Thank you to everyone who chimed in on which accessories to make for the Baby Life quilt I made for one of my colleagues.
I ended up making a patchwork drawstring bag for the quilt. I used Ayumi’s tutorial for guidance, but used bigger blocks and more of them (50 compared to 32) to make the bag bigger.
It finished at 17″ by 17″ and was a perfect fit for the Baby Life quilt.
I also made a matching toy leash. Samantha over at Making Life Prettier suggested using a Moda Bakeshop pattern by Lisa of Vintage Modern Quilts. Thanks, Samantha! I made mine a bit narrower at 1.25″ wide and constructed it just a bit differently. I folded the fabric in on itself a couple of times around the batting and quilted along the edges.
I also attached this little bumble bee to the end.
A couple of you asked about the applique technique that I used on the letters of the Baby Life Quilt.
I used monofilament thread to zigzag around the raw edges. If you’re interested in learning more about applique techniques, Harriet Hargrave has an excellent book, Mastering Machine Applique. It shows step-by-step how to use different techniques. It’s a book that I refer to time and again.
I delivered the quilt to the mama-to-be at the baby shower yesterday. I’m happy to say the quilt was well received. As the mama-to-be was opening the gift, I could feel my heart pounding. Was she going to like it? What would she think? What would the other ladies at the shower think? I was “coming out” as a quilter to many of the women there so there was also the issue of revealing something personal about myself – that I am a quilter – to many of my co-workers who didn’t know that I quilt.
After the mama-to-be opened up the quilt and held it high, she and the other ladies in the room squealed in delight. That’s when my heart returned to its regular beat and I relaxed a bit.
Now that the excitement of making and giving the baby quilt is over, I’m back to tackling some of my UFOs. I hope to share a finished quilt with you soon!
Linking up to Crazy Mom Quilts!
23 comments
Glad it was such a success! I am the same way about quilting – very few of my coworkers know I sew. When I went to QuiltCon I said I was "going to Austin" for the weekend, but I didn't say why!
What a lovely present! The sociologist in me finds the whole 'secret quilter' phenomenon fascinating – it certainly seems very common. In fact lots of aspects to modern quilting are really interesting from a sociological point of view – aside from the beautiful quilts themselves!
It turned out so great! What a thoughtful gift – and all the cute extras! It's always a bit nerve wracking to put ourselves out there, but I find usually mostly positive things when I do! Was great to see you the other night, my friend!
You do feel like you're giving away a little piece of yourself when you give away a quilt. It can be such a personal thing but such a rewarding experience to give something you have made with your own hands. It is definitely a gift from the heart. But I can't imagine any one being anything less than delighted to receive a quilt from you. Everything you make is always so beautiful.
What a great gift! Love the bag and bumblebee.
oh yeah..quilting is very personal! glad your gifts were well received!
Absolutely adorable… I understand your pounding heart and anticipation! Honestly I feel that way with every quilt I give away, and I have given away quite a few of them over the past 5 years.
You used some of my all time favorite fabrics in the bag – I had an obsession with Aviary 2 for the last year… I think after making 3 large quilts with all 3 palettes I am getting over it 🙂
Glad you were able to find the time to make the toy leash 😉 Thanks for mentioning little me in your blog! Your quilt is pretty amazing and I am so glad that she loved it!
I love it!! The quilt is gorgeous (of course), and the bag is so lovely – I love the fabrics!
Girl, your quilts are amazingly beautiful!!! I can relate to the nervous unwrapping moment, but anything made by you is going to be fantastic – I am gaga over the purple and green combo, ahhhhhh
Of course the lady loved it!!!! It's so gorgeous, and making the drawstring bag to "wrap" it in was genius!
Nicole, this is so amazing! Well done!!! That bag was just the perfect gift wrap. I have to keep that in mind for my next gift quilt! 🙂
Telling your work colleagues! This made me smile. That is why I refer to quilting as my secret shame! But really they know about it and are very indulgent in listening to my little quilting stories. And gardening stories. And baby stories. I don't think any of my team want to grow up and get married though. Which is all good. They stay at work and work hard, while I go to my family and hobbies. Of course crafting is very trendy now, anyway …
Oh yes, coming out to your work colleagues is always a challenge ;o) (95% of my colleagues are men too, we don't talk about it much…)
Love the bag you made, much posher than my Christmas ones, but that might have been because I was making them at midnight on Christmas eve…
Gorgeous! It's such a buzz to give a quilt, isn't it!
that feeling you get as the gift-getter squeals, nothing better than that! i talk about quilting to my coworkers all the time. i figure if i have to suffer through deer hunting and tennis tournament stories, they ought to hear a thing or two about quilts! i even made one for my boss's kids last christmas. haha!
Wow, everything is so beautiful! I love the colors you used!
What a beautifully well-packaged gift. I still love the quilt. Great work!
You worried for nothing!! What's NOT to like. It is beautiful. Very well executed. Love the extras. I know the mom-to-be will cherish your gift and probably store it away somewhere for safe keeping once her baby gets older. Well done!!
Love the toy leash — I could have used one of those when my guys were little.
Squeals of delight are always a good thing, when it come to quilt gifting!! What a very happy recipient I'm sure!
What great additions to the gift of the baby quilt.
just lovely!!!!!
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