Baby Quilt- Finished!

I finally finished applying the binding to a baby quilt, and it is ready to go to little Carter over the holidays!

I made a label and colored it with Tsukineko inks.  I like to add fabric strips to the cotton label to coordinate with the quilt fabrics.

It is from a book of quilt label designs that I have had since the mid-90's.

This quilt was last seen in my post of July 16, before we left for Canada and later Florida.  It was all quilted, but needed some kind of binding.  The quilt top is a whole-cloth "cheater" quilt that looks like patchwork.  It is soft as a cloud!  To make it even more cuddly, I used Minky dot fabric on the back.  

How to bind it became an issue.  I wanted the edges to be just as soft as the rest of the quilt, so I used leftover strips from trimming the backing.  

Oh, my!  It looked like a fluff war had taken place in my sewing room!  The fabric shredded like crazy when I cut the backing strips.  Can you see all the little dots on the cutting mat?  My clothes were covered with even more!

My usual procedure of making a double-fold French binding would not work with the thick Minky fabric, and mitered corners were out of the question.  I decided to sew strips to each side and turn them over to the back.

After sewing each strip to the front, I zigzag-stitched the seam allowance.  Then I turned under the unseen edge of the strip and zigzagged it as well.

Finally, I turned the strip to the back and straight-stitched it down.

The edging is rather thick, but I don't think it will unravel or shred.  That little boy is going to have one soft blankie when he gets this quilt!  I ordered both the top and backing fabric from Hancock Fabrics several years ago.

Repairing a Much-Loved Quilt

A couple of weeks ago, a handsome young man asked if I could repair his high school graduation quilt that I gave him in 2008.  He said he loved it, but was afraid it would be ruined if the "edge" was not fixed up. Here is the post about it and the photo of the quilting.  I used the Yellow Brick Road pattern by Atkinson Designs.

Hunting Season II, by Jeanne Turner McBrayer, 2008

I was hoping he did not mean it had been chewed up by his dog!

When I got it back, the whole quilt was soft and cuddly...and the double-fold binding had totally worn off at the edge, and in some areas, at the seam.

Instead of picking out the stitches from the old binding, I opted to just lay my ruler along the old seam and cut the binding off with a rotary cutter.

In order to strengthen the edge of the quilt as well as the binding, I sewed the new one to the back of the quilt by machine, and then zigzagged it to the front.  

                                       

As you can see, the old label was completely faded away.  I usually use Pigma Micron pens and heat-set with an iron, but I guess it does not stand up to repeated washing over the years.

So, I made a new label and was sure to heat-set for at least one whole minute.

The old quilt now has a new look thanks to the striped-effect fabric that I found in the same box of fabrics as the original quilt.

Now it is ready to return to its owner...maybe with a jar of a gentle quilt soap?

Finishings

Love finishing quilts...sometimes by the time I get to the label, I am out of time and it is nothing special. Ever since taking an embellishing workshop with Melody Crust, I have been trying to make prettier labels. When she signed my copy of her book Quilt Toppings, she wrote, "Never be ordinary." A good goal to strive for.

Anyway, here is the label for my great-niece Lacy's quilt. Added a little lace ruffle and some simple embroidery.

I did make and apply the binding to the little girl quilt from yesterday. After auditioning several fabrics, I chose this colorful stripe which I cut on the bias. I love striped bindings! I only had fat quarters of this fabric, but it made plenty of strips. It looks good on the front

and on the back.

I also framed some of the flower pictures that granddaughter Lily and I colored with watercolor pencils, painted, and added "igloo" (the word she kept using instead of "glitter.") Bryson said she would pick off all the glitter, but now it is under glass.

This will look nice in her room with her flowery wall quilt

and bed quilt.Today we are leaving for our place in the mountains. It is a holiday weekend here in the US, with Labor Day celebrated on Monday, so my husband is off work. Tomorrow I will spend the day with my father, who is undergoing sinus surgery today. This is when being from a large family is so helpful...we are taking turns staying with him. I will get to see my sister, aunt and several brothers this weekend. And I still should have time to enjoy the lovely cool sunny weather North Carolina is experiencing this week. This is how my little cabin flower garden looked last weekend. It is beginning to look and feel a bit like autumn.