Cute And Cuddly Quilts

It's school holidays here in New Zealand. Only two weeks, so not too bad for us. I usually enjoy this time off school, once they have all settled down and gotten used to having each other around again. The first week is more trying than the second.

So far, I am grateful that no one is sick and it's no longer raining. We have a lovely long list of things to do, so we shall not be bored.

I spent a bit of time in the weekend learning about quilting. I got a lovely book out of the library called Denyse Schmidt Quilts and I am in love with it. Everything is so lovely with simple designs. Usually, a book has a couple of things that interest me, but this one, I could make every last item in it - they are all sooooo lovely.

My new books also arrived the same day. Boy did I have fun going through all those lovely pictures of quilts! Material Obsession was definitely my favourite book. There are some really beautiful quilts and Daughter No. 2 and I are staring to think about which one to make for her bed. We've even peeked at a few fabric ideas in our quilting shop. So exciting!!

So anyway, the little quilt up at the top is my first attempt at quilting. It's a sweet little dolls quilt. I just stitched lines for my first one. The strips are so roughly cut out, no measuring either! Still, it looks OK considering. I love the look after it's been washed and dried, photo 3. Nice and soft and crinkly.

Now, this other strip quilt was pieced together by our 8 year old. She's not done much machine sewing before, so it was good practice for her. By the time she got to the last pieces, the lines were pretty straight. I sewed on the binding and quilted it for her with hearts. She's made it for her white tiger to sleep under. It's a good size too, baby sized I guess. Hasn't she done a lovely job of choosing the fabrics and making her first quilt?

Look, our quilts have come together for a snuggle! I would love loads of them, piled up in the lounge. The girls could come out on the cold mornings and cuddle up to them.

Hey, guess what? I've just stitched all my short white borders on to my Family Memories Quilt!!!!!!!!! I've been putting it off as I was nervous about the squares not being exactly the same size. But... I bought a special cutting device and ruler and now they are all purrrrfect! The white strips were a breeze to cut with the blade. Now I just need to cut and sew the joining strips to finish the top of the quilt. That will be tonight hopefully.