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I finally finished the baby quilt I was working on for my new niece. Baby Sophia was born 16th September and though this gift has been a little later than planned it should be with her today. She was a water baby, delivered in a birthing pool which makes mermaids bubbles and fishes even more appropriate! For a first time mummy that is quite a feat, well done to Gemma her lovely mummy. When I started this project I didn't even know if she was going to be a boy or a girl so I was taking a bit of a gamble with this quilt. Once she arrived, she inspired the quilting that followed. This quilt started with a pattern by Deb of Make do and Mend Quilts (she sells v. nice quilt kits too) in Sewhip magazine and evolved. I like to do things that way, a bit of structure with the freedom to go off at a tangent. I used my pieced circles tutorial but the tiniest circles within circles had to go in by hand not machine.
I finally finished the baby quilt I was working on for my new niece. Baby Sophia was born 16th September and though this gift has been a little later than planned it should be with her today. She was a water baby, delivered in a birthing pool which makes mermaids bubbles and fishes even more appropriate! For a first time mummy that is quite a feat, well done to Gemma her lovely mummy. When I started this project I didn't even know if she was going to be a boy or a girl so I was taking a bit of a gamble with this quilt. Once she arrived, she inspired the quilting that followed. This quilt started with a pattern by Deb of Make do and Mend Quilts (she sells v. nice quilt kits too) in Sewhip magazine and evolved. I like to do things that way, a bit of structure with the freedom to go off at a tangent. I used my pieced circles tutorial but the tiniest circles within circles had to go in by hand not machine.
Initially I was going to hand quilt this with lots of circles and I did do some in blue, rust and cream. I loved their soft running stitches look but it was too much of a strain and I opted for some machine circles as well. Then a line T S Elliot's poem ,The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock came to me- "I have heard the mermaid's singing, each to each..". You can read it here it has to be one of my favourite poems. British actor and comedian Robert Webb reads a bit here and expresses many people's connection with it. It is a legacy poem, one to pass on and share.
Free motions coral and seaweed shapes link the words and I also wrote Sophia's name and birthdate in the central circles too
Free motion letters do require a little care spelling wise, nearly wrote memaids then suddenly realised!
Sorry for so many pics but I won't get to see it very often and I want to remember what I've done!
Binding was pieced using scraps I won a while ago in a Handmade by Alissa giveaway. I have a love hate relationship with quilt making. I love piecing, designing, tweaking but I hate the quilting process itself, yet it is worth it. Nothing beats the satisfaction of a quilt finished.
I do love a folded quilt, it looks inviting and ready to snuggle. For Sophia x
Wow Kerry that free motion quilted writing is excellent.
ReplyDeleteHi Kerry, this is really beautifull! love the combination of the fabric and the poem.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lot of work, and such a Lovely result!
I love it! I am glad you showed some close-ups of the quilted writing and your pieced circles. It is such a wonderful way to use this fabric and to celebrate Sophia!
ReplyDeleteKerry, you did a smash up job!!! it is an awesome quilt and I love the theme, the colors the circles and the free motion quilting. That quilt will be around forever!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love everything about this quilt -- combo of free-motion and hand quilting, circular designs for water, the free-motion words (amazing!),circles on circles, the pieced binding, and those are just a few of the things I like. The feeling it all gives me is wonderful! This is one of a kind, you should be proud. Your niece will cherish it for a lifetime!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!! I love how you quilted those words... You should be really proud!
ReplyDeletethank you all! Severien, there is 'no reply' on your profile so I can't email you, but yes I am very proud!
ReplyDeleteKerry, this is fantastic!
ReplyDeleteI am in total awe, what a wonderful quilt, truly a thing to treasure. I do love the mermaid fabric too, just gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness- that quilting is amazing! It totally makes the quilt! The fabric alone is superb, but the quilting- OH MY!! Stunning job!
ReplyDeleteIn a word: gorgeous! I wish I had your mad free motion quilting skills.
ReplyDeleteSo incredibly cute!
ReplyDeletewow! that is one beautiful quilt. your niece is a very lucky girl. i love how you quilted words in, i've not actually seen that done before with a machine. bravo!
ReplyDeleteso stunning! amazing!! ♥
ReplyDeleteWow, just scrolling through your blog and saw these additional pics. Amazing quilting work with the words. Just love it.
ReplyDeletethank you Annie, it was a lucky design that came together just when I needed it too!
ReplyDeleteJust stunning. This is an awesome idea to make circles of this fabric! I need to swap a bit more of Mendocino before I start! Thanks for sharing your circle technique.
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