Being a mommy of three boys with 4 nephews and only two nieces, it's not very often I get the pleasure of making something girly. In fact, when the opportunity came up to make a friend of mine at work a baby girl quilt, I jumped at the chance! I do have some pinks and purples but they are very dated and mainly scraps. What's a girl to do? Go shopping!!
Aren't those just yummy?
There are a handful of traditional patterns I have yet to make that are on my "bucket quilt list". I have always wanted to make a double wedding ring and the dresden plate. Those two patterns are high on my list to make at some point in my life. The dresden plate pattern has always felt overly girlie to me so I haven't chosen it...until now.
The plates are machine appliqued with an invisible thread so it went together quickly. I kept the quilting very simple. A sweet flower in the center of the plate, a quarter inch stitching around each petal, a repeat of the sweet flower with a leaf vine connecting them around the plate and a simple zig-zag thru the pieced sashing.
Many of my projects in recent years have seemed to have a need for speed. I have always been a girl for tradition. Especially when it comes to quilting. Hand quilting and hand applique were the only way to go. Insert three young men into my life with a career that keeps me hopping and there just isn't time if I ever want to complete a quilt in less than a year...or several. I started machine quilting after "Thing 2" was born and haven't looked back. I hope that someday in my future I will be able to get back to quilting my work by hand. For now pieces will need to be done for speed, and functionality.
I hope this quilt sees many spit-ups, diaper blow-outs, drool and many, many washes. It's just as sweet as the baby girl who will use and abuse it.
