One of my first big sewing projects was a patchwork quilt approximately 18yrs ago, I can’t remember what got me interested or why I decided to give it a go but I did. The girls and I were chatting about it at the weekend and as I thought about it and realised that I had made quite a few. It was a sunny day (we seem to be having lots of them – yippee!) so we got some of them out into the garden and took some photo’s.
I couldn’t quite bring myself to photograph the first one I did, we still have it but it’s not great, I used much too thick a wadding, let me just say they’ve got better over time!
First up is a bit of a cheat, long, long ago before I knew him Tobi had a patchwork shirt from GAP, it didn’t get thrown away and I don’t remember him wearing it but at some point he must have offered it up to me. So I cut it up salvaging as much as I could of it and adding a few more pieces in where necessary. As I was using the fabric from a shirt it’s not a big quilt more cot/baby size in fact I remember my eldest daughter using in her pushchair before I got round to making her a proper fitted cosy toes.
It is patchwork on both sides which I think is more unusual, I’ve certainly only used one piece of fabric on the back of the other quilts I’ve made, I’ve seen some amazing quilts and some of them have a main fabric for the back but with a strip of fabric from the front and it looks great, so maybe for my next one…
This is one of my favourites, but I think I might find myself saying that about each one I show you! The fabric is really soft, I’ve no idea how often Tobi wore the shirt, it’s by no means threadbare but it has got a soft worn feel to it. I’ve not quilted this one, I can’t remember if there was a reason not to, but it’s quite small so it doesn’t seem to matter a great deal but I guess it would change the look of it if it was (no, I’m not going to remove the binding and quilt it now!). This quilt now lives in the girls bedroom and gets used for dollies, a bed curtain for the bottom bunk bed or for screwing up in the corner of the room! It’s a good job I’m not precious about it.
I’ve not labelled the quilts that I’ve made but just this week read an interesting article here on the Etsy blog about quilt labels and how to make one, so I think I’ll definitely be having a more serious think about adding them to the quilts I’ve made once I’ve designed my own label! I think I can probably work out when I finished each quilt, which in some cases is years after I started them!
As you might guess from the title my plan is to write a series of these posts so check back soon for part 2!
ah, I did enjoy wearing that shirt. A lot. I think it was one of my first GAP purchases, probably about 19 years ago now. I had this fab pair of white jeans from the same period, but I recall dying them orange after a while – white was (and still is) pretty impractical!
God I wish I could master patchwork, lovely post and even lovelier items. x
Hi Mary
It is great that you have kept your quilts, even when they were not up to your standards. I have done the same, even with little knitted swatches. I love going back at them and remembering how proud I was when I first learn to do it, of course they are far from being perfect but you have to start somewhere!
Take care xx