Monday, June 01, 2009

my square dance quilt is finished!


jacquie's spring to finish challenge was just the push i needed to get this baby finished. i was cross-eyed for the last several stitches, but i made it with about an hour to spare. nothing like cutting it close to the deadline! :) (this brings my spring to finish total to 3.)
i did an insane amount of quilting on this one, (8 lines of quilting on a 3" block!) but it was good to branch out from my usual stippling. i wish you could feel this quilt-the texture is incredible. when i washed and dried it, it didn't seem to shrink any more than usual. i was very relieved.
i pieced the back, using two different color ways of mendi fabric from fun quilts. it was a good match and it was on the sale rack at my LQS.

the binding is vintage fabric from my grandmother's house. i love how it finishes off the quilt.
after washing and drying, the quilt measures 62" x 80", so about a twin size.
i have to say, i'm very proud of this one.

(you can see a full photo of the quilt top here. and i talk more about the quilting in this post.)

104 comments:

Denice said...

this quilt turned out wonderful. I love the colors and that quilting - i'm going to have to try that for sure!

Dawn said...

Hello! I'm a long time lurker on your blog but a very big fan of your work! I was wondering if you created this pattern yourself or if you used a mass market pattern? Either way, beautiful quilt!!!

Amanda Jean said...

dawn,

this was my own pattern. :)

amandajean

Anonymous said...

Beautiful! You always do such great work!!

Cheryl said...

I love it, and I love the quilting, and I love the colors and I love the binding. What's not to love?

dotti white said...

Amanda Jean...I love everything about your quilt! Beautiful work! Have a great week!

Kelly O. said...

I love your pieced backings!

Allison said...

This quilt is absolutely gorgeous. My favorite one so far!

jovaliquilts said...

Oh, it's beautiful!

nettie said...

I love everything about this quilt, the colors, the quilting! I have wanted to quilt a quilt the way you did, but I don't think I have the patience. it's lovely.

Clair said...

Time to have a square dance!!!

M. Regina said...

Beautiful quilt, lovely colors. Hugs from Brazil

amy smart said...

Fabulosity at its finest. Wow.

MichelleB said...

It's wonderful! You did great with this one. I love the quilting. It's great to try something new.

CJ said...

WOW! It is beautiful! I am thinking it must be heavy with all that stitching on it.

Jessica said...

I think that vintage binding really makes the quilt! Lovely, as always!

Trisha said...

Beautiful! Great colors and I love how you quilted it.

Laura said...

Beautiful colors! Great Job!

One Flew Over said...

I just adore the colours of this quilt and the quilting is gorgeous!

Suburban Stitcher said...

This is GORGEOUS! You did an excellent job, and I agree...the binding is perfect!

Elaine/Muddling Through said...

That is one gorgeous quilt! The extra quilting made it even prettier!

Erin @ Why Not Sew? Quilts said...

oh i really love the big squares and little squares together. the quilting is great and the colors are great! how sweet is that, to be able to use material from your grandma's.

i also wanted to tell you i made a quilt from your flea market fancy measurements/tutorial. i accidently cut my sashing to small but i still think it turned out pretty good! just wanted to let you know. your blog is awesome.

jacquie said...

totally great! congratulations on squeaking in the finish! it's a beautiful design. love it, love the fabric, and you know i'm a fan of this kind of quilting!

Philigry said...

that is awesome. i want to feel this quilt! love it.

Jocelyn said...

Amanda Jean, this looks so great! Love the quilting. What a nice change of pace.

Lauren The Artist said...

That's a TON of quilting thread. Looks cool.

dolores said...

Oh my gosh.....that is amazing! I am just getting back to quilting and I have all these old fashion calicos from around 1993. I am dying to do something with some new fresh fabrics but seeing this quilt I think I can take what I have that is old and make it look new! Thanks so much!!!

onthehilltop said...

That is nothing short of lovely!

Hannah said...

it turned out beautiful. i've been thinking about trying out that line quilting, but decided to wait and see how yours turned out. =)

BitnByAQuiltingBug said...

I love it! The quilting turned out great! I wish you'd have kept track of how many bobbins you blew thru! Must have been a boatload. Another beauty....

Sarah said...

This really is a fabulous quilt! I am about to quilt a zigzag quilt this same way, and I am somewhat nervous.

Also, I LOVE this pattern. What a great, and simple, idea to mix large and small squares. I never would have thought of it, but I really love it!

Hannah said...

It makes me go cross-eyed just looking at it ... but it's beautiful! I am going to have to try the straight lines ... on a small quilt. Great work as usual.

Anita D. said...

What fun.
I like the colors too. Some of my favorite.

Aimee said...

Beautiful, as usual! I will have to try out that quilting some time - it is really gorgeous! Great job & I love the binding too!

Eren said...

Oh, its just gorgeous! I love the colors and how you quilted it. All of that stitching sure did pay off.

E

Terriaw said...

I love the colors and the quilting! What a great quilt!!! You should be proud of this one.

Tara said...

Beautiful! I think I'll quilt my disappearing nine patch like that. As soon as I sew the blocks together!

Victoria Findlay Wolfe said...

Hey Crazy mom! Gorgeous! I love that insane line quilting! I love how it looks but have pout it off knowing the mundane of the over and over will drive me crazy... But I gotta try i this summer...

B E A U T I F U L!

oh, and you lucky duck, didn't you win the quilt at Mushyheds?

Emily Herrick said...

LOVE the quilt- and the QUILTING! Looks very Potterybarn-ish. :o)

Beth said...

I love the colors there and the combination of large and small blocks with randomness... I've just recently started taking classes for machine quilting. Do you use a walking foot for this? How do you keep lines straight? Thanks!

Heather said...

Freakin' awesome.

Heidijayhawk said...

looks fab as always my dear!

Jane's Fabrics and Quilts said...

Oh you should be proud, I love it, the quilt looks so cozy!

Jessica Christensen said...

That last photo makes me want to run my hand over that quilt. I bet it feels so good! I love really close quilting. I have to say, though, that my brain is buzzing just looking at how long that must have taken you. I hope you keep that one for yourself, considering all the work. Gorgeous, of course.

PumpkinFreckles said...

kudos. the colors are magical.

Carolyn cdn said...

This is amazing Amandajean...kudos to you.

Anonymous said...

You must know that this combination works A LOT: green + blue.

Congratulations!

By the way, today I made my first NINE PATCH! A little bit late, but I'm not gonna give up, right?

Beijos do Brasil

Patricia Luck

Chveya said...

stunning!!!

Sarah - Red Gingham said...

Oh that is really lovely! Love the colours and the lines of stitching. I have just completed forty nine patch squares of my first patchwork quilt. So much for one a day! It's only taken me about four. Quite addictive isn't it?

susan@tickledpaisley said...

wow - that is gorgeous!! The quilting looks incredible on it - just beautiful.

Alissa said...

So so beautiful! Wonderfully done. And the quilting! Makes me wanna branch out from the stippling too!

Lorajean said...

I love this quilt! I really want to make one of these. Is this a common pattern, I'm sure I can find it on line.

Knitlee said...

WOW! This is so stunning. I love the colors so calming and beautiful! The quilting is fantastic!

Amanda Jean said...

lorajean,

this is a pattern that i made up myself. :)

aj

shellysquilts said...

There is not one thing about this quilt that is not FABULOUS! Well Done!

Sherri said...

LOVE this quilt...it's amazing!

Unknown said...

Absolutely beautiful !

zees5 said...

This is really beautiful and I love you did the back too!

izazbz at yahoo dot com

Allie said...

What a FABULOUS quilt!!!! I love it! The pattern, the colors, the quilting, all of it. GREAT job!

Annika said...

The quilt is so lovely! Really gorgeous!

Tracy T. said...

I love this quilt. Great job!

Collette said...

It's truly beautiful. The colors appear almost fluid.

Karen said...

Your quilt is beautiful...I love the colors and patterns;) I hope to get some pictures of my 9-patch up on my blog in a couple of days. Would love for you to take a look;) You are sooooooo full of inspiration...thanks;)

Journeying Five said...

positively beautiful!

mariarrosa said...

What a wonderful quilting!!!

Wanda said...

Great quilt! I also like the fact that it is thin. Yes...lots and lots of quilting but it sure turned out nice!~

MissyMack said...

*blinks at all that wonderful quilting* My goodness woman... did that not drive you batty?!!?! Talk about patience and perseverance!! I LOVE it!!!!

Sunshine said...

absolutely beautiful, amazing colour combination, as is usual for you!

Cheers,
Christine

eila said...

It's beautiful!

Unknown said...

You should be proud, it is beautiful!

Leslie said...

you are amazing!! this quilt is so beautiful and the pattern is amazing, it moves! I love the use of the vintage fabric, and those colors are gorgeous

The Quilt Shoppe said...

Simply Stunning :) Congratulations on getting it done!
Lani

The Calico Cat said...

Wow, that is so serene....

Kelli said...

You continue to inspire me! I just whipped up a simple charm pack quilt using MoMo's Wonderland. Just sewed the squares together. I wanted to do something different with my quilting (I usually stipple, too)and I think this is it. (Maybe a little further apart, though :))

Malissa said...

That binding is wonderful -- how neat that it came from your grandmother's house...

Toiling Ant said...

Adore the color combo-- I really want to do something gray/green soon!

Terry said...

Congratulations! It's a beautiful quilt! :0)

Janet said...

I can feel the texture. The amount of quilting is perfect.

Roxanne said...

Love it! love the colors, love the design and especially LOVe the quilting. I can't imagine the patience you have to do it that way, but it looks stunning!

KateKwiltz said...

Amanda, I love how this turned out. The texture looks fabulous! I think this may be one of your best!

Totally worth the time spent, isn't it?

Angela Nash said...

That really looks wonderful - I'll have to think if I would be able to do the same for a whole quilt. Perhaps a try on something small first. I'd hate to get half way through and be sick of it!

Judy said...

Turned out very lovely! I like that the lines are not totally straight. Well not measured out psychotic straight, if you get my meaning. One thing I was disappointed to realize when I got this machine was that the walking foot had no measuring bar like my Bernina, so it's hard if you do want them 2" apart for example, but I used my hera marker and got them done. Your way of closer makes more sense. Although I do hate the walking foot sound...ka-thump, ka-thump, ka-thump!

Nuttygirl said...

This is so beautiful! Sometimes squares make the best patterns. I need to get on top of the quilts I am working on.

You did an amazing job!

Thimbleanna said...

{GASP!} It's GORGEOUS CrazyMom! I LOVE it -- the colors, the blocks, the quilting and that binding -- Oh My!!! Most Excellent!!!

szkornelia said...

This turnes out to be very cool. I love green and blue together, this is one of my favorite combination these days. Noce job!

dutchcomfort said...

Wow for your straight line quilting!
I love the result!

Sarah at Quiltalong said...

Who knew squares could be so striking? You're making me rethink my spring project. This is just beautiful.

rachel said...

Love it!!! the quilting is spectacular!!

Unknown said...

Great finish!! I love the blue/green combo, and the quilting of course :)

Calico Road said...

Very nice, as always AmandaJean! I have a question....did you do this on your Juki? Did it come with a walking foot? I have that machine on my wish list, and would love to hear how you like it, tips or tricks, etc.

Nanci said...

very nice, I love the colors and the line quilting is perfect!

Eva said...

I love this quilt. The colors are so great. I am looking at working on my quilting skills, maybe this one i could handle... Keep up the great work & inspirations coming!!:0)

Patty said...

I really like the quilting you chose to do on this quilt; it's so perfect.

SugarBooger said...

Wow! That is gorgeous! Really nice.

Sherry said...

Congrats on another finish. This quilt is wonderful! I love the colors & the quilting.

Amanda Jean said...

calico road,

yes, i did the quilting on my juki with a walking foot. and yes, my juki came with the walking foot AND two free motion feet. (it was a great deal!)

aj

Donna said...

The quilt is beautiful, and the quilting looks wonderful!

Katherine said...

Swing your partner,
round and round!

Your design is fantastic, Amandajean. What a brilliant finish - love, love,love it. How wonderful about the binding fabric coming from your grandmother - it goes perfectly.

lera said...

I may have already commented, but I really don't remember. I'm trying to catch up on everything.

I love the colors. They go perfectly together. And that binding???? YUM!

sulu-design said...

This. One. Rocks. I know that I'm usually a fan of big white spaces on quilts, but I love the absence of them here. And this color palate kills me. Nice job, lady!

Little Dickens Designs said...

I love it! So beautiful!

jane maynard said...

you should be proud....everything about it is stunning. :)

lucie said...

I love the colors! i'm just a beginner and i hope i can find in the Netherlands these beautiful fabric...

gr Lucie

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful quilt! Some questions, if you don't mind: what fabric collection did you use? And what are the measurements of the squares?