I decided to make a little mini quilt, incorporating my favourite summertime quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson:
"Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air."
That is EXACTLY what I wish to be doing right now :)
I pieced random scraps of blue, using cottons, corduroys, linens, voiles, all adding to the texture, starting with darker tones at the bottom and graduating to lighter shades towards the top. I added a scrap of precious Mendocino mermaids at the top. I hand stamped the quote onto natural cotton, using lettered stamps from Stampin' Up and a fabric paint marker. I cut the rows of blues in curves, to replicate the sea, and then straight cut in the quote pieces.
Free motion quilting was done in a sea colored thread, adding waves, crests and pebbles.
The binding is my favourite part: Joel Dewberry Aviary woodgrain fabric, cross stitched to the front with Pearle 8 thread. I will be doing this again!
On the back, I added sleeves for a dowel for hanging, stamping my name and date, and what I was doing while I was making it :)
I am so very pleased with how this mini turned out. As some of you may recall, our family had a summer cottage that was destroyed in a storm a couple years ago. Finally, the rebuilding phase has begun, and I plan to give this mini a place of honour there when we start again.
I intended to enter this as my Sew Off Home Dec entry for week 2 of the competition. And I DID make it through the first round- I placed 4th out of 12, with the top 9 progressing! But, I opted out of the contest. I am busy with so many other things needing my time in my life, and I realized I don't enjoy being judged for what I make...this is my hobby, my escape, and I want to do it just for ME! So, thanks for your support and your votes, but this girl plans to stay contest free for the time being!
Wishing you a day filled with sunshine!
25 comments:
It's beautiful! And I can't wait to try the criss-cross-stitch method of attaching the binding to the front. Did you machine sew it to the back and then do the hand stitching?!
I usually machine sew the binding to the front, then stitch in the ditch to catch the backside of the binding but it's never quite perfect. Can't wait to try this!!!
Hello :-)
beautiful mini, Kristie. Hope some warm sunny weather is heading your way.
Dreamy......
xx
This is a perfect 'hurry-up' to spring! Lovely!
It's totally beautiful!! 4th is great, but you don't need competitions to tell you that you're fab x
Simply beautiful. Great work with a fantastic quote.
LOVE that mini Kristie. It’s perfect for the lakehouse. So glad to hear thats well under way to being your Summer haven again.
Yay for hobbies that make you happy! And I want this. Bad. LOVE love love it.
So cute!
I love it, and especially your binding! I can't believe how prolific you are ... and with kids! I see where the OCD label comes from!
Oh I love this so much! What a beautiful and creative mini! :)
So Fab! Love it! I understand MB winters-Spot on!
Wow! I love it! Living in Maine, I totally get the endless wait for spring.
what a wonderful piece! I hadn't known about your cottage - so glad you are now at the rebuilding stage - this will look wonderful in a place of honour. Good for you for knowing the contest wasn't for you - although with your creativity, you would have done well, I'm sure!
So much to love!!! What a perfect reminder of the days of summer:-)
Kristie...this is so perfect I can't even find words to type. I am glad you opted out of the contest and realized that what you do needs to make you happy and not be judged. xo, di
Love this, and I want to be doing that too!
Beautiful quilt!! And I so hope that spring comes soon - I'm in Dryden, and the snow is still up to my knees in the backyard....please spring come soon :-)
Love your mini quilt (all those great details!) and the sentiment behind it!
beautiful!
you my dear are fricken incredible! A lot of my friends and family back home were hit hard by the same flood and I remember what a heavy heart we all had. Your quilt is a beautiful start to a new space.
You know that is one of my favorite quotes. I've written it on my sketchbook and might do something with it someday. I love your mini quilt!
Yeah who needs judgement for doing what makes us happy? Life is already too full of pressure. I love the mini. Hope it warms up for you soon. The season is really long over here in Australia too. It's been such a warm dry autumn it feels like winter will never come. We desperately need rain.
I just wanted to tell you I am in love with this little quilt... :-). Thanks for sharing.
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