Mary - Uncovering an Old Block Design for a New Baby

Mary

48” x 48”

The matriarch of a close but spread out family. Cousins looking out for each other, uncles closer to brothers, babies of all ages. She did not live to see it all, but she knew what she set in motion. She created a life, a space, a family, that welcomed everyone. Her small frame held a big heart.

On of my husband’s cousins had her third baby last summer. I knew I would be gifting a quilt so was exploring my options of already made or at least pieced projects in the stash. But when the little guy arrived none of them felt quite right. With his name starting with the letter T, I decided to lean in to that and pulled a quilt block and book from the archives.

Back when Modern Quilting became something we capitalized, I contributed to a book called Modern Blocks: 99 Quilt Blocks from Your Favourite Designers. The block was called To a T, because it was essentially a giant capital T. But put together gave you some cool secondary designs. I made up a big quilt, that, after some snuggles at home, sent it off to a kid’s cancer camp. It was a lot of fun to play with it again.

I dug into my fabric - both scraps and stash - to make an eclectic but soft version of it. I’ve got some fabrics in there that must be at least 15 years old, and some much more recent. I love mixing it up and pairing things in unexpected ways. Like classic large florals with modern geometrics. Keeps it interesting and not flat.

I dug into my fabric - both scraps and stash - to make an eclectic but soft version of it. I’ve got some fabrics in there that must be at least 15 years old, and some much more recent. I love mixing it up and pairing things in unexpected ways. Like classic large florals with modern geometrics. Keeps it interesting and not flat. I finished it with a simple loopy quilting in cream. Nothing fancy, but enough to give it great texture for snuggling.

The binding? Well, she’s a bit extra. Mary did love some statement jewelry at times. Instead of just simple big stitch finishing I opted for Xs, but alternated colours. It’s a lot easier to do than you might think and really doesn’t take much longer than normal hand finishing. I used Valdani 8W for the stitching. The solid fabric for the binding it out of my norm, but it was what I had in the stash that worked well.

The baby in question - Taz - was born in July and it wasn’t until winter started that I got myself organized to make the quilt. Then I moved pretty quickly to finish it. After that I procrastinated for months on sending it to them. I just really hate going to the post office. These pictures were taken in January! Finally, Taz’s Mama sent me a kind text asking if I would make a quilt for Taz, as I had for their other two. Wasn’t she in luck? I washed the quilt, wrapped it safely, and sent it out a few days later. Who am I to turn down a sweet request for something I had already done?!?!

Oh, and the namesake for the quilt? Baby Taz’s great grandmother, Mary Ross.

100 Quilts for Kids - The Donation

The wonderful Katie at Swim, Bike, Quilt is hosting the 100 Quilts for Kids blog hop and quilt drive, along with the DC Modern Quilt Guild. Have you heard about it?

A series of posts from a tonne of bloggers highlighting great, and easy quilts. Perfect for easy construction or group work. In other words, perfect for quick, gorgeous quilts. Perfect for donation. Rather than a central quilt drive and delivery, however, she encourages us to make and donate a quilt locally. (After having done the work for Quilts Recover, I completely get this!)

Today, rather than highlight a specific quilt, I want to highlight the giving portion of this project.

Recently, my husband and his crew had the muddy pleasure of working on the new buildings at Camp Kindle. Camp Kindle is the summer camp built and run by the Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta. Nestled in the foothills, surrounded by aspen and spruce forests, the camp is a refuge for kids and families living with and surviving cancer.

We look at our own kids and know that we are tremendously lucky. We also know that should we face the challenges of cancer so directly that a place like Camp Kindle would be a lifesaver for all of us. As one family shared with us, camp is where you can go and not have cancer.

The camp ran all summer, even as the finishing touches remain. As Hubby and his crew grumbled about the mud and hour long drive to get to work each day the first campers started to arrive. And when they saw the first kids, some with IVs and chemo treatments, they immediately shut up. That's when Hubby came home and informed me that I needed to donate some quilts to the camp. He well knows the comfort of a quilt, of something handmade wrapped around you.

Today we were able to visit the camp. We gathered the kids, the rest of Hubby's employees and their families, and journeyed to the gorgeous fall vistas provided at Camp Kindle. The camp, Foundation, and many volunteers were hosting the trades that worked on the camp for a BBQ. It was merely wonderful to finally see the place and more importantly, speak to families and counsellors who truly make the camp what it is. Hubby and his colleagues may have used their tools to put the buildings up, but it is the campers and counsellors who make the camp what it is.

And I took a quilt with me. The camp staff decided that it would be best used in the Rekindle Clinic - the on-site medical facility. Luckily for the camp they do have 4 quilts for the 4 hospital beds - donated by the wives of a local fiddle group! But when they have to change over beds the quilts aren't available.  And having extras to cuddle are always welcome.

It is such a small thing, really, to make a donate a quilt. Early on in my quilt career I gave everything away - baby quilts, wedding gifts... Then I started hoarding the quilts because I couldn't pick a favourite. But now is the time to pass on some creations. And to keep doing so. Such a small thing.

The quilt I donated is the bold and rather easy To a T quilt. 

Made from a pattern I drafted for the Modern Blocks book.

To a T quilt

To a T Quilt

72'' by 72''

Block designed for 99 Modern Blocks.

Repeating the T design for the back. With some very, very girly floral fabric and a shot cotton.

Pink binding. Just for fun.

My sunshiny quilting design. Shows up great on the back. Really happy using the Aurifil 50 wt thread for quilting. First time of many to come.

This quilt is in heavy rotation already. Keeping me cozy as I steal the girls' bed for a quick nap just days before baby boy arrived. Keeping me warm as I ward off the chills of a fever from a bad cold. Keeping the Evil Genius snuggled as she works through the stress of having of a new brother.

Now that's a successful quilt.

T Quilt

See what you can do with just one little block?

This is the To a T block from Modern Blocks: 99 Quilt Blocks from Your Favourite Designers. Flip flopping the blocks gives you some secondary designs and a whole lot of movement in the finished top.

I think this is a great block to showcase some favourite fabrics, without resorting to simple squares. Play around with the scale of the fabrics for maximum impact - some large prints with some small ones too. Change up the colours to great effect, like rainbows or checkerboards. Stick with a single background to make the T pattern pop. Flip the values around - make the T pattern a light fabric and the background a dark.

This, I believe, is the best part about a block book. It's a starting point. And it's up to you to individualize the quilt. There is no walking into a quilt store, pointing at a picture, and saying, "I want to make THAT quilt." For those of you only venturing into their own quilt designs a block book is a great place to begin. You still have a pattern for instructional purposes, but you get to decide how to put it all together.

Find the book at a local quilt store near you or online.

And remember my need for warmth? Just in time for a dump of snow I finished this top in the oranges and beiges. It actually is perfect for my living room, but I think it will be a while before it gets basted and quilted. That Christmas thing is going to get in the way.