New, But Old: A Quilt

Once again, I feel it's time to include a quilt in a post on this blog, so I've had to take a look around and say..which one? Today I am showing you a little wall quilt I made. It's approximately twenty-seven and a half inches square.

It's a new quilt...meaning, it has been made within the last couple of years. And, as you can tell, the coloration of the quilt certainly isn't traditional, nor is the pattern in the fabric. That's the "new" part.

The old part....well, I designed this quilt around five "Nine Patch" blocks...certainly a traditional pattern. The blocks are six inches square. Four of the blocks, which traditionally would be filled with a quilting design, are filled with a hand-embroidered design...of my own making.

I knew before I made this quilt that I would use embroidery as a design element and do it in the traditional way...by hand. Because I wanted an original design to embroider on the "plain" block.....I cut a "snowflake" pattern from paper and used that as the embroidery design...so much fun! There is a quilting line all around the embroidery on that block...hard to see, but it's there. (I used freezer paper to make the snowflake, that way when the pattern is cut out, you can iron it to your fabric, and it will stay in place while you mark. Much easier that holding it down to mark around. If making a more complicated snowflake, however, freezer paper is a bit too heavy, but still usable if you fold carefully.)

Over the center block of the Nine Patch, I also drew a little vine pattern and embroidered it. I just thought the center of that Nine Patch needed a "little bit more." It's simple and I love it.

Surrounding the Nine Patches, is a black border. Of course, you've already figured out that I just "had" to embroider it too.
And, I chose the same color of DMC floss to do that as the background of the blocks...with a little touch of pink. A little touch of checked fabric tickled me also...so I used it in the center square of the blocks and the corner squares of the black border.

I loved the dotted fabric used in those embroidered squares...the way it changes from green to pink. As I was cutting the fabric for the outside border, I decided those corners should use the darkest part of the dotted fabric. What makes us choose the things we do?

In a traditional style quilt, I would have quilted that black vine on the outside border, but instead, I chose to embroider again. I embroidered the vine in black DMC #12 Perle Cotton. So much fun to do. The quilting in the border is a straight line quilted on the diagonal. I had never used perle cotton to quilt with before and boy, was it neat! I didn't worry about making the stitches tiny either, which made the work go a little faster.

Well, it's not my most favorite quilt, but one I enjoyed making. Different for me because of the colors...not really my cup of tea. I still think I should make an identical one only in a different colorway...and with a fabric print I truly love...such as roses. Maybe someday...oh, I'd better write that one down...I'd love to make it! You can visit this quilt in my etsy shop.....it's for sale. But, if I make the rose one...gosh...I think I might have to keep that one. I thought about selling this one for quite a while...I do love all that black embroidery!

Something "new"...made like something "old." A quilt. Just love making them. Pat

**I notice the color on these photographs isn't "true." The one of the whole quilt is the most accurate. The others look washed out.....I don't know why...just life, I suppose.