Quilt #1:
The 1st quilt I made for my oldest and I decided to make it instead of buy it because I wanted to be able to wash it. It doesn't matter where you buy your bed spreads these days, they just aren't made to be washed, to last or to really be used. I guess it is pretty genius in the business world because then we are just forced to buy more... however in the sustainable, practical and frugal world... it is just ridiculous.
Traditionally, early quilting was stuffed with flour sacks and materials that were to be thrown away and instead were reused and up-cycled. This is the direction that I wanted to go. At least if I stuffed my own quilts, I would know what was inside and I would KNOW that whatever was in there wouldn't melt in the washer or the dryer. So I dug out all of the dingy, flannel and brushed cotton sheets that I have accumulated and refused to use and stuffed the quilts with those. They are light enough for the summer and heavy enough in the winter.
My Oldest son's favorite colors are orange and yellow and when his room needed to be repainted, he told me he wanted the walls orange... I decided on a compromise (painting only one wall):
This is right about the time when Anna Maria Horner came out with this book and I loved how she pieces the cover quilt together (hanging on the edge of the crib).
It wasn't the construction of the quilt, it was the color choices she made with the fabric. With this in mind I started accumulating little bits of fabric here and there to piece together a simple "scrap" quilt. I did only a little hand quilting with embroidery floss (a la Anna Maria Horner) for the utility of it. I used 100% cotton sheets for the backing and the binding and this is how it turned out.
The best part is that my oldest LOVES his quilt... still... to this day!!! I think he was the most excited to see how his brother's turned out than anyone.
Quilt #2:
I had a lot of scraps from the 1st quilt and I wanted the 2nd one to "go with" the 1st one but not be too matchy matchy. Each of my boys have their own room with their own twin size bed, but the beds are bunk beds in case they ever want to share a room. So the quilts needed to match but I wanted each to reflect their own personality.
So, I started collecting different fabrics for the 2nd quilt with my youngest in mind. Once I felt that I had a good mix, I decided on lay out that I also wanted to be slightly different. This one is still a "scrap quilt" but I decided to keep the scraps in the center and I cut apart a 100% cotton sheet to make the green edges. I also bound the quilt with bias tape that I made from a 100% cotton sheet that I cut apart and I used a flat 100% cotton sheet for the backing. I did a little more hand quilting with this one, I outlined the edge of the scraps on the solid fabric with matching embroidery thread.
I love how this turned out and I am glad that I got it done before winter arrived. Now I have my mind set on a King size quilt for my bed.... I think that might take me a little longer to complete :-) Happy Quilting.
