Finish!! – Quilted circus panel

I’m trying really hard to not buy a ton of ridiculously unnecessary baby stuff too early. The compromise I worked out in my head was that I could start making stuff now because it takes longer than buying so I couldn’t make stuff at the last minute.

I like the idea of having a couple of non-precious quilts that can be wall hangings, play mats (dog free zones for the baby), or snuggle wraps when cuddling during the early months. I found a couple of sweet gender neutral animal themed panels online and couldn’t resist. They feel more like poly cotton than pure cotton, but they do look cute. I then spent ages looking for mint green flannel fabric for the backing but just couldn’t seem to find any (so frustrating). Eventually I ordered a king size flannel bed sheet in exactly the right shade. Everything got washed (I don’t normally prewash my fabrics but because of the different fabric types involved here I thought it might be best.

The quilting was simple and pretty loose. I wanted them to be soft and snuggly so I didn’t want to over quilt. My main issue with this one was how to manage the large empty space in the middle. In the end I liked the simplicity of the radiating lines idea. I then just outlined all of the carriages and animals.

I tried a new (to me) technique here of bringing the back fabric round to act as the binding. I felt it was safe to try on this occasion because the printed panel gave me confidence my top was square (ish) without needing trimming. Also, for once I hadn’t quilted off the edge of my top so it was easy to trim the batting to the edge of the top without also cutting the backing fabric. I’m pleased with the way it turned out. We’ll see how durable this binding method is once the quilt starts getting used and washed regularly. 

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Back to (blogging about) quilting

I didn’t actually take as much of a break from quilting as my absence on my blog would suggest. However, yes, the pace of my quilting definitely slowed down over the summer. Partly that’s because the summer is just not the time to be covered in huge hot fabric, but also because I was helping my husband recover from surgery and getting myself through the first trimester of my first pregnancy. It’s been a busy few months.

I have managed to get some patchwork and quilting done so I’ll be updating you over the next few weeks with my finishes and progress checks.

Welcome back to my patchwork home 😀

Postage Stamp – Progress and a recipient

My postage stamp quilt is moving along nicely. Chain piecing makes it ridiculously quick and simple to assemble. It’s a real change not to have to think carefully about how blocks fit together or lots of different elements combining. Compared to both my recent Jigsaw Quilt and my ongoing Japanese Sampler, this is a bit of lovely light piecing relief. 

It’s getting pretty big now: nearly the size of a double bed. 

I thought I was basically done with the piecing (because I’d pretty much used up all of my prepared squares and was getting tired) when a thought occurred to me. About 5 years ago I asked my sister what type of quilt she might like. She said something bright with all the colours of the rainbow. Over the years I’ve never really had an idea that seemed right for her, so she’s not yet had a quilt from me. As I was looking at my postage stamp quilt top she popped into my head and I knew this could be her quilt. It will need to be a bit longer to work as a sofa snuggling Quilt because she’s taller than me. So I’ll dig out some more fabrics to add to the scrappy feel and piece up a couple more rows so it is the right size. I think a dark grey backing will suit the quilt nicely and will go with her home decor scheme (as much as a crazy multicolour quilt can co-ordinate with anything). I’m hoping to have it done for Christmas (not sure I want to commit to Christmas 2017) but we’ll see how it goes. I’m still on a high from finishing the Jigsaw Quilt in time for for Christening. Maybe that will see me through…