Friday, December 16, 2011

Nearly two years in the making...

Seriously, this is the third quilt I ever started, and I'm just finally finishing it.  Back when I first started sewing, I decided that I wanted to make a queen-sized quilt for my bedroom and I picked out a boatload of blue fabrics to make a nine-patch with.  I cut all of them up and started sewing.  Problem is that my 1/4" seam was far from consistent at the time.  I made nearly 60 blocks before I decided I was so over it, and it became my longest standing WIP, though I completely forgot about it until my son stumbled on the blocks when we were cleaning up my sewing room a few weeks back.  I realized that I could stitch up the blocks for a holiday gift, but it took me a while to get started.  Thanks to an email from Katie about our lingering WIPs, I finally got started and I'm proud to report that I have now finished:)

My munchkin sorting through my UFO pile

This quilt is far from perfect, but there was a lot of effort put forth in those blocks and a lot of heart.  I'll be giving this quilt to a dear friend of the family for the holidays and I think he'll really appreciate it.

Nine-patch quilt - finished! 

I used a DS Quilts print for the binding, after waffling over what color I ought to use for binding.  I had thought about adding another color to the mix, for some contrast, but ultimately I decided the black in this print would create the kind of contrast I was after.



This is the very last Christmas gift on my to-make list, so I'll be bringing Betsy 2.0 to the shop today for a thorough cleaning.  She deserves it after all the quilts she's assembled this year.  That does mean I'll be without my machine for at least the next week, if not two weeks, but I'm okay with that this time of year.  There's holiday cookies to bake, a Birdie Stitches block to embroider, fabric to iron and cut for my next project, and a zillion presents to wrap.  Trust me, I will keep busy.  :)

Nine-patch - attempted artsy shot

Quilt Stats:
Name: Neverending Nine Patch
Size: 60" x 70"
Fabrics: Boatloads of various blues, including 12 Days of Christmas, Modern Meadow, Castle Peeps, Whimsy, Nigella, Daisy Chain, Lotus and way more! 
Quilting: Machine-quilted with white thread in a meandering stipple
Binding: Machine-bound by me
Pattern: Basic nine-patch blocks, drafted by me

Speaking of busy, I do plan to share a family cookie recipe or two next week, so stay tuned for that as well as my birthday celebration on Monday!  I hope you're having a wonderful holiday season so far!

35 comments:

  1. what a lovely quilt! how nice to finish one that has been in the works for so long.

    a holiday cleaning for a sewing machine is a great idea. since i won't have time to sew, i should probably take mine in too. i am sure it's FULL of dust!

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  2. What a great finish - good for you! I just love all those blues!! Have fun as you do all the Christmasy stuff!

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  3. Love it, Elizabeth!
    What soothing, calming colors for a bedroom quilt.
    And I can't believe that you're done sewing for Chrismas -- wow, I'm impressed!

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  4. Hurray for finished WIPs. That's actually a fabulous 9-patch! So simple but such great fabrics. I'm sure it will be a treasured gift.

    Enjoy your non-machine time and Happy Birthday early if I miss on Monday. I may be in full-on Holiday panic at that point :)

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  5. Elizabeth, there are a lot of blue color combinations in the quilter's world, but yours is in my humble opinion one of the best! The fabrics play so well together, glad you finished it!

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  6. I love all those blues. It came out so nice. Way to finish up that WIP. My goal for the beginning of next year is to finish all my projects in process as well. Have a wonderful Christmas!

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  7. It looks great! What a lovely gift! You are so brave to give up your machine!!! I think I need to get mine serviced soon... but I don't know when I'll be able to do without! I am just getting started on Christmas gifts.. how awful is that?! ;) And then there are bee blocks and swaps, and the list goes on. ;)

    Hope you have a very Merry Christmas! :)

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  8. It is a great quilt! And kudos for a WIP finish!

    Merry Christmas Elizabeth!

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  9. What a beautiful quilt. They are not imperfections it is character built in and you will probably be the only one to notice them.

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  10. Wow! That is so pretty! And you must feel a huge weight has lifted now that it's finished!

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  11. You did it!!! I'm so impressed. It looks great, I like it without sashing.

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  12. Its beautiful Elizabeth! You even picked really nice modern fabrics too! My first quilt was waaaaaaaay worse than this.

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  13. Hi Elisabeth! I have to say that your blue quilt is one of my favourites! I like so much different blue colours and the nine patch pattern is 'for ever' good! If it was only blues it would be could but those small greens around makes it perfect!
    xxx Teje

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  14. Wonderful! I bet it feels so good to finish something that has been waiting so long... I've got one that is over 11 years old: http://jmday.com/?p=394 I'm still hacking away at it though. :)

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  15. Great choice on the binding! I think that small-scale print works really well. I, too, may have an abandoned quilt top in my sewing room from so long ago. I think I might whip it out the next time our guild does a charity challenge, and everyone will think I finished my quilt super-quick!

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  16. Hooray! What a satisfying finish. I know your friend will love this quilt!

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  17. Wonderful quilt. I love all the colors you used. It's going to make one fabulous Christmas present.

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  18. Maybe far from perfect in your mind, but it's lovely just the same!! I'm sure that whoever receives it will love it.

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  19. Yea for finishing the neverending nine patch!! Cute name, btw!! Looks awewsome!! I love all those blues!

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  20. awesome quilt, love those blues!! congrats on finally finishing it, it does feel good, doesn´t it?!

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  21. Great quilt! I think it so fun to look back on our beginning projects and really see how far we've come. Looks great!!

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  22. It looks great, and I'm sure your friend won't notice any imperfections, but hey, who knew you could Stumble Upon tihngs in real life ;o)

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  23. Well, I think it's absolutely gorgeous! Can I ask about the binding....for doing it on the machine, it looks so perfect, how wide were your strips? and what is your process? I need to bind a quilt asap...and I planned to hand stitch it, but thought I'd ask you first.

    Merry Christmas!

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  24. It's a lovely quilt and I love the mix of fabrics!

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  25. Fabulous, Elizabeth! That must be such a great feeling to finally be done with it, too. I'll admit to not loving blues, but this quilt has me rethinking that. You've chosen some excellent combinations! I'm sure your friend will be thrilled to receive it!

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  26. Great job! I made a list of WIP.. since my online reporting of such is a little weak, and need to get busy!

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  27. oh my gosh - i'm just about to post a similar story! i put a quilt away for a really long time. just got it out and finished it a couple of days ago (but haven't taken pictures yet). it was going to be for my youngest daughter, but i'm giving to a friend for her baby. :) this quilt looks awesome! love the mix of fabrics.

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  28. It's gorgeous and I love the choice of binding! :) I love all the modern fabrics and the mix of blues.

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  29. It's beautiful! All the blues work so well together, i love it.

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  30. A great finish. Love how the blues comes together. And the binding is perfect :)

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  31. I am sure it will be much appreciated. Good on you.

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  32. Beautiful, Elizabeth! I am about to christen 2012 the Year of the UFO/Getting Sh!t Done, and you've inspired me. Though I admit my longest-standing UFO is a wee bit older than 2 years.

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  33. Very nice quilt. Love the colors. Thanks for sharing.

    @pril
    KoolBeenz-blog.blogspot.com

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  34. I've been away (from blogging) for awhile and getting caught up! I love the blues, it's such a beautiful quilt. I'm sure the recipient loved it! Congratulations on finishing it, I know that had to be a great feeling. In 2010 my LQS sponsored a UFO challenge and I was able to get a lot of unfinished projects done. Now I have a new list of WIPs to finish!

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Thank you for leaving a comment for me! I appreciate each and every one of them and try to respond when time allows. Your comments totally brighten my day :)


Welcome! I'm Elizabeth, mom to a mood teen boy and a chatty six-year-old girl and I sew for my sanity. Let's get to quilting, shall we?
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