Friday, August 15, 2008

Finished By Friday!


"Finished by Friday" will never be a regular feature of this blog, but on this, the thirty third Friday of the year, I finished something! [Drum roll please.] A quilt for my granddaughter's upcoming sixth birthday. Of course it wasn't a one woman project. When friends heard I was making a hexagon quilt they generously scoured their stashes for suitable fabrics. And all you quilting bloggers pitched in with border advice. Thanks especially to Birdy who had a brilliant plan! See how well I follow orders when I agree with them? And Don, the quilterman, has to get some of the credit, since the goal was her sixth birthday, not her tenth.

But it's done, and, for a wonder, in plenty of time. So I am one happy little bunny, as my silent sister is fond of saying.

May I draw your attention to the backing fabric?




A fortuitous find, since S is learning to read, and can put in a little practice on her quilt now. Not least of this fabric's charms was its 50% off sale price!

I get almost as much fun out of my "photo shoots" when I finish a quilt as I do out of the making. But it has been soggy here for the last few weeks. As I squelched out to the trees, being careful to hold the quilt well up off the wet and muddy ground, and inching my way carefully among various growing things so they would not release a shower of leaf-suspended droplets onto my head, my eyes fell on a new batch of passion flowers. I wish I could send one to S with her quilt.



It blends so nicely with all that purple and pink! Since Marlene's recent comment about the Fibonacci sequence I've been looking at flowers with even more fascination than usual. Amazing to think that the basis of so many things of beauty is mathematical....when, for a large part of my life I thought mathematics was dry and dull, a necessary evil. Just goes to show you're never too old to change your mind..... a concept I could maybe introduce to my father-in-law.......but that's a whole 'nother story!

There's a down side to this finishing business. I lose myself in creative quilting projects as protection against the "slings and arrows".......So now what will I do? Lalalalalalala........ I think I'll be a good girl and work on my oft-mentioned hand piecing......If I persevere I should be good for another "Finished by Friday" by, say, the fiftieth Friday of the year?

Watch this space.

But don't forget to breathe.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

The quilt looks amazing photographed in its natural habitat! Your border choices are just right. I'm sure that your granddaughter will love it.

Birdydownunder said...

Its perfect well done Molly. Now don't you enjoy being able to show off your 'finished' projects. birdie eagerly awaiting the next photo shoot:)

StitchinByTheLake said...

You crack me up Molly! I love the quilt and the borders are perfect - really set it off. And I just bet you could finish that hand piecing project soon...if you wanted to. blessings, marlene

Ali Honey said...

Ah The finish was fabulous! The borders make it a whole different quilt.( she'll love it ) I love the backing fabric and one I spied on the front with a flying pig!

We are extremely slushy underfoot too. Quite fed up with rain almost every day; we're not getting enough time to do our outdoor jobs ( garden or orchard ).

Wonderful patterns in nature there in the midst of your passionflower.

thailandchani said...

It is really beautiful! I envy your ability to create something like that :)

raining sheep said...

So that is a fabulous quilt; I am green with envy and wish I was your grand-daughter. I came to your blog through Thimbleanna...anyways, you did mention in a comment to her that you have a very easy chocolate cake recipe and well, since I can't really bake anything and am really tempted to try the microwaved version blogged about I thought you might save me and post your real version of an easy chocolate cake less the microwave.

Stomper Girl said...

It looks great, your 6 year-old-grand daughter is very lucky and I'm sure she'll love it.

molly said...

Thanks for all your lovely comments! Blogging is wonderful---So many talented, artistic people out there, generous with their praise, their help and their encouragagement. No wonder I'm addicted.....

riseoutofme said...

Beautiful! She will be delighted! I like Birdy's idea for the border ... works very well.

In my humble opinion.

Thimbleanna said...

Oh Molly! It turned out beautifully! She'll love it! I LOVE that backing too -- so, so cute -- I haven't seen that fabric anywhere. Your photos with nature are just beautiful too -- such inspiration!

Rosalyn Manesse said...

A really wonderful quilt! It will be keeping your granddaughter's feet warm.

Kapuananiokalaniakea said...

Oooh!
Will you adopt me?
I could be your long lost cousin from Hawai'i and you could make me a "welcome back to the family" quilt.
What do you think? You know, with all that spare time you have!!!
Actually, it's just as fun to enjoy your quilts through your blog. This way, I get to have LOTS of them!
Thank you!!

Kacey said...

Lovely, Molly....Birdie was exactly right....the narrow dark border was exactly the right touch. I'm sure your granddaughter will love it. I've been tied up for a week with houseguests and have the dishpan hands to proove it. Now, I just have to get my home back in order and I can get on with catching up on my bloggity friends. I actually have a quilt in the machine with the needle in the down position in the middle of a seam....it was like that when they arrived and has not moved an inch. I feel like I am in withdrawal from quilting. Hope you are have a wonderful time with your honey and are home soon.