I want to tell you about the quilt that marked time. That was made in the nick of time. That noted time passing. That indicated it wasn’t time yet. That the right time would soon be here. That measured time. But first, a digression.
I’ve made quilts for most (as many as I can) friends and family who have babies. Once I was expecting my first baby, my mom asked if she could make me a baby quilt. I of course replied I would be delighted if she did. So we raided my fabric stash together.
She chose a simple square patchwork design that complemented the beautiful fabrics. I love the scrappy feel of the patchwork!
And because how could I resist, here’s our little lady on the quilt. Later, my mom returned all the fabric to me that she didn’t use. When I looked at it, the first thought that struck me was noticing the beautiful green, turquoise, gray and orange palette. The second thought that struck me, was naturally, those colors would make a beautiful quilt!
I started and finished this quilt in the two weeks leading up to my little girl being born. If she hadn’t arrived one week late I wouldn’t have finished it. We liked to joke that she was giving me time to make one last quilt.
This Score, #4 Patchwork Doodle, invites you to take a shape, repeat it, add another, build off that block, add in another, and keep going like that. Like doodling!
Because I was just doing a small bit each day, and because each day the patchwork was slightly different, and mostly because I was existing in a strange time warp of when will baby come, I started a daily post of progress on Instagram.
Without realizing it, I had given friends a way to keep track of me. Each day I posted a progress shot, they knew baby wasn’t here yet.
Each day the blocks grew and changed and the rows on my design board grew. I kept expecting baby to come and the quilt put away, but she didn’t come and we kept stitching.
It was fun to start sewing up a block for no other reason than I felt like stitching that block that day.
Lets add more triangles, I’d think, and so we did. And without me realizing it, one morning I went to sew more blocks and when I looked at the top, I realized it was done.
For quilting, I decided on a meandering line, mimicking topographic lines. I thought of my soon to be born nephew and the adventures he would have.
And in the nick of time, the quilt was done, ready to be mailed off, and all I needed to do was rest before baby arrived.
Reflections
What surprised me?
I remember thinking at the beginning, how will I come up with new blocks to add? How will I think of them? And then once I was in the moment, it was no trouble at all, ideas just kept coming to me.
What did I discover or learn?
I learned how to sew some of the techniques shared in the book to deal with puckers and excess fabric. Once I had a few blocks together things didn’t always lay flat so I learned to dart and adjust seams.
What was satisfying about the process or outcome?
I really enjoyed having my design board out to look at each day. When I wasn’t sewing I was contemplating and pondering what would come next.
What was dissatisfying?
The quilted topo lines didn’t quite turn out as I had imagined.
If dissatisfied, what can I do differently next time to be more satisfied?
In a way at this point I was rushing, so to have it be more satisfied, I think I could have taken the time to sketch out what I imagined, maybe even chalking some drawn lines as a guide on the quilt top.
Where do I want to go from here?
My world has been completely turned upside down since finishing this quilt, in only the best of ways. I hope I can be present in the moment where I am, knowing I will return to quilting some day. And at that point I can bring my new experiences to my craft. And make more baby quilts. Try a few more scores. Maybe make a score for a second or third time.
I was also inspired by my girlfriends Japanese heritage and her love of the color red. I pulled fabrics for two quilts at the same time, the colors complementary and unique.
The first quilt I followed Score#5 Rhythmic Grid. I auditioned fabrics to check for value and contrast, deciding how I wanted to build my squares.
There is so much I love about this kind of quilting. How beautiful fabrics can be featured and combined. How quickly the blocks start to come together. How freeing it is to not measure and make decisions in the moment.
This top was pieced last summer while I was on break between jobs. Winston was my trusty companion for my staycation.
While I didn’t measure, this score was unique in building off each previous row, aligning key intersections. Here I’m adding the edge borders.
For the second of the twins quilts, I chose to follow the Score #2 Strings.
I divided my fabric selections into three groups, two bright and one dark, and then cut each into strips.
The strips then got pieced together randomly, giving me three large panels of pieced fabric.
I then cut each into skinnier columns, and pieced those into the final top.
And it felt like spring inside too! Choosing yellow was such a pleasure to work and sew with. As sunlight streamed in my windows on a weekend morning and I sat stitching with a cup of tea, I felt like I was calling spring to arrive.
I chose to make the entire quilt one large north wind block. I quilted it with a walking foot, simple diagonal lines matching the points of the yellow triangles to emphasize the direction of movement in the quilt.
I used all the remaining fabrics from the collection in the back. I imagine that Hunter will get lots of play time on this quilt, inside and outside!
As I stitched, I hoped that Hunter would revel in growing up in the great outdoors, with the north wind bringing him fun adventures.
Welcome! This is where I share my musings on being a quilter, and the things I make, dye and quilt. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy your visit. Have a creative day!