It’s already been established that I’m a bad gift giver. This one is um. . . two years late. I just couldn’t get good photos of it. Yep. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I feel bad though because it was made for a dear, dear freind of mine Lori for her 50th birthday. Today she turns 52 and I was able to gift this to her today. I wanted to celebrate her reaching the big 5 “0” in a fun and sophisticated way. Hence, The Big ‘O’ Quilt (55″ x 69″).
This quilt was part of my continuing exploration in Bias Tape Appliqué. If I had to do it over I would have sewn the bias tape on before it was quilted. It think it would lay flatter and the bias tape wouldn’t pull the fabric as much if it is anchored down by the quilting stitches. You can see a bit of pull in the shot above.
I made a quick trip down to the beautiful Korean Friendship Bell in San Pedro and to a park in Rancho Palos Verdes to finally get a few pics of this quilt. It really was difficult for me to photograph because there isn’t a ton of contrast in this quilt.
The background is Robert Kaufman’s Essex Linen in Natural, OF COURSE. It’s like the perfect fabric for so many projects.
And the quilting I choose for this quilt is my go to all over quilting design of an organic crosshatch. I love it so much. It takes a lot of time but, it creates great texture.
I wanted to define what I consider the major and minor lines in the crosshatch so I used two weights of thread. You can’t tell a drastic difference on the front but, you can see it on the back well.
I chose a luscious blue that is a great contrast from the more muted tones of the front. I believe it’s Michael Miller Cotton Couture Nite. Don’t hold me to that, it was two years ago. But, I know it is a Cotton Couture.
The label at first glance may look a little sloppy but, I wanted to sew it on with my sewing machine instead of hand sewing and I wanted to sew it on top of the same stitch lines as the quilting so the label lines would blend with the quilting on the front of the quilt. I sorta like it.
I hope Lori knows that I love her even though her gift is two years late. XOXO