Fast Friends

I'm enjoying the Blogger's Quilt Festival a little at a time. I stepped away from the computer and sewing machine this weekend to enjoy some time with my family. We had a fabulous bike ride on the Prairie Spirit Trail on Sunday and it was great being outside even if the wind tried to blow us away!

I finished up the Downy Quilts for Kids quilt last week. I ordered a free kit online a while back and a package arrived with fabric, a pattern and instructions. The directions were clear and easy. Definitely something a beginner could tackle. Then I just added my own batting and quilted in a grid pattern. I was surprised when I realized that there wasn't binding material but the instructions gave two suggestions for how to finish the quilt. One suggestion was to turn the backing material to the front and sew that down as your binding. I tried that method and I had a hard time keeping the edges straight. It was good to try another way but I prefer a seperate binding. The other issue I had was that a traditional binding hides and secures the ends of my straight line quilting under the binding. When I just turned the back, I didn't like that it just sat there in the open on the back. It is still secured by a line of stitches but I wonder how it will wear.

The other thing I learned was that before I start quilting the sandwich, I have to release some of the pressure from my presser foot so it doesn't distort the straight lines of the seams and give a wavy appearance.

It was a fun little project to do. I named it Fast Friends because of the little mouse sitting on the kitty's tail. And it does seem like when you are in the hospital, you make friends with those around you so quickly. We said a little prayer for the child who will get this quilt before we boxed it up to mail. We've had several friends and family members with little ones who had long stays in the hospital and I thought of them too. I hope this quilt brings a bit of cheer and comfort to someone who needs it.

If you would like to request a kit, here's a link. They ask that after you finish a kit quilt that you send a couple more with your own fabric at some time. So I've happily added two more projects to my list for the year. It will be fun to work with some bright cheery fabric for these quilts.

I came across Rossie's blog quite randomly last week and I'm so glad I did. I totally agree that bloggers should share the processes of their quilt making. I have learned sooo much from other quilting bloggers that shared the ins and outs of their projects. So here's my pledge:

I, Melissa, pledge to talk more about my processes, even when I can’t quite put them in the in words or be sure I’m being totally clear.   I’m going to put my thinking and my gut feelings out there.  

I also came across Naptime Quilter and I love her discussion about modern quilts. Cheryl says "Well, I would now argue that modern quilting is actually just really, really traditional quilting." Reading her thoughts on the subject was kind of an ah-ha moment for me. I love so many antique quilts with their clean, geometric lines. But I also love so many "modern" quilts and she points out  how they really are so similar. It makes me wonder what quilters 100 years from now will think of our "modern" quilts.