand the forms, and return the completed forms to the proper county office. It can be fun, or deadly dull, depending on how many people want to register.
How could I attract more people to the voter registration table?
Display a quilt, of course!
People would come by to check out a happy red, white, and blue quilt that reminded them to register to vote. They would surely ask me about it, especially if they or one of their relatives was a quilter. We would discuss the quilt, and I would ask casually, “By the way, are you registered to vote?”
Making a quilt seemed like a good plan.
Luckily, I had plenty of red, white, and blue fabric scraps. A doily in my collection had a fabric center and pretty crocheted trim. Hmmm. If I removed the fabric (it was damaged), the crocheted trim could be the letter “O” in VOTE. Perfect!
The quilt’s title is What to Do in a Democracy, and it was finished in 2019. I couldn’t resist a little subliminal messaging. Can you find it? Examine the patchwork and the buttons.
Someone asked, “Is the crocheted ‘O’ meant to be a tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg?” Well, I hadn’t considered that, but it sounded good to me, so…yes!
Displaying What to Do in a Democracy. has been fun, and it has led to pleasant conversation. However, my wish is that this quilt soon will be a quaint, out-dated relic. My wish is that every U. S. citizen is automatically registered to vote when they turn 18 years old.* I will happily hang up my Volunteer Deputy Registrar hat when that day arrives.
If You’re Interested in Process
The quilt had to be designed around the doily trim, because I couldn’t easily alter its size.
My favorite tool for rough-drafting wall hanging designs is Adobe Premier Elements.
I opened a new image and added a circle the size of the doily trim. That was the “O” in VOTE. From there, I tried different font sizes, until the rest of the text was the correct size.
Once the text was designed, I figured out how big the quilt background needed to be, designed stars, and placed them within the design.
I printed the design, full size, in a very pale grayscale to preserve toner. I trimmed and taped together the pages. Here’s how I created the letters and stars in fabric:
- Roughly cut letters out from the paper.
- Cover the backside of each letter with basting spray.
- Arrange sprayed letter on white fabric.
- Cut out the letter carefully, using paper as the pattern.
- Turn paper/fabric letter to fabric side and spray again with basting spray.
- Arrange letter in its place on the finished quilt top.
- Carefully remove paper.
- Zigzag stitch all around the cut edges of the fabric letter. This is one method of raw-edge applique.
- Repeat steps for each letter.
* Undoubtedly, some will un-earn the privilege later on, but until that happens, let’s give everyone the benefit of the doubt.