Tuesday, 17 January 2012

A Quilt Full of Memories!

After some angst (don't ask!) I got the back of my dad's civil war quilt pieced.


These blocks have all been hand written, drawn and decorated by 17 members of my family: my mum, siblings, partners and all the grandchildren.  An extra block was thrown in to round the number of blocks to 18.

Close up of one of the blocks
Now I have to baste this beast and quilt it (yikes!).  Thanks everyone for your wonderfully creative quilty suggestions.  I really liked Ceri's idea .....


... but I just don't feel confident enough to keep those fmq lines straight enough!

I'm gearing myself up for some large scale stippling all over the quilt, because I can't think of another quilting design that will suit both the front and the back, and one that I am confident enough to have a go at on this large scale.

So I guess now I just have to roll up my sleeves and get on with it!

If you don't hear from me for a while, you'll know I've been beaten by the beast!

17 comments:

  1. This is going to be a wonderful quilt, he is going to love it! I know you can do it, remember shoulders back and you will not get so tired (I have to remind myself of that often.).

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  2. Wow it looks fab! Good luck with the quilting!

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  3. Take small bites at it. My king size sampler is about half way done now. Just do one row a night or something? That way it won't beat you!

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  4. If you can keep three kids in line you can conquer one quilt. And your dad is going to love it!

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  5. Good luck! This won't beat you it's going to be fab! But I really think you should get yourself some chocolate to keep you going and have your favourite tipple on standby for Grrrr moments and to celebrate getting it done ;-)

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  6. Take regular fudge breaks, it's going to be amazing.

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  7. good luck! It looks absolutely fantastic

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  8. We all know you can do it Judith! He will be delighted you know that! So get to it girl!

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  9. Thats such a lovely idea for the back, I'm sure he's really going to cherish it! Good luck, hope the arms hold out!

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  10. wow. what a nice, personal touch! great idea :)

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  11. I am on leave from quilting the Constellation tonight - only so much yanking a girl can take.
    Oh you make sure you get a good picture of your Dad's face when he gets the awesome quilt!

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  12. Fantastic back! I'm sure you could manage that quilting with some 1" wide masking tape to kepp you on the straight and narrow! Good advice above, little bit at a time, regular breaks and move those shoulders around before and after each little session :) Chocolate, tipples, and camaera at the ready! I'm still stitching binding on the monster!

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  13. That is so special, what a fabulous quilt it will be :)
    The Maya Angelou made me teary eyed, she's so brilliant!
    Good luck with the quilting!

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  14. Oh I love how the back has come together! This will be an awesome quilt :o)

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  15. That is a very cool quilt. One to cherish for a long time.

    Cindy

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  16. I love it Judith, and so will your Dad, I'm sure. Either way on the quilting, it's gonna turn out gorgeous, although you maybe a little exhausted! I agree, do a little bit at a time...don't try to tackle it in one evening, you'll go all wonky!

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  17. It looks great! Maybe just do half an hour a day or something so it doesn't feel as though you're spending all your time walrus wrestling...good luck!

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