Saturday, August 30, 2008

Irish Chain Quilt for a Wee One


Just in the nick of time, this week I finished this hand-sewn single Irish chain quilt for a beautiful little girl who arrived yesterday. Her mom is a friend of my daughter and me. When I started the quilt I didn't know if the baby would be a girl or a boy, but the mother's favorite color is blue, so I chose a blue and white palette. I wanted a light blue toile for the large squares and was pleased as punch to find a light blue toile with scenes from Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit. I figured that the dotted swiss would also be light enough to make it suitable for a girl.

I have the top hand-pieced for a child's quilt, but this is the first quilting I have done. The prospect scared me so much that I did not use a hoop. Somehow I felt that trying to use a new contraption would make the project so daunting, I would not be able to do it at all. So this was kind of experimentation, and the next time I feel I will be relaxed enough to try a hoop. There are really a lot of imperfections in the quilting, but I learned a lot.


I quilted the larger blocks with an apple pattern from Irish Chain Quilts: Single, Double, and Triple by Sharon Cerny Ogden.

I love the Irish chain pattern. For a beginner, it is nice and simple, and I love the lattice look of it across a bed. I have collected the fabric for a yellow-orange flower triple Irish chain, which is the next quilt I would like to piece. But before that, I think I better quilt the other top that I have pieced and before that...Christmas is on its way like a high-speed train!!!

4 comments:

  1. What a very special baby gift.

    Donna

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  2. What a lovely quilt! Lucky baby! ;-) Thanks for stopping by my blog and your kind words. I'm feeling much better and am really happy about that.

    Have a good one,
    Paz

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  3. Thanks so much for your comments. I have a lot to improve upon though!

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  4. I understand that in the 19th century, pink was the chosen color for baby boys and blue for baby girls (although I do not have the historical reference on this). In any case, a hand-made quilt is such an act of love for a new-born bundle of joy, I am sure the parents cherish it whatever the color, and it is on its way to becoming a family heirloom.
    Christina

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