Quilting used to be a necessity, but in the last few years it has become one of the most popular social settings. Quilting was a necessity for making clothing, bedding, curtains and even armor, but times have changed. During the Civil War the ladies of the South would get together and make quilts to sell to raise money for the troops. As the war progressed, the quilting bees made quilts for the injured men as well as to send to the troops to help keep them warm.

The American farmer's wives would get together for a good old quilting bee to make a wedding quilt for the soon to be married daughter. This not only provided them with a gift for the married couple but it also provided a social setting that allowed them hours of female company that they ordinarily would not have had given the distances between farms.

Today, quilting has become an economic as well as fun pastime. Taking a beginner's quilting class can be a fun learning experience as well as a chance to make new friends. You learn what types of materials work best and what batting to use, whether to use a machine or hand stitch a quilt. What could be more fun? Many quilting classes have charitable projects like creating quilts for terminally ill children, quilted hats for chemo patients that have lost their hair and quilted catheter bags.

Creating a beautiful quilt made from scraps of material is an art in itself but adding the creation of a wonderful lasting friendship is even more precious.