Treadlestitches: reversible quilt

Saturday, April 15, 2023

Bricks and Houses and Hands 2 Help

Welcome to Treadlestitches!

This week had me searching high and low in my stash for purple novelty prints to use in my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks. I found some! but I did have to include star prints to make up the numbers. And there are no less than 3 butterfly prints, plus a caterpillar one.

I love this one! It's a Kaffe Fassett design, meant to be buttons.

I've had this cat print forever. The background is an odd color, almost lavender but not quite.

This is one that quilt author Judy Gauthier might call a "husband" print. She says they're like husbands--you loved them at first sight, you want to keep them, but you don't always understand them or know what to do with them. (Click HERE to go to info about Judy's books and shop.)

A few more houses got cut and sewn from the same fabrics as the bricks. Dora the Explorer is leading the way.

Here are two little quilts for Hands2Help 2023. These are the first quilts I've made with the new poly batting.

First, more bricks! This is another Little Bricks quilt, made with my free (and very easy) pattern. (Click HERE.)

The poly batting makes it "bouncier" than cotton, and will definitely make it warmer. I'm still learning how best to baste and quilt it.

The back is this rainbow print.

Here's quilt #2. This pattern is perfect for poly batting.

Long long ago in a state far away (well, not that far, it was Ohio) I took a class with the woman who developed this pattern, the amazing Kaye Wood. Kaye was a quilting pioneer at the beginning of this current quilt revival, although many quilters now may never have heard of her. She had one of the first television quilt programs, and traveled the country teaching. At quilt shows, she would sell her patterns and templates and videos (of course), but she would also set up a huge area with stations for volunteers to sew this pattern for charity from donated fabric and batting. She called it the Love quilt or the 6 Hour Quilt. At the end of the show, the quilts made would be donated to local hospitals, etc. (Click HERE for her video instructions.)

As a teacher, she was down to earth, helpful, and fun. The workshop was a full day, and I finished a twin sized quilt for my daughter there. The quilt was used for years and was warm and well loved. I was very sad to hear of Kaye's death in July 2019.

One of the best things about this pattern is this--it's reversible! Side one of my quilt uses construction/vehicle prints, and side two has a farm theme with cows and chickens, etc.