Feeling Fruity

December is just pumping out the custom client quilts.  With kids out of school and a period of no quilting coming, I am plugging away at my backlog of custom quilts before the January batch arrives.  None have come in for 5 or 6 days...must be a sign that people are feeling the need to shop instead.  I've got enough right now to get me into the dead of winter, but each quilt is different.  And each is a joy to quilt, so keep them coming!

This one just went home to northern California today.  I have no idea whatsoever what pattern this was made from, or exactly when she made it.  She had started hand quilting it and removed those stitches to send it to me, feeling that it may be years to completion otherwise.  The design is so incredibly quirky and differet, that I just love it.  It is really fun to quilt pieces that you haven't seen 14 other people make and quilt.  

The block backgrounds are made of 4 pale blue/ivory prints.  They may be vintage, but I'm not sure.  They are thinner, and seem kind of old-fashioned, but what do I know.  Her needle turn applique is excellent.  And the selection of materials enormous.  I was initially planning to quilt in some colors on top of the leaves (add some veins) and other fruits, but realized it would take 6 green threads to blend this with all of the colors of leaves she used.  I opted for the monofilament outlining instead.  This allows the applique to shine, and to have a slight bit of poof.  I only quilted on top of the applique fruits in a few cases, when they were just too big to leave.  And in one of these cases, I still did not because the fabric from below was shadowing unfavorably.  Hard choices.

 The selection of fruits is so fun.  I'm guessing the ones below are cranberries and cherries.

Freehanded meandering feathers are not super fast to quilt when all this applique is in the way, but they give a subtle and pretty background to allow the appliques to be the show.  I used an ivory thread.  It shows a little on the blue sashings, but not enough to matter.  The sashings sink into the background, as I wanted.

 Don't you just love the grapes?!

 My daugher, the only tomato eater in the house, would love this one --right there with all the "real" fruits!

 I have 2 more customs planned to complete before the kids are out on the 21st.  Then, I can relax and figure out what to wrap, what to buy and what to return because it was a crappy buy.  As for today, kids are about home.  I need to go outside and discard of a half-rotting pumpkin on the porch stair, and if whim hits, I may even take down the Easter egg wreath by the front door.  You can tell we aren't even thinking Christmas here yet!  Actually had the "do we really want to get a tree" discussion last night too.  Talk about an odd year.  The 4' fake tree that goes on the balcony may make its way to the living room instead.  Joy!