Thursday, June 07, 2012

patchwork

 A few months ago, my friend Terri, Cindy and I swapped 4 1/2" squares from our scraps. This is what became of my squares.
I made them into a twin size quilt top....352 squares total in a 16 x 22 layout.
By golly, I love patchwork! I LOVE this quilt!!!!
 Perfectly scrappy.
I'm thinking of trying something new....quilting it up, right away! What a concept, right?

Today is the first day of summer vacation. It's actually been nice having the kids home. Hurray! It's handy to have a photographer home in the middle of the day to shoot photos while I hold the quilt. :) It's also nice to have my little ones here to share a picnic lunch on a perfectly beautiful sunny day. Gotta keep things positive!

52 comments:

Suburban Stitcher said...

Love the bright colors! What a great way to get some "new" fabrics into a quilt.

Clair said...

I recognize some of the fabric! summer vacation is keeping me busy so far...I am off to help someone with quilt.

Di~ said...

How fun, top looks great! A swap with you would be fun. Every time I've done one on-line, I receive back very awful fabrics.
Enjoy your cute kids!

Emma said...

Really pretty :) Love how completely different fabrics can look really nice together!

Emily said...

I don't think I'll ever tire of patchwork...

Sara the Great said...

Beautiful work

Lisa Lisa said...

I absolutely love this! Wow!

Lea said...

I love patchwork, it reminds me of a sweet aunt of mine. Nice quilt. And hooray for summer vacations, sun, and picnic lunches!

Johanna said...

Quilt it right away? Huh? Oh, you mean we are actually suppose to finish our projects? I'll have to try that. Well, one of these days I will. I just have a few more projects to start first. Love the quilt! Nothing like simple squares :)

Franziska said...

I like it, too. I don't know why but I like quilts with squares. And the swapped squares: that's what quilts should always be: something mixed of something collected. Hard to describe it. For example: I used a bed sheet from my grandma for a quilt. And you got your squares from friends. Fantastic.

Kar said...

Love the patchy, scrappiness of it! My favorite kind of quilt. Great job!

Lynn said...

Gee, another reminder for me that simple works really well. No wonder this one makes you happy. Good attitude for the first day of summer. Today is our second day and my son just asked me if one of his teachers has recorded his grades yet, as he forgot to email her his project last week. Keep it positive, I'm living by that all summer, thanks!

Annette - MyRoseValley said...

Simplicity rules. I adore this quilt top. This is my favorite and my best way of patchwork. Wonderful! And swopping? I have to give that a go. Sounds like great fun!:D

Wilma said...

Beautiful¡¡¡ Congratulations¡¡¡

Mary on Lake Pulaski said...

Very pretty! Love scrappy too.

Stephanie said...

It looks beautiful! My very first quilt that I am making is a patchwork quilt. The squares are 3". I just want it to be a quilt to cover up with while in the couch. I'm still cutting squares though...haven't started sewing yet!

Anne's House said...

I love, love, LOVE your quilt! Wonderful fabrics and colors! Cozy and charming!

Anonymous said...

It's lovely! I say go for quilting it up right away, nothing wrong with that! =)

Kukliki said...

As you said - Perfectly scrappy!
Love it!

evaj said...

I love Your quilt ,, and I love the scrappy too!!!

Jessica Christensen said...

That would be a concept that I should try. It's a good one. I love scrappy quilts -- and how fun that it came from a swap. :) Love those.

Katherine said...

Simple and oh-so-pretty. This quilt just says summer to me!

Fingers crossed that you can get it quilted right away. That way it will be ready for picnics. ;o)

Angie said...

It is the most PERFECT quilt!! :) Happy Summer Vacation

Leslie said...

im with you...i love simple squares patchwork! this looks so great

Quilter Mom of 3 said...

I love the absolute scrappyness!!

mac said...

Gorgeous quilt - hopeyou survive the summer holiday. :)

Linda said...

Love the quilt! Hope your summer with the kids home goes as smoothly as today did! :)

Donna said...

It is beautiful, so colorful.

Did you randomly pick a square or audition each square on your design wall?

amy smart said...

I love patchwork too. Something about scrappy is so perfect to me. :)

Also, love the positive summer vibes. We needed haircuts so badly, but I was getting much resistance until I bribed them with ice cream. 79cents cones are going to be my best friend this summer. :)

Mama Pea said...

Great job! It's beautiful! E's last day of school is tomorrow. I am looking forward to having her home, too!

Live a Colorful Life said...

Eek! Now I know what my quilt top will look like. When I sew it together. Finishing it right away? Encouragement please...!

Cascade Quilts said...

I love patchwork too! You know what I picture for this quilt for quilting? Asymmetrical 'chevron' quilting I think would be awesome!

Amanda Jean said...

Donna,

I randomly sewed the blocks together.... 16 blocks in a row. I made 22 rows. Then laid out all the rows in a pleasing arrangement before sewing them into the completed top. Arranging block by block on a design wall would drive me batty. This is the best way to do random patchwork that I have found. It's so much easier to arrange the rows than individual blocks....and it still is perfectly random.

Hope that helps!

Amanda Jean

Pieced Brain Quilt Designs said...

Awesome! I think I will make one, and then hand quilt it, as a tribute to all the quilters of gazillion years ago!!! Considering that my first hand quilted quilt is still on the frame, the project might be a few years in the making!

Sarah said...

What a lovely quilt!

Judi said...

What a GORGEOUS patchwork! Love the simplicity!

Judi

PS You are SO lucky to have a nice summer day to picnic, it's horribly wet and windy here in the UK today!

diegoagogo said...

I love a scrap quilt & this one is no exception - just gorgeous!
Enjoy the sun, London seems to be having a wet summer this year but we seriously need the rain so I am not complaining (I just wish I could get the washing dry!! LOL)
Cheers
Lush
London,UK

Rene' said...

Amanda, how fun to have scraps from your friends to play with! Love, love, love patchwork quilts!!!! I'm sure you will have it quilted in no time. Enjoy the kiddos!

Suzanne said...

I think you destress with patchwork! I love this one as well. The squares look random but I'm guessing they are not at all.

craftycountrymomma said...

I love this and have enough Squares to do one, beautiful

Carla said...

great idea to swap squares : ) Enjoy your quilting.

Nita said...

I adore scrappy quilts! Looks like some cozy bedtime stories are going to happen snuggled up in this one!

Beth said...

Love all the great fabrics, I think you should call it Summer Vacation. :)
Have fun with the kids.

Pinspot said...

What a great idea to swap squares! It turned out so pretty.

Hannah said...

Looks great!! I love the way other people's scrappy stuff looks, but can never seem to be pleased when I throw my own scraps together. Can't wait to see this one quilted!

Pretty Home Threads said...

I love the idea of a fabric swap, especially when it comes cut into squares. Now I need to find some people to swap with. I also love the randomness of it. My last rag quilt I mixed up the fabric squares and blindly picked them. Made it so fun to construct.

Karen said...

Great quilt! Nothing beats the beauty of a regular old-fashioned block quilt...no frills, easy to make and all sorts of fun fabrics.

Unknown said...

It's spectacular! How do you manage to do it all so quickly.. I'm in love with this.. may have to do on like it.. someday.. ( let's first focus on finishing the retreat quilt...)..
xo
hugs
Nancy

Terriaw said...

Yay, your patchwork squares look so fabulous sewn together! I hope mine looks at fun as that. I laid mine out on my design wall and have them all arranged, but haven't had any time for sewing the past few weeks. I hope to get them pieced together before our retreat, but I'm not sure I'll get it quilted, since I have another class starting on Monday. Such a fun swap with two of my favorite friends!

prsd4tim2 said...

Such beautiful patchwork! Makes me want to go through the scrap basket and get to work. Lovely!

Enjoy your kids this summer - they grow up too fast (she said speaking from experience!)

Angela said...

Please share how you buried the knots! I bought my Juki a few years ago based on your glowing reviews, but I've never figured out how to hide the starts/stops.

Karen Sue said...

This is a great scrappy quilt! I have a whole tub of "leftovers" which are great for applique, but will never use most of it...I don't think I will anyway! I was in a 1999/2000 swap and so far made 3 twins from the blocks...and there are still some left! Gotta get back to my machine! I think it should be swimsuit week next week so that there is no laundry.. and maybe frozen pizza and popcicles! no cooking...paper plates!! I might get a little more done!