Wednesday, June 20, 2018

A really big sigh of relief


I finally finished the Chintz quilt.  I pieced this quilt in 2011 and started hand quilting it last December.  I've been working on this while also working on the Roseville Quilt and sewing along with the Sweet Land of Liberty Quilt.  I'm afraid this quilt didn't get as much attention as the other two or it would have been completed long ago.  It got a little boring quilting the same shapes over and over.


The bright afternoon sun washed the color out a bit.


It is 87" square.  Here is is upon my long grass.  It makes the borders wave.  Maybe they are waving at you - thanks for coming.




I was going to hand quilt a small cable in the burgundy outer border and I found just exactly the right template but it looks fine and I want to be done.  The coral/peach colored binding matches really well but it looks a little odd in the pictures. It is the same fabric I used for the cornerstones.  I only had two pieces that were big enough to use as binding.  The other one was a light background (you can see it in the flying geese units).  The coral/peach fabric looked best.



The extensive quilting really shows up in the picture above.  I used wool batting.  It was very easy to hand quilt and the quilt itself is a lot lighter than one with polyester or cotton batting.  My only concern at this point is to make sure no moths get to it.  I think I'll store it away with bay leaves or lavender or something. . .

The quilt is only my 2nd finish for the year.   You might think I wasn't doing much but I'm doing hand work constantly.  It all adds up eventually I guess.


Bryce Canyon


We took a trip to Arizona a week or so ago.  It's the first time in 45 years we have taken a vacation without any kids (unless you count the 18 mos. we spent in Wisconsin on our mission).

Grand Canyon


We were at the canyon at mid-day so the pictures are a bit washed out.


Grand Canyon Rapids



We also visited Walnut Canyon and some cliff dwellings.  We were even able to climb through a few.

You can see where the upper part broke off due to water getting in cracks and freezing and thawing.

The rooms were inter-connected.

This picture was taken so you could see how high the ceilings are.  I'm 5' 1".



Then we had our grandchildren from Florida come and stay for a week.  They were so fun but I'm still catching up on my energy level -whew!

Hope you're having a great summer,
Robin

BTW my hike out of Walnut Canyon was not a pretty one.  My legs felt like rubber................


7 comments:

Nancy said...

This quilt is gorgeous, Robin. I love those little geese in the sashing and the border and binding look great, too. I think it takes a lot of persistence and determination to finish a quilt one has grown tired of. But it's done and now you can enjoy it! You might chuckle when you hear that tobacco is a moth deterrent along with lavender, rosemary, and cedar. I've heard great things about quilting with a wool batting but, like you, I'm concerned about moths. They love those dark places and what could be darker than wool between two layers of fabric! I hope whatever you use works. One of these days I'll use wool.

Those are great photos from your trip. You have to wonder about the people who lived in the dwellings that are just over 5' high! Short or stooped shoulders? We have yet to take a vacation without children (though our children have been grown for a number of years) but we often take "vacations" to visit them! And it takes us a few days or a week to recover from a few days with our 6-, 4-, and 2-year-old grandchildren. It's a great was and reason to be tired, though.

Karen said...

The blue and red floral print is so pretty. A pretty shade of blue.

audrey said...

Great to see your finish! So lovely. It does get tedious to stitch the same things over and over, but as you say, a little bit at a time adds up! The texture is wonderful.:)

Chookyblue...... said...

Lovely quilt..... Great to have it finished.......
Love the grand canyon.....one day I want to go there......

Kaja said...

Congratulations! A really lovely finish. You got it done, little by little, and nothing beats the look of hand quilting for me.

O'Quilts said...

My goodness Robin...Your quilts are lovely. I grew up in Arizona..Phoenix..the whole state is wonderful. Thank you for your encouragement on my post on our improv blog.xo

Deb from Frugal Little Bungalow said...

Beautiful hand quilting finish! :) Nothing can compare to hand quilting : )

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