A Christmas Quilt....

There is nothing more satisfying than stitching a quilt to be gifted for someone special.

This quilt is from the pattern {Trees!} by Amanda Jean at Crazy Mom Quilts

and intended for my lovely friend, Rachel.  You can find Rachel at Family Ever After 

Rachel and I met through a mutual friend, although I knew who she was, I just hadn't formally met her. I was fortunate to be part of a small group of friends who got together every now and then to quilt and chat.  For about 2 years now we all meet to work on quilts, blocks or individual projects.

Rachel will be leaving Ohio next summer and just the thought of it makes me so, so sad.  I know she will love having her family closer to her mom and dad, so I can't be too sad.  Family is a good thing!

       

As for the quilt....the color palette needed to be simple....I love red and white quilts.  Red and White for Christmas. I used a variety of red prints.  A Japanese dot, a gingham, apples, and a vintage large red and white check. Then I added a touch of grey...a text print called Dictionary by Tim Holtz.  The grey binding and splashes of the same text in the blocks, is a nod to our OSU Buckeyes. 

In the lower right hand border, I added a pieced heart...for Ohio!  Ohio is shaped like a heart and our state slogan is Ohio, the heart of it all!

                       

Here and there, I fussy cut a heart for the top of the tree from a Maze and Vale panel.  A sweet little heart because Rachel and her family have touched my heart.

  

I added a great red check from the new collection by Molly Hatch...and the backing fabric is also a Molly Hatch fabric...

  

And, finally, I hand quilted this with a color I LOVE!  Valdani size 8 perle cotton in Orangey Red.  Stitched with love.

Of course, pieced using Aurifil cotton thread.  

This is a small quilt...great for a wall hanging, over a chair or on a table.  I can just imagine Rachel unpacking it every Christmas and remembering her group of friends in Ohio who will always love her dearly.

Love you, Rachel :)

One week to go! 

happy thursday!

xo mary   

 

Rachel

I am sure every quilter loves making baby quilts!  I know I do!  

When I discover someone special in my life is having a baby, the wheels start spinning!

    

Rachel is a friend, fellow blogger {Family Ever After} and a neighbor!  Well, she doesn't exactly live in my neighborhood, but just around the corner.  Less than 5 minutes away... I consider that close enough to borrow a cup of sugar!

Her children attend the same elementary my kids attended...I love seeing pictures of them walking in front of the building.  Brings back sweet memories!

Rachel is just a wonderful person!  I mean, she really is wonderful! There are numerous adjectives to describe Rachel....

beautiful

happy

good

faithful

talented

I could go on and on....

Rachel has 3 adorable children and is expecting her 4th. in June.  I should add 'patient' to the list of adjectives!  Actually, she is the perfect person to have a large family.  She is also very resourceful.  And I know she has a reliable support network of family and friends.

So I had to make her a quilt for the new baby.  She is having a boy.   I didn't ask her about nursery colors...I thought this quilt should be used and used.  No need to match colors.

 

 I began with these two fabrics.  The sweet little fabric on top is a Japanese from Superbuzzy and the gingham is also a Japanese from Purl.  

 

 I added some additional fabrics from my stash...and pieced together using the technique I outlined a couple of posts ago.  I stitch the rows together on the diagonal and then true up the sides. 

I quilted with a combination of machine quilting and pick stitching.

I used Aurifil thread for the piecing and machine quilting straight lines. And hand quilted with Valdani perle cotton....every other row of triangles.

The binding is the same sweet Japanese print with a little of the gingham thrown in!

 

    The backing is a large check gingham...also from Purl.

And, finally, a label to mark the year of his happy birth!

What a lucky baby!  Born into a family that is so excited to see him!  A mom and dad who put faith and family first!  It just doesn't get any better than that.

xo mary