Couple of May Finishes

May is nearly done. It has been a crazy month on many fronts.  I have a couple of client finishes from a week ago.  This one is a 71" quilt that I tried like heck to pull a semi-custom out of.  Sometimes budgets are better suited to edge-to-edge, but the owners and the quilts have other thoughts.  I do try to accommodate when possible.

The owner wanted something in the white squares and the sashings.  The rest of the areas (very wide border and "x") was destined for a continuous filler.  It's denser than most pantographs, so it does take longer.

 The center of the quilt has this rose block, which has a little bit of custom framing and feathers.

I like this sashing design that I dreamed up.  It surprised me though that the 1" sashings on this quit took 1-1/2 hours though, not counting the ditch stitching!  It is stitched with a combination of circle arc templates and freehand, and is intended to enhance the white diamonds in the body of the quilt.

 My client Jan from Napa, CA sent this next quilt.  She's a wildly prolific applique quilter.  Her instructions were that it "didn't need my usual creativity and beautiful artistry...it was just going to be dragged around by a child"!  Sometimes keeping it simple isnt the easiest request, especially on applique quilts.  They have inherent time-suckers.

 I kept the background fillers to simple and continuous, not-too-dense designs.  I also kept as many as possible in the same color thread.  Thread changes can also be a major time sucker of applique quilts.  All appliques are ditch stitched - that is an absolute must.

 The outer border has a mostly free-hand design with these chevrons and stippling in a primary-color variegated thread.  I did not ditch that striped 1" border...I must admit that it kind of bugs me, but no kid will be bothered.

 The more important thing since this is going to a kid is to be sure that appliques are stitched on sufficiently to give them increased stability.

 It's a cute and functional quilt, but not heirloom quilting!

Here are the next two of my hexagon blocks that were finished this week...

I am still pondering how on earth to set them - ie, what quilt layout to use.  I have 6 more cut out (will make 19 total when done).  I just don't want the usual setting - need something unique!  Here's the blocks so far (they finish about 12")...

Have a great week~