Free As A Bird Quilt

My, or rather Katie's, Free As A Bird Quilt features Maze and Vale handprinted fabrics.  I started collecting them a couple of years ago - just 2 or 3 fat quarters, a couple of sample packs and a couple of miss-print packs too, bought here and there as a treat.

I didn't have any very definite plans when I bought the fabric, I just knew I loved it and that I'd love to have some.  I think, also, that since Leslie's was one of the first blogs I ever read that  liked the idea of supporting, in a very small way, her handprinting adventures - not that success was in doubt as she is very talented.

Some time last autumn a quilt idea slowly grew on me - after one of my 'pull them out and gaze at the lovely fabric' sessions.  Once the idea settled, probably during the night, I quickly got to work selecting the right co-ordinating fabrics.  A mix of soft pinks and greys, the odd hint of green and a wee pop of red too.  

The design is a disappearing nine patch (in this case 5" squares made into nine-patch blocks - and then quartered and put back together) and I had some careful planning to work out a square size which would minimise wastage of my Maze and Vale and one or two of the other fabrics as I had very little of some of them.  

I was unsure about backing until I spotted the Kokka Swallows flannel from Raystitch.  I guess you'll know by now how much I love flannel and mixing fabric textures and weights (maybe one of the reasons I love my Maze and Vale selection so much since there's cotton, cotton:linen mix and linen in there) - and it seemed perfect for the quilt, especially once I realised it was just the right width so I could make full use of the selvedge to selvedge pattern.

The binding is a mix of the reds used in the quilt and I played safe with the quilting and stuck with my usual not-quite-straight-lines across the width.  

It finished at about 100 by 120 cm (40 by 47 inches) - which seems perfect for Katie, especially since she'll move up into a big girl bed, and out of her cot, some time in the next year or so.........but I'm not prepared to think much about that big girl step just yet.

Once I'd though of the name 'Free As A Bird' it really seemed perfect, I think it suits the quilt and it suits Katie (along with her Sunshine quilt, too, of course) - she's a very happy and independent wee girl.

The other children aren't completely neglected and do have their own made-by-me quilts and blankets but they were made several years ago when I was very much less skilled.  I think that I'll make them each a proper big quilt once they are around High School age (which means Finn needs one soon as he'll be at High School next year, and 11 at the end of this month - I have my eye on this design but will need to consult him and then, if he likes the idea, involve him in fabric choices - which could be interesting given his level of colour-blindness!).