Friday, March 31, 2017

A quilt made of happiness

Hi everyone!  How was your week?  Mine was very full, as usual, and full of lots of noise, hammering, and the descent of the pollen monster.  I've had a headache for days.  But it was still a pretty good week, with the end of some major home projects in sight.

I hope you're all in the mood for some happiness today, because I have a very happy finish to share!  You may recall that our daughter got married a year ago--really, it's been a year!  Hard to believe.  For their wedding present, I made them a quilt! (Of course.)  After hundreds of hours of work, I was finally able to give it to them, so now I get to show it to you!


Yahoo!  I think it turned out great!

They loved the quilt and were willing to hold it up, but wanted to be cropped out!

This is the Eureka quilt, made from a pattern by Jackie Robinson at Animas Quilts.  The pattern is amazingly good, with very clear directions and very logical construction.  It's broken into easy steps and goes together well.  However!  The blocks have so many pieces that it took forever to make them.  After making the "A" blocks, I kept track of time for making the "B" blocks.  I stopped counting at 30 hours for those blocks alone.  FYI, the blocks are different configurations from A through I.  So, yep, lots of hours! 


I think this was totally worth the time, though!  And even though the pattern is great, I still managed to mess up.  See the center blocks bordered by those pretty dark blue triangles?  The blocks there are supposed to be arranged to make a star.  I somehow turned the blocks so that there is no star.  I didn't realize this until after it was quilted, of course.  I felt bad for a little while, but I think I'm over it.  I'm calling mine a "variation."

Another thing adding to the hours in this quilt was a poor color choice at the beginning, which meant a lot of ripping to change things.  You can read about that HERE.  I think it worked out for the better, though!  Sometimes time spent ripping is time well spent.


The wedding quilt was quilted by Alycia of Alycia Quilts, and she did an amazing job.  I told her it was a wedding quilt and that I wanted it to be special, and she really made it that way.  She must have spent forever on this, and it turned out so great.  Thanks Alycia!  (I bet she would be willing to quilt one for you, too!)


This quilt is about 87 by 105, which the pattern calls a full/queen.  In reality, I think this will fit even a king bed if it's turned sideways.  I think a king size would actually be enormous and really too big.  I used a cotton/wool blend batting that is fairly thin and light.  The top itself was very heavy because of all the seams, and wool is always nice and warm in addition to being light. 

Overall, this quilt just screams happiness, and I hope the kids enjoy it for many, many years. Even with all the hours in this quilt, I would make it again. Smaller, and in different colors. And with an actual star in the center. I'd like to make one for myself in pink and green, maybe with a black accent.  Let's put that on the "someday" list, because I have other things to do right now!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!  I have fun weekend plans--a trip to the AQS quilt show in Lancaster, Pa! I'm meeting up with a friend there and I'm sure it will be a great time.  May not be great for my pocketbook, but I know I'll have fun!


Sharing at Confessions of a  Fabric Addict, Finished or Not Friday, and crazymomquilts.

28 comments:

KaHolly said...

Oh. My. Goodness! If this quilt doesn't scream love, nothing does. It's absolutely gorgeous and I'm quite certain they will be over the moon to receive it and cherish it for years to come. Color choice at the very beginning of planning is always a big challenge for me! Great job! XO

Vicki in MN said...

A labor of love for sure and oh so gorgeous!

barbtaz said...

What a treasure! It's beautiful! My second daughter recently got engaged so I'll be starting another wedding quilt soon :-)

Alison V. said...

This is absolutely beautiful! This will be treasured for years to come. :)

Tish Stemple said...

This is absolutely beautiful! Well worth all the time you spent on it. I am sure it will be cherished and loved for a very very long time.

Shauna said...

Wow that is stunning!!!!!

Jen said...

Gorgeous finish! You can tell that lots of time, hard work, and love went into this quilt! It is a treasure for sure. Great job!

time4stitchn said...

Congratulations on your finish! It is absolutely beautiful! And I do like your color choices,too.

Jenny said...

Congratulations - that was a huge job!! It looks stunning, and I love the quilting too.

Gemini Jen NZ said...

That is stunning and I am sure it will be treasured for decades to come.

grammajudyb said...

It is wonderful! Variation is unique, I love it. You did an amazing job.

PugMom said...

Looks great Mari! The colors are gorgeous!

Cheryl said...

Stunning quilt! What a great gift for the new couple.

Danice G said...

Yes, what a wonderful gift. The quilt is gorgeous :)

Jo said...

Enjoy your catch up with the friend. Have a great shopping day... haha.....
This quilt is absolutely stunning. You should be so proud of yourself..

Chopin - A Passionate Quilter said...

A Masterpiece! Very unique. I think I would have given up counting the hours too!
Time to have a relaxing visit to the quilt store for your next project! You deserve it!

Alycia~Quiltygirl said...

It is a beautiful quilt - wow! It had to be time consuming - everything was just so perfect on it!!

Bernie Kringel said...

Oh my gosh Mari, this is stunning. You have made an heirloom quilt and I bet your kids will treasure this. What an undertaking. - truly a gift of love.

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

Nice quilt!

gayle said...

It's absolutely beautiful! (I'll have to go look at the original with the star, because I can't imagine this pattern looking any better than yours.)

Lolsews said...

That quilt is amazing! I love the colors (yes to the yellow!) and OMG how much time you put into that! I am in awe of you for making such a huge complex quilt.

dq said...

This is an amazing finish! I should know because I am making my second quilt in this same pattern. It is pretty intense but oh so beautiful!

Kate said...

Absolutely gorgeous! Definitely worth all the effort. I hope you got major Mom points for that finish.

Myra @ Busy Hands Quilts said...

Wow, that is loads of work, but all worth it as it turned out spectacular!

Preeti said...

Wow, what can I say that has not already been said about this happiness quilt? It is a labor of love and it shows. I am sure it will be a source of joy and comfort for years to come.
Hugs,
Preeti.

JanineMarie said...

Love, love, love. Not having known how the center was supposed to look, I think it is wonderful as it is. My favorite part is how the little turquoise squares and rectangles give the illusion of scallops. I'm sure your kids were thrilled (and they'll have lots of sweet dreams). I'm looking forward to hearing about your trip to Lancaster. I bet you had a blast.

Millie said...

That is sixteen kinds of spectacular! I love it. Congratulations.

Kim said...

WOW! This is my kind of color combo. This quilt is so pretty and love the quilting too.