Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Farewell to August

























Here are some photos of my summer quilt - about a double size. It is ONE of my very first quilts (the 3rd one, actually), so please be kind! I have the old Quilt magazine (my very first quilting magazine ever) from which the pattern came from around somewhere and once I lay my hand on that to get the year I am going to make a label for the back of this baby.

First off, I had to go BUY the scraps for the quilt because, I didn't have any. My Mom had sent me an inexpensive sewing machine and that was my motivation to start this quilt. I traced the pattern and then glued the pieces onto the back of notebook cardboard to create my templates. And, I trimmed most of my 6.5" blocks down to 6" because I didn't know any better and the direction said the blocks should be 6". So - I have nice points on the inside squares, chopped off points on the outsides! Along the way I got bored with making the square in a square blocks and made those green hearts - hand appliqued mind you! You might notice that the border fabric was just a tad too short, which I "fixed" with scraps of pink in the corners. Ahhh, but I truly loved this humble little quilt. So much so, in fact, that I spent a whopping about $100 to have it "professionally" machine quilted. And - you can see what I got back - complete with pencil marks and that nylon see-through thread that looks like fishing line. Can you see that the diagonal stitching goes right into the border? Agh! So it sat in a box (for about 15-16 years) and through several moves before I finally hauled it out, put the binding on and started to use it (last summer to be exact, so it has moved from California, to Cape Cod to Canada...).

It has a fluffy poly batting which is light weight and fairly cool, so that is why it is my summer quilt. This funny little quilt gives me a great sense of satisfaction to see how far my quilting skills and knowledge have come! Did I mention that I copied the original color scheme fairly exactly (except the green hearts!). And - thankfully - my machine quilters have improved along the way too! Very big grin! Despite everything it has going against it, it is done and well loved!

And, I will just let August slide right by with this post. It was what it was - for better or worse, we are moving right along into September now!

But - before I sign off - thank you, thank you, thank you for all your kind comments about my checkerboard borders on my log cabin. I will keep working away on my projects and hope to have some finishes in September, borders and all!

19 comments:

Shirley said...

Makes me wish I had my first quilt or at least a photo. None of my business but what is little one holding? He makes me miss my youngest (she's 3) of 5 grankids.sbartee@msn.com

Hedgehog said...

It's great to see how you've improved, how styles and tastes change - and great that you're actually using this quilt after so long!

Passionate Quilter said...

I love looking back at old quilts--it does make you realize that you truly are moving forward in the quilting world. Our color tastes change, but that makes it even more charming--this is what I used to like. I'm glad you are getting use out of yours. My early quilts are kept hidden away! :)

Bonnie said...

Your story made me laugh. We all have first-quilt stories, and it is amazing how far the whole quilting community has come regarding fabric, batting, threads, etc. Aren't you glad you kept that "summer" quilt? What a treasure.

Laurie Ann said...

I am glad you finally got it bound so you could enjoy it!

MARCIE said...

Evelyn, thanks for your comment on my blog. I love the 80 hour trade! Way to go! By the way, your pink and blue quilt is adorable. And your kaleidoscope is turning out awesome!

quiltpixie said...

I hope your label "for this baby" refered to the quilt not little boy! :-)

Susan said...

I think it's a great little quilt. None of us knew then what we know now, so we can't judge it harshly. At least you have it, and you can use it.

Shelina said...

I like hearing the history of other people's quilts, but if you hadn't mentioned it, and I just had a picture, I think I would have said, what a pretty quilt. I like the changes in the pattern and the way you made it your own. And I didn't notice any chopped triangles.

Gail said...

Aren't first quilts a warm-fuzzy in the road of life? I wonder where mine is- I started to hand quilt it but was never happy with my stitches, so it is a UFO, still.

Granny said...

Evelyn, I love your first quilt. Thanks for sharing the story with us. It's funny how you added the little bit of pink to finish the border. I still have my very first quilt too and it gives me a great sense of accomplishment to see where I started and where I am today.

Judy L.

Darcie said...

Little Boy is such a Little Poser! So darling.

It's cool that your humble quilt is still with you. We should all remind ourselves of where we've been...and where we're still going.

Hugs!

Cynthia said...

After reading your post i thought about my first quilt. It has heart blocks made in green and apricot which at the time was okay. I certainly wouldn't use those colors now. They aren't my DD18 colors but she uses it on her bed over the Winter. So at least it's still being used.

Samantha said...

that's a wonderful first quilt- even then, you were you, adding things you liked and making it work!

Quilts And Pieces said...

Oh what wonderful memories! And such a fun quilt to remember by! Isn't it fun to see how we progress and fabrics and quilting change over time!

Sweet P said...

That is a great first quilt. Aren't you glad you can enjoy it now?

Cher said...

I almost missed that extra bit of pink on the border-great first quilt-done and used..that is what makes it great..and appreciating how far you have come!

Finn said...

It'a a very pretty quilt Evelyn. It looks homey and comfortable..*VBS* I might not have put green hearts in it, but I don't think they look that bad..just a tat strong for the coloration.
For a first quilt..or even later on, it's a good effort and well done. I'm glad you brought it out and gave it some love and attention..*VBS* LB looks like he's been snuggled in it..*VBS* Hugs, Finn

Joanne said...

I love the checkerboard borders on the log cabin. I also like your first quilt -- you were a Maverick right from the start!