Liz's quilt

Our babysitter, Liz, has been watching the girls since she was in 7thgrade.  She has been my number one, go-to sitter for six years and sheis leaving for college next week.  I get a little teary thinking aboutit - I actually did cry at her graduation party.  The four of us aregoing to miss her, but she is headed off on to her newest adventure andwe couldn't be happier for her.

 

I finished Liz's quilt on Tuesday night and washed it yesterday.  I am really happy with how it turned out  - in fact, it may be among my favorites.  Blue is Liz's favorite color and I wanted it to play a strong role in her quilt.  I also wanted the design to be something simple and fresh, young and vibrant just like the girl who is receiving it.  I started with a few sets of Anna Maria Horner's Garden Party fat quarters.  I cut 30 separate fat quarters in to rectangles measuring 13" x 15.5" (my fabric was pre-washed).  I arranged them in a grid and sewed them together.  This took me a few hours on a Saturday afternoon in late May.

 

For the back, I used two pieces of a turquoise solid that I joined using a patchwork strip.  The patchwork rectangles were from the scraps of the original fat quarters.  The back still wasn't long enough so I added another strip.  I told you all what happened with the batting.  Once I had a piece that was big enough, it was time for the quilting.

For the quilting, I chose a blue thread that is slightly darker thanthe aqua that is on the back.  I'd call it a French blue.  It took me avery long time to decide how to quilt this.  I contemplated manydifferent options until I settled on the wavy horizontal lines.  I usedmy walking foot and started sewing the lines free motion - well, asfree motion as you can with a walking foot.  They were very fun to sew and I love how they look.  For the binding I chose ayellow polka dot (not sure who makes it, sorry) because I reallythought the quilt needed a good pop of color.  I think it works well.

After washing and drying, the quilt measures 60" x 88".  Now it's time for us to wrap this quilt up and deliver it to Liz.  And then we have to say good-bye.  Pass the tissues.  I'm going to need them.