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Finished cuddle quilt 34" x 58"
and strip pieced top (left). |
You've heard the phrase, "It takes a village." I remind myself of this when I struggle to carve out time to contribute to my quilt guild's Cuddle Quilt community service project. I realize this project is a group effort, but I want to do my part, too.
Due to a deadline-driven committee meeting for the quilt
exhibit at the Tennessee Aquarium for Chattanooga QuiltWeek, my friend, Vista, and I were regrettably unable to arrive in time to participate in our guild's annual Cuddle Quilt (CQ) workshop. This workshop is held one Saturday a year for guild members to get together and crank out charity quilts. It's a relaxing, social and productive day and we make phenomenal headway toward our cuddle quilt goal.
Vista and I arrived at the workshop just in time to help pack up the supplies and clean up the kitchen. However, I was able to pick up a stack of precut pieces that our workshop coordinator had prepared (thank you, Sherry!). So, with an impending guild meeting tomorrow evening, I felt the momentum and inspiration from my local guild community to put pedal to the metal and whip up a quilt top and finish quilting an in-progress lap quilt.
This little strippy quilt top was made last year. It has accompanied me to several Free-motion quilting demonstrations, so it has a variety of stitch patterns on it.
Loop-d-loops...
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| Free-motion quilting: loops. |
swirls and bubbles...
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| Free-motion quilting: swirls and bubbles. |
feather and paisley shapes...
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| Free-motion quilting: paisley. |
ribbon candy...
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| Free-motion quilting: ribbon candy. |
… and spirals.
Along with practicing free-motion quilting designs, charity quilts are also great palettes to experiment with thread/fabric color schemes. Here is a turquoise 50 wt. cotton thread on a tomato red border. Zingy… wouldn't you say?
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| Free-motion quilting with a contrasting thread color. |
The binding was attached by machine.
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| Strip quilt 34" x 58" |
With all the exhibit quilts, competition quilts and class samples lately, it was a welcome change to do some free-motion quilting... just for the pure enjoyment of it! I'll turn in my strippy cuddle quilt at tomorrow's guild meeting.
