This quilt has been a long time in the making. I started out with the idea several months ago. Riley and Piper loved the name pillows I made them back in February. So I decided to make matching quilts starting with one for Piper.
I found this small quilt on Pinterest:
And made my version of it, just to see how difficult it would be to make all those appliqued hearts.
Easy Peasy. Next step was to make the queen-sized version. After making the applique hearts then piecing most of it together I found out that Piper was getting a full-sized bed so I breathed a sigh of relief and didn’t put that final border on.
Most of the fabric came from Hobby Lobby. But I also picked up a few pieces from our local quilt shop Tomorrow’s Treasures and Jo-annes. I ordered the quilt backing from fabric.com in 108″ width so I wouldn’t have to piece the back together.
I have a Bernina Activa 220 and love love love it. When I took it in to get it’s yearly maintenance, the owner of the shop said it was a great machine for “piecing”. I didn’t quite understand what the reference was about until I actually tried to maneuver that full-sized quilt under the sewing machine’s arm.
I tried everything that all the blogs and pins recommended. Rolling, folding, scrunching. There was no way I was going to be able to quilt around all those appliqued hearts like I did on the smaller version. So I quilted around the borders and the outline of the large heart and hand-quilted all the little hearts.
The quilt blogs recommended a certain type of thread for hand quilting but I just used embroidery floss that I divided into 3 different pieces. And I made big chunky stitches. And some little petite stitches. I figured it was my own design, might as well make it however I felt like making it!
And the moral of the story is, Riley’s quilt (and all future quilts unless I get a different sewing machine) will be lap size for when he’s watching TV and eating popcorn. Can’t have too many blankets on the couch in North Dakota.
And how did Piper like it?
Wow – what a great job! I might add, I love all pics of Ms. Piper, but the one with Maggie is priceless.
You are amazingly talented and organized. Piper’s smile tells it all!
You need to make another one for Maggie Kathy!!!!!!!
Really adorable quilt.
Maggie has a lot of special “blankeys”!