Thursday 1 August 2013

A finished quilt.

I am pretty excited to share a finish with you today.  The quilt is my version of Up, Up and Away by Amanda Jean from Crazy Mom Quilts.  It is another quilt from Sunday Morning Quilts.

 
I used 3" squares (finished) in various whites/off whites/beiges, and different sizes triangles from my scraps.

I thought I would save hand sewing the binding (one of my favourite parts of quilt making) for later, but I did find myself with a few occasions to do hand work and could not resist:  keeping company to a nursing mom, a kids soccer practice... I had everything but 5 inches done as of this morning, and I managed the last few stitches during a phone conference at work (don't tell my boss).  And yes, it was only about 5 inches.  Well, maybe more like 7 or 8...

At lunch time, I took my quilt for a walk and my friend happily obliged when I asked her to be the quilt holder.  We were in a bit of a rush, and there were few spots that did not have a big crowd.  It's our International Busker Festival, and the Waterfront was busy! 


I forgot to take pictures of the back at lunch time, so I did it when I got back home, without a helper.  Wanting something other than a lawn shot, I relied on good old hockey equipment...  You can't tell but I am using a  hockey stick as a weight to hold the quilt.  We have lots of those handy, even in 28C weather.   Crazy Canadians!


I can't tell you how much I LOVE that print in the back.  Of course, I have no idea what it's called.  I have had it in my stash for a while and it is just the happiest print.  I would have had enough for the whole back, but that would not have been as much fun, right?

Here's a couple close ups of the quilting: I chose to quilt this lightly, with only two lines going through each blocks.  I love the texture it gives, without making it stiff.
 

I used Aurifil 50w in a very light pink.  Which I realize you can't really see on the picture.


I had so many choices for the binding... everything I tried looked great.  In the end this orange gingham-type print won my heart.


 
After these pictures were taken, I threw the quilt in the wash for that wonderful crinkly look.  Check the before and after:
 

Before the wash
After the wash

To be totally honest, even though I generally prefer quilts when they are crinkly, I thought this one actually looked better before.  Oh well!  Quilts are made to be used, and I am not going to hold off using quilts just so I can maintain them in their unwashed glory... better loved and crinkly than not used!  
 
Here's a final shot.  I am sure I am breaking pretty much every basic rule for composition,  but I had lots of fun pretending I knew what I was doing photo-wise.
 
 
I am linking up to TGIFF at Quokka Quilts.   It's only Thursday here, but as the song says, "it's five o'clock Friday somewhere"!
 
What have you finished recently?
 

16 comments:

  1. Yay! I love it, Dominique. A wonderful scrappy, but clean look. So glad you linked up to TGIFF!

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  2. Wonderful finish, Dominique! Great quilt and a lovely backdrop for the photos! Congrats!

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  3. Lovely finish! I like the fabric on the back too!

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  4. Hurrah! That's a lovely finish! Thanks for linking up!

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  5. What a beautiful quilt. I don't think you break the "rules of photography", I like the picture with the boat very, very much.

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  6. Such a happy quilt ... I've got some triangle scraps left over from binding quilts - hmm food for thought :0)

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  7. Up, Up and Away turned out wonderfully! It is so fun to read the quilt story behind a quilt...the real life that happens during it's making. Fun photo shoot on the waterfront :o) Total agreement on the backing fabric...beautiful!

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  8. So loving this quilt........I have been looking at this pattern for awhile now and I am even more inspired to start it. Your quilt is simply BEAUTIFUL! Stopping by from Quokkaquilts TGIFF. Have a great weekend ...Marie (mlismore@optusnet.com.au)

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  9. That turned out fantastic. :) And I do love the crinkly look too - makes it look more loved. :)

    And don't worry about photographic composition - the photos turned out very well and spotlight your quilt perfectly!

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  10. Yay! This is so much fun! And I'm with you--I love that print on the back! So cheerful! :)

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  11. Ha ha, you story made me laugh and your quilt is fabulous! Great idea to use up those little scraps of solids!
    Esther
    esthersipatchandquilt at yahoo dot com

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  12. I love this one, Dominique! So crisp! It photographed really well on the waterfront!

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  13. This quilt is awesome - and I love how the off colored whites make the blocks look like fish if you hold it sideways...it jumped out at me in that photo at the water. Beautiful!

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  14. your up up and away quilt is amazing!!! I love that you used larger squares (smart!) and that you used a variety of whites in the mix. it's a beautiful finish!

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