Having time on her hands and a spectacular collection of fabrics, Huntleigh Home resident Rose Greenman continues to enjoy quilting.
“I began quilting in the 1950’s and continued along with other interests,” she says. “Since moving into the Enliven Home in Karori I have happily continued patchwork and quilting.”
A former librarian, Rose has amassed her own personal library of fabric from op shops and as she says, “scrounging from relatives”.
Rose loves the patterns from the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s.
“I’m fond of the older fabric designs and as I’m a bit of a purist, I prefer cotton,” she says. “Although I have been known to slip in some rayon here and there if it’s pretty and works in the design. Rayon is a wood-based natural fabric too, even though it is man-made.”
Rose is very much aware of the risks of using steel pins to hold the three layers of the quilt together, which she stitches by hand.
“I use anodized safety pins which don’t rust,” she says.
A large flower basket patterned quilt that Rose made took around two years to complete and is based on a traditional block pattern which Rose modified to make the handles more elaborate.
“I enjoy the mathematical challenges of arranging different shapes and deciding colour placement,” she says.
Rose’s expertise covers things other than quilting, Huntleigh Home diversional therapist Annelize Steyn says.
“I come to Rose when I need help with something I’m writing. She always makes sure there are no typos, and it is all grammatically correct.”
