Tags
I did it! I stitched the last stitch on my massive by-hand quilt yesterday. What a job.
I think I should call it my “Holland Plate Quilt.” Dresden Plates are the name of the circular-star pattern, but since I finished this in Holland… it makes sense.
This is so not perfect. I know it looks pretty good from these pictures over the interwebs, but this thing is just riddled with mismatching seams, things that don’t line up, places I didn’t measure well enough. And my poor hand-quilting skills make me sure this is just going to fall apart. But hey, whatever. It’s done.
This is a queen size quilt, with 30 blocks. I mostly followed the Dotty for Dresden pattern found in Material Obsession II, with some of my own tweaks (probably would have been better just to stick to the pattern…).
I checked back on my own blog and found out that I ordered the fabric last February–this took me almost an entire year to make! With breaks. I cut out all the fabric and sewed the blocks and plates together in Portland (with a machine, not by hand) then I shipped everything out to Amsterdam, which took a few months to receive. Once I got it, I started appliqueing the dresden plates to the quilt. Then I made the “quilt sandwich” and started the actual quilting. Finally, yesterday, I finished!
I put a few fun secrets in, like the tiny Christmas tree I stitched on Christmas Day. And when I ran out of fabric for the border, I threw in a swatch of Liberty of London I bought in London. My favorite part was an afterthought, actually. I stitched a row of Amsterdam-inspired canal houses on one edge, and I’m pretty much in love with how that turned out. I also added a “signature” to the back.
I finished this just in time, as we are currently experiencing a cold snap all across Europe–a frozen wind from Siberia has been sweeping down and turning everything to ice. Seriously, it is. That’s not even a metaphor. This quilt was perfect to cuddle under last night, making everything warm and toasty.
I’m so in love. And do dang proud of myself for finishing!
The houses! That is so perfect. I love that detail. The rest of the quilt is amazing. What an accomplishment.
Thank you! The houses were such a happy addition, I really love them.
it is absolutely gorgeous! i have been thinking of doing a hand sewn quilt myself, and you’ve inspired me! lovely! marci xx
Oh it’s so beautiful and fun! I just love the colors and the pattern. What an accomplishment! Congrats!
I love it! I’ve only quilted a few things myself, but nothing by hand yet…if I only had the time {and patience}. Things are “sew” much better when they are homemade 🙂
It’s so pretty! Oh man, I think the most beautiful thing is having beautiful things that you can have forever. Workmanship looks really great, too. Congrats!
WOW~ that is gorgeous!