The Christmas quilt

Every year, I try to make a Christmas quilt for us to display.  Some quilts might take more than one year, like the year we hung the pieced top and then the next year, we got to hang the finished quilt.  But, that’s life.

Anyway, I had lots of projects going on this year and didn’t start the Christmas quilt early enough. 

I bought this pattern at the quilt show in September, thinking I’d pump it out with two baby quilts and Sydney’s quilt and the other half dozen projects I had in the works. 

Very cute holiday quilt, but I sat down with the pattern the other day and my thought was…NOT!

That’s a lot of piecing. 

Rob said I didn’t have to do a Christmas quilt this year, but that didn’t feel right either. 

As I was cleaning the other day, I came across my UFO’s.  Now, not sure about you, but I have so many UFO’s that I have no business buying UFO’s, but I have.  I’ve bought them from the guild boutiques at many quilt shows.  And, my mentor gave me UFO’s.  And, I’ve picked up UFO’s in quilt shops.  And, I’ve created my own UFO’s.

So, when I found this one that was holiday themed in my bin, I knew it was the quilt for this year.  Except when I pulled it out of the bag and looked at it, I hated it.

There were three completed blocks and enough green pieces for four more blocks and an assortment of off-white pieces that didn’t match enough to make blocks. 

I’m pretty sure that the original maker didn’t like the blocks any better than I did.  So, I started playing with things I could do with the cut fabrics and it didn’t take me long to realize that what I didn’t like was the top section, where the tree gets small again.

So, look what happens if I take the tops off.

I showed them to Rob and Sydney and they both thought the same.  So, we’re going to have a holiday quilt of these trees.  I even pieced  the one in the center of the photo this weekend, adding my own off white and brown.  Took about an hour, including figuring out what size the off white pieces needed to be cut.  It will be a total of 13 blocks, set on point, and setting triangles and some sashing and a border, all very like the pattern, but not exactly. 

It’s a Thimbleberries pattern.  Simple.  So, this should be a piece of cake. That knocks a UFO off the list, and it gives us a holiday quilt for this year and it’s easy enough that I won’t have to worry about it and can likely knock it out over Thanksgiving break.

I got up and finished the quilting on Sydney’s quilt this morning.  It’s going to be cold this weekend, and if I do a fold over binding, I could have it to her by Saturday night.  Fold over isn’t my favorite because I have trouble getting a narrow binding on the front of the quilt.  But, considering that it’s a miracle that this quilt even came together (believe me, I quilted down plenty of unsewn seam) a fold over may be just the thing for it. 

This weekend, I have to figure out what to quilt in the pink and brown baby quilt and get it pin basted.  I’ll be carrying my 501 Quilting Motifs book around with me this week, hoping for some inspiration.

Be well and have a great Tuesday!  Lane