Court Street Quilt Retreat Update

My project is finally hanging in my office! When I made the top, I didn't know what my office would look like because our department was not allowed to see the new space until we actually moved. Turns out I get sunshine all day long (and in the winter I have to wear a sun visor (ND of course) so I can see my computer screen!). So as I lived in my office I realized that the only place I could safely hang my quilt is in an alcove where the sun doesn't reach! Everything not in this corner fades, including Post It Notes! You can see the quilt as you approach my office door and it really adds warmth to this very sterile place.

Star Shadow

Star Shadow Closeup

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

When my colleague told me a couple of weeks ago that her son's first birthday party theme was going to be "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," I thought, "Great, I'll whip up a small quilt for a unique gift!" A good friend sent me the caterpillar fabric which I received on Tuesday.  I spent Wednesday evening researching other quilts made from the same panel for construction ideas. They were pretty much the same, easy round-robin type borders around the central panel. Thursday and Friday evenings were devoted to construction, using some of my own stash fabric. Saturday I had to find backing, pin and machine-quilt it. I finished that about 11 pm figuring I'd put the binding on Sunday morning and off I would go to the birthday boy's party! I think that would have been a personal best for me, completing a fairly good-sized kid's quilt in a matter of days.

I woke up Sunday morning feeling sick, so I didn't get to the party and only finished the quilt yesterday. I delivered it this morning, a week late, but this time his Mom was in sick in bed, so I didn't stick around.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

The Caterpillar's New Home

Sweet William

Sweet William

Civil War era reproduction quilts make me feel warm and comfy all over. I feel a special affinity for this style but can't pick anything specific about the quilts besides their looking old. However, because my house is over 100 years old, these quilts have an instant home.

Sweet William, about 22 inches square, was made from a kit of fabrics, some of which I swapped out. The pattern is by Carol Hopkins in her Civil War Legacies series. The stars and triangle border were hand pieced during the summers at the beach. It is hand-quilted.