Tuesday 24 January 2017

Grandmother's Garden


Started mid 2014 and finished at last!  The fabrics are a mix of homespuns, chambray and peppered cottons, and it measures 84 inches (2.15m) by 71inches (1.8m).


The quilt was sadly ignored for long periods as I hate to admit I got a little b o r e d with it. The lack of variety in shapes and the strictly solid colours can do that. But I love the look of antique quilts made of solids, and this was inspired by those antiques...so was keen to finally get it finished.

It was hand pieced - English Paper Pieced with 1.25 inch hexagon papers.

The quilt was layered with a thick wool batting and Big Stitch hand quilted in a hoop. I used Aurifil 12 wt thread and Foxglove Cottage ''embroidery/redwork" size 10 needle. I did try a few different needles and found this needle and thread combination quilted up the most easily and quickly for me. 
The quilting design is simple - just zigzag rows across the whole quilt.


The Australian Summer is not a great time for hand quilting but I took advantage of a few cooler evenings to rush through the last of the quilting and the binding.

Trimming the quilt ready to bind

There were a few hexagons left over so I made a label patch and appliqued it to the back.


The thick wool batting was chosen with winter in mind - planning on a warm bed cover. But for now it's hanging on the wall - and freshens up the room no end!



40 comments:

  1. Beautiful!! I love your grandmothers garden,..
    Greetings from Holland

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  2. So very beautiful Hilda, congratulations!!! I admire your persistence in perservering to get it finished, especially hand quilting during our hot summer.

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  3. It looks fabulous. Well done on a finish so early in the year.

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  4. Congratulation on this wonderful finish.
    I like your colour and fabric choice.
    Best wishes Manuela

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  5. So good you finished this quilt, even though I fully understand this kind of work can be boring. But the quilt is not boring at all! I love you color choices and the solids, and the big stitch quilting is so appropriate for it.
    Wonderful!

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  6. It turned out beautifully - I bet you are glad to have it done

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  7. Your quilt sings! A beautiful finish! Big-stitch quilting is on my list. Love the way yours looks :)

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  8. I love it. The solids are beautiful!

    You are dealing with heat, and we are shoveling snow as fast as possible.

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  9. Another beautiful quilt to add to your collection ! I love the summer colors, perfect for the season ! Bravo !

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  10. Magnificent. I always read carefully your posts trying to glean as much information as I can! All so inspiring and I am so grateful and happy to feature you in my blog list.

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  11. What a beautiful finish!! Thanks for sharing with us.

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  12. It's absolutely gorgeous. I love the quilting - makes it look more old world. I bet the wool batting is going to be so cozy. Congratulations on such a lovely finish.

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  13. Beautiful finish! I loved your previous inspiring post to show and share our quilts.

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  14. I just love it when I receive an email notification that you've posted on your blog! You never fail to astound me with your beautiful quilts and this one is no exception. I also really appreciate your pictures you post showing exactly how you create each quilt - they are amazing! Congratulations on such a beautiful quilt!! Lovely!!

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  15. This is just beautiful! And it hangs so perfectly. I love your big stitch quilting.

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  16. Absolutely Beautiful!!! Hugs,

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  17. What a beatuiful quilt Hilda, and well worth the effort to finish it. Love your quilting!

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  18. Wow, I love it, Hilda! Great fabrics, and you are right, so fresh and nice. Plus, a really good quilting idea for hexagons. "Nice make," as the kids say these days. :D

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  19. Such a beautiful finish!
    Love the quilting stitches they compliment the quilt so perfectly.
    Congratulations!

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  20. I'm glad you kept working with this beautiful quilt. It really matches the colors seen in your garden. The big stitching compliments the hexies and the solid colors. It's a wonderful finish!

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  21. Such a beautiful quilt - the colours are lovely.

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  22. Beautiful work! Sometime the most tedious projects turn out so wonderfully. The colors in this quilt remind me of sherbet, so lovely and bright, but in a soft, toned down way because of the arrangement of colors. I really, really love this one.:)

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  23. Another wonderful finish. All your quilts are gorgeous, you have a nack for fabric and colour selections. I always look forward to reading your blog, studying your photos,and learning from you. With that in mind what is the thick wool batting? I use Matildas Own 100% wool and thought all wool batting was a similar thickness.

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  24. What a wonderful feeling - finished and beautiful! It looks lovely on your patio. Kudos.

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  25. beautiful but yes when it is plain I see how you can get bored at times making the same shapes...........looks great......congrats on getting it finished...........

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  26. What a fantastic finish, doubly so because you did it in Summer!!! Thank goodness for those cool evenings. I love the plains; they give it a real vintage feel. It will keep you so warm in Winter. Congratulations!

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  27. Beautiful finish Hilda. Your stitching is very inspiring as are your gardens.

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  28. What a gorgeous finish Hilda! Every quilt you make is so fabulous!! I love your pictures in your beautiful garden and it looks just as lovely on the wall in your house. I'm excited to see your new basket project progress!! The fabrics you've used so far are wonderful.

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  29. Congratulations on a lovely finish

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  30. Well done! What an inspiration to stick with it, even through long down times. Beautiful quilt, I appreciate everything about it!

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  31. Yay! Congratulations on such a beautiful finish! I can't believe you quilted it with wool in the summer!!

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  32. It's a lovely quilt, it had to be finished :-)
    xx

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  33. An all solids quilt really is stunning, I'd love to make one, I've just gotta find the discipline! This hexie quilt is fab :)

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  34. Hello, I just found your blog from ReproQuiltLover site. Your work is wonderful! You inspire me to keep working on my quilts until finished. I look forward to reading backwards and more great quilts.

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