Sweet Tea Without the Crunchy Ice

I have to say this is one of my favorite finishes to date.

My longterm goal is to gift my loved ones with handmade quilty things. My side of the family anyway. Not because I don't like Hubs side of the family, they are the greatest, but there are several prolific quilters and occasional quilters on his side. In fact, I was introduced to the idea of quilting by my MIL and SIL in the mid 90s. Needless to say, Hubs side of our family is pretty well covered in quilty things made by loving hands that are much more adept and experienced than myself.

My side is another story. We are smaller in number (but not necessarily size) and I am the only quilter, though my sister is now a fledgling quilter. Not that everyone is expecting or even wanting a quilt but they do have room for a pillow or a small fun fabric accessory and I have a desire to create such things for them.

This Christmas I was able to finish a big quilty gift from my "Some-Day-I-Hope-to-List" much sooner than expected. I was the lucky winner of a Mad About Patchwork Giveaway and received 12 FQs of the Persimmon line by Basic Gray of Moda. Wow!

It came wrapped in this cute little bag all the way from across our Northern boarder. Wow! When I laid my eyes on it up close I immediately thought of my Dad and Step-Mom. That quiet Southwestern feel was perfect for them. I started researching the line and discovered that being Basic Gray it blended with Grunge. Hmmm, I have some Grunge. I pulled the white and orange from my stash and set out to add enough fabric to my winnings and stash to make an extra-long lap quilt.

I got distracted by a Crafsty email about quilt kits on sale up to 60% off and I instantly found myself heading down a rabbit trail, or so I thought...

In my scrolling frenzy something vaguely familiar flashed, I backed up, could it be a Persimmon quilty kit? Yes! It was in my cart in a flash. It was called Sweet Tea by Amy Friend and it was adorable.

My first inclination was to order from Mad About Patchwork but time was of the essence since it was already mid November and I wanted this project in the mail for Christmas. I still owe MAPW a thank you purchase.

My kit arrived and I calculated that if I used my existing darker orange I could make up an extra row of blocks if I ordered one more yard of the white Grunge. The stash orange was a great decision and balances out the pattern nicely with an extra pop of brightness.

This is my second Jelly Roll quilt. It does make for easy cutting but I am not a fan of the extra lint.

My Grunge yardage minus my stash orange. Unfortunately, the white I had on hand was not a match.

My winnings from Mad About Patchwork. This stuff had such a dreamy touch when I finally pulled it out of that cute bag.

Cutting was done quite quickly.

 Then I was on to layout. It is so hard to get that random look balanced but I came up with a plan and commenced the chain stitching. I quickly had my top flimsy complete and I set aside the project while I hosted Thanks Giving for the Southern crew in my home.

 I used my FQs and extra blocks to piece a back flimsy. Hubs likes it better than the front. He always does. I need to design him a quilt with a bold and simple asymmetrical front and back some day.

Then I loaded her on the frame and quilted her with a pattern that I am calling Barbed Wire.

Each 2.5" strip is stitched the same way.

Pass One: Stitch in the Ditch (As close as I can get)

Pass Two: Saw Tooth

Pass Three: Straight center line

Pass Four: Saw Tooth

Repeat

It really was a great complement to the Southwestern feel of the fabric.

I love how my stash orange Grunge adds a little pop to this otherwise soothing design.

She was machine bound in the dark blue fabric as per the pattern and ready to photograph and then mail with plenty of time for a Pacific Northwest Christmas delivery!

This was my first photo shoot using my new-to-me quilt rack that I purchased from my traditional guild. I modified the pole attachment first. It had four loops of twill tape hanging from the top of each pole so that it could be used to hold multiple poles at a quilt show. I removed the straps and Hubs and I added a series of three sets of screws to slip a set of curtain rod brackets over so that I can hang the pole at three different heights. The brackets have slotted holes and it works perfectly.

Here's the front. See the goofy twill straps on the poles. I didn't commit to the curtain brackets until I had tested the brackets first. They are gone now.

Here is the back.

I had so much fun making this quilt. The pattern is well written and easy to execute. If you like to get into a groove with repetition and have change-ups here and there then this is a great pattern to try. I've seen it done in other fabrics with great success. It is a great choice if you need a fast finish but do not want a blah pattern. 

I want to add a final Thank You to Mad About Patchwork for giving me the nudge to make an unexpected quilt that turned out to be an extra fun quilting experience.

And of course,

Thanks for visiting!

Linking up with:

Sew Can Do's Craftastic Monday

Quilt Story's Fabric Tuesday

Fresh Squeezed Fabric's Show and Tell Tuesday

Blossom Heart's Sew Cute

Free Motion by the River's Linky Tuesday