There's a sentiment about how a first child's experience is different than a second child's. (We could talk about how my 8 year old doesn't have a baby book yet.) Apparently the same goes for niece and nephew. Within a couple months of my nephew's birth, he had a baby quilt. However, my niece just received her "baby" quilt for her 2nd birthday.
I started out with a different plan for her. My nephew's quilt had been inspired by the mural in his room and I wanted to do the same for her. But her African safari wall left me feeling like I "should" do appliqué... and I don't particularly enjoy the process of appliqué. Eventually I pivoted to focusing on the main color of her room, purple, a favorite of mine. I have a lot of purple scraps and I have been building purple scrappy slabs to piece for Jillian's quilt for over two years!
In recent weeks (months?) the quilt top has been my backdrop while I'm on zoom. I love reminiscing about the previous purple projects these scraps have come from. (There's a section in the upper right that's from my Ultra Violet All About Angles quilt.)
I'm really deadline driven. As Gretchen Rubin says, "things that can be done any time are often done at no time." And that really resonates with me for quilts that don't have a deadline. A challenge or quilt show submission deadline is really motivating for me. Quilt alongs and 100 day projects help, too. But "I'm making this for someone" doesn't usually have a deadline. As we approached her 2nd birthday, I decided this needed to be my hard deadline. I could hardly still call this a "baby" quilt, but at least it is sizable enough to be a good cuddle quilt for years to come.
I opted for simple walking foot quilting in organic vertical and horizontal lines. I didn't concern myself with perfection or equal spacing.
Then I added a little free motion elephant as a nod to her room. (Shh. I also have an elephant quilt in progress for her.)
My binding is more scrappy fabric. I usually opt for a bias binding, but this one was straight grain pieces, since I wanted to use scraps. I attached the binding by machine.
One of my favorite features of the quilt is the color blocked backing. I chose these fabrics to emulate the mural on Jillian's wall.
I packaged it up and mailed it in early November. We connected on FaceTime so I could see her open her gift. She was delighted.
After her initial appreciation, she just had to run into her bedroom and spread it out on the floor. I'm glad she's enjoying all the details.
The quilt is approximately 43" x 50".
The label reads:
For Jilly
handmade by Auntie Sarah
October 2020
Creating a Scrappy Slab is a workshop I currently offer (virtually) to guilds.
Nancy @ Grace and Peace Quilting
Awww! Those photos of Jillian loving her new quilt are so adorable!!!! Great job, Auntie Sarah! And the FMQ little elephant is a nice touch!
sarah
Post authorThank you, Nancy. I'm glad I went for it on my tiny FMQ elephant.
Jeanne B
yes! your niece’s smile says it all!
I have found I don’t do well trying to ‘force’ a quilt that I really don’t want to make, like doing appliqué when you don’t want to appliqué.
sarah
Post authorThank you, Jeanne. Skill building to stretch oneself and learn a new skill is one thing... and making a quilt out of obligation or a feeling that one "should" is another. I had a lot of fun working on this one and I will enjoy seeing it for years to come.
Kathleen Scargle McCormick
What a lovely quilt and so sweet to see her enjoying it.
sarah
Post authorThank you, Kathleen. I'm thankful that technology is allowing us to hang out.
Bernie
Oh Sarah, she clearly loves her cuddle quilt. I think two is a fine age to receive it. Love the picture of her at the table, laying her head down on it. Isn't technology the main thing keeping us all connected this year? Thankful for FaceTime and Zoom!!!
sarah
Post authorRight!? How much more does she appreciate it than she would have at 2 months? Infinitely! It's so lovely that they appreciate handmade gifts. They have been the recipients of some hand me down clothing I've made my kids and it's being loved to pieces, too. :-) Thanks for visiting, Bernie.
Emily
Aw! It's so cute that she clearly loves it already!
sarah
Post authorIt just makes me want to make her another quilt! :-) Thanks for visiting, Emily.
Kathy E.
Oh, sweet Jilly's purple lovin' heart! She really, really loves it, doesn't she? I do too as I have a purple lovin' heart too! Great work to brighten a little girl's life!
sarah
Post authorThank you, Kathy. Purple has been a longtime favorite of mine as well.
Anja @ Anja Quilts
Better late than never. And looks like she loves it. Purple is a great colour.
sarah
Post authorIndeed! I'm glad to have finally delivered. Much better to be being loved there than to still be in pieces in my studio. ;-) Thanks for visiting, Anja.
Mel
Oh those pictures of her enjoying her quilt are absolutely precious!! The backing really matches that fabulous mural. And I love your stitched elephant!!
sarah
Post authorThank you, Mel. I think the back of the quilt is my favorite part. It made it personalized in a way that my purple scraps were lacking a little bit.
JoJ
That purple quilt is stunning and delightful! So are the pictures...
sarah
Post authorThank you, Jo. I sure do miss her!