Wednesday, February 19, 2014

One finished and one started

When the mum of our new grandson asked me to make a quilt for him, I held my breath wondering what she would ask for. Lucky for me she had a photo and it was going to be a quick no fuss one that would fit into the nursery.
I quilted in the ditch by machine and then by hand with Perle cotton #8 which made for a very light and soft quilt. For the next quilt that has Perle thread for quilting, I'm going to aim for bigger stitches which is hard for me to do.
My friend and I went to Quiltsmith last Friday for our monthly Aunty Green class and admired all the Kaffe quilts displayed around the shop. It was pretty inspiring and since I didn't sign up for a class with the boys, I decided to have a workshop of my own, all by myself.
I wanted something quick and easy so what's better than going back to basics with squares?
Here's what's on my design wall so far. Hopefully I can play with it some more this coming weekend.
until next time, Janet
 

29 comments:

Carrie P. said...

both are so pretty.

Sue said...

Very nice. Love the simple blue & white quilt. Can't go wrong with those colours!

Wendy @ Wendysquiltsandmore said...

I love the blue and white quilt. The hand quilting is beautiful!

Jill said...

Maybe when you do the big stitch with pearl cotton, it will be easier as thread and needle bigger. Love the blue baby quilt. It is fresh and modern, yet still soft and cozy.

Karen said...

Great success on the baby quilt. I didn't have much luck when I tried big stitch, but one of my DWR prizes is a big stitch marking wheel. Looks like a rotary cutter, but you use tracing paper and it marks the stitches for you. Looks promising.

libbyquilter said...

congrats on the new grandson as well as the finish on his wonderful quilt~!
i love seeing your quilting stitches and can sympathize with you in regards to having to think about enlarging my stitches when using the big stitch method.

:-)
libbyQ

Ada Plouvier-Kopitopoulou said...

Lovely colours and pattern for the baby quilt. The one on your design one looks fabulous.

Every Stitch said...

Love the baby quilt - great fabric choices and colours. I love the way you have unique quilting in each block and it complements the fabric beautifully!
Hilda

Susan said...

That's a great baby quilt, the style will grow with him. Your new quilt is very bright, the squares showcase the fabrics really well.

EL RINCON DE CHELO said...

Que bonito!!!!!!

Shirley said...

What a lucky little boy. Great baby quilt and your stitching is so neat and regular. Nothing wrong with going back to basics. Looks good fun.

Oops-Lah said...

Beautiful baby quilt, perfect for a little boy. And your stitching is perfect too. I wish I had the same problem; my stitching is never small enough! Good idea to have your own quilt retreat and you did very well on your own.

Nat Palaskas said...

Lovely baby quilt. The zigzags on the quilt are very striking! I wander about Perle cotton quilting myself. I'm going to try that soon - Hugs Nat

Jess @ Scrappy n Happy said...

The baby quilt is perfect! I love chevrons!
I wish I had signed up for Kaffe's workshop here in brissie. I love his fabrics!

Nedra said...

Beautiful fabrics! The baby quilt is darling. And love those Kaffes.

Abby and Stephanie said...

Beautiful, useful, simple. Love the geometrics and the color palette.

Carla A Few Of My Favorite Things said...

Love the way you used the quilting to accent the design in the fabric. I have a hard time with larger stitches too. I just read that tiger tape might help. Think I will have to give it a try.

Created by Kathi said...

Love how that sweet quilt turned out just enjoying your stitches... don't worry about making them larger... they stand out just fine! You can try Perle 12 cotton next time which is a bit smaller but still dynamic in the final effect if you want to say to smaller stitches without sore fingers from pulling them thru! lol Kathi

Thimbleanna said...

Isn't it funny how hand quilters have a hard time making those bigger stitches? I feel your pain. That baby quilt is just perfect for a boy! And I love your Kaffe quilt -- I was in a quilt shop a few weeks ago that had a huge display of Kaffe's and it made me want to try a Kaffe quilt too, so I'll be looking forward to seeing yours!

Nifty Quilts said...

Great baby quilt! He will love the high contrast. Your quilting is especially wonderful. I'm partial to the diamonds on the polka dots. Lovely golden quilt too!

Grandma Sue said...

I had a request to make a quilt from bridesmaids' dresses for a January baby shower. The girls did not give the one with the idea their dresses, so I thought just make a flannel multi color quilt. Well, the girl who asked still wanted her dress fabric included. I mixed flannel with satin in the same simple squares design you have! I didn't have time for much quilting. I imagine when it is washed, it may shrink 'funny' My colors were Shrimp (she called it peach) chevron design orange/white/grey/ some just grey/white chevron and white borders. The recipient has grey in the nursery. It was pretty with all the colors; I just wish I had had time to quilt it more.

Barb said...

what a great baby boy quilt - fun and fresh fabrics and patterns :)
fun bright project on the wall

Janet said...

I think the baby quilt turned out beautifully! Your big stitch quilting looks lovely. Bigger stitches :0) Have fun playing!!

Rachaeldaisy said...

2 wonderful quilts!! I love the geometric simplicity of the baby quilt, your stitches are so perfectly perfect!! Your Kaffe quilt is full of sunshine, so beautiful!

Archie The Wonder Dog said...

The baby quilt is wonderful! Have fun with your Kaffe quilt - such great colours!

Janet said...

They are going to love the baby quilt. Liking what I see with your Kaffe fabrics.

Dixie Howard said...

Great baby quilt, Janet! Your Kaffe quilt is wonderful. Looks like you are having fun with your most recent projects - its fun to simplify sometimes after finishing a more complicated project. What type of batting did you use for the baby quilt? I'm about to make one and will use your method of both hand and machine quilting.

Lori said...

I LIKE THE SIMPLICITY OF THE BABy quilt. I like to mix hand and machine quilting.
What a fun Kaffe style quilt!!

Karendianne said...

You know how you visit a blog to check back on something and realize "Oh, where is my comment?" and think...I guess I didn't leave one? Well, looks like that happened here. I love how you did the baby quilts and I'm psyched about your quilt fabric play. What fun!!!