or My First Quilt and how I broke all the rules making it.
Folks, I have finished my first quilt!
I know, I know that I started a quilt for Matilda, but I couldn't resist giving myself the huge challenge of making one for Tom too. A double bed sized Christmas quilt. In three months. Start to finish. Considering I had no clue how to quilt, it was a pretty tall order. Not only that, but it was for his birthday, so I had to learn and make it in secret. Oh dear!
I have been desperate to show you my progress, but Tom reads the blog from time to time, and I didn't want him to pick up any clues. But, I would like to show you now - if that's okay?
1. Laying out the fabric blocks and realising that it is, in fact, too big for my floor space.
2. Basting over the dining table.
3. Hand quilting each block with simple diagonal lines, whilst it is draped over my knee.
4. Hand quilting each block with simple diagonal lines, whilst Matilda is draped over the quilt.
5. Wondering how on earth I was ever going to finish stitching 100 squares. In secret.
6. Realising that the only way I would finish it was by not being too much of a perfectionist.
I am so thrilled with it. I loved making it. I loved giving it. Tom loved receiving it. We love sleeping underneath it. It just makes the bed feel so special. And cosy. Oh, the joy of handmade gifts.
But I wasn't joking when I said I broke all the rules. Seriously I did. Would you like the list?
- I didn't use only 100% quilter's cotton fabric - I used whatever looked pretty.
- I didn't pre-wash the fabrics.
- I cut up a kingsize duvet cover for the backing fabric - I didn't want any seam lines on the back and couldn't find any extra wide fabric in the right shade. This was 100% cotton though.
- I pieced the blocks together on my machine without a walking foot - because I don't have one.
- I mixed machine and hand quilting. I machine quilting in the ditch, and hand quilting all of the diagonals. I needed to save time and figured that you don't really see the 'ditch' quilting. But I much prefer the look of hand quilting so did that on the more visible lines.
- I didn't use a hoop, or frame for the hand quilting. I didn't even stretch it across anything. I just curled up on the armchair with it draped over me, and sometimes over me and Matilda. It worked for me though.
I'm sure that there are tons more, but I can't think of them now.
There are flaws. There are creases. There are a few uneven stitches. There are hundreds and hundreds of mostly even stitches. There are beautiful fabrics. There is lovely batting (warm and natural). There is hand stitched binding. There are new lessons learned. There is a much warmer bed because of it. There is a proud me every time I see it. There are cosy memories ready to be made whilst snuggled under it. And there is a little girl who is absolutely besotted with it.
