trees, not hearts

finally, something other than pink to share, even if it is dreadfully out of season. i finally got a chance to work on the quilting of my last batch of basted quilts. first up was "bright forest" because of the color that was on the machine that had the walking foot attached.

this golden tan-ish aurifil 2318 was on the machine that d1 was using to attach her binding. the correct foot was also on the machine, so i looked over the available quilt options to see if any of them would look good with this color and save me the trouble of changing thread.

at first glance, none of the quilts were obvious candidates, but as i thought about what it would look like on "bright forest," i decided it would be a subtle golden holiday touch to the otherwise very bold and bright quilt. using a more intense gold color would compete with the fabric colors in a way i didn't fancy but the soft gold would add a touch of holiday sparkle without competing or clashing. and i'm happy with the results, so i approve of my choice.

i chose a simple quilting pattern: straight lines through the middle of all the sashings and cornerstones and then straight lines through the horizontal and vertical centers of each block.

with the quilt rolled in at the sides in preparation for feeding through the machine, you can see the different fabrics of the backing and how well they compliment the random collection of colors i used on the front. i'm really so very pleased with how this back turned out and feel like it just makes the quilt. i was rather ambivalent about the top once all the blocks were done, then the sashing and cornerstones helped me like it more. the backing makes me like it a lot now. those boxy bears and the trees were worth the price i paid for them for the way they elevate the overall quilt and enhance the vibe. plus, the selvage, which is included and shows in the backing, has "2020" printed in it, the year this quilt and its companion got their start from a random collection of kona colors i ordered at the same time.

i'm not even minding the christmas colors and motifs in the month of hearts and flowers and all things love. it does make me think i should pull out those "cute betsy hearts" since it's february, but we'll see what i get around to in what's left of the month. knocking out a few more hearts would be fun . . .

what was not fun: finding a pin stuck in the quilt while i was working on the quilting. d5 was sitting at the machine across from me working on her 16-patch blocks and i thought she'd let a pin go astray, but on examination discovered it was actually embedded inside the quilt sandwich. i must have accidentally let it fall on the backing which was spread on the floor before i added the batting to it. so very odd! fortunately, i discovered the pin by the smallest of pokes to my finger while moving the quilt around under the walking foot and at an early enough point in the process that no unpicking was required to reach my hand inside the sandwich and remove it.

this is all worked up now, so which quilt do you think i put under the walking foot next? hint: it's not from the same batch but from a previous basting batch. if you look under the "quilting queue" on my "wips" page, you might be able to guess.