Monday, March 30, 2020

Garden Party

I have a new finish - Garden Party.

Garden Party

But first the back story.
In 2015, I made this quilt - Terrace Garden and set it aside.

Terrace Garden


Some time later, Paul asked me for a quilt.
Me: For?
Paul: Chad's wife has a new baby.
Me: Boy or Girl?
Paul: Girl.
I showed him Terrace Garden and he approved.
Chad was appreciative and sent this picture.


Such cuteness!!!

And that is the best thank you for a quilter - send them a picture of the quilt with the recipient!!!



Six years passed. I met Chad and his wife at Paul's Holiday Party last December.
Chad's wife Sara thanked me for the quilt.  I smiled (trying to remember what quilt).
Me: How old is the baby? (in hopes of remembering)
Sara: She is six.
Me: Wow, that is a long time ago.
Sara: We have a younger one now.
Me: How old is the baby? (I am sounding silly now)
Sara: She is three.
Me: And she does not have a quilt?
Sara: They share.

I was horrified!!!  I immediately thought of this scene from the Devil Wears Prada movie.

Me: Share??? American girls don't share. I need to fix that.
We both laughed.

Stir Crazy

That was the beginning of Garden Party.  I chose a jelly roll (bought a while ago) from Bluprint - a jelly roll named Stir Crazy.

Pairing Light & Dark Strips


Stir Crazy???
Is it a coincidence that I am sharing at this time a quilt made with a fabric line called Stir Crazy?
May be, but then again the universe works in mysterious ways.

Blocks trying to escape the design wall


Speaking of Bluprint, did you know that you can watch all classes for free till April 9th?

Other projects and quilts took precedence and life happened. But come March, I had to drop everything and make this quilt. Paul's (and Chad's) job was coming to an end. He and Chad won't be seeing each other. And although we could coordinate a meeting to hand off the quilt, it was just easier to do it before their last day at work.


Oh Pretty


I chose to make a bigger quilt so if they wish to share - like have a picnic in the garden, it would work.

Kristi the model


I used this lovely fabric for the backing and I could picture the girls playing with the houses - limited only by their imaginations.
This is mine and this is grandma's and we can ride the horse and look at that fluffy sheep...

Backing from Hancock's Fabrics



Since the flimsy finished about 57" by 58", I had to piece the backing.  I chose the red print (wide backing) left over from Trees of Life.

Kristi with a touch goofiness :-)


Quilting is a simple zig zag stitch (following the seams), using my walking foot. I was aiming for a rapid finish.  Added a few curvy lines in the middle of blocks.

Quilting Detail

Of course I added the label.
Label added


I chose a bright blue dotted fabric for binding to contrast with all the pinks and yellows.

Brightly Blue

Sunshine :-)

Here are a few more pictures of Garden Party.

My favorite picture

Rock Star :-D

Labelled

Happy Finish

So inviting...


Chad sent another picture.  Love the Girl Power t-shirt.
It warms my heart!!!  Do you see the teddy bear trying to sneak under the covers?

Cuteness Doubled!!!

Two quilts for two sisters - Terrace Garden and Garden Party.  I will be linking with Sandra's Dreami and all my other favorite linky parties (see full list on the sidebar). But my party is incomplete without your input :-)

Stay busy, stay put and stay safe, my friends!!!


41 comments:

  1. how nice! now they each have their own quilt - that is really great and it is such a neat quilt

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  2. You’re the best! Two happy, sweet girls! Well done, Preeti!

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  3. This is just perfect in so many ways. Those big smiles are the best thank you for a quilter!

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  4. Great cheerful quilts! It's always fun to see the happy owners.

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  5. Oh, how cheerful! And obviously the recipients are tickled with the new quilt.

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  6. What a perfect quilt for a young lady. And it looks like sharing goes both ways now. I hope you and your hubby are safe and he is enjoying his time off. Are you off work, too? More time to sew, right?!

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  7. Oh what a darling quilt! (And the girls are soooo cute too!) Your fabrics choices were spot on - such a bright and happy grouping. Wouldn’t it be fun to be young again and lay on that quilt backing and play?

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  8. Great story, great quilt. I am making a similar pattern using florals. I have all the strips sewn and cut into rectangles sewing the 2 sections for the blocks. Hope to have progress on my blog soon. I always love reading the stories and people behind the quilts.

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  9. That is really an ominus way of the universe working with your fabric collection. But a beautiful quilt that will for sure be as loved as the first. Great finish! xo Melanie

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  10. That is so adorable, Preeti! It looks like a great design for a jelly roll, too.

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  11. This is a wonderful story. I am so glad the girls each have their own quilt - with lovely memories of how and why the quilts were made. I LOVE the backing of this quilt. It is so perfect for a backing.

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  12. Beautiful quilt Preeti and I love the backing. How very special to get a photo of the girls and the quilt.

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  13. Great story and lovely quilt :). I hope the job ending is not permanent - just the project is ending?

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  14. Great story! And another lovely quilt! That simple zig zag stitch is nice for quilting.

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  15. Look at those lovely smiles adoring the lovely quilt!

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  16. Good morning, Preeti! That last picture with the two girls is just the best. I love it and I love both of your quilts. Sharing a quilt is sometimes nice but other times you just want to wrap yourself in love and warmth all by yourself. You are so thoughtful to have made another quilt for the family. I hope you and Paul are staying healthy and safe. {{Hugs}} ~smile~ Roseanne

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  17. What a lovely story and thoughtful of you to make the quilt larger since the baby is not such a baby anymore. How time flies. I laughed at your statement that American girls don't share. Stay safe.

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  18. I love this story! Well I actually love ALL your stories. ;) Very pretty quilt and great binding choice, and of course the backing is just perfect for those cute little girls.

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  19. I forgot to say I love the zig-zag quilting. I think I will try this on the quilt I have ready to go. It has the look of hand quilting!

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  20. Such a fun (twin) quilt story, Preeti! The baby and the big girl photos are the best!

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  21. Oh i love it! what a bright fun quilt - and the two girls look so happy!! Hopefully Paul is not bored yet?

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  22. Getting pictures of kids with quilts is the BEST! And both the pictures are so cute! Yay for Chad & Sara sending you pictures. Of course they need two quilts, though it's good this new one is big enough to share for a picnic or maybe a fort. I love the zigzag stitching on the seams--I might steal that! :) Fun quilt, Preeti!

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  23. What a wonderful gift! A quilt for the younger sister and large enough to share and have a garden party! Babies on quilts are the best, but the sisters on a quilt is awesome! And of course, you had it done for the deadline....perfection all around.

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  24. What a cute quilt, I love the colors ♥️!

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  25. Cute quilt! Love the bits of red in it

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  26. What a beautiful, happy quilt! I love the colors and the backing, and the picture with the girls and the teddy bear sneaking in just warms my heart. Just what we need in dark times! Stay healthy, friend!

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  27. Love the colors. Gorgeous finish.

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  28. Two sweet quilts for two lucky sisters. The photos are nice, esp the last one with the two littles. Nicely done.

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  29. What a perfect quilt! Thank goodness you learned there had been a second baby; she would have felt deprived for life. Well, maybe not, but my two watched what each other got like hawks. The smiles on those sweet faces tell the story, and let you know the quilt will be loved. How will you find out if there's a third baby?

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  30. So lovely and so thoughtful to make a quilt for both girls. I can tell it will be much loved.

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  31. Lovely quilt and story to go with it! I love the thoughts of the girls playing houses with the quilt backing and yes, the cute teddy bear sneaking under or out of the quilt! Thanks so much for chasing squirrels, dropping everything to make beautiful quilts and for linking up.

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  32. Both quilts are wondeful, and as always I love how to tell the story ;))

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  33. Hooray for a lovely Little Sister quilt!! (And you ROCKED the story telling, too.)

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  34. In this crazy time I have the blessing of my 4 young grandchildren staying here. I come home from work to Quilts all over the floor. It makes my heart smile to see them getting so much love. The third in line has his own quilt, but appropriated one I gave to his daddy. It’s now his blankie. My oldest grandson asked for a “sharkie” quilt, so of course a new project started.

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  35. That is such a bright and happy quilt. It's the perfect size for two snuggling girls. I love the teddy bear sticking out of the bottom. I always enjoy when you share the info about who, what, and where your quilts go.

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  36. What a wonderful happy quilt for those beautiful girls. Thanks for sharing with Oh Scrap!

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  37. It's a very pretty quilt. Looks like they both are enjoying cuddling under the same quilt even if they each have their own. Congrats on a very fun finish.

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  38. What a cute post! You have a nice sense of humor.

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  39. I hope that all is well with Paul's and Chad's jobs -- not sure whether the coming-to-an-end was an anticipated end to a contract assignment or whether they are among the millions of workers who are furloughed or dismissed due to the pandemic's economic impact? My husband just found out his company is requiring everyone to take a week of "MULA" -- Mandatory Unpaid Leave of Absence. This makes me very nervous, because for now they are only taking away one week's pay, but all of the forecasts are estimating this mess will linger for months...

    In any event, THANK YOU for reminding me of that scene in Devil Wears Prada. That was FABULOUS and a much-needed laugh! I think it's wonderful that you made a new quilt for the little one, and the way you added red to the backing on BOTH sides really gives it a nicely balanced, intentional look -- like you deliberately added side borders to your backing. Love all of it. Sending you a big hug!

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  40. Lovely quilt. Did you make all those?
    By the way, I am new in blogging and I hope you can support me. Just recently, I made a challenge to myself to visit at least 10 blogs for the next 21 days. As I visit blogs, I will leave comment and put your link on my blog too. Hope you can visit my blog too.

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  41. Love it and enjoy your writing style ! I have a Jelly Roll sitting in my stash for some now and this might be just the thing to whip something up quick. Never seen the zig zac quilting idea before either. Thanks for sharing your creativity ! Minette in Australia

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