Quilting Fun

Finally finished the Granny Squares quilt. I enjoyed making this quilt quite a bit, I just took three months off between finishing the top to actually get around to quilting it. 

I learn a lot every time I quilt, usually along the lines of - Wow - I sure have a lot more to learn.

What I really like the most about this quilt, though, are the colors. This was just a very inexpensive jelly roll I found at Hobby Lobby more than a couple of years ago before I knew that better cottons are found at real quilt shops. I bought it because I liked the bright happy cheerful colors. 

Originally I was going to make this for our quilt guild to sell at their craft show in October but it became too big of a project for me and I couldn't get it done in time, and I was afraid the quality of the fabric wasn't good enough, but now I've decided it's all good enough. And I've decided I'm not selling it. Quilts become like my babies. I learn so much from them and I learn so much about myself that its just too hard to part with them yet. Of course if I ever get grandchildren, no problem. . . they'll be perfect for them.

I used modern quilting for this traditional block. Up closer you can see how there is a flower quilted onto each of the granny squares and squiggles along the sashings. All of this was quilted using free-motion quilting on my mom's Bernina which we moved to my house this year.  I know - Lucky Me!!!

 These circles were all done with a pattern that I cut out from tracing a large refried beans can onto freezer paper. I'd pin the center of the circle pattern where I wanted and free motioned around it. By far, that was the hardest part of this whole experience. Let's just say some circles are better than others. And you can see down below that they didn't quite match up exactly even all the way when I was finished, but close enough and frankly it turned out better than I thought after I'd completed my first one. I was seriously thinking of picking the whole circle out and finding a new pattern, but forced myself to complete this challenge, giving myself permission to be imperfect. . . I am still learning! I came to realize that I want to be more a perfectionist than I am, and yet I've been trying in every other area of my life not to let the perfectionist side take over, so its all a balancing act, you know?

When I played the piano it was All about learning how to play the pieces perfectly. Sometimes I did, but that was rare and took YEARS of learning. In parenting I've realized that you can't expect perfection because they are all learning and that's a continuous process too.  In housecleaning I've learned that I can't be perfect and function as a normal human being. How others do this I have no idea. And as a human being I have found much more joy in just living as best I can and laying the perfectionism down. I'm not even expecting it of myself, but when it comes to my crafting, I want it to be perfect and its not, so again, I realize its going to take time to learn this skill. Fortunately I enjoy it more than I enjoyed piano practicing as a kid.
So back to the quilt . . . .

 Here is an example of the flowers on the front.

 Here is an example of the flowers on the back. I love the quirky, fun way they add life to the random polka dot fabric that's on the back.

 Here's a general view of part of the back. Wow, the color looks completely different in the lighting here. The truer to life color is the green above.

 And this is how I display it in my house these days. Laying over the bannister you can see it from all the upstairs rooms and coming up the stairs and its the easiest place possible to put it. I don't have large empty wall spaces upstairs. This is the open concept house, for sure.

Here's a sneak peak at the Valentine's table runner I've been working on this week. The binding has been sewn on, now just need to finish it. . . will be the perfect project on this snowy night.

 Since I'm highlighting quilts, I'll throw in a blanket too. This is how BigBuddy eats his breakfast, wrapped in a Bronco fleece blanket. He's also wearing Bronco slippers, has a Bronco calendar in his room and already has two shirts and is awaiting his new jersey to be delivered today. This is an exciting time for all Broncos and Seahawks fans. No offense to my Seattle friends, but we've loved the Broncos since John Elway was the quarterback. Its just in our blood.

 Here's a picture of MyGirl cuddled up in a quilt that I think that was made by my Grandma Hatch many years ago. The yellow and blues are cheerful. Its all hand quilted, and kind of kills me that my family just loves it to pieces and wrap themselves tightly in something that is such an heirloom, but at the same time makes me so grateful that it is well loved, for I'm sure that's exactly why my grandmother made it. That's why I make them.