My First Quilt

My quilting hobby started sometime oh, I'd say about 3 years ago. I remember sitting on the couch just days after my ex-husband became my ex-husband thinking that my world was ending. I was so scared to become the old lady with cats that is old and lonely and smells funny. Get real Kristy! I was 28 and I don't even like cats. But I digress. Naturally, stress and gloom and doom can be fixed any day with a trip to Hobby Lobby. I remember calling my mom from the fabric section and asking her how much fabric it takes to make a quilt. I didn't know there was so much math involved so I think I just bought 4 yards of each fabric to be safe. I go to her house to recruit help from the master quilter (believe it or not, quilting is her passion, not rewiring or drywalling my house!) Because I was too afraid to get all fancy and complicated, I used this Nautica Savannah quilt as my inspiration.



I cut my fabric into 12" squares that same day. I was on fire for quilting. I laid them out in the floor how I wanted them and started sewing my rows together. I think I got 3 rows sewn together then quit. There it sat for years a long time. Every now and then I would pick it up and sew a row or 2 together. I think my mom got tired of looking at it because I think she actually sewed my rows together for me.

Then one day I am at her house and she tells me to come downstairs and we are going to machine quilt my quilt together. My mom tried to give me the tutorial on working her long arm quilter but I think I was so excited to see it actually getting done with every pass that I'm not sure I could do it again without her help.



In about 2 hours, it was finished... or so I thought. Now you have to bind it-- by hand. Spew! That was so not fun to me. My threads would break. They would get knotted up. They would drive me crazy so I may have to subcontract that out on my next ones.

We were over again yesterday so I picked my quilt up and started binding again. Before long I could see my starting point in the distance so I had to keep going. I finished it in no time.

After washing it with Orvis Paste (or something that sounds like that) and a whole lot of Snuggle, it came out of the dryer smelling heavenly, warm, cute and finished! Hallelujah! It only took me 3 years!



Look at all the hand binding. All 340" of it.


I think I might like the back as much as the front.


I've already started one like this one from Moda Bake Shop. It's made with pink, red and brown polka dot fabric. The top of it is about 3/4 of the way done and it's my favorite ever.


I also started this houndstooth quilt from V & Co.


My goal is to get all of them finished within 3 years too! I don't want to set my goals too high!

I have so many ideas I want to try. I'm thinking I'm going to try the Pottery Barn patchwork for my little guy next and the hubs has ordered a "masculine" flannel quilt too. I better get to sewing. Until next time...