dolly quilt#1 done

 it's a rather paltry finish, but it's a finish! my first little doll quilt is done. it looks like it could be a placemat, but heaven forbid i ever spend this much time and effort on a placemat. admittedly, this was a quick project; just too much time for something my kids were going to eat on. i completed the binding last night while the baby 1) played in the hose in the backyard, 2) played in the shower after dinner. splish, splash for her; stash time for me.

this was an exercise in experimentation. firstly because i was playing with improv piecing, or piecing as you go; secondly because it was my first fmq adventure. when i made my "out on a limb quilt", i wanted to keep the look mostly primary colored. therefore, i pulled a lot of the pink jelly strips from it. looking back, i think i actually meant to make a baby quilt because i bought a yard of the pink owl floral, another of the green and pink bandanna-looking floral, and half a yard of the yellow dot for binding to mix in with this quilt. but that was two years ago and i didn't process that thought until after the two little quilt tops were done and i thought, "hmm. i wonder why i bought so much of that other green floral?" this is why i need to start documenting my purchases and intentions more clearly.

i didn't have a pattern or particular look in mind, i just started sewing strips together and cutting away. i did rather intend for it to have a more asymmetrical feel. But at the finish, it looks like i cut the two smaller side strips evenly! oh, well.

back

i enjoyed the fabrics so much, that i was wishing i had more of it to make another version of "limb" in this pastel colorway or to make blocks similar to this top for a completely different quilt. greedy of me! it's just grown on me so. good thing i have lots of other pretty fabrics to work with.

the binding is not my favorite choice. not because of the color, rather the print. i have learned i like prints that blend with themselves better. very structured, linear prints, like this dot, end up with a choppy look rather than seamlessly flowing together. you get one portion of the pattern for a bit, then another portion when the strips meet up. maybe if i cut on the bias, this won't be an issue?

i have been feeling a bit silly for making a doll quilt. shouldn't i do a table runner or wall hanging? (not my thing,) that would be more "normal." then i found this little beauty while browsing books at joann, etc the other day:

pretty in patchwork doll quilts by cathy gaubert

it's chock full of fun doll quilt patterns from some pretty big quilting names! i'm validated. and i totally would have contributed my little pretty to it if they'd asked. [insert silly giggle] there were enough patterns i liked in it to justify buying my 723rd sewing/crafting book. whenever i think i've got enough, a new one always pops up.

and it features these darling dolls throughout, which lark offers free bonus patterns for here and here.

a finish means linking in with crazy mom quilts for finish it up friday and quokka quilts for TGIFF. see y'all in quilty blogland.