My decision not to enter a marathon this year has left considerably more time for sewing and as a result I have started and finished three quilts (that compares to just one for the whole of 2014).
I made this quilt for my grandmother. Her names is June, but for some obscure reason (I blame the eldest grandchild) she is known to all her family as Den. Den is 91 and lives in her own home, across the street from my parents in Tasmania, Australia. She is the matriarch of a large family: 7 children (plus partners), 32 grandchildren and 39 great-grandchildren (and counting) and she somehow manages to send birthday cards to all of us. After their family, my grandparents great love was their garden (followed closely by Scrabble), so a quilt for Den always needed to have a floral theme and the Botanique range by Joel Dewberry was perfect.
I found the two floral prints while in New York last year and loved them. I then discovered that John Lewis had the coordinating fabrics, so I bought three additional prints. A few weeks later they were in the Christmas sales so I bought the other fabrics they stocked from the range, and then when they were still half price a month later I bought a bit more of my favourites. I may have bought more again…ok, I have actually lost count of how many times I went back to John Lewis (but it was HALF PRICE!), and I now have enough fabric to make coordinating quilts for the entire family.
I based the pattern on this quilt and this one but went for a block size that was half way between the two. Border, backing and binding are all prints from the same range. (I love the border and may have bought several more metres on yet another trip to JL).
I quilted it using a grid on the diagonal, with a blue/green variegated cotton thread. I’ve forgotten the exact finished size but it was about 63 X 54 inches.
My sister and her family (who live in London) are in Australia now for a holiday so they took the quilt with them to deliver it in person. I had a call the other morning from Den to thank me. We talked for 2 minutes 39 seconds which is probably a record for longest ever phone call with her!
This is not the greatest photo of the quilt but I love Den’s smile!
The Winsome Run 