Monday, September 26, 2016

The long quilt journey(Connie's shirt quilts)

Over the last few weeks my quilt focus has been on this UFO.   Finally it's complete.    What a journey it has been from the word go.  I've been stealing a few minutes here and there to get it quilted.  It took about 4 weeks once on the frame.  The quilting design was kept simple.  You can read more about how I went about making my decision for the quilting here.


 I hope Connie loves it as much as I do. That's Connie below.  She was so proud of her new quilty adventure.


Connie had a vision for this quilt when she saw an origami shirt quilt pattern in our local quilt shop.   The pattern for the shirt blocks can be purchased here.  


We worked together folding and temporally attaching the little shirts to the background fabric.  The plan was for a simple on point quilt alternating the shirt block with a solid blue alternating block.  She quickly ran out of steam while making these blocks.  So I offered to finish the quilt for her.  After getting her finished blocks and a bag full of her husbands shirts to my Studio the quilt stare began.  There was great potential hiding in that bag of shirts... I just couldn't stay with her quilt plan.  So I asked if she minded me working a little quilt magic on her blocks.  Of course she gave me the go ahead.  All the but the background fabric is her late husbands shirts.  I designed the applique wreath and basket blocks for a separate quilt but after months(years) of trial and error it became clear to me to use them with the shirt blocks.


 Many quilters think you can only use one type of applique on a quilt.  Not true.  There's 3 different types of applique on this quilt.  The shirt blocks are hand stitched applique.  The baskets are freezer paper applique, edges turned with an iron, invisible machine applique.  You can see how I use freezer paper to make applique here.  And the letters are fusible raw edge applique.



This quilt barely made a dent in the bag of shirts.  It would be a shame to let them go to waste.  Why not make a few quick cuddly quilts.  The quilt below I love just as much as the Heirloom above.  It's so soft and cuddly and looks sorta patriotic.  Since my time is limited and I wanted a quick finish, the decision was made to tie the last two quilts.  Have you ever tied a quilt?  Oh my goodness it's so quick and easy.  It gave the quilt a vintage feel.  I may need to make one of these for my couch.  A tip for tying quilts is thin soft yarn or embroidery thread to make the actual ties.  I used baby yarn, it was super soft and thinner than normal yarn.  I tried using plain ole red heart yarn and I couldn't pull it through all the layers. 


Here's the last picture before packing up the quilts to be shipped.  Hand delivering them would be ideal but at this time it's just not possible.  She only lives about 30 minutes away, so I bet I'll be able to hear her squeal when she opens the box!...LOL!


Before I go I wanted to tell you about a challenge on Instagram hosted by Sherri Lynn Wood.  It's called the make do quilt challenge, #makedoquiltchallenge  it's all about using what you have to make a quilt, recycling and upcycling.   You can read more about this challenge here.


~ Lea Anne ~
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17 comments:

  1. What a wonderful selection of quilts from a bag of shirts. How lovely for Connie to be able to touch and see them everyday rather than them being lost at the bottom of a cupboard. That squeal will be very loud indeed!

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  2. Wow!!! What an amazing quilt- It will truly be treasured forever.

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  3. What a gift you are giving your friend. The quilt turned out beautifully and is quite a treasure. All of the quilts are wonderful. I haven't tied a quilt in years and love the look of the quilts you made like that. Well done!

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  4. What a treasure! You were so sweet to finish the quilt for her.

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  5. Wow, that's a lot from one bag of shirts. The heirloom quilt is beautiful! Love all the different elements in it. It's a great set of quilts.

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  6. I can imagine the squeals too and I expect there will also be tears you have done wonders with the shirts and the heirloom quilt is a true masterpiece. Have not tried tying a quilt maybe ow I will

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  7. That first quilt is quite a beauty and a wonderful design. And you did such a wonderful thing with the design. You sure are a wonderful person to make those extra quilts out of his shirts. I'm sure she will treasure them all!!

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  8. You are such an amazing person. You accomplished so much in so little time available. I am in awe. I love the little Scotty dogs, too. Thanks for the tips about tying quilts. I have some that I can tie and I think I have some leftover baby yarn, too.

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  9. You did a super job on the quilt, I am sure she is so grateful to you for finishing it plus the extra quilts! Warm Fuzzies to you for doing so.

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  10. I have to tell you how beautiful that heirloom quilt is. It's a treasure, but I also love the scottie dog and patchwork quilts. Your friend is going to love them.

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  11. Yea for helping out a fellow quilter. And, love the two little quick quilts -- especially the Scotty dogs. They look great in the shirting fabrics. A neighbor of mine is planning to use her husband's shirts to make teddy bears for her grand kids. I hadn't read anything about using dress shirts for quilts/bears but I like the idea.

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  12. Congrats on a beautiful finish. I understand shipping if only 30 minutes away. I recently did the same thing. How does life get so busy?

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  13. Congrats on getting Connie's shirt quilt done - it's beautiful! Thank you for sharing this on Midweek Makers

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  14. Beautiful quilt ~ I've never seen one quite like this! A labor of love, I'm sure!

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  15. It's lovely! Congratulations on your finish, and thank you, on behalf of the 2016 global FAL hosts, for taking part!

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  16. Wonderful! Thanks for sharing the Make Do Quilt challenge with your community.

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