I have a parade of quilt to share with you from Karin. She always does such great work. I love sharing her quilts.
Karin writes:
“Good morning Jo, have a seat, grab a cuppa and get ready for the Sandra and Jo Parade of Beautiful Batiks! You sent this bag to me a few months ago, and they have been sitting in the cupboard waiting on backings worthy of the beautiful batiks that Sandra used to put together the tops. I don’t believe they were charm squares, as the squares finished at 5 and 1/2 inches each, give or take. All five of these beauties were six rows of seven blocks each. Little did I know, Sandra had included a coordinating backing for every single top. So all this time, I have been waiting for something that was right under my nose. Sorry it took me so long to figure that out. But thank you, Sandra, that made it so much easier to put them together and finish them off in just a few days time.
The first one you see here is all rust, cream, green, splashes of pink and aqua. Absolutely gorgeous combination. I wanted to make sure that each block was tacked down without drawing away from the pretty colors, so I used a variegated brown and rust thread to do a large meander. The backing was a lovely light peach batik and I used an ivory colored thread in the bobbin that took on the peach hue of the fabric and blended nicely.
The second one of the batch was …
made with a different color combination, but is still very striking in its beauty and simplicity. There were squares of blues, aquas, creamy white, stripes, rainbow, indigo, and silver, and it was all backed in a very simple, rose colored broad cloth. Just like the first one, and the next three, this one finished at 33 by 39 inches, and was simply 6 rows of 7 blocks. Or is it 7 rows of 6 blocks? Or does that even matter? Lol. I used a large meander stitch with variegated blue and green thread on top and a very light pink in the bobbin.
On this third quilt, we moved away from all batiks and added some calico and Paisley along with a few solids. I think there may even be bits of a blue plaid shirt in there, here and there. The pattern of this top was also a little bit different, with four patches alternating with the larger blocks. I can see some of the batiks from the other quilts included in this one, leading me to believe this was the last one of this batch she made. Those pops of yellow really do serve to brighten things up, don’t they? A multicolored blue batik was used as backing and also served as inspiration for the double bubble quilting run. I used a multicolored blue thread on top and a light silver in the bobbin. I was going to use my medium blue in the bobbin but it stood out more than the light silver, which seem to take on the blue of the fabric. Sure makes picking thread colors difficult when they keep changing.
Here is another rust and green combination, and it is stunning. The very light green fabric is flannel, and inspired the flower petal quilting run. The lightest orange squares have a bit of gold shimmer to them and are so very pretty. We don’t really get a Fall season here, but we have a lot of transplants from up north, and they always say how much they miss the changing of the leaves. This quilt would be perfect for one of them. The backing fabric is a very light green with tiny flowers and leaves, nicely complimenting the flowers of the flannel on top. I used my variegated brown and rust thread on top and a variegated green in the bobbin.
The final entry in Sandra’s parade is one of my very favorite color combinations, purple and green. Yes, that sounds odd, but it’s so very pretty, at least in my eyes. This one has many batiks mixed in with a focus floral print and they really offset each other nicely. There are blue and lilac blocks mixed in for added interest. Because of all the florals and ferny-flavored batiks, I was inspired to use a looping and vining leaf motif. That is one of my most relaxing motifs to quilt. The backing material that Sandra had included was a gorgeous lilac batik that really framed the front nicely, when I flipped it over to create the binding. The top thread was my variegated green and the bobbin thread is a very light silver.
Thank you for sharing all these with me, and the people of Citrus County. They are all just right to provide comfort to those in need, and are sure to be treasured for many years to come. Thank you, one and all, especially Sandra and you, Jo.
They will be taken to the firehouse first thing in the morning where they can be admired and then distributed appropriately.
Wow. You were busy Karin. I takes a lot of time to work all the logistics of quilt…not to mention the binding too!! Thanks for you dedication to helping others.
I am almost positive that these quilts were made by the Cresco Ladies with Sandra being the point person for the group but I can’t be sure. I hope Sandra will leave a comment in the comment section and let us know. These are the perfect example of quilts that shine because of their color combinations!!
Thanks to all who made these quilts happen!!
Beautiful quilts! My favourite one is the purple and green one.
Purple and green is found in nature often and is one of my favorite combos. It’s not odd at all, and the finished quilts are beautiful! Well done!
Great quilt finished, they will be appreciated!
Lovely quilts all of them. The last one reminded me of the backyard I had where I used to live every spring the violets would come up in clumps and clusters of purple in the green of the lawn. So very lovely with the violet fragrance when the sun warmed them.
The Cresco Ladies do it again! Beautiful quilts, one & all!
Lovely finishes again, Karin and thanks to the Cresco ladies for supplying the tops!
Those quilts were made by Donna F of Cresco. She is our group’s long arm quilter. Donna often donates quilt tops to Jo Kramer for distribution around the country. Because we are a small group and make nearly 300 completed quilts and about 400 tops every year….. It is fun seeing how others finish them off. Sandy M – Cresco Ladies Community Donation Quilts. P.S. Thanks to Jo who gave us a pletora of batik fabrics about a year ago.
All of these are eye candy for me first thing in this morning. What a great way to start the day.