by Cindy Thury Smith, 1986
First I lost my thimble and stuck the needle into my thumb—
Then I figured the yardages wrong, so I’m short, how dumb!
And I can’t understand this piecing diagram ‘cuz my brain’s gone numb—
Sometimes quilting just doesn’t pay.
Now the tension’s goofed up on my sewing machine—
The four yards I bought aren’t the right shade of green—
And how am I to get Grandmother’s unfinished quilt top clean?
Sometimes quilting just doesn’t pay.
I’ve pressed under bias until my fingers are all burnt—
Can’t quite remember that finishing tip I thought I’d learnt—
Tried to do an edge in scallops, but they weren’t—
Sometimes quilting just doesn’t pay.
I’ve sewed on this quilt for what seems like a hundred weeks—
Bringing my quilting skills to a new sewing peak—
And, surprisingly, getting pretty close to the design I seek—
Well, maybe quilting’s not so bad.
Hey, I’ve finally got it on the quilting frame—
As I bend over and stitch my back will never be the same—
In the corner I’ll label it with the date and my name—
Well, maybe quilting’s not so bad.
Now it’s proudly displayed in all its pomp and glory—
Conveniently forgotten is how its construction was slightly hoary—
Currently I’m telling the “masterpiece of needleart” story—
Yeah, I guess quilting’s not so bad.