Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Another Baby Quilt

Fox in a Box by Row House Creations
Last week I made a baby quilt. It was easy since I designed it to include the things I love; some colour, very few blocks made from foundation paper piecing and a lot of FMQ.

However, I have a quilt that I've promised to make for my friend Sonya. Since I made her two other babies a quilt, I had to make one for the third child. I had seen a beautiful quilt at the show-and-tell part of our Guild meeting. I googled for a baby quilt with foxes and sure enough, found the pattern. It's a Row House Creations pattern, called Fox in a Box. Sonya loved it so I ordered it.

All the triangle and background pieces cut out
All the triangle and background pieces cut out

It took me a few months to find the right fabrics and then a day to cut the fabric. Cutting fabric for the whole project is not something I usually do. I generally cut my pieces as I go along but I knew that everything needed to be cut before I started.

I slowly worked on the piecing, but I didn't get far. It's a good thing that I took it with me at the quilting retreat. I was able to piece most of the various geese blocks there. Unfortunately I didn't work on it when I got back to home and reality.

The last two weeks have been incredibly productive (quilting wise - nothing else!), and after finishing a totally unplanned baby quilt, I started feeling very guilty about not finishing the Fox in the Box quilt. I think William will be one year old soon - it's past due!

The background is almost done - while Chevy supervises!
The background is almost done - while Chevy supervises!
Here are the boxes, without borders or appliqué. There was no way Chevy was letting me take this picture without her. She wanted attention since I've been quilting too much!

Ready to sew on the appliqué
The next day, the foxes and tree are ready to be appliquéd. Some minor glitches in putting the foxes together, but it all worked out. Last night I finished appliquéing all of the pieces. It just needs to be sandwiched, basted and then FMQ. Should be ready in a week or so!

What I learned:
  • When picking out a pattern, I need to work more to my strengths - that means less piecing and minimal appliqué. I hope I remember this when I'm caught up in the beauty of the quilt pattern!
  • It turns out that I didn't place a couple of the large square-triangles in the right spots. My son noticed it right away, but only after it was all sewn together. I could call it creative design or rather a sign of my human imperfection. I can definitely live with that.
  • I was very careful about cutting the appliqué pieces correctly, although they are on solid fabric, so it wouldn't have made a difference. What I wasn't careful about, however, was placing the fusible webbing on the correct side of the pieces. Oops! The placement of the foxes isn't the same as the pattern, but really, it worked out fine. This one I'll call a creative design :-)

I'll be joining up a few quilty parties. Check out what everyone is doing!
Design Board Monday, Fabric Tuesday, Freemotion by the River, Midweek Makers, Let's Bee Social, Main Crush Monday! Needle and Thread Thursday, Fabric Frenzy Friday, Can I get a Whoop Whoop! and Off the Wall Friday

9 comments:

  1. Love the foxy quilt! Playing to our personal strengths is sometimes difficult with all the gorgeous eye candy out there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're not kidding! As they say, my eyes are bigger than my stomach - that's why we have to buy all of those patterns!

      Delete
  2. Your "foxy" quilt is so adorable!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Pam! I know that my friend is looking forward to getting it.

      Delete
  3. I think it's adorable, whether it matches the pattern or not. There's really no rule that says you can't be creative!
    Thanks for linking up at Midweek Makers
    Susan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Susan. Of course, you're right - the pattern, like a recipe, is just a guideline. Besides, it's an important skill to be able to adapt with our creative changes :-)

      Delete
  4. This is just too stinkin' cute! Love how the fox curls around the one block! Have you heard of Lara's (Buzzin' Bumble) Crafted Appliqué? Think you might like appliqué more if you tried it; I it sure changed my thinking! Also love how Chevy insisted on being in the photo...I have a fur kid or two like that!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sandra. I will look into Lara's Crafted Applique. And yes, Chevy always wants to be in the middle of everything!

      Delete
  5. Absolutely love these quilts!

    ReplyDelete

Hi! I would love to hear from you and I will try to answer you. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a message. :-)