Lattice Pansy Quilt

The cold foggy weather has been good for something.  I pulled out a quilt that I had pieced when my children were little.  I had started quilting it quite a few years ago after taking a machine quilting class, but had given up for lack of time (and skill).  Some of my beginning stitches weren't quite what I was hoping for, so I picked them out, and started over.  I've been working slowly on the machine quilting, as I found time, and I was able to finish on Sunday, and put the binding on on Monday and Tuesday.  Now it is making my living room look pretty, as we wait for spring, and live pansies out in the garden.

 I don't think my machine quilting is ready for a competition yet, but it makes my heart happy.  It is my first large, complete, machine quilting project.  The quilt is like a very large throw, or couch quilt.  It is as wide as the cushions on my couch.  I think is around 60 something inches by 80 something inches, or so.

The back of the quilt shows the quilting better.  I think even the back is really quite pretty.  I did some straight stitching around geometric shapes, some stippling of various sizes, and some free-hand leaves in the large pansy octagons.  I'm looking forward to using my increasing skill on some more quilt tops I have stashed away.

By the way, I decided to learn to machine quilt out of desperation and limited money.  I paid for a lovely blue and yellow quilt to be machine quilted once, and decided that I could never afford to do that again.  It turned out nice, but is way too expensive.   I don't have enough time for hand quilting, though I have a couple small wall quilts that I have hand quilted, and one that is almost finished.  I think tying is ok for utility quilts, for cats and dogs, and for children's first quilts.  But if I am going to make a high quality top, I think it needs high quality, artistic work to hold it all together.  I was making piles of quilt tops, but what good is a quilt top, unless it is finished with a quilt back, and binding.  So when a machine quilting class became available, I signed up right away.  It has been a learning process, difficult at first, but with time, I have gotten better.  I have done quite a bit of practice work on pillows, and just scrapes.  I machine quilted another small quilt, which I have folded on a wooden rocking chair.  But I would call my pansy quilt my first successful project completion.  I'm looking forward to using my increasing skill on some more quilt tops I have stashed away.  Of course, since I still have children at home, that I am homeschooling, be patient.  I don't expect the next quilt post too soon.  My first job is helping my kids make something beautiful of their lives.