KNOWLEDGE IS POWER, BUT IT DOESN'T MAKE MY BLOW DRYER RUN!

Monday, July 9, 2012

Flower Garden----Library Challenge Quilt


Finished! This is the little quilt I created for a challenge called Vintage Patchwork Revisited.  I blogged about it here.  It is not my original pattern but one from Lori Smith of From My Heart To Your Hands called "Flowers for my Love". I contacted her and asked her permission first. I did edit out some of the pieces. I am calling mine, Flower Garden......how original!



The pieces I had to work with were small so I pieced some of them together for the larger parts, like the blue flower above.



I lucked out in that the pieces I got had lots of same color ways.



The only fabrics that are new are the green polka dot, the yellow centers and the bird fabric.



It is fused and machine buttonhole stitched as was typical of that time period.



Again I pieced this together and like how it turned out. The light colored fabrics stand out with the dark blue background, even though it was hard to get good pictures.



This is a new fabric that plays nicely with the vintage ones.



I like to carry the theme to the back of the quilt too, especially if it is going to be auctioned off. It is a nice little surprise!



I used the triangle method for hanging the quilt. If you have never done this you will love it! Take a 3 or 4 inch square and fold it on the diagonal, wrong sides together and press well. Place them on the top corners, lining up the raw edges on the back of the quilt. At this point you can baste (by machine!) them on or just pin them. Continue to apply your binding as usual, being careful that the triangle are in place. A dowel fits in there perfectly! This only works for small quilts as large ones would sag.

I chose to do a more traditional pattern because I think it will play well to the audience. The point is to raise funds for the library and in that respect I feel traditional will "sell" better. A lot of  people still don't know you can hang a quilt on the wall!

Kelly

13 comments:

  1. LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT!
    What a great solution to using the little pieces!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Such a pretty quilt! Did you quilt the lines in the background first? I love everything about this one!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh Kelly, I love that machine buttonhole stitching--I will have to try that one. Am mostly doing everything by hand these days...your hanging is very pretty. Julierose

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your little piece turned out great! I love the blue background, it's unexpected and works really well!
    Great job Kelly and know it will raise lots of money for the library.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Awesome job! We did a vintage revisited challenge here about a year ago. Are you sending photos to Mary Kerr? You should, I bet she will be thrilled!
    Hugs, Mickie

    ReplyDelete
  6. so very cute, love the background with it. I wish I had taken a pic, I recently did a lap size using pieces of someones old quilt top that was cut up. she wanted to give it to me but I couldn't take it especially since someone i n her family probably made it. so I gave her it after spending the entire Memorial Day weekend on it. she volunteered at the library with me and she was moving to Texas. It was touching to see how much it meant to her. it made it so worth it. joanne

    ReplyDelete
  7. It came out so lovely. I like the dark background, all the fabrics really pop on it.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I love the blue background. You made that one really fast. It's beautiful! I kind of like that you made it traditional. Definitely good one for the fundraiser. Hope it draws lots of money.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This quilt is utterly lovely! Thanks too for the triangle tutorial. I've never seen this method before and will definitely use it!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wow, this is a beauty! It'll make tons of money. I agree, a more traditional pattern appeals to more people - especially to those not so familiar with quilts.

    I love the blue background - makes it very striking. And I like your quilting pattern too. Simple, and it doesn't distract from the applique. I see you did your blanket stitch after you had the quilt layered. That's a great idea! I need to remember that!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Your little quilt is delightful! Great use of the fabrics and the backing is just perfect. I really like interesting/fun backs and your 'quilt hanger' is a nice tip. I've never seen that before. Hope it brings in lots of $$.

    ReplyDelete

I love to read your comments, they make my day!