Yes it’s happy dance time again, I have just finished my Kaffe Fassett quilt, just nice time for the wedding in March. It’s taken me about three weeks in total to make it, so it’s a pretty quick pattern to make.
This quilt will be flying to Australia shortly, it’s a wedding present for my brother-in-law and his lovely fiancee, a Yorkshire girl so she’s obviously great š I asked them what colours they would like and they chose the colour scheme of red and orange, they wanted a bright and cheerful quilt – they’ve certainly got that!
I was quite excited by the colour scheme as it is something I’d never make for our home, but I do admire the colourful quilts on facebook. I immediately decided to use Kaffe Fassett prints and ordered a selection of his fabrics especially the big bold bloom patterns in reds and oranges. I chose the Radiant pattern by Cosy Quilts, again I’d seen it on facebook and loved the effect.
It went together fairly easily as it is just two different blocks stitched diagonally together.Ā I quilted it very simply echoing the diamond pattern with a bit of stitch in the ditch as extra. I used a Gutermann variegated thread both top and underneath. It’s probably the biggest quilt I’ve tackled on my machine, it’s 84″ square, this is why I kept the quilting pretty simple with straight lines!! I don’t think I’d be able to manage anything bigger, I think I’ve found my limit, anything bigger and I’ll be visiting a friend near Oxford who has a long arm quilter!
I made a flanged binding which is much easier than it possibly looks. I just cut a 1″ stripe of cream, folded it in half and stitched it along the edge with just a bit less than a 1/4″ seam. When I then stitched the binding I’d made from the yellow scraps and folded it over, a quarter inch strip of cream showed underneath it. I’m not sure if this is the official way to do it, I just made it up as I went a long! I think it works really well at separating the flowery border from the scrappy binding.
All that was left was to embroider a label and name the quilt. Traditionally all quilts have a name and I now embroider the name on the actual quilt. My favorite quote to write in wedding cards is
“To love and be loved is to feel the sunshine on both sides”
So I’ve called it ‘Feel the Sunshine’ and included the quote on the label. I tend to embroider straight on the quilt back, if possible using the lines of the quilting. It worked pretty well here as there was a triangle which fitted everything in nicely. I wrote it in a silver gel pen and then went over it with back-stitch. I managed to find in my stash a variegated thread which matched perfectly.
It’s so big I struggled to take a decent photo, in the end I hung it on our washing line and tried to snap a photo inbetween the gusts of wind! Unfortunately it’s in the shade so it doesn’t show off the colours quite so much as the other pictures but at least you get the whole effect!Ā I love this quilt, it’s so striking, it still makes me think ‘Wow!’ when I see it, I think I might make another radiant quilt sometime…
thecraftycreek 
you can be very proud of yourself – this is absolutely stunning! I do hope postal services take good care of it!
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Thanks Claire, I’m not trusting the post, we’re going to the wedding š
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oh brilliant!!!!
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Your blog is amazing Margaret! I think I’d need to take a week off work to catch up on all your creations, so even though i’ve not commented and liked everything, I’ve been scrolling thought and being amazing at what you’ve made!
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Thanks Ali, any plans for another Dewsbury meet up any time soon? not that my stash is getting any smaller!!
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I really want to arrange another meet up. I’m even thinking about having a meet up at my new house too when I get moved it. As soon as I get a date when I’ll be exchanging contracts I’ll be able to work something out between my shifts. Realistically it will be the end of April/beginning of June. A while off but hopefully worth waiting for! xx
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Good luck with your house move, look after yourself x
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Wow that is stunning, I’m sure the bride and groom will be thrilled. So talented to finish it in just 3 weeks! Lovely quote too
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Thanks Jane, I’m well chuffed with it š
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That looks great. Good for you for finishing it on time! I bet they’ll be delighted with it.
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Thanks Donna, I hope so š
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I have been following your blog over the last few weeks and its lovely to see your beautiful quilt come together. It looks stunning.
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Thanks Pauline, I’m pleased with how it’s come together š
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Your quilt is gorgeous! The happy couple should love it. I like the sentiment on your quilt label. Enjoy your trip.
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Thanks Kate, looking forward to our trip š
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It looks amazing! I love the bright, cheerful colours! š
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Thank you š
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Congratulations on a glorious quilt, Margaret! Am certain the lucky couple will always treasure it, and feel the love sewn into each square.
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Thanks Del, I hope so š
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Who could possibly not adore such a fantastic gift? – congratulations on crafting such a beautiful quilt. Lucky the colours don’t ‘go’ in your home otherwise I bet you’d have trouble parting with it. I know I would – I might even have to re-decorate so it would fit in š
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Thanks Tialys, I am rather partial to this one š
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Superb quilt – and what fun I have had watching it come together over these weeks!
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Thank you, I’m pleased with how it’s come out š
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Hurrah! Now you can turn your attention to packing for this wonderful vacation and I. Person delivery! They will love it almost as much as they love you guys being able to come for the wedding!š
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Thanks Kathy, looking forward to our holiday š
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This is just gorgeous! What a marvelous gift!
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Thanks Mary, hopefully they will love it š
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Fabulous!
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Thanks Cathy š
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I clicked the ‘like’ button, within there was a ‘I love it’ one. It looks stunning; something to be treasured all their lives together, and to pass on down the generations. And the edging looks perfect.
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Thanks Anne, I’m very pleased with it š
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Stunning, beautiful quilt.
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Thanks Debbie, it’s been fun to make in such bright colours š
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Well done, it’s sensational, and they’re going to love both it and having the two of you there in person to hand it over! We’re saving the nice hot weather for your arrival, by the way! I like your flange binding – in case you’re interested, here’s a link to a slightly quicker way of achieving it:
http://mylifeasaquilter.blogspot.com.au/2011/12/been-busy-quilting-for-christmas.html
This is the one I always use if I’m doing a flange.
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Thanks Kate, last time I looked it was all thunderstorms!! Thanks for the link, it does look quicker, the one thing that always concerns me about machine stitching the binding over is I don’t think mine would be neat on the back, this is why I always hand-stitch them down!! Maybe I just need to pluck up some courage and try, maybe on a scrappy quilt š
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I agree, but I’ve found if I pin or clip very carefully, or even glue, I can get a decent result. But practice does help!
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Gorgeous! And so quick! A fabulous gift.
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Absolutely gorgeous ā¤ļøā¤ļø
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It looks wonderful, I hope it has a great trip down under!
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Oh my goodness – I love the label and name of the quilt idea tied to that quote! What an amazing gift!
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Great quilt. So nice a bright and happy!
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Wow! It looks amazing. Certainly a very bright and happy quilt. Iām also impressed at how quickly it came together – go you!
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Three weeks? Good grief, you must have been on fire, you AND your machine! Itās utterly gorgeous though, and you get to take it to the wedding in person – even better. Are you making a proper holiday of it, going all that way?
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Thank you, we are making a proper holiday with about 10 days in Australia, a week on Bali (to get some batik fabrics!!) and a couple of days in KL, Malaysia, seeing more family, pretty exciting š
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Iām very envious, what a great itinerary! We honeymooned in Bali five years ago and absolutely adored it:)
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We’ve 3 days in Candi Loosa (? spelling!!) and 4 days in Ubud where I’ve got a 1 day workshop in batik š Any suggestions on places to go gratefully received š
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Candidasa was where we stayed (and got to know some of the locals really well) and we also went to Ubud – youāll love both! The monkey place in or near Ubud is brilliant, as is the elephant sanctuary where we had a safari. I would also recommend snorkelling as the seas are incredible for fish. We hired a local man to taxi us around the island – cheap, easy and by far the best way to see the island. Donāt be tempted to drive – theyāre utterly mad on the roads!
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That is so beautiful! What a wonderful gift!
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