Thursday, November 11, 2021

The Latest Cozy Quilt Finish

 The Patchwork Garden quilt is totally finished up, binding and label on and already gifted! I stalled some on getting the binding on just because there were other projects that seemed more interesting at the moment.

Patchwork Garden is a true-blue finish!
It has such a soft, cozy feel to it, I just love it! Why didn't I make one of these years ago? All the background fabrics have white, light gray, light blue, light green or very light purple tones. I've been stocking up on them for years and finally found a place to experiment. Ooh la la. So much fun!

I had to add the flower and leaf just because...
Now my stash is depleted and of course I want more. Isn't that always the way it works? The blue striped basket fabric is from a cut-up button down shirt. Just couldn't resist trying to see if it would work in a quilt. It's funny how I can't get rid of shirts anymore without wondering if the fabric could be upcycled rather than dumped at the 2nd hand stores!

Love the little birdie perched on the basket
I wasn't sure about using the dark blue fabrics for the baskets, but they just spoke to me somehow. I couldn't be happier with how the flower and leaf baskets turned out! The teensiest bit of elegance added to a quilt in an unexpected place. Just makes my heart sing.

Such a dramatic flower basket
All the hand quilted was kept simple as per usual around here. Lots of straight lines and 'x' markings through the nine patches. More and more I'm stitching on the inside of the applique shapes rather than just to the outside like I used to. I really like the look of the stitches over the top. The texture is so yummy. Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever go back to regular hand quilting thread. Is there ever going to be a quilt where I think, 'No, Perle Cotton thread is just gonna be too much!' Ha! Somehow I doubt it!

Lots of hand quilting stitches
My favorite basket is probably the one on the bottom right corner. There's just something extra sweet about flowers that drape and fall gracefully from a basket. And that text fabric in the border. Still not tired of seeing words and text in some of my quilts!

Colors are so much better in person
Can you tell that I love baskets and flowers? This was a pattern that I should have made years ago and just kept putting it off. The interesting thing is that years ago when first buying the pattern, I'm sure I would have stuck more closely to the original makers color scheme. Nowadays, I always want to experiment and play with a new color palette, always pushing the boundaries a bit on what I'm truly comfortable with.

Made from the 'Patchwork Garden' pattern'
by Jan Patek
This was a quilt that always seemed like it was destined to go to my next youngest sister {once I got the quilt top together}. So that's what I did after getting it washed up and ready for gifting--took it right to her house. So pleased to see the picture she posted, with it already being used on her bed! It's been a rough couple years for so many of us in various ways. Why not try and make our private space a little bit happier?
Looks so cozy and inviting!
And my daughter sent me a picture of their guest room all ready for the guests they were having. I admit to having a very, tiny bit of regret in giving this one away. Isn't it fabulous to see our quilts being used and loved by their recipients though? There's just no way I could possibly use all of the quilts that get finished around here. So much better to see them being appreciated and loved than developing permanent creases from being left folded in unused stacks.

Still working on their guest room, but I 
love the look of a good quilt on a bed...
And though I've been plugging along with the baby quilt and trying to bring it to a close, these crossroad blocks have been nagging at me. It felt really good to get the circles cut into quarters and then re-stitched with the sashing strips. On another day I sewed all the 20 1/2" background squares together. Most of the fabric I use is from fatquarters etc., so piecemeal it was, getting a large enough square.

Crossroads blocks in progress
In and around our rainy fall days, we've been having the occasional gorgeous sunny day. I've been trying to make the most of that and finally getting around to cleaning up my flower pots and the little garden my daughter left behind. We'll probably be turning the garden area back into lawn and moving it farther away from the house next year. The more grandchildren we get, the more it seems obvious that it's time to replant our lawn and get some designated area for the grands to play. Just getting our front porch cleared off this summer and having it actually stay that way has been enormously uplifting to both my husband and me. We have a long ways to go, but lots of plans for slowly working on some problem areas in and around our house. We'll see what happens. Nothing ever moves quickly around here!


19 comments:

  1. Absolutely LOVE this latest finish - for ever and ever so many reasons. And I totally agree about quilts being used by others rather than acquiring fold lines from storage. Another marvelous post!

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  2. So sweet seeing your quilts being loved and used! Your newest finish is so soft and squishy, the big stitch hand quilting seems to do that. Wondering myself who to gift all that thin hand quilting thread languishing in the drawer. Can't see well enough now for anything other than the chunky big stitch thread, happily I love the look. Oh yes, those black and white baskets are my favorite part of this latest quilt!

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  3. it is so nice seeing our quilts being used isn't it! I know I was so happy to see quilts scattered around our daughters new home displayed so nicely - it really is a big thank you isn't it

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  4. It's just so lovely! What a great quilt. Combination of baskets and flowers, and nine patches, what could be better. I look at shirts the same way now.... can this fabric be used in a quilt? I agree with you.... it's been a tough couple years, what a nice thing to make our bedrooms cozier and cheerier.

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  5. Your 'patchwork garden' quilt is delightful! What really catches my eye is the colour palette, love those purple bits! And of course all your big stitch hand quilting is amazing. Yes, I love to see pics of my quilts being used, no better way to say a thank you!

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  6. More beautiful quilts. I understand completely how you miss them so… you’ll just have to visit them frequently! Won’t that be fun.
    We are still trying to clear out some room for our grands to visit, too. So slowly.

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  7. Cozy quilt, indeed! What a lovely mix of fabrics, flowers in pots and vases and hand quilting with perle. It must be exciting to receive an Audrey Original!

    And Crossroads looks interesting...looking forward to more.

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  8. This quilt indeed looks very cozy and the designs are very pleasing to look at too.

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  9. You always make such lovely baskets with flowers in your quilts...just beautiful work hugs, Julierose

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  10. Another gorgeous finish, Audrey and I'm happy to read all the details about this one too. I like the way you quilted inside the applique too...will try to remember that myself. And also how wonderful that you have such confidence in choosing your own palettes these days because of course, you are so good at it. Also how nice to see your quilts being loved!

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  11. Wonderful finish! Great arrangement of baskets and flowers, so cheerful.
    Your hand quilting adds much love!

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  12. Lovely finish! I think that basket in the bottom right is my favourite too.

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  13. Your Patchwork Garden is truly lovely and I just love that when your fabrics and quilts speak to you, you listen. The result is then a genuine expression of “you” and it’s ART! I also love the fact that you immediately took it to your sister - a real gesture of love, care, and kindness. We all could use more of that!

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  14. Your baskets and flowers seemed to have been grown in a natural wildflower garden. Each basket and flower bouquet unique and lovely.

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  15. I love basket quilts and yours is no exception! You chose some beautiful colors and I especially like the light colors for the backgrounds. I would be very happy to receive a quilt like this.

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  16. your favourite basket block, is mine too ~ love it!

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  17. Always love your beginnings, in progress and finished updates. Best feeing in the world is being at my daughters house visiting and we are all sleeping under quilts I have gifted her.
    Rondi
    rondiquilts@yahoo.com

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