Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Okay, now I can show a pic of the baby quilt!

This is a double Irish chain quilt made specifically for a young online friend and her baby to be. They are Irish, btw and DK always loved turquoise. The backing is a light turquoise flannel. I am not at all happy with the quilting in the blocks -- I did a "Sleepy Time" stencil with a man in the moon face and a star and I was really wobbly on the moon -- and the harder I tried not to be, the worse it was! Then I decided that I make utility quilts -- not heirlooms, and baby quilts are meant to be thrown on the floor -- they wash just fine! I did make it a bit larger just for that purpose, too.

Today I finished quilting the latest Heartstrings. I'm in the process of hand stitching the binding down, so maybe Friday I'll have a pic of it. Tomorrow I'm going up to see the grandkids -- AJ started preschool today and I can't wait to hear all about it. This is just a two hours a day, two days a week preschool at their church -- but he gets to be a big boy and go to school and he was really looking forward to it. Mommy said she waited til she got back in the car before she teared up!

I have the 2 gal bag of scraps all pressed and partially sorted. I also made up two bags so far. One with the pattern and sizes to cut the squares and half-squares to make a Broken Dishes quilt -- I'm going to use 2-7/8" squares to make 2½" hst's -- so the blocks will be 4" finished. The other is the bag with the tumbler template in it and some fabric already cut with the template. I think I'm going to make another for 16-patch blocks, all alternating light/dark squares, using 2"strips/squares. I've started a couple of Bonnie's Basketweave String blocks, but will wait til I've made a few before I decide for sure if I want to commit to that quilt. After making all these Heartstrings quilts this summer, I'm feeling a little "strung out" (pun intended!). LOL And, I think I start one with just darks/mediums of squares/strips that I'll make into 4-patches to start with and decide later what I'm going to do with them -- I have a lot of pre-cut squares and strips. When I finish sorting all the scraps from this bag, I have another bag, and at least 4 baskets of scraps -- and that doesn't even come close to the end of them -- I have two sets of plastic drawers and a couple of Rubbermaid containers full to overflowing. Which is why I started with the smallest bag first -- scraps breed overnight and it does get to be overwhelming trying to contain the little devils!

Gratitudes:
Bill's other sister, Anne, is okay after falling in her apartment.
Making progress, in baby steps, on the scraps.
Looking forward to seeing the babies tomorrow.

4 comments :

Susan said...

I love the colors and the look of this baby quilt. It's a great present. The one in the previous message is a bright and happy one, too.

Laurie Ann said...

Oh, that baby quilt is just awesome! It will be loved!

Helen said...

That is a great colour combination for Irish Chain. The navy blue ans white really give it zing.

Paula, the quilter said...

I have always liked Irish Chains but have never made one. Nice job. It should be well received.