I made this whale quilt when I once again had it with all the bad things humans do to animals. I googled “Can whales capsize boats” and there were 521,000 results. Apparently, they can! I was excited.

In 2013, two boaters were thrown into the water when a whale flipped over their boat. They weren’t seriously injured, but hopefully learned their lesson. LEAVE THE WHALES ALONE! They just want to eat krill in peace. How would you like it if a couple of whales showed up at your doorstep demanding to watch you eat waffles?

The whale quilt is made from recycled denim, with wool batting. (Rest assured that all fabric was washed and dried at high temperatures for hygienic purposes before I began working on it.) This quilt is very sturdy; it can be washed and used as a floor mat in lightly trafficked areas—or as a wall hanging, of course (just trying to give you plenty of options). It measures 28 x 41.5 inches and is entirely stitched by hand in a style that is reminiscent of Japanese Sashiko.

My choice of using Sashiko is also a comment on the recently resumed Japanese practice of hunting whales for commercial purposes (disgusting, in my opinion). As such, the whale quilt poses the question, what if we turned things around and whales, who count among the smartest mammals of this world, would hunt us?